VISA experience AUG@Toronto


univer959595

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Hi Everyone,


 


     I am sharing my VISA experience at Toronto location last week. I was given 221G yellow and its been a week and still waiting for an update from consulate. Sharing my experience and also want to check if anyone is in the same situation. I am in EVC but I was not asked any document except my I-797 is with the consulate. They also gave back my passport.


 


VO: Hi How are you?


me: Gud how are you?


 


VO: So which company you work for?


me: provided the info


 


VO: so do you have a client?


Me: Yes


 


VO: what is your client?


me: XXX


 


VO: What does your company do?


me: Told the answer


 


VO: How many employees does ur company have?


me: I didnt know the exact number so told approximate number.


 


He paused for sometime checking the monitor and went behind the counter and then gave me a 221G.


I am waiting for the email from the embassy but still don't have any update.


 


 


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hi

 

If you get a yellow slip in toronto, it means they need to get some sort of a background clearance. did they take your resume by any chance? if they did then u come under a technology alert list (ususally bio and chemical majors, but sometimes even electrical and computers people come under it). This type of check used to take 3 to 4 weeks but now it looks like it is taking longer (Due to peak visa months). I have a Bio degree and i got this 221g in ottawa on 24th july.... still waiting!!

 

Nothing against you or any religion, but if you have a common muslim name they could be doing a namecheck clearance (this ususally takes a lot of time). For this check they dont ask for any documents.....

 

Did they ask you to email any documents? or did your 221g yellow had any info regarding emailing documents to the consulate ?

 

Thank you

 

 

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hi

 

If you get a yellow slip in toronto, it means they need to get some sort of a background clearance. did they take your resume by any chance? if they did then u come under a technology alert list (ususally bio and chemical majors, but sometimes even electrical and computers people come under it). This type of check used to take 3 to 4 weeks but now it looks like it is taking longer (Due to peak visa months). I have a Bio degree and i got this 221g in ottawa on 24th july.... still waiting!!

 

Nothing against you or any religion, but if you have a common muslim name they could be doing a namecheck clearance (this ususally takes a lot of time). For this check they dont ask for any documents.....

 

Did they ask you to email any documents? or did your 221g yellow had any info regarding emailing documents to the consulate ?

 

Thank you

They havent taken any document except I-797 H1b receipt. I am still waiting for an email from them.

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hi

 

If you get a yellow slip in toronto, it means they need to get some sort of a background clearance. did they take your resume by any chance? if they did then u come under a technology alert list (ususally bio and chemical majors, but sometimes even electrical and computers people come under it). This type of check used to take 3 to 4 weeks but now it looks like it is taking longer (Due to peak visa months). I have a Bio degree and i got this 221g in ottawa on 24th july.... still waiting!!

 

Nothing against you or any religion, but if you have a common muslim name they could be doing a namecheck clearance (this ususally takes a lot of time). For this check they dont ask for any documents.....

 

Did they ask you to email any documents? or did your 221g yellow had any info regarding emailing documents to the consulate ?

 

Thank you

@ Snoopreddy,

 

Are you on H1 working for a IT company with a Science background? Was this the reason you got 221g? Please let me know. I have an interview at vancouver next month and my background is similar to yours.

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Hi Kred

 

I have a bachelors in BioTech and Masters in bioinformatics, both from US. And right now i work as a programmer analyst/Medical informaticican for National institutes of health as a direct federal contractor, also i have a level 5 government clearance.....but nothing was helpful in my case!!.

 

The VO asked only 3 questions where i work, what i do and what was my degree in.....Once he heard biotech/bioinformatics he gave me a 221g and said we need to do some admin processing.....he asked for my resume and also there were some basic questions on the 221g that i emailed the consulate that day. I actually had a similar check when i went to india in 2010, back then it took 2 weeks for clearance but this time its already 4 weeks (the ottawa consulate told me because of peak visa months the Department of state is getting delayed in issuing clearances). The VO also told me that there is a good chance i will have to go through the same TAL check even for future stampings

 

I thought, because i have a government clearance i would be spared this time but it didnt really matter. So my suggestion is if you have a science degree be prepared, there is a good chance you might be getting a 221g and if you had 221g TAL in previous stamping then the probability increases to almost 100%. The only good things for me are, i have my cousin in toronto so i am staying with him and also my position cannot be replaced easily so my manager lets me work remotely. Also I have seen a lot of science majors getting this type of 221g and in canada its almost by default. I dont know ur current situation but if you can avoid the stamping i would suggest it, but if you really want to get the stamping in vancouver........I really hope you dont have to go through this, but just be prepared for worst case scenario and plan for 4 to 6 weeks stay.

