ForumTitleContentMemberSexCountryDate/Time
CanadaWAITING and waiting
Did anyone who was approved this week get anything in the mail yet? I keep tracking the number but canada post keeps saying nothing found. I'm hoping it's just not been updated and is still on it's way. Today we booked everything for our wedding except for the flights. Two weeks tomorrow!!! I hope everyone who hasn't gotten news yet gets approved soon. Only people who have been in our position can know how stressfull it is.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-06-17 20:24:00
CanadaWAITING and waiting

YAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!! ITS FINALLY HAPPENINGGGGGG!! Congrats...what was the reason you had to send in documents?


I had to send in a police certificate from Japan. which took over a month to get from the interview date. So lesson is don't listen to your local police station when they say you can put down your address from japan on the canada police check. I should have gotten a second opinion but I had no idea how to actually get a police certificate from japan and the lady that gave me the Canadian police certificate was very convincing. At the time too I wasn't so involved in Visajourney or i would have asked all of you!
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-06-16 12:54:00
CanadaWAITING and waiting
Well i called the DOS today and she said that my envelope had finally been opened. Then about an hour later my fiance got an email from his congressperson saying that montreal had APPROVED!!!! the visa and I should get it by the end of the week. I'm waiting for confirmation from Canada Post but Holy bonkers am i ever excited.!!! it is 8 weeks to the day that canada post confirmed that the documents had been sent to montreal.

What a day though!!!!
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-06-16 12:47:00
CanadaWAITING and waiting

My Husband's passport was expiring in 5 months when they interviewed him, they asked if he was ok with them issuing the visa with a validity of 5 months - he said sure - so that's what they did, no problem.


that does ease my anxiety, thanks. I'm sure others can attest to this as well by I have never had so much anxiety and stress as I have since starting this process.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-06-15 20:32:00
CanadaWAITING and waiting
the only reason I ask is because i realised the other day that my passport expires feb of 2011. which didn't seem that soon when I went to my interview in March. Or when i sent in the paperwork in april. It is now seeming very, very close considering that they require it to be valid for 6 months. I really don't want to go through sending stuff to them again. I guess hindsight is 20/20.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-06-15 20:23:00
CanadaWAITING and waiting

Another person in the same boat - that's too bad, I wonder how many there are out there?

I guess, in light of this new torture Montreal is putting people through, normally, when you go to the interview you should always anticipate a wait, in case further documents are needs, however, in the case of the Montreal consulate, everyone should anticipate a 3-4 month wait will be required, before moving, in case they need a piece of paper or two.


I'm curious to know who's waited 3-4 months. Has anyone else noticed different wait times for things like K vs CR/IR visas or for different types of documentation? Some Admin reviews seem more subjective than others.

someone else mentioned that last time they called the DOS they were told that montreal hired people recently. Has anyone else heard this news? Maybe it's just one phone operator giving bogus information?

Does it seem to anyone else that montreal has just stopped processing the mail they've gotten?

I think that when this whole process is done for all of us and we have green cards securely in hand, it would be time to write letters. Send them to everyone possible to bring attention to the extremely overworked Montreal consulate and how they need more staff and for responsibilities to be shared possibly with Toronto or other consulates to possibly speed up the process.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-06-15 20:03:00
CanadaWAITING and waiting
No news. hit 8 weeks today. This process is really awful.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-06-15 13:58:00
CanadaWAITING and waiting
Nothing yet...
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-06-09 13:06:00
CanadaWAITING and waiting
Hi Everyone, seems like everyone is in the same boat. I sent in my additional documents on april 20th and still haven't heard anything. I've managed to hold myself back and only emailed twice... although that was over a month ago and still haven't heard anything. My fiance contacted his congressperson this week and we're hoping beyond hope that it will kickstart something. We've already bumped our wedding date back once when we learned it would take longer, but that date is coming up really soon now too.

