AP_since_May2023

Have any of you here had a Name Change, and did your Consulate Officer ask you about how/why you changed your name?

Thinking back, I realized that the officer briefly asked about my name change, and now I'm wondering if my name was somehow flagged in CLASS and therefore my case is undergoing SAO for Visa Donkey.

On 2/27/2023 at 4:51 PM, Benham said:

My friends, the administrative processing has really caused problems for me. Do you think I can apply and get TN visa with my US job offer while my immigration visa is undergoing AP at Montreal? I'd really appreciate your thoughts on this Or if you can think of any other short term solution. 

(Btw, my case was NIW, so technically I didn't use my job offer for my EB2-NIW case)

Were you able to apply for a TN visa while your case is undergoing AP?

On 2/6/2023 at 9:50 AM, topman said:

We were put in Admin processing at the end of September, so about 4 months into AP, we filed for WOM. We were told by PIC law that the earliest one can apply for WOM is after 60 days. Hope this helps!

Can you share your timeline including when you filed WOM? Thanks! 

On 7/25/2023 at 2:10 PM, Gurpreet01 said:

My husband had an interview on july 6th and was given the Ds 5535. We filled the form the later day. Since then our last update is changing almost every day and the status is still refused. We are CR1 category. Is that a good thing that these updates are happening almost everyday, just wondering if someone else has experienced this. 

We got almost daily updates in the first two weeks after AP, then its radio silence until we contacted our Congressman. The case was updated after Congressman contacted NVC (received a generic response). It's been 45 days since our last update.

9 hours ago, justanamericangrl said:

Hey guys. I just wanted to post our timeline here in case anyone is interested. 
 

* Application to USCIS - April 19 2021

* USCIS approved, case transferred to NVC - April 29 2022

* NVC DQed - Oct 7 2022

* Interview date - Feb 3 2023

* Put in AP same day

* DS 5535 received 3 days later and form sent in Feb 9

* Writ filed May 2 2023

* Last defendant served May 11 - July 10 answer due 

* June 6 request to send passport

- arrived June 12

* Issued - June 21

* Documents received - June 23

 

Couple of notes:

 

Hacking law - who said criteria for filing more focused on date USCIS approved rather than when placed in admin processing. As long as 12 months from USCIS approval they seemed to think it was fine to file a writ. Part of the reason we went with them so we could file sooner.

 

Didn’t realize we couldn’t import our cars because they don’t have a tire pressure monitoring system. Something to look forward to.

 

Husband has received his social but still waiting on green card. Having some issues with drivers license because even though he’s a permanent resident now apparently when the lady looked him up it says his i94 expires in November so she issued his DL with expiry in Nov too. 
 

Other than that I’m glad it’s all over. Such an unfair process for everyone going through this. Good luck to anyone still dealing with AP!! Hope you guys get some good news soon!

Congrats! And thank you for posting your timeline. It will be very helpful for the rest of us behind you. Do you think WoM was what pushed your case forward, or it was already bound to happen regardless? Seems like right around the 96 day mark things started to happen.

9 hours ago, Gurpreet01 said:

My husband had an interview on july 6th and was given the Ds 5535. We filled the form the later day. Since then our last update is changing almost every day and the status is still refused. We are CR1 category. Is that a good thing that these updates are happening almost everyday, just wondering if someone else has experienced this. 

More updates is always better than none. 

Idk if anyone is interested, but I learnt a bit of information from this wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Security_Advisory_Opinion

On 7/21/2023 at 10:28 AM, Canucklehead said:

To make matters worse, my friend just got engaged to a girl from South East Asia. She barely speaks English and has no formal training of any kind and they got accepted in under a year. This system is absolutely broken when an uneducated ESL speaker can get in before a university educated native English speaker. Feeling super (removed) off today.

I share your pain. My spouse and I are in our late 20s and early 30s, highly educated, pay taxes in the highest bracket in the US, had our work featured on news outlets like CNBC and NYTimes, and still treated like ####### by the US immigration system. Some days we wonder if we are better off just abandoning this whole immigration process and moving to a different country instead. 

On 7/21/2023 at 3:35 PM, cala2023 said:

Hi everyone, been following this thread for a bit. My husband interviewed in Montreal on April 27 and was asked to fill out a DS-5535 which we submitted a few days later. The last update to his case was May 8 until one on July 11. We haven't heard anything from the embassy in regards to that update and it was unsolicited. Curious if anyone else that interviewed around that time has seen any updates or movement or if random updates with no communication is typical. We're over two years in at this point and super frustrated like the rest of you. 

I have a similar timeline. I was interviewed on May 10th and placed into AP then. 

