Marmoset

David and Karen:

My problem with that question is that it lumped "any arrest at all" up with prostitution and drug smuggling and eating babies and whatnot. So I underlined the first bit (the "any charge at all" bit" and ticked Yes.

What I've got is an Impaired Driving charge from 1992. But I think they just want to know whether or not to ask for your court documents. The interviewer asked me about it very briefly and casually, and said something about impaired driving charges being a big deal if you're immigrating TO Canada, but that it's not the biggest deal in the world in the US. Especially not when the charge is 14 years old and resulted in a $600 fine which I promptly paid.

So, basically, it sounds like you've got even less to worry about that I did.

I sent my checklist up to Montreal on May 22nd, heard back from them on August 21st, and had my interview on October 18th, if that helps at all. So that's about three months to hear back, and an interview date about two months after that.

I don't think there's any hard and fast rule about it. I visited my fiancée twice during the K-1 process -- once I went through easy as you please and once I had to get a B-2 visitor visa. Mind you, that time I was going for ten weeks, so I can't really fault them for wanting to make sure I left again.

Oh God, Montreal in the middle of October. Dante had to remove that bit from Inferno because it was freaking too many people out with its descriptions of savage, ice-cold rain and sunlight that was sifted through a cheesecloth made of spite and disdain.

Seven in the morning and dark as the inside of a postman's boot. At the intersection of Rue St-Alexandre and Blvd René Levesque squats a relatively unlabelled doorway, and in front of that doorway paces Marmoset -- in one hand a big accordian-folder (stuffed to capacity with forms, documents, photographs, and assorted papers) shifts uncomfortably in cold-numbed fingers next to a ridiculously oversized brown envelope that may or may not contain medical information and an x-ray. Our hero has no idea, they told him not to open it and "do not open it" has become the mantra of the past four months. In the other hand a cigarette does nothing to take his mind off the grim reality of Montreal at seven in the morning in October.

More applicants arrive, two couples, both from Toronto. They tell harrowing stories of leaving at midnight to drive here through the wind and the rain, rain so fierce that at some points in their journey it was impossible to read the signs on the highway. All agree that Montreal is a confusing place to be a driver, what with the "no right on a red" and the pedestrians who leap into traffic with their heads down and a palable aura of entitlement protecting them from what would be inevitable collision in any city but this.

VisaJourney has prepared Marmoset well. He knows what will happen next. And it does.

7:20 am the doors are unlocked by a cheerful girl in a uniform who says good morning and manages to shred the grim Montreal morning from our bones with her sunny demeanour. First through the door, first to the security desk, first through the metal detector, first down the stairs. The guards were all pleasant and happy and it didn't feel like going through a security checkpoint in a foreign consulate in the least. A great beginning.

So we sit on the chairs facing the elevator, waiting for permission to go further. Eight o'clock and one of the guys from upstairs removes the barrier thing and we all get on. Clever Marmoset knows the doors will open from the rear, he has already moved to the back. Clever Marmoset knows that Window 14 is to the left. Clever Marmoset is apparently the only one who knows this, because everyone else is eagerly bundled at the wrong side of the elevator and getting their Sprint Faces on. So when the 19th floor goes *ding* and the rear doors go *whoosh* Clever Marmoset is using his long gangly legs to best advantage. First in line at Window 14. Go me!

For about twenty minutes our hero stares into the reflection of Window 14, looking at the others in line. Eavesdropping. Hearing wonderful stories of the long wait, the infinite paperwork, the RFEs and the lawyers' fees and the fact that everyone thinks it is oh so worth it for love. Accordian-file and hilariously-giant envelope jockey for position still, and the memory of trying to stuff that damnable x-ray packet into a small travelling bag has become funny instead of frustrating at this point. A wry grin sneaks across Marmoset's face as he recalls the trouble of packing, and as it does the blind over Window 14 slides up and the girl behind the glass grins back.

C-1. So far, so good. First and first and first and first. VisaJourney rocks. The compiled experience and wisdom of hundreds, distilled into tips and tricks and then etched with a laser into the cortex so that every step is anticipated. Takes the stress out, makes the process glide. The second most important thing our hero has ever done, and it's smooth as silk thanks to VisaJourney's forums.

