Montreal K-1 Visa success (long)
Jul 29th 2002, 2:20 am
#1
Guest
Posts: n/a
Montreal K-1 Visa success (long)
My fiance, Sergio, and I had our K-1 interview in Montreal on Friday, and were
approved. That's the short story. The longer one is below - sorry for the length, but
I thought others would want to know what we experienced. It was, all in all, a
wonderfully easy experience, and not nearly as stressful as it could have been. I was
allowed to be present for the interview and even participated, a little. I hope
others have as good an experience as we did! And I did post this to the K-1
experiences site.
We stayed at Le Tour Centre Ville on. Rene-Levesque West between Bluery and St.
Alexandre, http://montreal.hotelguide.net/data/h100055.htm, which was literally
across the street from the consulate - if our room had faced Rene-Levesque, we would
have had a view of it. We parked in the hotel garage for $15 a day. Our room had a
full kitchen, queen bed, pull-out couch, and cable TV for $102 CAD, plus taxes. The
hotel is literally across the street from the consulate. You walk out the front door
of the hotel, go left and walk up R-L to St. Alexandre. Go right and cross R-L. The
Consulate building is on the north east corner of St. Alex and R-L and the entrance
for the consulate is on St. Alex, just north of the corner. If you don't stay nearby,
there's a parking lot on St. Alex north of the consulate entrance.
We left our room at 8:35 a.m. for a 9:30 interview. We arrived at security at 8:40.
We presented our appointment letter and went through a security check like they do at
the airport. The security guard directed us to the 19th floor and said to check in at
Window 25. We rode up to 19 and got off ito a large open room, with many signs
indicating which window was where. We walked to Window 25, told the clerk why we were
there, and she gave us two copies of number C-12. All the clerks at the consulate are
behind thick glass partitions. FYI, you can't bring in food/drink, but there is a pop
machine in the room.
We sat down to wait at 8:55. At 9:10, our number was called, and we went to Window 3.
The clerk asked for Serge's appointment letter and went to grab our file. When the
clerk came back with our file, Serge was asked for his original birth certificate and
a copy (we got the original back when we had the interview), his passport, a new
letter of my intent to marry him, two copies of DS-156 and one copy of DS-156K, which
she had him sign in front of her, the police certificate, the medical minus the
x-ray, two passport-style photos, and my affidavit of support (I-134). She did not
ask for the letter from my employer or my bank statements. She complimented Serge on
being so well-organized, which was nice. She gave him a slip and told him to go back
to Window 25, pay and put the receipt and slip in her box and that we would be called
for an interview later. By 9:20, we were sitting in the waiting room again,
At 10:20 we were called to interview room 13 where a man was waiting. He began by
explaining that he was administering an oath, and gave Serge a form to sign that
indicated he had been sworn in. He said he would be asking Serge a few questions. The
interview started with a question about whether Serge had lived anywhere other than
Canada since age 16. Then he asked how Sergio had met me. He then turned to me and
said, I assume this is Kristin? and we agreed. He asked when we had begun dating
seriously and what Sergio did for a living. He noted that I live in Michigan and
Serge in Toronto, and said "so you guys probably can see each other pretty often,
even every weekend if you want, right?" We affirmed that we are indeed lucky in that
respect. Then the interviewer turned to me and said "I am going to ask him the next
question and I know you know but I want to see what he says" and we all laughed a
little. He asked what I did for a living, and Serge explained. It turned out he knew
someone from my work! What a coincidence. We talked about our mutual acquaintance
while Serge was kinda like, hey, wait, aren't we here about a visa? Let's get this
interview over! After a minute he turned to Serge and said, "sorry, we'll get back to
you in a second", or something, but it was really funny and made both of us relax.
Finally the interviewer said the words we had waited six months to hear
- "I'm approving your application!!!!" Serge asked if he could kiss his fiancee, and
the guy said sure! We were so happy to be approved. The man told us that the K-1
visas were not printed in this office, but "on the other side of the building" and
that they were printed in groups of three, so he couldn't tell us how long we would
need to wait. He thought it would take about 30 and 45 minutes. It turns out that
we were probably the only K-1 applicants there that day, although we didn't realize
it then. We went back to the waiting room to wait for our name to be called. It was
probably 10:25 - 10:30.