I'm trying to figure out what caused us to go into AP. Is it the Military service and answering Yes to "Do you have any specialized skills or training, including firearms, explosives, nuclear, biological, or chemical experience?"

22 hours ago, throwitaway said:

More

From what I have heard, most AP clear in 3 months so I am staying hopeful. 

On 7/21/2023 at 5:41 PM, Jvisa said:

HI, guys please help me, my lawyer told me the priority date announced for August and is back to October 2017 for my category it means I must wait 2 years for my priority case be current and we must voluntary dismiss our case in court? It means I have to wait 2 years my case be currents just because I was in AP 

Wow, I am so sorry to hear that. This is so frustrating. 

3 hours ago, throwitaway said:

It only changes once printing process initiates, which is usually only when the passport is in their posession.

 

It changes from “Refused” to either “Ready” or “Administrative Processing”. Finally, when the visa is printing, it changes to “Issued”.

Thanks very much. So folks are checking just to see if there are any updates in the date of last update?

Any idea why some folks are stuck in AP for so long (>3 months)? Just comparing it to the DV applicants who are in AP, average case wait time appears be to 70+ days.

On 6/6/2023 at 3:30 PM, justanamericangrl said:

To update: my husband just got an email from the DOS asking for passport! 

When your husband got an email from DOS asking for his passport, did his online CEAC status change from "Refused" to another status?

On 7/15/2023 at 4:31 PM, techjargon said:

Did they ask for the original degrees during your interview? I have all the original transcripts but I only have a copy of the degrees. I am a little concerned now

I had my interview at the Singapore Consulate, but yes they requested for the original.

18 hours ago, techjargon said:

Do we need to carry our original Degree certificates and transcripts from undergraduate and graduate degrees to the interview or just a photocopy is enough? My original degree certificate is too big to fit in a folder. So, wondering if that is required to be taken to the interview.

You need your original degrees. Photocopy is not enough. My degree was bulky too but made it work with a larger envelope.

For those who got out of AP black hole, the CEAC status doesn’t actually change until passport is resubmitted to the Consulate right? So no point in checking daily? 

On 7/10/2023 at 9:36 AM, Pearljamm said:

I believe it takes a week to prepare everything but they won't file until you have reached 90 days . 

 

We have been assigned a judge and the lawyer sent copy of the complaint to the US attorney's office, so the 60 days countdown for them to response started last week. 

Which parties are named in the WOM?

On 7/6/2023 at 7:54 AM, Admitt said:

I am in a similar situation. Going to try that route as well to keep the pressure up!

Please keep us posted. I wasn't very successful going through Congress representative. They updated my case, and that's it.

On 6/6/2023 at 6:19 PM, Canucklehead said:

Crazy how some people get so many updates.

I had my interview Feb 1, 2023 

Filed DS-5535 on March 2, 2023

My last update of any kind was almost 3 months ago - Mar 17, 2023

 

Literally no criminal charges and they're not even looking at my damn application. Super frustrating

Any updates on your end? Seems like Farzady and JustAnAmericanGirl both got their cases around 90 days.

2 hours ago, Tikitch said:

Hey guys! Some good news finally! 
After 9 months since my interview, they requested a new medical and my passport.

Does this mean there's a light at the end of the tunnel?

Ill be calling Telus health to rebook another dreaded apointment cause I can't seem to do it online.

And checking courier instructions.

however, I am travelling till beginning of august, is it ok to book my appointment for after? And how long does it take after I do the test and send my passport to issue the visa?
 

Could there be any other obstacles or am I close to the end? Thanks for any insight. 

Sounds like you're close to the end! 

5 hours ago, Nbc16 said:

They literally sent me the same thing 10 minutes ago!

Was your email solicited or unsolicited? I.e. did you email them a few weeks prior or did they just email you out of the blue? Thanks.

3 hours ago, Admitt said:

I am still under AP with refused with no update since my interview. I happen to be going back to the consulate for my sons interview, has any one had experience with discussing with the officer there for a update on my case. or am I asking for trouble for bringing it up to them during my sons interview? 

I don't see any harm in bringing it up. Worst thing they can do to you is literally say to you: "Your case is still under administrative processing".

How long have you been in AP?