His number called, Marmoset wanders back to Window 9 where a friendly man rapid-fires the forms he wants to see. Birth certificate, passport, photos, letter of intent to marry, I-134, police certificate, copies and originals. He's helpful when it comes to the bits of the DS-156 left blank by a confused Canadian. He points to where signatures need to go, he slips a bit of paper through the tray and says "Go back to Window 14 and pay the $100, then return this slip here... I won't be here, but just stuff it in the slot." Total time elapsed, approximately 4 minutes. Preparation is everything, and the accordian-folder made it all so easy. He even asked for the stuff in the big Do Not Open It envelope, although he didn't want the x-ray. And if our hero had known that there were two smaller sealed Do Not Open It envelopes inside the big unwieldy one, the packing might have been a little easier. But oh well. There is a new mission to undertake, and no time to dwell on the vagaries of Fed Ex.

Back to 14 where five Andrew Jacksons are traded for a signature on the receipt. Back to 9 where the receipt gets left in the slot. Back to the waiting area where an unhappy old man recounts a two-year ordeal of bureacracy following him getting a little snarky with an equally snarky border officer. Just as the story is straying into Rant Territory the LED board flashes C1 and Nearly-Finished Marmoset offers wishes of good luck before stalking back down the hall in search of 8.

Whoops. There is no 8. The board has lied! Backtrack, backtrack, the dinger has dung again! But oho, there is a door with a big number eight on it. A keen scholar of Sherlock Holmes, Marmoset deduces in a flash that this must be the place. A clever lad, our Marmoset. Very difficult to hide something from him, especially if you label it clearly and put it right in the way of his eyes!

In the little room marked 8 a friendly man sits behind glass like a carnival fortune-teller machine. But instead of requiring a quarter, he is fed by information. He asks questions, you provide answers, and then he tells you whether or not your future involves travelling to America.

Like a horse at the gate, Marmoset is primed. The accordian-folder holds a vast collection of things from photogrpahs to engagement ring receipts, chat-log fragments wherein honeymoon plans are discussed, congratulatory cards from friends and family. There is even a little subfolder containing every movie ticket since 2002, because Marmoset is a silly and sentimental monkey and keeps things like that even though it makes his beloved roll her astonishingly blue eyes and call him a dork just before she kisses him for being such a sweetie.

But the man in the purple shirt (wonderfully-tailored, I might add -- I have many things to say about Montreal, but two are indisputable: They have excellent butchers and excellent tailors) was completely uninterested in the archived history of the accordian-folder. He merely asked how we met, commented on our 12-year age difference, wondered aloud where Santa Barbara was in relation to the Bay Area, and after about four minutes of this said words that didn't quite register the first time:

"Well, this is a very straightforward application. Everything's fine, I'm going to approve you. So here's a ticket to get you back in tomorrow to pick up your visa at Window 12 at 2:30, and you can go home and phone your fiancée and tell her the good news."

I'M SORRY WHAT CAN YOU SAY THAT AGAIN I'M AFRAID I HAD SOMETHING DELIGHTFUL IN MY EAR JUST NOW

And he laughed. He must have the greatest job in the world when he gets to approve things.

I know I'm not what you'd call a Heavy Participant here, but that's really because I find the answer to pretty much every question I have just by searching. This board is an incredible resource and (more importantly) a wonderful support group for all of us undergoing the immensely stressful visa process.

Anyway.

It's been about six weeks since I got my interview appointment letter. Go me!

I spent the summer in California, ten weeks with my fiancee, and other than having to fill out one of those "You give it back when you leave" things, it was all lovely. To be honest, I was a little concerned that I was pushing my luck... Showing up at the airport with a return ticket ten weeks in the future while you've got a pending K-1 and the next thing on the journey is the interview? I wouldn't have been in the least surprised if they'd laughed at me and told me to go home.

But they didn't, and we had a great summer, and when I got back there was still no interview letter waiting for me. So I phoned and Montreal said "Everything's cool, probably be a couple more weeks until you get the letter"... So I waited almost a couple more weeks before phoning again (because I'm impatient like that, you see) and they said "Looks like you're scheduled to come in on October 18th" and I said CAN YOU SAY THAT AGAIN PLEASE

So that was a good day. And the next day the letter was in the place where that guy with the bag of letters puts them. And so that was a good day too.

So yeah, here I be. 90% finished, but no less stress. Which is the way it is, I suppose.

Two and a half weeks from now I'll be sitting on the other side of a table from a guy who is saying "Okay, that's great. You're approved. Come back tomorrow and show them this and..." but I won't hear him because I'll be too busy saying NO LISTEN I'M NOT DONE TELLING YOU HOW GREAT THIS IS SERIOUSLY MAN and making hooting noises as I grin big enough to split my face in half.