Lets keep each other informed about how many weeks we've waited and please please let us know when visas finally arrive because it does boost spirits.

today is 7 weeks now and only 3.5 weeks until our hopeful wedding date. Montreal pls kick through a whole slog of paperwork!!!! fingers crossed!
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-06-07 22:57:00
CanadaHow Long ? Geez!
It took almost a week from being approved to actually getting it. And yes they were sleepless nights. The whole Admin review process took 2 months. sent paperwork on april 20th and received the visa on june 24th. I have heard that the time frames are different for K1s compared to IR/CR visas.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-06-28 18:33:00
CanadaHow Long ? Geez!
I got my visa in the mail today... Thanks everyone for listening to me complain about montreal! I got it almost exactly 3 months after my interview and 2 months after sending in the Japanese police certificate. Booked my flight today and I leave tomorrow morning. Hopefully the delays around the Toronto Airport don't slow us down too much. Turns out Obama arrives shortly before I take off!
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-06-24 19:45:00
CanadaHow Long ? Geez!

Hi,

VISA, PASSPORT and the "DO NOT OPEN" envelope arrived today! YAY!!! now for the move and loading up the Uhaul truck... :)

Cheers!



Congrats!!! I'm sure your extremely relieved and excited to meet your babies!!
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-06-23 11:12:00
CanadaHow Long ? Geez!
YAY Canada post has tracking information on my Visa!!! I should get it by Thursday!!! Montreal must have made a mail drop this morning... I'm thinking other people that were approved late last week or yesterday are probably in the same boat!
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-06-22 09:01:00
CanadaHow Long ? Geez!
WOW congratulations!!!

I was told i was approved and printed last week when i called the dos and i still haven't gotten it. Canada post still isn't showing anything for my tracking number either. I hope you get it soon though and good luck getting into the states for the birth or shortly thereafter.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-06-21 18:01:00
CanadaHow Long ? Geez!

Hi everyone,
UPDATE: Got a message from Canadapost that something is being shipped to my husband from Montreal but dont know if its his visa or just his passport. I called DOS but they are not open????!! I had sent an email to montreal asking what the procedure was for passport return but i didnt mention case number or anything of that sort in the email...now im just biting my fingernails...there is no way for me to find out until DOS opens!!!
Also, if they just return your passport without a visa, for ex. because of a refusal, do they send it in the envelope you provide them?


The DOS closes for an hour or two wednesday around lunch so that might be why you can't get through.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-06-16 12:57:00
CanadaHow Long ? Geez!
Any updates? are you still waiting?. I keep calling the DOS and still nothing on my visa. 7 weeks today. Ugh...
i'm wondering if anyone else who has been waiting but recently gotten their visa can tell us at what week they actually got their visa so we can have some kind of reference.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-06-08 09:34:00
CanadaHow Long ? Geez!
10 weeks waiting!!! That is outrageous and it really makes me worry. I have been waiting almost 7 weeks now since sending in my police certificate and passport. We are hoping to get married on July 2nd. I guess that's not going to happen. I cannot believe how slow the montreal consulate is. We first sent our I 129 f in August last year and since the end of september our case has been at montreal. with the 6 months it took to get an interview and now the almost 2 months of admin review. we have been frustrated with montreal for about 8 months now. I don't want to have to move my wedding date back again!. What is going on in Montreal!!!
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-06-03 16:32:00
CanadaName change? How long?
We were just married a few weeks ago and I havent had any problems switching to my married name. Aside from trying to remember to sign with it, hehe. especially if your poe is shortly before the wedding. I think it depends on the laws in the state and county you will be married in but mostly you just have to show your marriage license when you get your social security number and send a copy of it with your AOS paperwork. The government knows who we are with all the numbers they assign to us these days, they almost don't need our names hehe.

Only thing i suggest if you want it to be easier is to wait until after your married to get your ssn. It takes a little while anyway so you might as well wait and apply after you're married.

For Canada, i'm just going to wait until things expire before trying to get them in my married name. It's not like i'll be needing them anytime soon!
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-07-26 20:52:00
CanadaWhat's going on with Montreal and CR-1 Visa interviews!?!?

