LAMA9

Did you receive 5535? This thread is specifically for 5535 AP, as it can differ greatly from standard 221g AP. 

We actually got an email from the Embassy saying that the AP was complete and that an officer would be adjudicating the visa again. No timeline as for when that will happen but they said they will contact us if they need anything. Does this mean the DS 5535 has been concluded? 
 
We contacted a State Senator but no communication from them, so unknown if that played any role in the email we received. 

8 months. I should have signed with a lawyer two months ago but I wanted to give m more time due to the holidays.
 
I do recall and I struggled with similar dilemmas as you did also I signed with PIC 

Well I’ve done it and signed an agreement to move forward with a WOM. I wish I’d done it sooner just the act of signing has been a huge relief 

I am rooting for all of you to settle this nightmare ASAP. I have received my passport with the stamp from the consulate and I am good to go at the time of my choosing. A lot to settle up here first however. I am thinking about entering for a few days and coming back, although I am apprehensive about CBP giving me a hard time about not just moving down in one shot. Some people have reported being hassled by them when entering...

@ice-qube Congrats buddy!!!  YOU MADE IT  - Get packing!!
You should get your tracking by tomorrow if you haven't gotten it already and passport by Monday/Tuesday!   
Really happy for you, it's been a long road indeed.  

No need to apologize, almost everyone  here has had the same or very similar situation happen to them. 
 
When you’re placed in AP, it very much appears that Montreal does a SAO (Security Advisory Opinion) which is essentially what 5535 is. 
 
Montreal has a reputation for doing this more than almost any other consulate in the world, and nobody knows exactly why. There have been theories, but honestly the thing that makes the most sense to me is that Canada is very easy to immigrate to. There are people that move to Canada just to be closer to America. 
 
Basically whenever you’re placed in AP at Montreal, there are two “pathways” your AP goes. One is with your consular officer, keeping note of your case and what they need to follow up on. The other is DOS background check. 
 
This seems to have been the cause of everyone’s issues, and became very obvious when the Afghanistan withdrawal took over as priority #1 over any other background check. Thousands of visas put into a pile that wasn’t moving, and then 1-2 years of cases backed up by putting them all into the “we’ll do this after the background check” pile. 
 
In this group the wait time varies from 4 months to over a year. Most of the movement has been due to lawsuits, with the occasional organic case movement. 
Obviously it’s up to you, but if you want to have this resolved in the next few months, I would recommend filing a lawsuit if you can. 
 
A lawsuit guarantees something will happen, waiting could be another year. 
 
I’m very pro-lawsuit after experiencing it here, in DV, and in multiple visa categories. The most happy people are the ones that file a lawsuit and almost everyone wishes they did it earlier. 

Got our tracking number today so I guess it's legit. Will post more next week once I have the visa in hand.

Thanks, I am actually having trouble believing it. They didn't ask for an updated medical because we are still within 6 months of the initial one.

Does anyone know if an issued status on CEAC will ever be a false alarm? We were put into AP DS-5535 last fall and it has been refused ever since, but now it reads as issued as of today.
 
Thanks

I am a bit shocked. I am not sure how to react. But it's good that FINALLY it is going to be done!

Ladies, gentlemen, others, I am pleased to announce that 3.5 years and a $5,000 USD mandamus suit later, we have lift-off.
 

Congrats @addpeace!  Super exciting for you - just think 3-4 months from now you will be on the other side of this nightmare!  Let me know if you would like to be added to our WOM group chat and to the tracker spreadsheet!  It's a great view of what you can expect over the next few months . 

Just approved our complaint today! It should be filed within the next 14 days. *fingers crossed*
 
 
Also the end is in site Ice-qube! Stay strong!

This afternoon I have sent my passport and supporting items to Montreal. One step closer. Just hoping that re-opening the DS-260 not another dirty trick for delaying me; I am somewhat paranoid at this point. Otherwise, it felt good.

Obviously it makes zero sense!

~~21 posts have been removed for derailing this thread. Advocating working in the US on a Tourist visa and using that visa  defacto living in the US is a violation of the TOS. Condone or instruct, either directly or indirectly, others on how to commit fraudulent or illegal immigration activities in any way, shape, manner or method.~~

Source for this? As far as I know Canadians should not exceed 6 months in a 12 month period, the presence is not reset upon return to Canada i.e; stay for 6 months, come back to Canada and return to the US with a new 6 month allowance. 
Diversity 

Never mind. Just looked at the tracker, it has all the info. Thanks!

