shewolf

I miss ketchup chips!! They don't make them here in the US..

Straight from the director of the Visa Service Center:

Good stuff

Joint bank accounts, joint tax returns, joint ownership of property, cars. Joint leases. Joint insurance. Named as beneficiaries on life insurance and medical insurance. Joint credit cards. Any other joining of financial interests (the theory is that if one is willing to risk your property and money the relationship is more likely valid) Government documents showing common address, drivers lisence, etc. Photos are good, kind of expected, but NOT primary evidence.

Children?

Yes and no. If you just had a child together and the man is nothing more than a sperm donor...no. IF you have children, whether "together" or with a blended family and there is evidence that BOTH participate in the child's development and education, and care that is great! I told him I am listed on all of our son's school papers as parent, I am an emergency contact and I sign all the permission slips, etc. He is covered by my medical insurance. All good stuff. A birth certificate in itself ("Look we have a kid") does not prove a legitmate relationship. It is especially important that the school (an objective 3rd party) recognizes both people as "parents" and accepts this. Medical records for the child showing both people as parents. same reasoning. If a doctor will recognize and treat a child based on their knowledge of both being parents, that is pretty darn good evidence.

Useless or not so useful stuff

Magazine subscriptions together (WHAT??? "Yes, you would be surprised how many couples present a Sports Illustrated subscription as proof") Utilities, cards and letters from relatives, emails, chats etc. Theory? all of these can be easily faked and in themselves prove nothing. Utilities do not verify information before adding someone to an account and hey, it's the electric bill, you are going to pay the electric bill anyway. There is no financial risk involved, no commitment as in joint ownership. Affidavits from friends or family do not have a lot of weight. None of these things are BAD and in conjunction with other evidence are fine, but not enough to prove anything themselves.

Hey everyone! I haven't been on here for a while but I used to be a regular back when I waited for my CR-1 interview I already noticed some familiar posters on here while reading the forums! Hopefully we'll all be finished with all of this and become citizens soon!

Anyway, my question is what sort of documentation does the USCIS give you and how and when do they give it to you to extend your PR status while your conditions are being removed? For instance, my 90 day period begins July 13th, 2012 and ends Oct. 13th. I plan on filing for the removal of conditions within the first few days of the 90 day period... but in October we plan on being out of the country until the 15th, I am worried that I will not have my new green card at that time and therefore will not be able to get back into the country. What is the procedure for this?

Thank you!

The card will arrive at my home address... so I guess I don't need to go back to the office, Flames9_RN?.... we check the mail everyday.. still nothing. Nope haven't received welcome letter either.

Hey everyone. I'm here in LA on a CR-1 immigrant visa (from Vancouver). I checked off the box in my DS-230 that says that I want to receive my SSN automatically upon entering the States. It's been a month and I still don't have my SSN. The paper I got from the Consulate General says that if you don't get your SSN after 3 weeks then call this 1-800 number. So I called the number and it was like an SSN office call centre and they said I should go to my local SSN office. So I went with my husband the next day (this was last week)and they said I need my green card to apply for SSN!! The green card arrives within 4 months of entering the States... the SSN is given right away.. so I applied for another SSN number.. should take two weeks (which is what the consulate general paper says about applying for new SSNs)but at the office they said it will take about 4 weeks. Without a SSN I cannot apply to an insurance company for medical and dental insurance... and my medication and birth control pills will run out in about a month. I have no idea what to do... should I call USCIS? Did anyone have problems with receiving their SSN like this?

Thanks!

Hey everyone. I'm here in LA on a CR-1 immigrant visa (from Vancouver). I checked off the box in my DS-230 that says that I want to receive my SSN automatically upon entering the States. It's been a month and I still don't have my SSN. The paper I got from the Consulate General says that if you don't get your SSN after 3 weeks then call this 1-800 number. So I called the number and it was like an SSN office call centre and they said I should go to my local SSN office. So I went with my husband the next day (this was last week)and they said I need my green card to apply for SSN!! The green card arrives within 4 months of entering the States... the SSN is given right away.. so I applied for another SSN number.. should take two weeks (which is what the consulate general paper says about applying for new SSNs)but at the office they said it will take about 4 weeks. Without a SSN I cannot apply to an insurance company for medical and dental insurance... and my medication and birth control pills will run out in about a month. I have no idea what to do... should I call USCIS? Did anyone have problems with receiving their SSN like this?