All told I guess it will have taken 13 months or so, but that's with an RFE at the start and the Long Way of doing the police check. Roughest year of my life, and not likely to unroughen for a couple weeks more, but holy cow nearly done.

I did phone the Consulate on Tuesday to ask about the massive difference between the projected five month turnaround on the police certificate and the (at this point) three months left in the I-129f approval period, and they said they extend things pretty much automatically no problem.

I seem to remember something in the early work on the I-129f about making a second set of Letters of Intent to Marry and dating them closer to the interview and then signing them when the interview nears... I guess that's probably what is needed (or recommended) as far as making that extension happen.

90 days is better than 150, but it's still 85 more than either you or I would prefer.

Bottom line -- I keep telling myself -- is that no matter what nonsense the system throws up, we will eventually win. Because we aren't doing anything wrong or underhanded or sneaky, and it's all in the greater purpose of happiness.

Plus if hunger really is the best seasoning, I'm in for a magnificent feast at the end of all this.

Whoops.

Following a PM question from Knobby_Wheezer, and just so people don't get misinformed if they run across this post in a search in the future, it seems that the general limit for Canadian citizens visiting the USA without a visa is 180 days. And even that can be extended with special permission (you can apply to stay longer), it seems.

Mind you, the Customs and Border Protection site also makes it very clear that it's all up to the discretion of the POE officer, and that while there is no set period of time Canadians must wait before re-entering the USA if it appears that they're spending more time in America than Canada overall it's certainly up to the traveller to provide evidence that they aren't a de-facto US resident. That's when evidence of residence, employment, and other ties definitely become necessary.

I think where I got the 90 days thing from is the Visa Waiver Program, under which citizens of certain countries (UK included, which is likely where I got confused) do not need a visa for visits of up to 90 days -- with certain restrictions, of course. Canada is not a participant in the VWP, as there are different rules governing travel between us and the USA.

And just so I don't feel like a total gimp, please don't assume that I am any sort of authority on this subject. Everything to do with this kind of thing is highly situational and individual, and if anyone takes my understanding of things as gospel and gets in trouble because of differences in situation, I'm going to feel really bad.

But yeah, I just didn't want anyone to come across this thread in a search and assume they can automatically or only stay 90 days.

I've visited a couple of times during the process already. There have never been any problems at all, in fact the last time the POE officer was extremely friendly and even wished me good luck with the K1.

POEO: "What's the purpose of your visit?"

Me: "i'm going to see my fiancée."

POEO: "Oho! You must be working on your K1 then?"

Me: "Yep. We're actually now waiting on the I-129f approval."

POEO: "That's great. I hope everything works out for you."

Me: "Thanks."

POEO: "Okay, you're all set. Have a good time and good luck with the K1"

Admittedly, these were only four-week long trips and not three month, but I didn't really show any evidence of ties to Canada either. The only vague evidence they saw that I was coming back was the return ticket and paucity of luggage. I did have a letter from my employer and various other things demonstrating ties, but they never asked and I didn't offer.

But as you say, yes it's always a possibility that the POE officer decides to deny entry. That's their call to make, and I'm always prepared for the chance that I'm going to have to turn around and go home. Luckily, the actual POE in Toronto is in the airport itself, if I have understood correctly.

I've always been a firm believer in the "answer whatever questions they have completely and honestly and that's about the best you can do" school of thought. They see hundreds of people a day, so you know they've seen every bit of attempted evasion or lies or whatever, and it's just not worth it.

Besides, if I do end up going between now and the interview, I'll be doing it after I get my interview appointment letter, so that'll be another thing to show them and say "See? I have to come back. This thing right here is way more important to me than anything else, and I'm not about to take a chance on screwing it up."

I never assume they're going to let me in, even before the K1 process. I figure it's someone else's country, I'm not a citizen, and it's their right as a sovereign nation to decide who gets to visit. That's not to say it wouldn't be disappointing as all hell to be refused entry, but I know it's always a possiblility.

Doesn't seem to be any way to expedite, no. Seems a bit ridiculous to me that it takes 150 days... Do people really have to sit around for five months before they know if they've got a job that requires an RCMP check? Something's obviously horribly broken somewhere.

