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| Montreal, Canada |  Review on December 16, 2015: |
Mad & J
Rating:  | Review Topic: K1 Visa
I had my interview this morning at the Montreal consulate at 7:40 am.
I got to the consulate around 6:55 and was the first one there! Around 7:10 people started trickling in. I was waiting on the left side of the doors, by which I mean the side closest to Ste-Catherine and NOT the side closest to René-Lévesque, and not directly in front of the doors but around the little corner (leaving the entryway clear). For a while I was the only one on my side and there were 5-6 people lined up on the wrong side, which made me start to doubt my position, but I'm glad I trusted VJ cause I was in the correct spot!
At around 7:30 the security guard came out and made everyone line up behind me. By then there were several dozen people waiting outside. Several people were turned away for having backpacks and some complained they hadn't been told that, even though it states it clearly in the Packet 4 letter! The nice Filippina lady standing behind me had a medium sized pursed and was allowed in, but I wouldn't risk it and stick to a plastic bag. He instructed us to get out our confirmation pages, which for K1 Visas means your DS-160 page with the barcode. I was given Immigrant Visa #1, so getting there early paid off.
As a note, I have read in recent reviews that they can turn you away if you show up too early, but the lady behind me had an appointment at 9 and was let in, so it may be worth trying.
I went trough security, they took my phone and gave me a ticket to get it back at the end. Went down the stairs and sat right by the elevator to wait. At 8 a guard came by and instructed us to go up to the 19th floor. Try to get in the first elevator ride up if your number is 1 or 2. Upstairs I was directed to sit in the middle section, and after about 10 minutes I was called up (#2 was actually called before me because one window does even numbers and the other does odd numbers, so don't panic if you are called out of order). Window 1 is in a little corner hidden behind window 2.
The guy there was nice but kinda quiet (sometimes I had to ask him to repeat himself cause I couldn't quite hear!) He asked for:
-passport & copy
-medical results
-confirmation of interview (the one that shows your delivery info on it)
- birth certificate and copy
-police check
-letter of intent to marry
- affidavit of support
-2014 tax return (I had 3 years of return, 3 years of W2s, an employer letter and bank account info, but he only wanted the 2014 taxes)
-passport photos
-proof of payment of visa fee - I don't always see this one mentionned but don't forget to bring it!
He also took my fingerprints and then I sat back down. Only a few minutes passed before I was called for the interview. The CO was a young guy, very friendly. He read out the oath and asked me if I agreed, then took the fingerprints of my right hand as a signature. He gave me back my original birth certificate and asked me a few questions in quick succession, to which I answered yes/no unless it was an open question.
- have you ever lived anywhere besides Canada
- have you ever stayed in the US for more than 6 months
- have you ever been arrested
- have you ever had trouble crossing the border
- is this the first marriage for both of you?
- where does your fiancee live
- what does she do for a living
- how long has she been working there
- how did you meet
After that he said that I was probably expecting something more complicated than that but that it was done, he was approving my visa. He gave me a welcome to the US letter and info about the courrier stuff and said my visa should be printed within a few days.
I was out of there by by 8:30! Even the security guard commented on how quick it was when I came back down.
All in all it was easy and everyone was friendly. I was way over prepared but that helped me stay relaxed, knowing I had basically every document they could possibly ask for!
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Consulate / USCIS Member Review #18581