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Hello all, I finally received an update today from NVC that both of my parents' applications have finally become, as they call "documentarily qualified" by the NVC and have moved onto the next step which is interview scheduling. I was wondering if anyone has had any recent experience with the Montreal, Canada US embassy? How long did it take from becoming "documentarily qualified" until an interview was schedule and how long from that time was the actual interview? Would appreciate any insight! It's so hard to find any recent information since COVID times about how long the process is these days. Thanks a bunch!

I did some searching but all the threads I found were several years old and wanted to see if anyone had any recent experiences. I have moved to the US and need to import my car from Canada, this is the last item for me. I have requested a compliance letter from Kia but I seem to be having issues as the letter Kia Canada provided does not confirm the vehicle meets FVMSS standards, they reference CVMSS which the vehicle already has a label for this. Kia said the only letter they can provide is the one that says it meets the EPA standards and the CVMSS. Has anyone successfully imported a Kia to the US recently in the last couple years? I am wanting to import my 2018 Kia Stinger, the vehicle has TPMS and everything, its just missing the label in the drivers side door saying it meets the FVMSS. I am open to any advice, help or ideas as I would love to get this matter wrapped up ASAP. Thx

Hello everyone, Recently had our interview and were given a 221g to submit a document and the passport. We've since sent the document and the passport to the consulate (and it has been received by them) Any idea on how long they usually take to process? And where we could track this? We don't want to be waiting for months as we've given the passport alongside the document that was requested. Any help is appreciated. Thanks!

Hi Folks, I am a USC and have lived in the US continuously for over 20 years. I applied for a CR1 visa for my wife (Canadian citizen) last year. Our I130 was approved and we also cleared the NVC step. Our interview date is in July. My wife gave birth to our first child just last week in Canada (after we received the interview confirmation). Based on the Consular Report of Birth Abroad (CRBA) rules, our child qualifies for US citizenship. However, we are not sure how to proceed. Should I fill out the CRBA forms and get a separate appointment for child's passport? Or should we just take the forms to my wife's interview for CR1 visa since it is only a month from now? We would like to have my wife and my child move together to the US. Any insights on this is appreciated.

I am a US citizen applying family based US GC for my parents. My parents are born in India, naturalized Canadian citizens living in Canada since 2015. I applied for I-130 for both my parents in April 2022, I received I-130 approvals in May 2023. I am preparing for the next step (NVC) and looking for guidance. 1) My parents do not have birth certificate. They are both born in India prior to 1969. a) Do I need to obtain non-availability of birth certificate for them, so are birth affidavits enough? b) Who should provide the birth affidavits? Can my parents provide the affidavits or should it be from someone who has knowledge of their birth (i.e. someone older than the parent and has knowledge of the birth)? c) My parents are 75+ and they barely have one relative older than them and has knowledge of their birth. What are our options regarding who can provide the affidavit? 2) Since they lived in India (before 2015) and Canada (after 2015) in the last 10 years, I am assuming I should get police clearance letter from both the countries. a) Is that assumption correct? b) Can I get the police clearance certificate from the Indian consulate in Canada, or should it have to be from a govt office in India? 3) Do I have to be in US while my parents application is in processing? I would like to move to Canada temporarily on work permit (I have a job offer to move there) to stay with my parents until they get US GC and move to US 4) What is the approximate processing time in Montreal, Canada for IR5 visas? Once I submit the documents to NVC, what is the overall timeline I should expect. This will help me decide whether I should stay back in US and wait, or move to Canada temporarily while we wait for parents' GC. 5) Can my parents purchase private health insurance in US via obamacare marketplace once they submit apply for NVC? or do they have to wait till they enter the US on GC? Thank you!

