US2197

Hello everyone,

How many days have you all waited once passport and medical get delivered?

47 minutes ago, BatmanFlow said:

we did my moms medical yesterday at Dr Lyndon

and today my sister mailed out the passport, updated police cert, updated DS 260 bar code page, passport pics, and updated I864 affidavit of support form along with 2021 tax transcript. they asked a lot of stuff!

 

now its waiting time for them to get all this and process it. hopefully not too long of a wait

 

no WOM

What was the address you guys mailed it to? 

8 hours ago, LAMA9 said:

This is such amazing news!  FINALLY your Mom can join the rest of you (permanently).  Out of all the cases, I always found yours the most peculiar.  And without a WOM!  Hurrah!  @BatmanFlow!  The end is near.  

Which address do we send in passports? and do we have to send in the DS 260 updated page or just submit it?

On 9/10/2022 at 7:02 AM, WishIWasntHere said:

Y’all, we did it! We got the visa, now on to prepare for our move.

 

I really wish each and every one of you luck and speediness in the process. 
 

 

How many weeks did the WOM approval take? 

From filing to approval? 

On 8/27/2022 at 10:10 AM, Moe&Yas said:

Hey Everyone,

I finally received my visa and passport back this week. We are so relieved and still can`t believe that we can finally be reunited as a family. I had filed for a WOM with Goldstein end of May. I had to do an updated Medical which took the Consulate about 2 weeks to approve.  I am wishing that all of you will also be approved soon and that you will be reunited with your family.
 

How long did it take to get approval from when you filed the WOM? 

1 hour ago, CanNursetoUS said:

We were out of Montreal, took a total of 272 days from the time of our interview

Which lawyer I meant? And how many days for the whole WOM process? from filing WOM to ending?

6 hours ago, CanNursetoUS said:

Our visas have finally been issued!!! Tracking has been provided, what a hell of a journey this has been, I wish nothing but the best for everyone in this thread!!! 

 

@ice-qube I'll be watching for your approval 🙌

Which immigration office did you go with again? how many days did It take?

6 hours ago, LAMA9 said:

And more from my lawyer: 

 

"Another option- and likely the best in light of the facts- Brian Green the attorney that I discussed this with reached out to another colleague of his who has been hosting zoom informational meetings regarding group mandamus options, again not the class action but another way to get the cases moving at a lower cost than individual filings, plus they usually get assigned to one judge who will then consolidate (as I understand it).  Do you think that if we put together a zoom Q&A for this that folks may be interested in learning more about it?"

__________

How many people here would be interested?  I definitely could facilitate  what she is suggesting for the group here as a start.  Please let me know!  

I am!! 

19 hours ago, ohmygod said:

My EB got updated on April 20th, have not heard after that. 

Yah same here. I got hopeful that maybe we will receive something but nope! 

58 minutes ago, WishIWasntHere said:

I heard talk once of a group WOM… I can’t really afford one on my own without basically crowdfunding at this point but how many of us would be willing to do a group situation I saw people writing about? I’m not a great organizer but I’d be in for sure. 

Yah I was interested in that too. I don't know what happened to that. When I make an appointment I'll ask them if they can do a group WOW for us.

4 hours ago, CanNursetoUS said:

Lots of talk on here lately!! Especially about the WOM. My husband and I just had a meeting with Joshua Goldstein and his team and we are filing a WOM now also. Great to hear about the success from him!!! 

Yah can we get an idea about how much it is. I have also looked into it and would like some estimates. I know they have said everyones cost differs depending on each case as well. We are at almost 6 months. 

21 hours ago, hkn1 said:

Hi all,

So sorry to hear that there hasn't been much update for those of us hit with the DS Questionnaire since late 2021....my husband ended up getting a job in Ontario and he's pursuing Canadian PR now. We can't afford to keep waiting in AP Hell so we're going through with this backup plan of him moving to Canada. I know it's not much of an update that y'all would want to hear to keep the hope alive, but this is the new route we are taking as it stands. My interview was back in early November 2021; haven't had a SINGLE update on my case since December 2021, literally almost five months ago. We've been in the dark since then and every email asking for updates has been met with a robo reply. Hope everybody is taking care, and stay strong no matter how you choose to manage immigration frustration! Wishing better news to come!

What is the process of getting a job there? Did He have to get a work permit first or job? 

5 hours ago, candyg said:

I totally feel your pain! I am still here (im)patiently waiting. I try not to go on the site more than twice a day...that's my attempt at self-control lol. But seeing that you really haven't seen your wife in so long, I can confirm that you can travel to the US while in AP because that is exactly what I did! I am currently in the US with my spouse got here yesterday and I had no issues flying from Toronto. The border officer only asked me who is sponsoring who and I said my husband is sponsoring me and I am just waiting for the process to finish and that was that. I was nervous and I know it was a huge gamble but I haven't seen my spouse for almost a year and this AP process is unethical so I thought to try to enter the US and I did! Maybe you can go and see your wife and everyone else in this blackhole can see their spouses while we still wait. 

Did they ask you for proof of marriage or anything? 

Just now, US2197 said:

I asked my representative to ask consulate  about spouse traveling while in processing. This is the response we got. 