Then we had what seemed like a REALLY long wait, as it took another hour for Serge's
visa to be ready. We figured that we were probably the only people there for a K-1 (I
think I read somewhere that they usually do K-1s on Wednesdays). Finally, at 11:35,
Sergio's name was called (no one else was called at the same time) to report to
Window 3. A new clerk gave us his passport, with the visa imprinted in it, and the
"mysterious brown envelope". Yay! She gave us some instructions that are also taped
to the envelope.
We asked her what he should do when visits the US, because he's not moving yet. She
told him to make a copy of his passport, carry his birth certificate, and explain
that he has a K-1 but he's not using it, and he shouldn't have any problem. The
interviewer suggested we check with the INS folks at the border, too, so we're going
to do that, since Serge won't be using the visa until November and will be visiting
several times before then. We spent a few minutes reviewing the visa, making sure
the info was all correct, which it was. Serge’s A# is not printed or written on the
visa, fyi.
We left the consulate at 11:45. It was, all in all, a pretty painless and
straight-forward procedure, and we were in and out in just under three hours.
Overall, we were extremely impressed with the consulate and the staff there. The
number system was extraordinarily easy to follow and we knew what we needed to do at
every step. Everyone was pleasant and friendly and we just couldn't have been more
pleased. Now, on to the business of using the visa and getting married!
Our timeline: February 6, 2002: I-129F petition mailed February 21, 2002 - First NOA
April 5, 2002: RFE April 19, 2002: NSC receives requested info , per automated system
May 3, 2002: Second NOA, per automated system May 23, 2002: Packet 3 received from
Montreal June 25, 2002: Checklist returned to Montreal July 9, 2002: Interview date
received July 26, 2002: Successful interview in Montreal
approved. That's the short story. The longer one is below - sorry for the length, but
I thought others would want to know what we experienced. It was, all in all, a
wonderfully easy experience, and not nearly as stressful as it could have been. I was
allowed to be present for the interview and even participated, a little. I hope
others have as good an experience as we did! And I did post this to the K-1
experiences site.
We stayed at Le Tour Centre Ville on. Rene-Levesque West between Bluery and St.
Alexandre, http://montreal.hotelguide.net/data/h100055.htm, which was literally
across the street from the consulate - if our room had faced Rene-Levesque, we would
have had a view of it. We parked in the hotel garage for $15 a day. Our room had a
full kitchen, queen bed, pull-out couch, and cable TV for $102 CAD, plus taxes. The
hotel is literally across the street from the consulate. You walk out the front door
of the hotel, go left and walk up R-L to St. Alexandre. Go right and cross R-L. The
Consulate building is on the north east corner of St. Alex and R-L and the entrance
for the consulate is on St. Alex, just north of the corner. If you don't stay nearby,
there's a parking lot on St. Alex north of the consulate entrance.
We left our room at 8:35 a.m. for a 9:30 interview. We arrived at security at 8:40.
We presented our appointment letter and went through a security check like they do at
the airport. The security guard directed us to the 19th floor and said to check in at
Window 25. We rode up to 19 and got off ito a large open room, with many signs
indicating which window was where. We walked to Window 25, told the clerk why we were
there, and she gave us two copies of number C-12. All the clerks at the consulate are
behind thick glass partitions. FYI, you can't bring in food/drink, but there is a pop
machine in the room.
We sat down to wait at 8:55. At 9:10, our number was called, and we went to Window 3.
The clerk asked for Serge's appointment letter and went to grab our file. When the
clerk came back with our file, Serge was asked for his original birth certificate and
a copy (we got the original back when we had the interview), his passport, a new
letter of my intent to marry him, two copies of DS-156 and one copy of DS-156K, which
she had him sign in front of her, the police certificate, the medical minus the
x-ray, two passport-style photos, and my affidavit of support (I-134). She did not
ask for the letter from my employer or my bank statements. She complimented Serge on
being so well-organized, which was nice. She gave him a slip and told him to go back
to Window 25, pay and put the receipt and slip in her box and that we would be called
for an interview later. By 9:20, we were sitting in the waiting room again,
At 10:20 we were called to interview room 13 where a man was waiting. He began by
explaining that he was administering an oath, and gave Serge a form to sign that
indicated he had been sworn in. He said he would be asking Serge a few questions. The
interview started with a question about whether Serge had lived anywhere other than
Canada since age 16. Then he asked how Sergio had met me. He then turned to me and
said, I assume this is Kristin? and we agreed.