Well, the trigger has been pulled. Contract and payment sent into Hacking Law to start the WOM. Ooftah. My bank account hurts. 

Congrats @ice-qube!!!  You are almost there!  You will get a 30-60 day extension (60 days is most common) request from the defense, it will be granted by the judge, and if we go by the data of our previous cases, your visa will be issued ~4-8 weeks after they receive all of your requested documents!  HOME STRETCH. START PLANNING YOUR RELO!   The suit is working exactly how it is supposed to.   So happy for you!

Hi everyone-
 
I have mostly been a lurker in this thread since my husband and I got put into AP and given the DS5535 on August 1st 2022. We are officially signing with Hacking Law firm tomorrow, but I just wanted to let everyone know all the steps we have taken and our timeline so far.
Steps:
Emailed Montreal consulate every week since interview on Aug 1st.
Same copy paste emails Only email that actually was different was when I requested for our case to be reviewed by a manger or higher official. This email stated that asking for our passport back does not stop our case from processing. (We have never requested it back though) Let them know 2 weeks ago that we were contemplating filing a Writ of Mandamus. (no response so far) Contacted our MN senator and local congresswoman:
Senator (never responded) Congresswoman They sent 2 inquires to Montreal 1 was the same copy paste response 1 they never got back to them Gave me a list of immigration lawyers I could reach out to. Mailed hand letters to:
POTUS* (3 weeks to respond) VPOTUS* (1 month to respond) Sec. of State* (3 months to respond) US Consulate General of Montreal (No response) Homeland security* (2 weeks to respond) All the * letters were forwarded to USCIS who contacted us saying they would look into our case and we would receive a response in 14 days. The response came 5 days later saying they could not help us since this was a state department issue. They gave us a link to put in a email inquiry to the State department, which we did. 10 days later we got a response from the state department saying this is a consulate issue and to try contacting them. (These are all sent from No reply emails as well, so you can never talk to the same person or respond to them)
 
We have spoken to 3 local immigration attorneys who have basically all said the same thing. "Trinidad, Islamabad, and Montreal are the worst consulates to immigrate through right now." they also said "AP is getting out of hand, and with so many illegal immigrates coming in the families in DS5535 are pushed back because the illegal immigrate checks use the same system for background checks. (since they are in the country already I guess theirs take priority)"  They have all reviewed our case and found no red flags or any reason that we should have triggered AP let alone DS5535.
 
Thus with our 6th month mark coming up on Feb 1st Lex and I have decided to go the WOM route. Hacking Immigration has quoted us $5000 for the process. With 2 different payment options. $3000 down payment and the final 2000 paid over 4 months ($500 a month), or Pay full upfront and get $500 off, so $4500. Hopefully we are able to get out of this before the end of summer as my husband is in school and transitioning in the middle of a semester will be rough.
 
I wish everyone luck with their cases and their status updates.
 

Congrats @ice-qube!!!  You are almost there!  You will get a 30-60 day extension (60 days is most common) request from the defense, it will be granted by the judge, and if we go by the data of our previous cases, your visa will be issued ~4-8 weeks after they receive all of your requested documents!  HOME STRETCH. START PLANNING YOUR RELO!   The suit is working exactly how it is supposed to.   So happy for you!

Clipper Ship Supply Inc is the third party sorting facility that receives our additional documents. (514) 937-9561 is their number. It can't hurt to call them if that doesn't work then I would email the consulate (montreal-iv-dv@state.gov). I'm sorry that you're going through this. I can't imagine the frustration you're experiencing.

All,
Late December Consulate requested us to redo our medicals, update our DS-260, mail our passports and new photos which we did immediately. Using their courier service (Canada post express) we mailed our passport, it was suppose to be delivered on Jan. 3rd and Canada post tacker last update shows package arrived at Montreal on Dec 30th but does not show it was delivered. As of last week, we have been following up with Canada post to see what is the actual status is, first they said they'll look into it and opened a ticket for us, when, we called back the next day to follow-up, we were told since we are not the Sender and this is actually a return label, they are not providing information to us and they closed the ticket . Although these are our passports, we have the receipt of online payment and sender address is our home address, they still consider consulate as the Sender. They said to ask Consulate to follow up with them!!!! Just wondering if anyone heard of a situation like this. One nightmare after the other.