Isabel&Will's US Immigration Timeline
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Petitioner's Name: Will
Beneficiary's Name: Isabel
VJ Member: Isabel&Will
Country: Canada
Last Updated: 2024-03-01
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Immigration Checklist for Will & Isabel:
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USCIS I-129F Petition:
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Dept of State K1 Visa:
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USCIS I-485 Petition:
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USCIS I-765 Petition:
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USCIS I-131 Petition:
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USCIS I-751 Petition:
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USCIS N-400 Petition:
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K1 Visa
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| Event |
Date |
| Service Center : |
California Service Center |
| Transferred? |
No |
| Consulate : |
Montreal, Canada |
| I-129F Sent : |
2018-08-20 |
| I-129F NOA1 : |
2018-08-22 |
| I-129F RFE(s) : |
2019-01-22 |
| RFE Reply(s) : |
2019-02-07 |
| I-129F NOA2 : |
2019-02-12 |
| NVC Received : |
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| Date Case #, IIN, and BIN assigned : |
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| NVC Left : |
2019-03-19 |
| Consulate Received : |
2019-03-21 |
| Packet 3 Received : |
2019-04-17 |
| Packet 3 Sent : |
2019-04-08 |
| Packet 4 Received : |
2019-04-12 |
| Interview Date : |
2019-06-05 |
| Interview Result : |
Approved
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Second Interview
(If Required): |
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| Second Interview Result: |
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| Visa Received : |
2019-06-11 |
| US Entry : |
2019-07-08 |
| Marriage : |
2019-07-30 |
| Comments : |
My case became "Ready" on April 1, 2019. I sent my completed Packet 3 before I received it in the mail after I noticed that my case date had been updated again on April 5, 2019 (this was the date they sent out my Packet 3). I don't have details for when NVC received my case because we were unable to get a hold of them until after they had already sent the case to the consulate. |
Processing
Estimates/Stats : |
Your I-129f was approved in 174 days from your NOA1 date.
Your interview took 287 days from your I-129F NOA1 date. |
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Adjustment of Status
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| Event |
Date |
| CIS Office : |
Norfolk VA |
| Date Filed : |
2019-09-12 |
| NOA Date : |
2019-09-19 |
| RFE(s) : |
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| Bio. Appt. : |
2019-10-10 |
| AOS Transfer** : |
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| Interview Date : |
2020-03-04 |
| Approval / Denial Date : |
2020-03-18 |
| Approved : |
Yes |
| Got I551 Stamp : |
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| Greencard Received: |
2020-03-26 |
| Comments : |
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Lifting Conditions
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| Event |
Date |
| CIS Office : |
Potomac Service Center |
| Date Filed : |
2021-12-20 |
| NOA Date : |
2022-01-22 |
| RFE(s) : |
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| Bio. Appt. : |
2022-02-22 |
| Interview Date : |
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| Approval / Denial Date : |
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| Approved : |
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| Got I551 Stamp : |
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| Green Card Received : |
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| Comments : |
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Citizenship
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| Event |
Date |
| Service Center : |
Online |
| CIS Office : |
Montgomery |
| Date Filed : |
2024-02-21 |
| NOA Date : |
2024-02-21 |
| Bio. Appt. : |
2024-02-21 |
| Interview Date : |
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| Approved : |
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| Oath Ceremony : |
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| Comments : |
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Member Reviews:
Consulate Review: Montreal, Canada
Review Topic: K1 Visa
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| Event |
Description |
| Review Date : |
June 5, 2019 |
| Embassy Review : |
I stayed at the Courtyard by Marriot, which is about a 2-minute walk from the Montreal Consulate (very accommodating, great service there, rooms are very clean but on the pricey side).
The consulate is a bit hard to spot due to construction going on at the time of this review (the entrance is on a side road around the corner from the SNC-Lavalin building). At this time, petitioners are not allowed in with you and they will have to wait outside the building, so be aware of that.
I was really anxious about the interview, so my fiance and I left the hotel as soon as I was ready and arrived about an hour and 15 minutes before my 7:30am interview time. We ended up being first in line. We chatted with a few of the other early people, which helped pass the wait. As others have said, the consulate will prioritize numbering order on a first-come-first-serve basis. The security guard opened the door at 7:30 to put out a couple of signs, then went back inside without saying anything. I ended up waiting instead of walking in since I wasn't sure if it was ok or not, but he came back out and told us to enter one at a time. I left my phone with my fiance rather than dealing with the locker system (they will allow you to put your phone in a locker for pickup later during the security check). Have your passport and appointment letter ready (I used a printout of my interview confirmation email), as you will need to give it to someone just inside the doors, who will then cross-reference their list of appointments to make sure you are supposed to be there. They will then give you a laminated sheet with your number and the order they want you to organize your documents (follow the directions for K visas).