Wow thats tough! I will be moving to Upstate NY, only 2hrs from where I live now... but a border none the less! My fiance is posted at Fort Drum. We are under pressure from his bosses to get an interview ASAP so we can get all this done by the end of block leave Sept 20 (riiight). I laughed at him when he told me this (my fiance's big boss... silly me) and he was very serious in saying we need to do this ASAP. During the fall we have lot's of family and friends who are important and will be out of town so who knows... if the expedite works we'll be ok... if not then I'll be moving into an empty home and cannot plan a wedding because his work requires him to move around on short notice. They are being lenient with his schedule now because he just got home from Iraq, but after leave its back to being over worked and on the move. We waited to do all this because we though it would be less rushed... HA go figure! I feel more rushed now than had we done it last summer like we initially planned. Main reason we waited was I didn't want to spend our first year apart and had my own 6 month contract to finish overseas.

WOA I am getting off topic. SORRY OP.


Did you request an expedite from Montreal? I had inquired about it when we were waiting for an interview because he was potentially being deployed. They said that he had to have specific orders and the request had to come from his commanding officer. So it didn't work for us. Hopefully it will for you. My fingers are crossed.

I know exactly where you're coming from. It's one thing to be waiting all this time to be reunited and its another thing to be waiting all this time knowing you are going to be separated after you're married too.

Luckily my hubby's deployment has been delayed so we might have a few months before he goes.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-07-29 22:15:00
CanadaWhat's going on with Montreal and CR-1 Visa interviews!?!?

Waiting for AP does suck! LOL Not near as bad as it was waiting for your NOA2 or an interview though. So it gets easier. The worse part is getting bored because you can't work. I've never baked and cooked so much in my life. Its starting to look like Martha's kitchen in here. *help me* lol



Hahaha. I know exactly what you mean. I can't believe how much waiting is involved in this bonkers process. I had thought it would be over mostly after I entered the country and we got married but it seems to have increased the paperwork by double! At least now I have a few new nifty cooking and baking gadgets to use, thank you wedding presents!! My husband is enjoying not having to cook for himself anymore. I think he also enjoys all the cookies and yummy things I've made. I definitly think the waiting for a residency card has been the best part of the whole process because at least I'm finally with my hubby.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-07-29 21:56:00
CanadaWhat's going on with Montreal and CR-1 Visa interviews!?!?
I think they do them in batches. It seems that they'll do a month of cr1's then a month of k1's.

While it may feel like you are waiting longer than others let me assure you that others including K1's have waited a lot longer. Our 129F was approved in September last year and we didn't have an interview until March. Meanwhile IR1/CR1's were being scheduled for January and February. Everyone has reasons to want to be bumped ahead of the line.

It is hard to wait whether you are married or waiting to get married. Let's try to support each other instead of trying to diminish other peoples relationships please.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-07-26 20:29:00
Canadamedical approved
It was my understanding that if you got the sealed envelope than your medical was fine. If there was something wrong then you would have been told to go for extra tests or x rays.

They aren't going to make you go to the consulate with an envelope just to have them open it and tell you your denied. Besides if there was something wrong, it would mean that your sick or need a new immunization, both of which the doctor would tell you.

Don't worry about it. You got the sealed envelope, you're good to go.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-08-28 09:16:00
Canadamedical exam expiration?
I would suggest waiting as well. When i was waiting for my approval i wanted to be proactive and get all my stuff together. Fortunately, I waited for the medical until I had the interview. If I hadn't it would have been extremely close to expiring when I filed for AOS. Some medical places actually require you to have your P3 or P4 before they'll schedule you.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-08-29 14:45:00
CanadaHow long till I get my Interview???

Thanks for the replies...wasn't expecting them so fast. :)

I don't know which visa I'm applying for...I just filled in all the forms and sent them in (and there were a lot of forms). I thought I was applying directly for a green card since my wife is a US citizen, so I guess this is another surprise finding out I will be getting a visa instead.


