Canucklehead

For all those new here, I've been in AP for almost 15 months. I still have not been asked for anything whatsoever. I have zero criminal record and no reasonable reason why this should be happening, yet here we are. This system is broken and broken bad. More than likely you can expect at least a year and a half to even hear back anything. They do not care about you. At all. My advice as someone who has been here - seriously consider if you even want this. At this point I'm almost ready to just give up. I don't feel wanted by this country at all. I don't feel supported in any way from the embassy and I honestly regret that I've wasted so much of my life waiting for this. If I had known how long this would take, I truthfully never would have even bothered trying to move to the USA. Time with family members is worth so much more than the separation and pain that this process causes to so many people. People who would be upstanding and valuable members to US society. As I said, you do you, but don't expect to hear anything for a year and a half from your interview date. It's pessimistic but unfortunately realistic too. In the eyes of the US Immigration system, you are not special and nothing you do can speed this up. Emails don't work and neither do WOMs. It doesn't matter if you have kids or anything either. You are nothing but a number in an ever growing pile of bureaucratic BS.

No updates whatsoever.

Me too - it's already been over 14 months since my interview. 14 months that I could have been living with my spouse, moving forward with my career, building a life together. Instead I've spent 14 months not doing any of those things and that is time that I will NEVER get back. Honestly this entire process has been nothing short of needless emotional and mental torture.

What do you mean by it takes 12-14 months for a new medical request?

The absolute worst part of this right now is the fact that no one has even been asked for their passport back in months, let alone issued a visa. We were moving along at a delayed, though consistent manner for a while and now nothing has happened for months. Emails are also not being responded to. I honestly feel like I caught the absolute worst timing imaginable. The people who interviewed just a few weeks before me have had their visa for months now. Yet I'm still sitting in limbo with no updates in over 4 months. Sorry for the rant but I'm just so ###### over waiting.

No one on the spreadsheet interviewed before me (Feb 2023). I've been in AP for over a year with zero signs of movement any time recently. Expect it to be over a year - if anything longer since they don't even seem to be processing anyone now. There is absolutely nothing you can do either. Welcome to the black hole of waiting.

66,000 people being reviewed by 37 people...no wonder it's taking so long.

Our only thoughts are it could be my travel history (I've lived in a few different countries besides Canada and traveled to quite a few more) or the fact I hold dual citizenship (Canadian born and raised but also have British through my Dad). Seems a lot of people who get placed into this holding pattern have one of those (or both) as well, but I was never explicitly told why. Edit: I also don't think it's always the CO's call...many people on here think the system generates it based on some level of variables/chance.

Yep - had my interview in Feb 2023. To make matters even worse, I have not even had a case update since November 2023 (almost 4 months ago). I sent another email today (my previous 3 received zero response), so I'm not expecting a response, but all I can do is hope at least one decent person looks at it and is kind enough to look into my file. Honestly I've never felt so hopeless this entire process. From everything we've seen on here it seems like processing times are getting slower and nothing I have seen or read gives me any hope this process will speed up any time soon.

Just curious, has anyone received an email from montreal-IV-DV@state.gov in the past 2 months that is not just the standard auto-reply? I have sent 3 emails since November 2023 and have received nothing but auto replies. Also looking at the spreadsheet - https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1jV7rzX2eCRVoEDRhOtN9a6hDoHRLNEf1P3ZGZbQ0_Dc/edit#gid=0 it seems that we are officially taking longer than it was before. It's almost as if they're not doing anything to do with immigrant visas at Montreal at all....

As stated, visiting is OK and you do not need to notify embassy. Just remember to not stay over 6 months in a 12 month period and it is always good practice to have a return flight, pack relatively light and be transparent and honest with questions asked by the border guard.

You'd be wise to follow this advice.

They definitely have the ability to see all of your border crossings to USA. If/when you receive a DS5355 (hopefully you don't), this website is super useful for tracking your travel history to the USA.

Great response. Also has anyone who has emailed Montreal in the last few months gotten an email response? My last 3 emails have not been responded to, nor has my case been updated.

Hey there, nope it's still November 16, 2023 unfortunately. I have emailed them 3 times since that update and haven't received any emails back whatsoever. For context, my last update (Nov 16) corresponded to the last time I received a generic email response, so I'm not confident in the slightest they've even looked at my file in the last 3 months.

I don't know if I should be happy or sad that no one had an earlier interview date than me on here...🤷‍♂️

Never knew this! Thanks for sharing.

I'm just curious how the school had approved your application to study there without proof that you held a valid visa? Studying in a financial institution without a valid student visa would be illegal.

I would definitely hold off on mailing that passport in until you know for sure what it happening with your application. Is a family member sponsoring you to move to the states (i.e. a spouse?). This would mean you're applying for an IR-1 or CR-1 visa, depending who is sponsoring you. From the sounds of your post (and the fact they asked for a travel history), I'm fairly certain you were given a DS-5535. I'm unsure how you were planning on going to the USA in a few months as a student with no visa though. You are able to travel as a Canadian, but studying in an academic institution would require a student visa.

Sorry to hear you've joined the club. Myself and a few others on here had interviews in February and we have still not even been asked for our passport back (over 1 year). Once the passport actually gets sent its been looking like about 3 months to finally get it back with visa. If this trend continues you are most likely looking at a year and a half til visa in hand. However, this may improve and it could be less! If you are starting school in the states soon, are you going to be on a student visa? I wouldn't send your passport back to embassy until they request it (it seems like you currently have it).

For sure, I'm sure most of them are just as sick of the situation as we are haha.

The person who responded to you never said that they never tell anyone. They said it is rare that they give out this info, which it is. Don't bring negative energy into this forum.

Congratulations! Hope you get your passport soon!

I sent one about 3 weeks ago also mentioning much the same haha - no response or update. I may send another one today highlighting my waiting time as well!

Interviewed Feb 1, 2023. My last update remains November 13, 2023 and I am pretty sure that's just because they gave me a canned response that day replying to an email I'd sent asking for an update. For all those who recently got put into same process, my suggestions are: Don't plan on getting your green card any time in the next year at the very least (not being harsh, just being realistic). You can still visit your spouse so long as your true intention is solely to visit and you do not overstay. I.e. Have a return flight booked, don't fly with 3 cases of luggage for a 2 week trip. Writing to politicians accomplishes nothing Filing a WOM does nothing (save your money and use it for trips instead) Don't be afraid to talk to friends and family about your situation. I was ashamed for a while to talk about it, but really this has nothing to do with you messing up and everything to do with bureaucratic processes. Their support and empathy can help. Do try to make trips to visit each other if possible. I realize this can be hard as many people have jobs/children. However having a trip to look forward to so that you can see your loved ones can really help mental health. Work on yourself in the meantime. Eat healthier, workout, learn a new skill. Don't let yourself become stagnant just because your application becomes stagnant. Hope this helps!