Security:
I was asked to wait in front of a glass door before entering the security check room, but then the security officers ushered me in shortly afterward (I'm not sure if this is to make sure people only enter one at a time or if they just weren't quite ready for me yet since I was first). The security people were very friendly. The security checkpoint is just like an airport security check, so put your documents etc in the bin and wait for them to wave you through the metal detector (they let me keep my shoes on but I forgot mine had metal detailing on the back of the heel so I was checked over with the handheld metal detector before they let me in).
Pre-interview:
After the security check, you will need to walk through a door, and down a flight of stairs into a hallway/room where there are chairs set up along the walls leading to an elevator. Again, I'm not sure if it was just because I was part of the first group of appointments, but we were asked to wait for an officer to come down the elevator to allow people to enter.
If you are first in line I highly suggest you use this time to quickly rearrange your documents because I was called to the window very quickly after exiting the elevator and sitting down. I barely had time to double check my documents.
Document Hand-off:
This was the most difficult part of the interview process as the official that was taking my documents was very curt, though I understand this is part of making the process flow quickly. After you get off the elevator and sit down, you will be called to a window to hand in your documents (marked with red numbers to the left of the seating area.) How long this takes will depend on how many people are ahead of you and how complicated their documents/interview are. The order in which you will be asked for your documents depends on which person/official is taking them. Listen carefully and only give them documents when they ask for them (I tried to ask if they wanted the photocopy of my passport along with my passport, but they just tersely told me they wanted my passport). I am rather soft-spoken and was told to speak up as it can be hard for the official to hear through the window setup. I also didn't put my fingers high enough up on the fingerprint scanner so I kind of felt like I was doing everything wrong (oh well, it still got me to the interview stage). I was asked if I've ever been to the US. I was also asked for my address, my fiance's address, and phone numbers for the both of us. From previous reviews, I was under the impression that the official would just be double checking our contact information, but she typed some of it in manually. This confused me because she asked me for my fiance's postal code (he has a zip code) and then told me what his zip code was before I could answer, so I'm not really sure if she really just needed the phone numbers...
The documents I was asked for were:
Payment Confirmation
Passport (they will keep this in order to add your visa)
Birth Certificate & photocopy (they will give back the original)
Police certificate
2 photos (without the envelope)
Letter of intent to marry (from petitioner only)
Medical results (sealed envelope)
Photocopy of passport
I-134 and supporting documents (the laminated sheet only mentioned tax return, but I also provided a W2, employer letter, and earnings statements since the official didn't specify which supporting documents).
I was then handed the "Information on the Legal Rights Available to Immigrant Victims of Domestic Violence in the US and Facts about Marrying on a Marriage-Based Visa" pamphlet and told to sit back down until called again for my interview.
Interview:
Even if you are first, there will be some time after you hand in your documents before you are called to an interview room (numbered in white down a corridor next to the document windows) I assume this is so that they have time to pull up your file and take a look at the documents you submitted so they can ask the appropriate questions. The official who interviewed me was very warm and friendly. The questions she asked were specific to me but, in general, the main questions were:
Have you ever lived in a country for longer than 6 months as an adult?
Have you ever been in trouble with the law? (at this point she couldn't find my police certificate in the pile and asked me if I had a copy, but found it before I could pull a copy out of my folder)
How did you meet?
When did you first meet in person?
When did you decide you wanted to get married?
Do you plan to live with your fiance?
How many times have you seen each other since you submitted your petition?
My interviewer noted that my fiance is in the military from our file, so she asked me which branch and which rank he is, but didn't delve further
She then told me "Well, I'm happy to tell you that we will be able to go ahead and approve this case. Congratulations!" She then reiterated the importance of the rights pamphlet, then passed me the pink "Welcome to the USA" slip, as well as a page explaining how I can look up my visa progress. In total from entering to exiting the building, the process took about an hour and 15 minutes.
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| Rating : |
Good |
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Timeline Comments: None yet, be the first!
*Notice about estimates: The estimates are based off averages of other members recent experiences
(documented in their timelines) for the same benefit/petition/application at the same filing location.
Individual results may vary as every case is not always 'average'. Past performance does not necessarily
predict future results. The 'as early as date' may change over time based on current reported processing
times from members. There have historically been cases where a benefit/petition/application processing
briefly slows down or stops and this can not be predicted. Use these dates as reference only and do not
rely on them for planning. As always you should check the
USCIS processing times to see if your application
is past due.
** Not all cases are transfered
ver 5.0