Thanks!

thanks everyone! I had the medical! did not need any extra vaccines and I completed the examination perfectly yay Next week is interview! Just gotta pick up my results on friday

I thought I had all my vaccines but when I scheduled an appointment for my medical (which will be on Tuesday 28th) I found out that I don't have half of them. Does the Canadian carecard cover all of these vaccines if you get them at a walk-in clinic? Here is the list the lady from Medisys sent me:

VACCINES PRICE (CDN$)

ADACEL 40

MMR 40

VARICELLA 90

PNEUMOCOCCIX 40

PENTACEL 50

HEP B 25

HEP A 30

POLIO SALK 50

MENACTRA 140

FLU VACCINE 25

I know that Varicella is for chickenpox but I had them a long time ago so I am immune.. do I still need it? What about the flu vaccine? It's not flu season now is it? Adacel, Pentacel, and Menactra ($140!!!???) I never got either... did everyone who already have their medical have to pay for these in cash or are they covered?

Thanks!!

Looks like 6 couples according to the timelines here.

In other news, I finally got a response this morning to an email I sent MTL over 2 months ago! Canada Post never showed Andrew's p3 as delivered, so I emailed them to confirm that they received it, and threw in a little question about when we can expect an interview letter. MTL forwarded it to the Dept of State, because their response comes from them, not from MTL. Here's what they said, for anyone curious:

I just received the EXACT same letter this morning as a response to my question I sent 2 weeks ago about when my interview will be. It's 114 days wait since nvc completion as of today... hoping and praying that we hear from them soon about an interview date...

Just be thankful you are going through Vancouver...apparently its not nearly as backlogged as Montreal....

Jadenjewel is doing her CR-1 visa which is only processed in Montreal unforunately.. Vancouver only does the K visas.

Approved !!! Met up with Bwoo and his wife - nice to chat with you guys. I'll do a review soon but overall it was an easy process. I got out first at 9am !! Very few questions. I'm looking forward to ChrisCon, FireRay, and Bwoo's reviews as well !!! Looooong trip flying from Kamloops to Montreal and back overnight BUT it's worth it. The woman interviewing me said our case was one of the easiest she's ever seen, absolutely no issues at all...nice to know !!

Good luck to those still waiting to hear. I look forward to hearing of your interview dates soon !!!

Congratulations!!! I have to say I am extremely jealous! You are so luck to have gotten your interview in a reasonable amount of time! Good luck to you and your sweetie!

Still nothing. Sept. wouldn't work for me anyway (because of my advanced pregnancy). But I'm worried that *nothing* seems to be happening. I don't like the idea that the backlog may be getting worse instead of better...

It's probably mostly a summer holidays thing. That's my guess. I know the consulate isn't actually closed, but I bet they always have some staff taking days or weeks off, etc.

With my luck, I'll end up getting stuck in the Xmas holiday slow time too. That would just figure

Anyway, good luck to those who are waiting...Sept may still be possible; it's only Wednesday, after all. We could hear something by the end of the week.

C.

"Sept may still be possible; it's only Wednesday, after all. We could hear something by the end of the week." From your mouth to G-d's ears!!!!

where do you try to cross the border at? I have never had any problems with border. I am currently visiting the hubby in maryland, we cross through Fort erie usually but we crossed at cornwall area this time. Was asked a few questions, how long we were staying, what stage we were at and if my son was mine. I am only here for about 3 weeks till I hear something from NVC/montreal.

When you go there for 3 weeks do they stamp your passport with a date by which you must return? They would always do that to me at the airport.. this time I'm thinking to get my aunt to drive me across the border and then catch a flight from the States so it would be a domestic flight. Do they stamp your passport with this special stamp at the drive-through border crossing? Or can you technically stay for 6 months as any other Canadian if you wanted to?

where do you try to cross the border at? I have never had any problems with border. I am currently visiting the hubby in maryland, we cross through Fort erie usually but we crossed at cornwall area this time. Was asked a few questions, how long we were staying, what stage we were at and if my son was mine. I am only here for about 3 weeks till I hear something from NVC/montreal.