He asked when we had begun datingseriously and what Sergio did for a living. He noted that I live in Michigan and
Serge in Toronto, and said "so you guys probably can see each other pretty often,
even every weekend if you want, right?" We affirmed that we are indeed lucky in that
respect. Then the interviewer turned to me and said "I am going to ask him the next
question and I know you know but I want to see what he says" and we all laughed a
little. He asked what I did for a living, and Serge explained. It turned out he knew
someone from my work! What a coincidence. We talked about our mutual acquaintance
while Serge was kinda like, hey, wait, aren't we here about a visa? Let's get this
interview over! After a minute he turned to Serge and said, "sorry, we'll get back to
you in a second", or something, but it was really funny and made both of us relax.
Finally the interviewer said the words we had waited six months to hear
- "I'm approving your application!!!!" Serge asked if he could kiss his fiancee, and
the guy said sure!
We were so happy to be approved. The man told us that the K-1visas were not printed in this office, but "on the other side of the building" and
that they were printed in groups of three, so he couldn't tell us how long we would
need to wait. He thought it would take about 30 and 45 minutes. It turns out that
we were probably the only K-1 applicants there that day, although we didn't realize
it then. We went back to the waiting room to wait for our name to be called. It was
probably 10:25 - 10:30.
Then we had what seemed like a REALLY long wait, as it took another hour for Serge's
visa to be ready. We figured that we were probably the only people there for a K-1 (I
think I read somewhere that they usually do K-1s on Wednesdays). Finally, at 11:35,
Sergio's name was called (no one else was called at the same time) to report to
Window 3. A new clerk gave us his passport, with the visa imprinted in it, and the
"mysterious brown envelope". Yay! She gave us some instructions that are also taped
to the envelope.
We asked her what he should do when visits the US, because he's not moving yet. She
told him to make a copy of his passport, carry his birth certificate, and explain
that he has a K-1 but he's not using it, and he shouldn't have any problem. The
interviewer suggested we check with the INS folks at the border, too, so we're going
to do that, since Serge won't be using the visa until November and will be visiting
several times before then. We spent a few minutes reviewing the visa, making sure
the info was all correct, which it was. Serge’s A# is not printed or written on the
visa, fyi.
We left the consulate at 11:45. It was, all in all, a pretty painless and
straight-forward procedure, and we were in and out in just under three hours.
Overall, we were extremely impressed with the consulate and the staff there. The
number system was extraordinarily easy to follow and we knew what we needed to do at
every step. Everyone was pleasant and friendly and we just couldn't have been more
pleased. Now, on to the business of using the visa and getting married!
Our timeline: February 6, 2002: I-129F petition mailed February 21, 2002 - First NOA
April 5, 2002: RFE April 19, 2002: NSC receives requested info , per automated system
May 3, 2002: Second NOA, per automated system May 23, 2002: Packet 3 received from
Montreal June 25, 2002: Checklist returned to Montreal July 9, 2002: Interview date
received July 26, 2002: Successful interview in Montreal
Jul 29th 2002, 2:26 am
#2
Concierge
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 46,474
Re: Montreal K-1 Visa success (long)
Congratulations. Much like riding the top of a wave isn't it?
May I ask that you post your K-1 interview experience for others to find easily at:
http://www.kamya.com/interview/intro.html
Much appreciated.
May I ask that you post your K-1 interview experience for others to find easily at:
http://www.kamya.com/interview/intro.html
Much appreciated.