I'll have to call the Consulate on Tuesday to let them know that we'll definitely be needing the I-129f approval extended, but also to see perhaps if they will take it as assumed that I'll have the certificate by the end of July and set me an interview date around then. They say there's a two to four month wait for appointments, so it's not like I'd be trying to weasel an early date. Just an earlier date than two to four months from the end of July.

And if they say no they can't do that, and I have to wait until September or November (or two to four months past whenever I actually get the RCMP certificate back) then perhaps I'll see if I can take advantage of the fact that Canadians can stay in the USA for 90 days without needing a visa. At least that way I can spend from May until my interview date with my fiancée.

Either way, 150 days is a little bit on the far side of Completely Ridiculous.

Oh dammit... I've just realised that's going to mean I have to get the I-129f approval extended. Has anyone had to do that? Is it simply a case of speaking to a consular officer and getting them to put a note in my file or something?

Man, this is seven kinds of stress suddenly.

(also, sorry about repeated posts)

Okay, yeah. Five months.

I cannot quantify how much that sucks, but rest assured it sucks a whole lot.

Oho! Long Form Birth Certificate, gotcha.

I was born in England, so my birth certificate is equivalent to what we call a long form here... At least, it had better be. It's the original copy of the only thing the Registrar of Births and Deaths gave my parents, nice on paper with the seal and signature and all that stuff. If they want anything longer than that, they're out of luck.

Thanks for the linkage and the explanation, though.

As far as fingerprinting goes, I'm not really sure. I seem to remember something ion the local cops' website that said a regular old Clearance Certificate (one that says you've got no criminal record etc) requires no fingerprinting -- I guess because they just wouldn't have them on file anyway so what's the use? I do however have a DUI from thirteen or fourteen years ago, and according to Metro Toronto Policeman Thing if you have any sort of record you can't just get a Clearance Certificate -- you have to get the full-on jobbie through the Commisionaires or other approved service.

To be honest, I'm not even sure of that. I'll have to ask the nice information desk person tomorrow what my options or requirements are and see if they'll put me down for Fast As Fast Can Be Please.

This whole process tends to confuse me a bit, because I'm really not used to dealing with bureaucracy, I just go where they point, fill out what they give me, and pay whatever the fee is. And then I wait.

It's the Scarborough Commissionaires' office I'm going to be using, so that's nice to hear. I'm not sure what the difference between a fast one and the 5 month one is, though. I guess I'll find out tomorrow. I'm hoping that the four / five month wait is for when you just send it off to the RCMP yourself. (omg so hoping)

Um, what's an LFBC? Birth certificate thingie? I have my birth certificate all snugly nestled in my Envelope o' Stuff already, so that's all fine. Assuming that's what LFBC is.

As far as having it all ready by interview time goes, I was under the impression that you don't even get an interview date until they receive the checklist completed and signed?

I've only lived in Toronto and Ottawa, so it's all Ontario anyway... but Metro Toronto Police don't do fingerprinting for civil matters like visas. They have it all outsourced. And since I actually do have a conviction, I can't just get a clearance certificate -- apparently I have to get an RCMP-approved fingerprinting agency like the Commissionaires to provide me with a copy of my complete criminal record (according to the Metro Police site)

At this rate I'm going to have to get my passport renewed as well... Montreal requires a passport that's still valid for at least a year at the time of interview, and mine expires in May 2007.

Well, luckily the nearest Commissionaires' office is open until 1 pm on Saturdays, so that's where I'll be going tomorrow morning. The best I can do is to do what I can as fast as I can, and just hope that there's an Express Lane for government requests or something.

Received Packet 3 from Montreal this week (yay me), so we're one step closer...

Of course, being the stressy little monkey that I am, I've decided to fixate on the 150 day turn-around estimate given on the RCMP's and Commissionaires' sites regarding the fingerprint / Canada-wide record check.

Thing is that I do have a conviction from 1992 or 1993 or sometime like that for DUI, but absolutely nothing since... Trouble with that is that I require court documents which 1) will take about two weeks to get because stuff that old is archived and 2) requires the exact date of the court appearance (contrary to what two people at the court told me when I dragged myself all the way across Toronto in a horrific ice storm to fill out the form)

Anyway.

I'm wondering if anyone's got any info about how long it realistically takes for the Commissionaires to do the check in Toronto. 150 days seems very long, but if that's what it takes then that's what it'll take. I just really don't like the idea of having to wait that long and then being told "four weeks" by Montreal and having it end up being November by the time I can go. That'd be really pushing my frustration envelope.