Sorry, I didn't mean to be confusing.

I hope that checking out the forums have answered your questions.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-09-02 10:32:00
CanadaHow long till I get my Interview???
Check out the canada forums for people waiting for montreal... It generally takes 4-6 months to get an interview, at least for a K1, at montreal. But it can be unpredictable. You probably aren't the only one. It sounds like you filed for a IR1 or CR1. Check out the other timelines for those visas.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-09-01 20:13:00
CanadaAny good recipe suggestions?

I used to have a subscription to Taste Of Home magazine. Best recipes ever in there!!! Not sure if they have a website or not. Hmmmm, now I'm gonna go google that!


I love cooking magazines. my husband just got me a subscription to Clean Eating. But then rarely likes anything that i make from it. haha. I'll have to look at Taste of Home.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-09-02 10:41:00
CanadaAny good recipe suggestions?
thanks Marilyn. I must have missed that thread.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-09-01 17:47:00
CanadaAny good recipe suggestions?
So I'm getting pretty bored waiting for a greencard or EAD. I'm spending time cooking, cleaning and crafting. All of which I love to do. Well, maybe not the cleaning part. I keep finding good looking recipes online but then they end up not being very tasty. (One was almost unedible!).

I guess I'm asking if anyone has any favourite recipes they don't mind sharing. I love cooking and my new husband is enjoying having me home to cook for him again.

Anything will be welcome, main dish, dessert, side dishes, and any kind of international cuisine.

Thanks!
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-09-01 17:28:00
Canadawhen should i officially freak out?
Congrats! We all know how much of a huge relief it is... Have a great drive and great wedding!
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-09-22 15:18:00
Canadawhen should i officially freak out?

i'm losing my mind. seriously.
if they printed the visa on the second, shouldn't he have it by now???


it took me almost two weeks after they actually printed it (not just when uscis said they did) before i got it. they seem to only actually mail stuff once a week so maybe you just missed the cut off. Just keep checking canada post. It will show up soon.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-09-13 21:23:00
Canadawhen should i officially freak out?
if it goes on for any longer. I highly suggest contacting your SO's congressperson. Ours at least were able to update us on what was actually going on since montreal responds to emails from congress. haha. cause they don't respond to anyone else.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-09-03 22:26:00
Canadawhen should i officially freak out?
when we were waiting for mine after i sent in paperwork. Everytime I called dos I got a different answer. We got an email from my SO's congressman saying that it was printed and would be there by the end of the week (we got the email on tuesday). Since I was checking Canada post for the package and it still wasn't showing up, i called the dos. Everyone there told me a different thing. One day I would get someone saying they hadn't even received teh paperwork i had sent! the next day they'd say it'd been printed. The day after that it wasn't printed yet but they were reviewing the paperwork.

Keep checking Canada post if you have the tracking number because (shockingly!) Canada post is more reliable than the dos. haha.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-09-03 22:16:00
Canadawhen should i officially freak out?
I know how you feel too. I'm sure it's on it's way. They let you know in the interview if you will be put in AP. When mine was finally approved it still took over a week to get it. Calling USCIS didn't seem to help as one day htey'd say it was approved and the next they'd say they're still waiting for the additional documents to be sent in!
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-09-01 17:35:00
CanadaAP question

As a follow up to our interview at the beginning of Aug, I sent to the MTL consulate some follow up docs they asked me to submit after my interview, along with our passports.

On Wed, my hubby's senator liaison is going to contact them to "gently" suggest they could look at the docs and issue our visas. It's been 53 days since our interview...anyone happen to have any experience with this sort of thing?


My hubby's deployment date draws nearer and nearer and everytime I call DoS they tell me there's been no update but they show we have expedite on our case. I'm so scared that we won't get our visas issued before he leaves, because I know that Montreal is sooo backed up. *sigh*



I would email them repeatedly with a pointed and catchy email topic line. something like "requested documents mailed in Military deployment on (date) pls reply." try a new one every day until they respond.