Just wanted to share my experience here as I found this forum helpful while applying for citizenship for my children via N-600K form. I was first turned on to this N-600k form after emailing the US Consulate in Calgary, AB (where I reside) - I emailed them and they responded to my email same day. I am dual US/Canadian citizen (wife Canadian citizen), I did not meet the residency requirements to fill birth abroad applications for my children because I moved to Canada before I turned 14 (residency requirement 2 years of consecutive residency after you are 14 years old). I have 4 children to fill N-600K applications for, using my father's (children's paternal grandfather's) residency as he was born in the USA and lived in US for more than 2 years after age 14. I had to create 4 different USCIS accounts with 4 different emails, and pay the fee 4 times. about $1,140/ea I filled the applications in online, paid online etc. I reside in Canada (abroad) and this wasn't an issue. I had to provide proof of my father's residency in the US ie mortgage, utility, social security documents, as well as high school diploma etc etc all helped. I uploaded these scans online. I sent the application online on February 13th 2023, and chose the Helena, MT office as it is a days drive from where we live in Canada and had an estimated processing time of 8mo for this application (we were then anticipating a trip in fall 2023, some USCIS offices had 50+ month processing times, while one or two had 2-3mo processing times. I think 4 or 5 had the 8-13mo processing times) I used this link: https://egov.uscis.gov/processing-times/ I didn't hear anything until March 21st 2023, when I got an email from the Helena, MT USCIS office saying the applications we're approved and requesting to set an interview time at the office. In the email they requested I bring all original documents that I submitted via scan and upload AND that when we enter the USA for the appointment that I request at the port of entry from the boarder agent to stamp our passports to show legal entry - they don't normally stamp Canadian passports from my experience unless requested. Also sent me pdf acceptance letters for use at the boarder if they questioned our entry and requested that we bring the printed acceptance docs to the interview (ended up showing it to the security agent at the USCIS office in Helena) The mailed versions arrived the week before we left on the trip, so I guess they sent the pdf version incase the mailed version didn't arrive in time. The acceptance letter was addressed to my children, with 'C/O' then child's name - it was mailed to my address though (same address the kids reside at) The earliest date they had was April 10th 2023, we chose the April 17th 2023 appointment date (they had appointments available every Monday from April 10th - mid June to choose from), they scheduled all 4 kids for appointments 1h apart (9am, 10am, 11am and 12pm) for the same day. I had to ask via email if my father needed to attend (it wasn't clear in any instructions) and the answer was YES - as he was the one we were using residency for for the applications. We planned the trip to Montana and attending the interviews on Monday, April 17th 2023 at 9am. When we crossed the boarder I requested the passports be stamped - no issue took a couple mins, I think he talked to his supervisor. Asked 'so you're trying to escape Canada?' in a cheeky way with a smile, I said 'eventually'. Let us in no problem (we have travelled frequently to the US - by land and air - with the kids over the last year, spending about 5mo+ in the US just travelling as 'tourists') So I'm sure they can see that in their system. On Monday, April 17th 2023 at 9am we showed up to the office about 10mins early, one person in line in front of us. At security we asked the very friendly officers if we could bring all 4 kids in at once, he called up to the adjudicating officer and allowed all 4 kids, myself and my father into his office for the interviews. The interview was my father and I taking an oath to tell the truth (raise your right hand and repeat after me), we were in his office for about 20mins (with all 4 children 7 and younger), officer was just looking over my passport, my fathers (US Passports for both) and my Children's 4 Canadian passports and verifying the stamp we received at the land boarder (stamp said B1/B2 visa, with B2 circled) Officer was friendly and patient with all 4 of my wild children in his office. I had to do 4 digital signatures, didn't read what I was signing. He kept saying 'this is an easy one, cause they're young - just need a few signatures'. Didn't look at any original documents or ask us any questions. After we were done in his office my dad took the kids to the van, I waited in the waiting area for 15mins and he came out with the 4 printed citizenship documents and 4 mini American flags, asked if I had any questions, said congrats and shook my hand and I was on my way. So I started gathering the documents for this application January 15th 2023, eventually sent in the application on February 13th 2023, and received first response on March 21st 2023, and kids got their citizenship on April 17th 2023 Now, I have scheduled the US passport application 'interviews' at the US Embassy in Calgary, AB in late May for all 4 kids. So all in all it seems like the process for us from first gathering documents to kids having passports will be less than 6 months. Seems like this experience is abnormal on the speed side of things, but might also be because I chose a 'quiet' office and had all my ducks in a row? To summarize the requirements we met: 1. Paternal Grandfather (grandmother is not US Citizen) met residency requirements to pass citizenship to grandchildren a. Father US citizen, did not meet residency requirements to pass citizenship to children. (mother non-us citizen, children born outside of US) 2. Created separate online logins with 4 different emails, paid fee 4 times. (I created 4 different emails, and setup autoforwarding to my primary email address so I would get the notifications still) 3. Found a USCIS office with quick processing times: https://egov.uscis.gov/processing-times/ 4. As part of the application got my I-94 form to show lawful entry would occur from this website: https://i94.cbp.dhs.gov/I94/#/history-search (arrival/departure records) 5. Submitted online application and paid $1,140 fee for each separate application: https://myaccount.uscis.gov/ 6. Waited for response from the local office I selected in the application (see #3) 7. Got a personal email from the field office, once interview was scheduled I got automatic email notification from USCIS account saying interview scheduled. 8. Brought all original documents AND my father to scheduled interview AND got land border agent to stamp kids passports to show lawful entry. 9. Interview for children (7y/o and younger), no questions asked, signed some paperwork, confirmed lawful entry to USA and printed citizenship certificates. 10. Fill out passport application and schedule appointments with local US Embassy in my home country for children to receive US passports Happy to answer any questions, but that's the summary! Good Luck! Eric Peterson Black Kettle Consulting Canada