17 hours ago, LYV said:

Hi There,

 

I’ve been following along silently for a couple weeks. It’s nice to be able to read everyone stories for some comfort that we’re not alone on this. My husband and I went for our interview for our EB-1A visa May 26th 2023. We had no idea the DS5535 was even an option. I knew some people got chosen for extended processing but anything I saw was the person had been refused entry to the states before. That there was a reason. For us there is no reason. Our lawyer didn’t prepare us for this possibility. It’s been 5 years since my husband started the process, he added me on his and it’s been two years for me. Our lawyer said you’re already approved so there shouldn’t be a problem. We walked into that embassy happy as clams. We assumed when answering questions just to answer simply and not extrapolate  which I now think was the mistake. But usually at border crossings that’s how you answer so it’s what we did. We answered about 3 or 4 basic very conversational almost questions of the officer. She was super nice.
 

She said, So what will you be doing in the states? My husband answers I’ll be working in the industry in LA., (I didn’t answer here and maybe I should have about my job etc but she was on to the next question)

 

Have you been working on anything recently? Yes (listed tv show name he is working on) 

 

Have you lived anywhere outside of the US or Canada? No 

 

Where have you travelled to over the last 5 years? Listed South Africa, USA, Costa Rica, Mexico, and Portugal. 
 

My husband did most of the talking. Not for any reason it just kind of happened that way. I’m not sure if I should’ve spoke up more. She said okay I’m going to

give your passports back to you. We looked shell shocked. And she said you’ve been randomly selected for extensive processing. This happens sometimes. I said something to my husband about how he answered one of the questions. She heard and said it was nothing that you said. It typically takes two weeks for processing. She said I could keep your passports but sometimes it takes longer so I’m going to give them back. 
 

That was it. We went back to the hotel and got the email in the afternoon. It took us almost 2 weeks to fill everything out because we’ve travelled a lot and I grew up in a border town and a lot of my family is in the states so I had to figure out as many times as I could every time I went to the states (usually 5 times a year or more) Plus backpacking through Europe after college and various other trips. So we sent it in on June 7, 2023. Two weeks has past and nothing. I mean I didn’t expect it since what I’ve seen on here but I think my husband wanted to be hopeful. I’m 37 and we are wanting to start a family soon. It’s so hard to do that with this looming. I think I read on here or somewhere else that someone had a baby while on DS5535 and then the embassy wanted another interview with in Montreal with the 7 month old baby present. I don’t want to complicate things more. But who knows how long this will take.
 

I also found this company on YouTube who is made up of ex-immigration officers and it made me even more upset that I just trusted the lawyer and didn’t do more research which I usually always do crazy too much research with stuff like this. They said that when you go there the officer has never seen you case before. That if you bring extra proof and stuff in that you should find ways to give as much information as possible to the officer because they start at “this person does not deserve to be approved” and you are basically convincing them otherwise! Which I thought was insane. Why do you go through all the paperwork and approval process then? It makes no sense… and if that’s what they want more extrapolated answers then why isn’t this communicated in any way? 
 

So now we are on this waited game again. Hoping it’s going faster now post pandemic but we’ll see I guess. I was wondering has anyone started an Excel sheet for tracking everyone’s cases and dates, and approvals? I know they do that on other threads for the first part of the approval process to kind of get an idea of where they might be in the line of approvals.  

I believe we all share the same experience. We had thought that the interview was going to be the final step, only to be slapped in the face by AP...

On 6/21/2023 at 4:15 PM, justanamericangrl said:

Just wanted to update my husbands status changed to issued today! Says passport should be returned within 10 business days. Hope you get some good news soon! Can’t be much longer!

 

edit to add I’ll update again soon with our whole timeline in case anyone is interested. 

Congrats!! Did you manage to obtain another police check before the visa was issued, since your previous one expired? 

26 minutes ago, Admitt said:

Thanks @LAMA9, Unfortunately i was placed under AP for DS-5335. My interview went well and the agent told me i was approved for a green card  just their "computer "for AP was down and they would be sending me a confirmation email. All i got was a email for AP and submit a DS5335 and that they would be sending back my passport (without my green card).

 

Wish there was someone to talk to.

 

They actually send you the DS-5535 form to complete?

I had a similar situation as yours. Passport collected at Embassy, but received an email a few hours later to come collect my passport.

2 minutes ago, throwitaway said:

Yeah, I haven’t seen cases at MTL clear in that time frame organically, at least not for a few years now. I think in the original thread there were maybe a couple. At other embassies DS-5535 can clear quickly, in Pakistan some clear in a month. 

I seem to have a different understanding based on what the consulate officer told me. He said that all APs of the same category go to the same place, regardless of Embassy location. There are of course multiple different reasons for AP, including as simple as a missing document or as serious as background check due to national security risk. If it is the latter, then all of those go through the same lineup. 

7 minutes ago, throwitaway said:

- I haven’t seen < 3 months at MTL. 

 

- Many, including myself. 

Both Farzady and justanamericangrl received their response in <4 months but I guess this is because of their WoM