Jul 29th 2002, 2:31 am
#3
Concierge
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 46,474
Re: Montreal K-1 Visa success (long)
FYI, the Alien registration number is NOT printed on the K-1. Be sure that when he activates the K-1 at the POE that they handwrite the A# under the I-94. It should be the same number as appears on your notice of approval from the service center.
Rete
Rete
Jul 29th 2002, 5:20 am
#4
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Montreal K-1 Visa success (long)
Don't worry, I posted to the Kamya experiences site this morning. I wasn't sure
about the A#, as I'd seen some NG posts that the A# was printed on the visa, and some
that it wasn't, and we specifically asked at the consulate. They said that it's not
printed on the K-1 visa. At least in Montreal on July 26, 2002 it wasn't. We will
definitely check for the A# on the I-94 when he uses the visa to enter, and make sure
it matches the one on the 2nd NOA.
Rete, thanks so much for all your advice and guidance- past, present, and future!
Your guidance has been completely invaluable and you go above and beyond the call of
duty. Kristin
Rete wrote:
> FYI, the Alien registration number is NOT printed on the K-1. Be sure that when he
> activates the K-1 at the POE that they handwrite the A# under the I-94. It should
> be the same number as appears on your notice of approval from the service center.
>
> Rete
>
> --
>
> Posted via http://britishexpats.com
I wasn't sureabout the A#, as I'd seen some NG posts that the A# was printed on the visa, and some
that it wasn't, and we specifically asked at the consulate. They said that it's not
printed on the K-1 visa. At least in Montreal on July 26, 2002 it wasn't.
We willdefinitely check for the A# on the I-94 when he uses the visa to enter, and make sure
it matches the one on the 2nd NOA.
Rete, thanks so much for all your advice and guidance- past, present, and future!
Your guidance has been completely invaluable and you go above and beyond the call of
duty. Kristin
Rete wrote:
> FYI, the Alien registration number is NOT printed on the K-1. Be sure that when he
> activates the K-1 at the POE that they handwrite the A# under the I-94. It should
> be the same number as appears on your notice of approval from the service center.
>
> Rete
>
> --
>
> Posted via http://britishexpats.com
Jul 29th 2002, 7:20 am
#5
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Montreal K-1 Visa success (long)
Congrats.
Although you have nothing at all to worry about, my A# was indeed printed on my K1
visa (I'm looking at it right now) which was issued from Montreal on June 22, 2001.
It was printed as the last line in the "Annotation" section of the visa, just
underneath where it indicates when your petition expires.
DJ
Although you have nothing at all to worry about, my A# was indeed printed on my K1
visa (I'm looking at it right now) which was issued from Montreal on June 22, 2001.
It was printed as the last line in the "Annotation" section of the visa, just
underneath where it indicates when your petition expires.
DJ
Jul 29th 2002, 7:20 am
#6
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Montreal K-1 Visa success (long)
LOL, why am I not surprised that even within the same consulate, they are not
consistent from one year to the next? Thanks for the info. Kristin
DJ wrote:
> Congrats.
>
> Although you have nothing at all to worry about, my A# was indeed printed on my K1
> visa (I'm looking at it right now) which was issued from Montreal on June 22, 2001.
> It was printed as the last line in the "Annotation" section of the visa, just
> underneath where it indicates when your petition expires.
>
> DJ
consistent from one year to the next? Thanks for the info. Kristin
DJ wrote:
> Congrats.
>
> Although you have nothing at all to worry about, my A# was indeed printed on my K1
> visa (I'm looking at it right now) which was issued from Montreal on June 22, 2001.
> It was printed as the last line in the "Annotation" section of the visa, just
> underneath where it indicates when your petition expires.
>
> DJ
Jul 29th 2002, 7:46 am
#7
Concierge
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 46,474
Re: Montreal K-1 Visa success (long)
FWIW, Jim went through the US Consulate in Montreal in June, '98. No A# on his K-1.
http://k1.exit.com/k-1frames.html
is a copy of Alvena's hubby's actual K-1 visa and his doesn't have his A# on it either. The number under the expiration date area is the non-immigration visa number (in red) and that is not the A#.
As you can see from the site, his, like my husband's, has the A# handwritten in under the I-94.