We are an engaged Canadian and American who want to get married, obtain a spousal visa, and live together in the USA. We have a lot of flexibility in our lives for travel and want to be together as much as possible during the 1.5 to 2yr visa process. We are considering the following timeline and would greatly appreciate any advice about possible issues, hurdles, and/or other considerations. We get married in Fall 2023 in Canada, spouse then enters USA on tourist visa (as a tourist) for 6 months. Spouse stays at National's owned-home in those months and returns to Canada in early spring 2024. At which point National files for spousal visa and leaves for Canada for the summer, and Europe for the fall - winter- spring while the visa process runs its course. Spouse returns to Canada for visa interview at Consulate in Canada when requested Any experiences with: filing for spousal visa 6-7 months after marriage in Canada? is that enough of a marriage duration? National leaving the US during visa process? Spouse coming in to the US on a tourist visa while married to a national? Spouse coming in to the US on a tourist visa while visa process is in its final stages? Thanks and we appreciate any feedback and insight!

How do I update information on the I129f forms after they been mailed in? there will be a change of address and work

Hello guys, Any f2B here? please share your timeline

Hello, I am sorry if this already exists. If so, please direct me to the existing thread! My I-129 F was approved on May 8, 2023. We are now waiting to receive our next steps in the mail. My K1 interview will be in Montreal Canada. I am wondering what the approx. timeline from I-129F approval to K1 visa interview is for Montreal Canada. Has anyone booked their interview in 2023? How long was the wait between I-129F approval to K1 interview?

Hey Visa Journey! It's been a while but I'm at the stage where now being a U.S. citizen I'll be sponsoring my mother who lives in Canada for her Greencard. I'm well aware of the time frame it would take for her to become legal, roughly 12-13 months on average. My concern is for one of my sisters. She will be turning 18 this July. If my mom files an I-130 petition for my sister as soon as she is approved for her Greencard should my sister still qualify to not have aged out? I was going to put my mothers application in from last year but she wasn't ready to start the process. When exactly does the clock begin in this case? If the petition is submitted say when she is 19 or 20 what happens? Answers would be greatly appreciated!

Hi everyone! My partner and I got engaged last weekend. We live in New York City, I am a US citizen and he is a Canadian citizen who's been living in the US for several years on a TN work visa, which is currently in the process of being renewed so he can stay in the country for the next three years. He is interested in exploring other options for work, though, and on his TN visa, he's tied to his current employer. For that reason, we're thinking it may be best to get started on the green card process ASAP. We are planning to get married at the courthouse in June and then plan the actual wedding. Our concern is that we were really hoping to plan our wedding in Canada for the summer of 2024, and we're worried that if/when we start the green card process, he won't be allowed to leave the country until he's approved. This would obviously make it impossible to plan a wedding in Canada given that we won't know when exactly that will happen. That said, since he will still be on the active TN visa while his green card processes, I'm not sure if the 'no leaving the country' rule would apply to him. Does anyone have any info on this? I'm also curious what the green card timeline for Canadian citizens looks like... is it typically faster than it is for citizens of other countries? Thanks in advance for any/all advice!

Hi! I wanted to clear a doubt I have when it comes to police certificates validity. I searched on the forum and online and I still am not too certain if it's 1 year, 2 years, or in my case it doesn't expire. Let me explain. I am waiting still for NOA2 for a K1 visa, and since it's starting to linger a bit, I am getting worried I got my police certificate too soon and it might be expired once I get to the interview stage. I am Brazilian and I have lived in the UK and Canada. Police certificates from Brazil are easy to get and issued instantly online (federal and state), I got my UK done this month and I am waiting for it to arrive but the copy I sent to my fiancé in the US already arrived. The Canadian one is worrying me though. Getting a Canadian police certificate from Brazil is honestly complicated, long and costly for me. Since I still work for Canada and went to visit the country for work last year, I decided to do my police certificate from inside Canada (note I presented my passport and expired provincial ID for that). It was easy, got my fingerprints, submitted the application, got it back in the mail in 5 weeks while I was still in the country. It is the correct police certificate asked for US immigration as I've checked before. The date on my certificate is August 10, 2022. State Department website tells me police certificates are valid for 2 years (my understanding is that this was extended due to the pandemic, not sure?). The Brazilian US embassy website tells me the police certificates are only valid for a year, but I think it could be that their website isn't really updated often. Here's what they say: "Police certificates for K visa applicants expire after one year, unless the certificate was issued from your country of previous residence, and you have not returned there since the certificate was issued." While State Department has the same info but says two years: "Police certificates expire after two years, unless the certificate was issued from your country of previous residence and you have not returned there since the police certificate was issued." And then there is also the part about "unless issued from your country of previous of residence and you have not returned there since the police certificate was issued". What does that mean? That the certificate doesn't expire if that's the case? And do you think that my case of issuing it from inside of Canada would fit that so my certificate doesn't really have an expiring date? To be specific, I received the certificate dated August 10th, but only left Canada on September 22nd, 2022. Would I had need to receive it outside of Canada? That part makes me confused. Anyway, what I want to know is what's the validity of my Canadian police certificate. 2 years? 1 year? No expiring date? Just so I know if I will need to get another one before my interview comes (considering my interview might probably be after August 10th, 2023 – hoping it isn't!). Thank you in advance!