 

 

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Hi Kred

 

I have a bachelors in BioTech and Masters in bioinformatics, both from US. And right now i work as a programmer analyst/Medical informaticican for National institutes of health as a direct federal contractor, also i have a level 5 government clearance.....but nothing was helpful in my case!!.

 

The VO asked only 3 questions where i work, what i do and what was my degree in.....Once he heard biotech/bioinformatics he gave me a 221g and said we need to do some admin processing.....he asked for my resume and also there were some basic questions on the 221g that i emailed the consulate that day. I actually had a similar check when i went to india in 2010, back then it took 2 weeks for clearance but this time its already 4 weeks (the ottawa consulate told me because of peak visa months the Department of state is getting delayed in issuing clearances). The VO also told me that there is a good chance i will have to go through the same TAL check even for future stampings

 

I thought, because i have a government clearance i would be spared this time but it didnt really matter. So my suggestion is if you have a science degree be prepared, there is a good chance you might be getting a 221g and if you had 221g TAL in previous stamping then the probability increases to almost 100%. The only good things for me are, i have my cousin in toronto so i am staying with him and also my position cannot be replaced easily so my manager lets me work remotely. Also I have seen a lot of science majors getting this type of 221g and in canada its almost by default. I dont know ur current situation but if you can avoid the stamping i would suggest it, but if you really want to get the stamping in vancouver........I really hope you dont have to go through this, but just be prepared for worst case scenario and plan for 4 to 6 weeks stay.

Hi Snoopreddy,

Thanks alot for your detailed reply. I did my btech in Biotechnology and Masters in Biomedical sciences (Bioinformatics) just like you. I am surprised to know this because the friends I know having science major just like me have all got visa's at Vancouver. Most of them were not even asked about their MS major. Recently a week ago a friend of mine with a pharmacy major working currently as Programmer Analyst got Visa approved. He was asked by VO about his educational background and relation to the job currently he is doing, but he was able to explain that the computer courses he has learned during his bachelors and masters helped him with the current job. Then no questions asked and he was given Visa.

 

In our case also, we have computer related subjects in btech and in masters (bioinformatics) which is a combination of science with IT and a certification on a specific IT tool, wouldn't that suffice VO's question?. I am planning to mention all this to VO if same question asked, explaining him how my current job has a relation to my education. I even worked as SAS research analyst for almost a year in the past. I wouldn't back off with a fear of getting rejected. I want to face it outcome may be good or harm, but I really need to visit India.

 

When asked about your educational background, didn't VO give you a chance to explain?

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Hi Kred

 

Its actually a hit or miss kind of a deal with this type of 221g......some of my friends who went for stamping in india had to go through this similar check. I think one of them was given her visa without any issues but rest of them had to wait for around 4 weeks for clearances. So i guess it has more to do with the Visa officer understanding what it is that we do. But you have to remember that the visa officer interviews only for 30 sec and there is a good chance he will not understand what we do and he already made up his mind on giving a 221g before the interview itself.

 

For me he didnt even give me a chance to explain what i do, all he saw was a check on his system that said "clearance received on  technology" from back in 2010 when i went for F1 renewal. so he automatically gave me the 221g again.

 

Also i think you got confused when i said technology related 221g. This doesnt mean the VO is checking to see if your educational credentials are matching your job description.....this is actually a case where the US Department of state has termed some 15 fields in technology alert list ( in our case BIOTECH/microbiology/biochemistry/chemical engineering/Bioinformatics etc) that are duel use technologies and can be used for some "BAD" activities. so they will request a security advisory opinion from DC to check your background/education credentials and resume to see if you know any sensitive technology or have intended to take this technology and use it for "BAD" things.

 

The VO told me they randomly do it for 20 % of the candidates, but its just the matter of timing on who gets it and who doesnt. But one thing is for sure, if you had a 221g for the technology in the past you will definetly get it again......

 

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Oops sorry about that.....looks like the links dont work......when i post them.......Just search for 221G TAL in google.....and there is a lot of information regarding this......You will get all the information you need.......

Yeah got a lot of information on this TAL. As you said it is randomly picked on few % of candidates for interview.

