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| Montreal, Canada |  Review on May 20, 2020: |
JL & ML
Rating:  | Review Topic: K1 Visa
Hello everyone,
Putting up this review for anyone's reference. Had I know this info section on VisaJourney existed back then, I would surely have benefited from it.
My fiancée and I made the trip together to Montreal for the interview (November 26, 2019). She waited in the Second Cup at the street corner while I went in. Different sources said "show up a half hour early for your interview" or "come exactly at the time indicated." We decided to show up a half hour early, but sure enough the security guards at the entrance sent me away. They told me to come exactly at the appointed time. I had initially thought that the security guards worked for the U.S. government, but later I noticed they worked for (I believe) Garda, a private security firm used regularly in various places around Montreal. Maybe it was another firm; I lived in Montreal for ten years and remember seeing their logo everywhere. The Consulate proper was actually on a floor of the building, and not on the ground floor; the doors from outside lead merely into the screening area and security checkpoint.
My interview was slated for 8:30 a.m.; I went back to the Consulate's doors from the Second Cup around 8:27 a.m. and noticed a rather big line (five or six people) had formed outside. I jumped the line just to ask the attendant/guard if we were all to be let in at 8:30, and he said yes. So I went to the back of the line. By 8:31 a.m., since no one in the line was going in and no one was coming out, my impatience got the better of me, and I jumped the line again. I was greeted by a courteous guard at the entrance who bid me remove my backpack and jacket and pass through the security check. I guess the guards had been waiting for the first person in line to move up, while the first person in line had been waiting for someone to come and fetch us.
After the security checkpoint, I was led to an elevator and went up one or two floors. The elevator doors opened to an open waiting room with a series of windowed interview booths to the left. A smiling guard was walking toward the elevator as the doors opened, and upon seeing me he invited me to take a number and wait. Several people were already in the waiting room; I imagined they were in a different immigrant category (from what it seemed, all the people in line with me outside were applicants to family-based visas). I had had a head start to the rest of the applicants, but my nerves (as though I were being watched) didn't allow me to seek to remedy my brashness with the rest of the applicants. I did apologize to one of the ladies afterward for jumping ahead. "But what could I do?" I told myself. We were all sitting outside like sheep, and I didn't want to miss my interview nor give the Consulate any excuse for saying I was late for the interview.
About ten minutes after taking my number I was called to one of the booths. The man asked for a series of documents, including the affidavit of support. I remember my dear fiancée (now wife) spending so many hours, based on guides we had read, preparing records of employment, financial statements, copies of her passport and birth certificate, and more. They didn't ask for any of those. All in all it seemed they asked for only about half of the documents we expected they'd ask for and that we had prepared for them. I only wish I had prepared this review earlier, before I forgot about the specifics.
I thought the man taking the documents would interview me, but he sent me back to my seat and told me I'd be called back up. I waited a little under an hour. When I was called back up, a very nice lady interviewed me.
The interview went off without a hitch. The questions were very simple and easy to answer. I was asked about an incident that occurred when I was sixteen - I got arrested for getting into a fight with someone - and I answered truthfully on my application, since I figured they understood everyone has slip-ups at times, and as long as you're up front with them they're okay. And so I explained to the nice lady what happened, and in under thirty seconds that bit was cleared up. After about five minutes, she smiled and told me, "Well, congratulations, we're granting you the visa." She explained the terms and conditions (including the visa's expiration date, slightly less than six months from the interview date), handed me a pink sheet of paper with a welcome message, and everything was very straightforward. I was told I'd receive the visa package in about two weeks, and that sounded about right.
I walked out of the Consulate on cloud nine, crossed the street back to the Second Cup, and gave my fiancée a big hug.
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Consulate / USCIS Member Review #28307