Hi, Does anyone know how long it takes after an approval for the visa/ passport to be back to the applicant? Just out of curiosity. Thanks!

Hi! I was trying to book an appointment for my medical and the medical physician says that they'll send it directly to the Montreal Consulate. The packet 3 and 4 confirmations state that I need to bring the sealed medical report to the Consulate. Which is it? Does the doctor send it to the Consulate directly and I take nothing? Or Do I pickup the results myself and take the envelope to the interview? Any help is appreciated!

Olá pessoal! Este tópico foi criado especialmente para os brasileiros que estão no Canadá e desejam aplicar para o visto EB2-NIW. Não encontro quase nenhuma informação direcionada a este público e, quando encontro, é super antiga e não confiável. Inclusive neste site. Por isso, acredito que criar este tópico pode ajudar bastante. Por favor, não o disvirtuem adicionando assuntos não relacionados a brasileiros aplicando para o EB2-NIW do Canadá. Muito obrigado.

I am an American citizen living in the US. My fiancee is a Russian citizen living in Russia. Living so far apart is really not ideal, and I just submitted the K1 packet so I've been trying to think of ways to live together while the visa processes for the next 12-18+ months. I'd definitely like to go to Mexico first but am looking into Canada as a place to go afterwards... Canada has a visitor/temporary resident visa which allows recipients to stay as tourists for up to 6 months. This seems like a great option as it is close to where I live and I can work remotely without having to deal with different time zones or find a job that will allow me to work such hours while also being close to the US if I have to go back for any reason. Has anyone here applied for this visa? I have a few questions: Can you apply on another person's behalf despite not being a Canadian citizen? Can you apply from a country other than where you reside (i.e. Mexico) Can you submit financial information on behalf of someone else to satisfy the visa? https://www.canada.ca/content/dam/ircc/migration/ircc/english/pdf/kits/forms/imm5484e.pdf

We are getting close to submitting our i129f package, and I'm curious how long the process time will be? If the package was submitted before may, and everything goes according to plan, how long should it take till I am able to move in with my fiance?

Help please. I am going to apply for my first Canadian passport from US. I need a guarantor but I moved here less than 2 years ago and I have no Canadian friends who know me at least for 2 years... So I am thinking I am going to use a notary public. Does the person also need to know me at least for 2 years?

I am marrying a US citizen and I am a Canadian citizen. My worry is I had gotten a public intoxication and trespassing ticket in 2021 (I accidentally walked in to the wrong house and fell asleep - very embarrassing) there were no aggravating factors the cops took me to the drunk tank and I woke up the next day and went home. In Canada these are considered provincial offences and are not criminal in nature, they are just administrative and carry no jail time - just need to pay a ticket. When I do a background check there is no record or anything, and it shows up clear as this is not a criminal record at all. Will I be able to get my marriage based green card still?

Anyone know what months are they currently on that could give me a better estimate of when i should have a good idea of when the petition will be approved?? or was there another faster way to be with my fiance??

I filed for a I-129F in July 2021. On September 28 2022, I received NOA2 form I-797 saying it's "Valid From 09/28/2022 to 01/27/2023". On December 20, 2022, I received an email notice from NVC saying they have forwarded the petition to the Canadian US Consulate in Montreal. However my partner is still waiting to receive the packet from the US Consulate via mail. Do I need to file an extension on the I-797, since that date is in less than 3 weeks? If that date passes, does USCIS drop the case? I'm finding conflicting information, some saying that it's automatically extended, some saying that it doesn't matter as soon as the NVC processes the case, and both of us worried that we should try to extend it anyway. And I don't know the best way to do that.

I am a PR of Canada and uscic has just approved my niw. I don’t have any bank account in the US. Please how can I pay the processing fee when I receive the Nvc instructions?

Hi all - I'm sorry, I'm sure this has been answered before, but I couldn't find a thread on it and was hoping for a quick answer. My husband received only the "name-based" background check for his police certificate from Canada and the NVC notified us that this document was incorrect. He is getting the finger print one done today at Frontier Fingerprinting and they asked which one he needs on the photo below. Is it the one selected? Thank you in advance! I just don't want to get the wrong one AGAIN.

Anyone from canada have any insight as to how long it’s taking to get packet 3? The consulate received my petition on September 27 and I was given a “ready” on October 5 but I still haven’t gotten packet 3. I’m worried it’s lost in the mail or something????