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| Montreal, Canada |  Review on December 5, 2008: |
CHD
Rating:  | Review Topic: IR-1/CR-1 Visa
I arrived outside of the consulate at 6:35am. I know it was really early, but I didn't have a chance the night before to do my walk-around to make sure I knew where it was, and I wanted to be sure to allow time for myself to get lost along the way (which I now realize was pretty impossible from La Tour). No one else showed up until 7:15, but by the time the doors opened at 7:30 there were about a dozen people lined up. It was pooooouring rain, and I was the only one with an umbrella (I'd checked the weather report before leaving for Montreal the day before).
SECURITY:
The guard at the door was very brisk and serious. He unlocked the door and asked if he could help me. I said that I had an appointment today and showed him my interview letter and passport. He verified the date on the letter and looked at my passport, then asked if I had any electronics such as a cell phone on me. I said no. My documents and evidence were in a briefcase-style accordion folder with a hard plastic outer shell and a carrying handle. He inspected it from the outside and asked if it was all plastic. I said it was. He let me in and told me to tell the next guard that he said the case was okay. I knew that bringing the case would be iffy at security, but I had a LOT of documents (my most solid evidence of our continued relationship were the fourteen 40-50 page phone bills), and I was prepared to throw it in the trash if need be.
I went through the door and up the stairs where the next guard was waiting for me with a smile. This one seemed much warmer and was even somewhat friendly. Once again my letter and passport were checked, then clicked together with the lovely letter A. He took the case from me and placed it on the belt for the x-ray scanner, followed by my purse. He had me place my scarf, gloves, and umbrella in a tray and asked me to empty my pockets. I told him I had nothing in my pockets. He put the tray on the belt and had me remove my coat and place it in another tray, which went in behind it. Then he had me walk through the metal detector, then stand in a spread-out position while he went over me with the hand one. He gave me back my coat, scarf, gloves, and umbrella. The other guard watching the items go through the x-ray told him to check the case for a plastic cylinder and my purse for a liquid and possible electronic. He opened the case and found my chest x-ray film, which I had rolled up into a cylinder for the sake of portability. From my purse he removed my Tide-to-Go pen (which I had forgotten to remove before leaving for Montreal) and my travel alarm clock (which I had forgotten to remove at the hotel). He said that he would have to hang on to those 2 items, gave me a ticket, and said I could come back to claim them before leaving. Sounds like a long process, I know, but it was really rather quick. I was then instructed to go down the stairs to the waiting room until the guard came to get me.
PRE-INTERVIEW:
The next guard came down in the elevator about 5 minutes or so later, and by then the room was almost full. He called those with letters A through E. There were apparently only 2 of us with an immigrant visa interview though, so he took our letters and passports and took us both up. As soon as the elevator door closed he broke into a big smile and pointed at me. "You're the one that was out there at 6:30, aren't you?" I laughed at said "I believe it was six thirty-FIVE, thank you very much." The three of us laughed. We stepped off the elevator and the guard had us take a seat, instructing us to wait until we were called.
After 15 minutes or so I was called to window 12, where I was told to hang up my coat and purse on the hook beside me, since I'd be there for a bit. He asked for my 2 photographs, sealed medical report, Xpresspost envelope, and any documents I did not submit to the NVC. I passed the first 3 through the window and stated that all documents have already been submitted. I asked if he needed the chest x-ray film, the report that was in the large open envelope with it, or the vaccination record that was clipped to the sealed envelope. He said he did not, as those were for my records, and everything he needed was already in the sealed envelope. He slipped the second page of my interview letter to me and asked me to confirm that the spelling of my name and date and country of birth were all correct. I said they were. He then asked the following questions:
1. When were you married? November of 2006. (He wrote IR-1 on the form).
2. Why did you wait so long to file? We did file for my adjustment of status within a few months of our marriage, but we withdrew that application and I returned to Canada.