I had to send in documents after my interview and didn't get the visa until over two months later. They hadn't even logged the paperwork until 2 weeks before they issued the visa. Which means they have bins and bins of envelopes waiting to be opened.

When is he deploying? It's a great idea getting the congress person involved, they definitely helped us. We contacted his congress person and the following week they gave us the news that it was approved.

Good luck... Keep us posted.

btw what branch of the military is your fiance?
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-09-26 20:02:00
CanadaPostcard Exchange!
Um Canadian thanksgiving could be the theme for october since that's the only way i'll really get one!!!
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-08-31 15:37:00
CanadaPostcard Exchange!
Postcard exchanges sound fun! From what I've read you get an address and send a postcard to them that month on a particular theme? What have the themes been in the past? (it may have been in previous posts but there are 11 pages!) Is it just one postcard sent and hopefully one received? BTW any other Canadian VJers in the eastern Carolinas?
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-08-31 14:55:00
CanadaWedding Details

Ok, so since we got his green card last month, I have been trying to ignore the two country thing for a few weeks (after 14 months of fiance visa and AOS, we kind of needed that break). Our religious ceremony is here in the US in a few weeks, and I thought I had done really well considering all the international aspects until now. I'm swamped at work this week so I'm hoping this thread can help with some information, since I don't have time to do any amount of substantial research.

His family is throwing a couples shower in Canada. I'm not quite sure what we do about bringing gifts back with us? What do I need to consider? Has anyone done this? They aren't really personal effects, because they're new? It's the first time we're using his green card to cross, so I'm a little sensitive about how that goes anyway but add bringing things back with us raises my level of concern.


Your worried about bringing the shower gifts back to the US? I woudln't really worry about it. You don't have to pay duty for gifts i believe and if people give you money, you're allowed to bring a few thousand over the border I believe.

Before we had our shower and wedding, since we had one in Canada and the other on the other side of the states, we politely asked people to give money or gift cards. Everyone understood we'd be flying or travelling pretty far and were very accommodating.

Those of you that had a civil ceremony first- what did you wear?? I'm at a total loss here.. :wacko:



A friend of mine got married at the courthouse in jeans. She was wearing sweats but her husband told her to at least put jeans on. haha
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-09-07 21:01:00
CanadaAOS'rs...

It's awesome to hear that a few people that applied for AOS at roundabout the same time I did are getting their GC's. Hope mine comes soon. :(

Anyways, my husband and I are thinking about going and getting me a driver's license just so I have a piece of state ID, but he's worried that I'll have to do the whole deal - written exam and a driving exam.

For those that have theirs already, what process did you have to go through? *I know this will vary from state to state, I'm just curious. :)


In north carolina they said that until i get the green card they can only issue me a drivers license good for 6 months. Also, he said that they do have to have a written test but it's a case by case basis for the driving test and he usually doesn't require it.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-11-09 17:43:00
CanadaAOS'rs...

I am just glad that I contacted our congressman. I did eventually get a Bio appt letter in the mail and the appt was for some time in Oct, and if I never had followed up with the congressmans office about my EAD, it would still be sitting there waiting for my biometrics that were never sent to the Missouri office!!!

I suggest for those who have been waiting 2 months + for their bio appointments that you contact your congressman. Election day is less than a month away, and it is amazing what candidates will do to get votes!!!!

usmcwife, I am pretty sure that our congressmans office had a specific contact for military immigration issues, I would look into yours. I know that when my husband naturalized while in the military it happened VERY fast. I know it is a bit different for family members, but they generally try to help out military families when they can.



That's a good idea. I think it's time to contact our congressman. His office was really helpful when we were waiting for Montreal. Hopefully they can be helpful again.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-10-14 21:50:00
CanadaAOS'rs...
I still haven't gotten a biometrics appt. I was told though that raleigh isn't backlogged like some other local offices. I guess my file was dropped in a crack. The uscis agent i spoke with did put an inquiry in though. Whether or not that actually does anything is another story.
usmcwifeFemaleCanada2010-10-14 14:35:00