I've always crossed at Vancouver (airport) and they make my shake in my shoes literally every time. They always send me to special immigration room and I always have to keep my most cheerful atitude and be so nice and kind and they are rude and threatening in return. They ALWAYS tell me next time I won't get through.. last time they said that since I am completed at NVC I cannot go to the States anymore, they said they will put it in my notes not to let me through... I had a job in Vancouver at the time and always brought with me a letter from work, and my apartment lease and my university documents that I am a student as well.. they don't care. I am in Montreal now staying with my aunt... my husband visited me for a week a week ago... I am thinking to actually get my aunt to drive me across the border to Vermont (because it seems they are way more leanient at drive-through border crossings.. and then try to get a flight from a Vermont airport once I'm already in the States.. just looking at flights now. I am not working now.. just studying (courses are online because I'm in my final year and just finishing up my electives)...

Where did you get the info about Montreal processing the cases of Haitian orphans? Are these specifically cases that have something to do with Canada as well as Haiti? Or is Montreal actually processing all the cases of Haitian orphans heading to the US? If that's the case, it does seem kind of an odd choice of consulate. I certainly want those cases processed efficiently...but, as far as we can all tell, Montreal was bogged down to begin with. It seems like it's probably one of the most bogged-down US consulates in the world. It seems to have been slow for well over a year. I don't pretend to have insight into the reasons for the problems...but, believe me: I wonder about it all the time.

From where I sit, it does seem, too, that Vancouver should maybe take on more K-1 cases...and I bet the K-1 applicants would be happier that way too. The K-1s who happen to be sent to Vancouver get through so much faster than the Montreal folks. *Maybe* there's some reason why Montreal just seems to have to do so much more than it seems really capable of handling efficiently, but it's hard to understand from where we sit.

I do feel like we maybe deserve a *bit* more transparency on these points!

Anyway, I understand your frustration; I have almost the same "case complete" date as you...At this point, though, I'm hoping for a late Oct. date, since I'll just be too pregnant in Sept. to fly to Mtl. I've had to accept that my husband and I will not be living together when the baby comes

C.

I got the info about the Haitian orphans from NVC. My husband called NVC while visiting me here in Montreal and we were on speaker phone. And the lady told us that Montreal is processing the cases of Haiti children and that's why they are so busy. I am not sure about the details of their immigration.. but apparently that's a big part of the hold up...

Agreed, my fiance and I chose this route and it's just as hard, if not harder on another aspect because not only are we stuck waiting, but both of our entire families and friends (70 or so people) are on the same waiting train too because we cannot even plan a wedding until we have an interview date. I can handle just travelling back and forth visiting, thats easy but annoying and expensive at worst. However having all our loved ones constantly asking about the wedding and trying to explain to us better ways to get a visa or set a date (which a lot people don't understand what we go through)... its tough. I'd rather the CR1 Visa and wait like you guys but because my fiance was being deployed too soon to start the process last summer, we can only do it now.

So in other words, it's hard for everyone, harder for some than others... but at the end of the day we are all going through different versions of the same thing.

I cannot travel to the States anymore. I was told last time I do not have sufficient ties to Canada so therefore I cannot see my husband unless he comes here.. and he has his own business to run there all on his own. So visiting is not an option.. all we can do is wait.. while with a K1 visa, you can apply for what's called advance parole, and go to the States for 6 months at a time I think it is, and basically wait there with your significant other. I know this for a fact because a friend of mine did just that.

I think they do them in batches. It seems that they'll do a month of cr1's then a month of k1's.

While it may feel like you are waiting longer than others let me assure you that others including K1's have waited a lot longer. Our 129F was approved in September last year and we didn't have an interview until March. Meanwhile IR1/CR1's were being scheduled for January and February. Everyone has reasons to want to be bumped ahead of the line.

It is hard to wait whether you are married or waiting to get married. Let's try to support each other instead of trying to diminish other peoples relationships please.