3. So you abandoned your first application when you returned to Canada? Not exactly. We sent a letter to USCIS first to notify them of our decision to withdraw the petition before I left.
4. What does your husband do for a living? Construction.
5. What company does he work for? I gave the company's name.
6. Who is ? James' step-father. He co-sponsoring for us as my husband had only been at his current job for a couple months when we applied.
7. Do you know how much your husband earns? Not off the top of my head, I'm sorry.
8. Do you have any recent paystubs from him? I do, yes. (I handed over 3 recent paystubs for both my hubby and his step-father)
9. Do you work? Yes
10. What do you do? I told him, and we engaged in a casual, friendly discussion about my job while he processed the sponsorship info.
Just as all of the questions were starting to make me wonder if I was actually interviewing right now, he thanked me and told me to go take a seat and that he'd call me again in a few minutes for fingerprints.
When I came out there were only 4 more people in the immigrant visa side of the room (so 6 total), but the non-immigrant side was almost completely packed. I wasn't watching the clock, but it wasn't terribly long until I was called back to the same window. Maybe 10 minutes-ish. This time he explained how to position my hands for the fingerprinting machine. He asked me if I had paid the immigrant visa fee . I said it was paid to the NVC in August. He said that he can't seem to find a record of it (Heart attack moment #1). I said that it was paid online and that I did bring the receipt. I pulled it from my files and handed it over, stating it was a duplicate copy and that he could keep it if needed. He entered something into the computer (the confirmation # I would imagine) and said "Oh there it is. Sorry for the scare", then placed the receipt in my file. I was again asked to return to the waiting room until I was called for the interview.
INTERVIEW:
I had been stressing and losing sleep over the actual interview like crazy for the last month, but now that it was literally minutes away, I was serenely calm. Kind of a que sera sera moment. I was called into booth 8 where I was greeted by the female interviewer. I think the word 'interview' is far too formal for what that was...seemed she was really only after clarification on a few things. Her questions were surrounded by chit chat and not at all interrogatory. She swore me in, had me sign part 2 of the DS-230, then verified both my mailing address for the visa as well as my husband's address for the SSN and greencard. She then asked the following questions:
1. How did you meet? We met online through a game.
2. When was this? In November of 2005
3. How did you communicate at this time? Mostly through an online voice chat program.
4. What is the program called? Teamspeak.
5. When did you first meet in person? October of 2006
6. When did you marry? November of 2006
7. I noticed you were living in the US from October 2006 to July 2007. Thats longer than Canadians are welcome to stay without a visa. Can you explain this? (Heart attack moment #2) We had filed an adjustment of status application a few months after our wedding, and I was under the impression that I was permitted to stay while it was processing.
8. When was this filed? March of 2007
9. Have you ever taken any medications? Yes
10. What for? Depression
11. When did you last need medication? I haven't needed them since 2005. I don't recall the month.
12. Does your husband have health insurance? Yes he does, through his tribe.
13. Will you be covered under his insurance? I will only have maternity coverage. We're researching insurance companies for more complete coverage.
She then said "I am approving your visa, and I would like to be the first to welcome you to the United States". I blinked a few times, laughed, fought off tears, thanked her, and exhaled. She gave me a big smile and said "You're welcome", then went on to provide me with all the necessary details. My mind was running a million miles a minute, so I probably didn't absorb it all, but she told me I would be getting a 10 year greencard. She said it may take up to 2 weeks for me to receive the visa in the mail, and that it would be valid for 6 months. She said it will be accompanied by a sealed brown envelope that must be presented to the officer the first time I use my visa, and to allow about an hour for processing. She said the greencard and SSN will be mailed to my husband's address as indicated on my form, but warned they may take 2-3 months to be received. She said that until the actual greencard is received, the visa in my passport will allow me to come and go as I please. And that was it. I wished her a happy holiday, and she seemed genuinely appreciative of that and wished the same to me. "I get to go home! What could be more happy?"
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Consulate / USCIS Member Review #3673