Isn't this all so confusing ;-)
Rete
http://k1.exit.com/k-1frames.html
is a copy of Alvena's hubby's actual K-1 visa and his doesn't have his A# on it either. The number under the expiration date area is the non-immigration visa number (in red) and that is not the A#.
As you can see from the site, his, like my husband's, has the A# handwritten in under the I-94.
Isn't this all so confusing ;-)
Rete
Jul 29th 2002, 10:20 am
#8
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Montreal K-1 Visa success (long)
"Rete" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> FWIW, Jim went through the US Consulate in Montreal in June, '98. No A# on his K-1.
>
> http://k1.exit.com/k-1frames.html
>
> is a copy of Alvena's hubby's actual K-1 visa and his doesn't have his A# on it
> either. The number under the expiration date area is the non-immigration visa
> number (in red) and that is not the A#.
Mine definately has the A# on the visa (I've been at this long enough to know the
difference by now, heck I even memorize mine!). I've also looked at the K1 visa
picture from the link you provided. The annotation section of my visa is quite
different from the one in the picture.
I do have a visa number printed in red. My A# is printed in black underneath the
Petition expiry information with the same font as everything else in the Annotation
section of the visa (with the exception of the visa number, which is in a different
font and color).
My Annotation section looks like this (All names and numbers have been changed, all
numbers are in the same format):
TESTTEST
Annotation PETR: Doe, Jane A (SRC-11-111-11111) PET EXP/REVALIDATED: January 1, 2000
A11 111 111
TESTTEST
My petition expiration information is printed over top my red visa number (the first
2 digits of it anyways).
DJ
news:[email protected]...
> FWIW, Jim went through the US Consulate in Montreal in June, '98. No A# on his K-1.
>
> http://k1.exit.com/k-1frames.html
>
> is a copy of Alvena's hubby's actual K-1 visa and his doesn't have his A# on it
> either. The number under the expiration date area is the non-immigration visa
> number (in red) and that is not the A#.
Mine definately has the A# on the visa (I've been at this long enough to know the
difference by now, heck I even memorize mine!). I've also looked at the K1 visa
picture from the link you provided. The annotation section of my visa is quite
different from the one in the picture.
I do have a visa number printed in red. My A# is printed in black underneath the
Petition expiry information with the same font as everything else in the Annotation
section of the visa (with the exception of the visa number, which is in a different
font and color).
My Annotation section looks like this (All names and numbers have been changed, all
numbers are in the same format):
TESTTEST
Annotation PETR: Doe, Jane A (SRC-11-111-11111) PET EXP/REVALIDATED: January 1, 2000
A11 111 111
TESTTEST
My petition expiration information is printed over top my red visa number (the first
2 digits of it anyways).
DJ
Jul 29th 2002, 11:27 am
#9
Concierge
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 46,474
Re: Montreal K-1 Visa success (long)
Interesting. Jim went through Montreal in June of '98 and Kristin now in '02 and their's don't have it ... consider yourself one of the lucky few I guess ;-)
Way to go DJ ... one less thing you had to worry about at the POE!
Rete
Way to go DJ ... one less thing you had to worry about at the POE!
Rete
Jul 30th 2002, 11:20 am
#10
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Montreal K-1 Visa success (long)
I guess I should consider myself lucky in this instance too, because I just took a
look at mine which was issued May 8th 2002 in Montreal and it has the A#
Luanne
Rete wrote:
> Interesting. Jim went through Montreal in June of '98 and Kristin now in '02 and
> their's don't have it ... consider yourself one of the lucky few I guess
>
> Way to go DJ ... one less thing you had to worry about at the POE!
>
> Rete
>
>
>
> --
>
>
>
> Posted via http://britishexpats.com
look at mine which was issued May 8th 2002 in Montreal and it has the A#
Luanne
Rete wrote:
> Interesting. Jim went through Montreal in June of '98 and Kristin now in '02 and
> their's don't have it ... consider yourself one of the lucky few I guess
>
> Way to go DJ ... one less thing you had to worry about at the POE!
>
> Rete
>
>
>
> --
>
>
>
> Posted via http://britishexpats.com