 

Have you gotten any response after your interview yet?

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Hi Kred

 

I haven't heard anything yet.......i contacted the consulate, DOS and even My state senator on this, but no use. Looks like because of a lot of F1 and J1 students applying in june and July all the H1 and B1 visas are getting delayed.

 

My state senator wrote a letter to the department of state and they got the same response....saying they are checking my educational background and once that is done they will issue the visa.....they mentioned that, because of the universities starting in AUG they are trying to get all the F1 and J1 applications done first......

 

SO i think once they start working on the H1 applications everyone should get it soon......It is 5 weeks for me now.....so hoping that it will be done in the coming week. Also i was following some Chinese tracker sites and their it looks like the July H1 cases are starting to get their visas now....so could be any day now.......

 

 

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Hi Kred

 

I haven't heard anything yet.......i contacted the consulate, DOS and even My state senator on this, but no use. Looks like because of a lot of F1 and J1 students applying in june and July all the H1 and B1 visas are getting delayed.

 

My state senator wrote a letter to the department of state and they got the same response....saying they are checking my educational background and once that is done they will issue the visa.....they mentioned that, because of the universities starting in AUG they are trying to get all the F1 and J1 applications done first......

 

SO i think once they start working on the H1 applications everyone should get it soon......It is 5 weeks for me now.....so hoping that it will be done in the coming week. Also i was following some Chinese tracker sites and their it looks like the July H1 cases are starting to get their visas now....so could be any day now.......

Hi I have also done Biotech in masters and working on IT side now. I am planning to go for stamping in 3 months. Let me know once you get your Visa approved

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Hi Kred

 

I haven't heard anything yet.......i contacted the consulate, DOS and even My state senator on this, but no use. Looks like because of a lot of F1 and J1 students applying in june and July all the H1 and B1 visas are getting delayed.

 

My state senator wrote a letter to the department of state and they got the same response....saying they are checking my educational background and once that is done they will issue the visa.....they mentioned that, because of the universities starting in AUG they are trying to get all the F1 and J1 applications done first......

 

SO i think once they start working on the H1 applications everyone should get it soon......It is 5 weeks for me now.....so hoping that it will be done in the coming week. Also i was following some Chinese tracker sites and their it looks like the July H1 cases are starting to get their visas now....so could be any day now.......

Hi Snoop,

 

     As mentioned early, I am still waiting for an email from consulate. This is my 4th week here and the only think I heard was that my client was contacted 3 days after my interview. I havent got any email to submit any documents of such. I did contact them couple of times but I was given a similar response that Its under review by department of state. Let me know your feedback and about your status if you got any. thx in advance.

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Hi Univer95

 

I am still waiting for the email from ottawa consulate, i know a couple people who are also waiting for their visas. But ours is a different case we have bio degrees so they are doing a security check on our cases.....right now for those kinds of case it has reached to july 2nd week so we are hoping we will hear something next week. Also If your employer has been contacted then they are doing an employee-employer check, because in security checks they don't contact anyone. So i think you will hear from them soon, probably next week sometime....good luck....

 

Hi h1Biotech

 

I am still waiting for my visa buddy, looks like it was the worst time to come for an interview because a lot of F1 and J1 students apply for their visas from june till aug and their processing times are given preference over other visas for these 3 months. I think if you are planning for an interview in dec u should be ok because its off peak time but better time would be FEB, but just be prepared to stay for 4 weeks if in case they give u a similar check. Usually the check is done in 3 to 4 weeks during off peak times and almost 8 weeks during peak times....good luck

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SnoopReddy!!!

 

I am on the same boat like you. I attended interview at Ottawa embassy on Aug 27. Got a blue slip. I did my bachelors and masters in Biomed. COnsular office asked for if i work in IT , once i said no, he handed over blue slip.

 

I am staying at a friends place in Toronto. May be we can meet sometime. You can reach out to me at <**************> hotmail

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hi Snoop,

 

     As mentioned early, I am still waiting for an email from consulate. This is my 4th week here and the only think I heard was that my client was contacted 3 days after my interview. I havent got any email to submit any documents of such. I did contact them couple of times but I was given a similar response that Its under review by department of state. Let me know your feedback and about your status if you got any. thx in advance.

@univer: any update? Please post if so. I too got 221g @toronto on 11 sept

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  • 3 weeks later...

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