 

 

Although there is no provision in U.S. law that specifically precludes admission to the US for an applicant with a pending immigrant visa case, such an applicant must still demonstrate clear ties to a continuing life overseas and evidence of an intent to remain only temporarily in the United States. Granting admission to the USA is the exclusive discretion of the Department of Homeland Security/Customs and Border Protection (DHS/CBP) officer at the Port of Entry. 

Please contact CBP for further inquiries on U.S. border crossing requirements.

They seem to be responding much faster when a representative is emailing them. And here it seems  they actually have read it and found a response. 

I asked my representative to ask consulate  about spouse traveling while in processing. This is the response we got. 

Although there is no provision in U.S. law that specifically precludes admission to the US for an applicant with a pending immigrant visa case, such an applicant must still demonstrate clear ties to a continuing life overseas and evidence of an intent to remain only temporarily in the United States. Granting admission to the USA is the exclusive discretion of the Department of Homeland Security/Customs and Border Protection (DHS/CBP) officer at the Port of Entry. 

Please contact CBP for further inquiries on U.S. border crossing requirements.

1 hour ago, Redie said:

How frustrating, I received the same. Can I ask if you reached out to your senator or congressman/woman?

I reached out to my congressman. 

So I received a response from my representative. They pretty much gave her the same response I have been getting in emails. 

9 minutes ago, CAN_PA said:

So I contacted our State Representative today and she took on our case. We had to fill out a Privacy Release form (via email) and send in whatever documents that pertained to our case (ie. Form 221g). She forwarded our documents to the Immigration Bureau. I don't know if it's the Montreal Consulate or an entirely new branch that handles internal issues. I suspect it may take up to a week or so to hear back from either one, but here's hoping...I don't think it hurts to contact your Representative earlier than 60 days if your CO's estimate time was much less. We explained in the email that our CO's ETA was 2-3 weeks and it's now reaching 8 weeks. Hope this helps.

I also did the same yesterday. Let's see if that moves anything along. We are on day 50 now. 

Can you add me to the data sheet.

@Danii

Our timeline:

Visa type: IR1/Cr1 

Interview Date: Nov 16

DS5535 Sent: Nov 17

Additional documents required: No

12 minutes ago, US2197 said:

Congrats Danii. Were you given a 221g? or the Ds5535? 

Where do we find our reps? steps? 

And how much information did you include in your letter to the congressman? 

Congrats Danii. Were you given a 221g? or the Ds5535? 

Where do we find our reps? steps? 

11 minutes ago, From_CAN_2_US said:

By visitor visa, do you mean B1/B2?

 

B1/B2 visas are issued for a validity of 10 years. It allows one to visit the US multiple times over these ten years for purposes of tourism or business. It is up to the CPB officer to grant entry though. The CPB officer assesses the applicant and their situation at the time they show up at the border (which may be different from when the B1/B2 visa was granted), and decides whether the person, demonstrates they are visiting for the said purpose of the visa - tourism/ business. If there is any suspicion it is not for that purpose and the person wants to enter with the immigrant intent (purpose to live in the states), the CPB officer has the authority to deny entry.

A person with strong ties to the US, such as an American spouse, can be suspected of having immigrant intent, and that’s why we sometimes see spouses denied entry even if they actually only want to visit. When someone is in AP waiting for an immigrant visa to be approved, the CPB officer may similarly suspect that the applicant wants to enter the US with an intention to live there with their spouse.

 

Yes, it is a b1/b2. 

Is Ap status same as getting the DS 5535 form?

7 hours ago, Danii said:

I have spoke with someone who was able to cross 5+ times while in AP. It's kind of the same situation we were in while waiting for i130 approval/interview letter. Some people advise against it as it is possible that you can be turned around at the border, which could hurt your case (not sure exactly how, but some people in the past who were turned away were placed into AP after their interview. Not sure what the consequences would be if you're already in AP, perhaps longer background check time?) If you do attempt to cross, make sure you have proof of ties to Canada (proof of home ownership/lease, letter from work, return ticket etc). At the end of the day, whether you are admitted depends on the border officer as there are no hard rules here. It's definitely a risky move but not illegal. 

10 hours ago, Frankphoto said:

I visited my wife for xmas 23-30 without any issues (despite my activity here, I am just the petitioner)

However when I was on the phone with the caseworker at my local congresswoman's office, she advised strongly against her visiting me here in the USA, despite it being technically legal or whatever. She just said the border agent would likely see it in a negative light or assume she was going to overstay or whatever. She has visited me in the US frequently and it's true that occasionally a border agent will be incredibly harsh to her for whatever reason, take her in the back for extended questioning, etc. She is a French citizen in Canada on a work visa, just stating since all the discussion about Pakistan and such. We have no clue why we received the DS-5535- if USA travel triggers it then maybe that, but **** what's so odd about visiting your spouse

Even if they have a visitor Visa to U.S, should it still be a problem? 

Just doesn't make sense no why they would have an issue. 

Does anyone know if our spouse can travel to see us while waiting for this to get solved? 

what does AP mean? It said refusal on his email.