The CR-1/IR-1s are done during the same interview time as the K1s and all the other various types of visas. I've asked people who have gone for interviews and waited in line at 7am at the consulate and everyone said that there were people with all sorts of visas who were there for their interviews. They do interviews for CR-1s and K visas each month.. just seems like they are doing a lot of K visas and barely any CR/IR-1s.. This is especially unfair since K visas are processed (interviews done) in Vancouver as well.. I don't understand why Vancouver, the less busy consulate, cannot take on more K visa interviews so that Montreal can have a bit of a break and our CR/IR-1 cases can move faster... Montreal is also right now processing the immigration for the Haiti orphans, that's why they are so busy. I didn't mean to belittle a fiance relationship in comparison to marriage.. but there is a ladder of priority.. CR/IR-1 cases are processed first before cases having to do with immigration of a spouses underage child.. then it's the parents of a couple.. then siblings.. etc.

I am 9 weeks now and recently called NVC, i was told at least 4 weeks more. They are sooo slow

No way.. you're actually almost at 10 weeks.. Do you think we'll get September interviews???

My CR-1 case was completed through NVC on May 11th and I have been waiting for a Montreal consulate interview date ever since.. it's been 11 weeks and still nothing. I know I'm not the only one waiting. There are people waiting since middle of May too...Seems like they are processing so many K1 visas.. even a K3 visa was accepted for expedite (case completed July 20th, interview set for August 4th)... I miss my husband and family so much.. no info from NVC.. different answers from them every time we call... waiting and waiting.. this is killing me. Never has anyone waited almost 3 months (and counting) for an interview date.. then will have to wait at least another month for the actual interview... this is horrible!! Does anyone know what's going on?? This is a CR-1 marriage visa! Don't we have priority? This is not some engagement visa.. we are married and are family... shocking. (((

I've been waiting for 11 weeks for an interview date!! My case was completed on May 11th! I haven't seen my husband in so long and don't have enough ties to visit him in the States.. because of work and money it's difficult for him to visit me here for any longer than a few days. How unfair that I've had to wait for months and months and this person receive an early August date with a simple phone call only 6 days after the case completion. Wow.. I am shocked and so heartbroken.

I am just wondering if everyone who is there with you on your interview date, at the Montreal consulate, there for the same visa type as you? For example, if I am in line at the consulate and my interview is for a CR-1 marriage visa, is everyone who is waiting there with me, going to be interviewed for the same visa? Also how many people are usually interviewed that morning? (How many people in line?)

Lastly, would anyone know how many Canadians are interviewed for CR-1/IR-1 visas each month on average? And how many apply?

thanks!

Hey everyone! Can you guys post your interview experiences at the Montreal consulate here please?? The recent ones only. Questions asked, fees paid, wait times, how many people were there in line with you etc... My interview will be sometime in August. Thanks so much!

My case was completed May 11th.. in 2 days it will have been 2 months since completion and I have still not even received an interview date... They seem to be extremely backed up... I hope I will still get an August interview... this is just ridiculous..

Hey Angie I inquired at Medisys a while ago and it sounds good. It's about $50 cheaper than the other one... that's my main reason for choosing it. Here's a reply they sent to my inquiry:

Good afternoon,

WE certainly can perform the medical appointments for a US visa. Here are a few details that you would need to know for your appointment. We can schedule you as early as this week. We are open on Mondays to Fridays from 7:00am to 2:00pm. It costs $215.00 tax included. We perform all the test in the same clinic (this includes the x-ray the blood work and the medical) It takes us 3 full business days to process your results. We cannot have the results on the same day. If you cam in for an appointment on a Thursday, your results will be ready on the Tuesday afternoon.

For more information and to book appointments feel free to call us at 1-800-499-1394 ext 3500.

Thank you and have a great day.

Mark Castillo

I sent my ds230 and civil docs on june 6th and two days ago received letter with schedulled interview for august 26th....I always thought interview is about 1 month ahead but ours is 2 months..so we were wondering why...so you think is because of NVC or embassy is busy????

Kucencemacence please fill in your information and timeline...