Stamping Experience in Toronto

[GNH]

Some background information before I start on my stamping experience in Canada.

I was supposed to go to Frankfurt in September for business..as my H1b visa expired in Feb of this year, I thought I will go to the Frankfurt consulate and get it stamped there. So I filled up the DS 160 and booked an appointment there. I then went to the German consulate to get a tourist visa but the German consulate in the US will not give business visas to non citizens who do not have a valid US visa on their passport( like me!!) so that trip was cancelled. Keep this in mind travelers to Germany.

So I decided that instead of waiting till another trip to India to re stamp the visa, I would go to Toronto and visit the consulate there. So I booked an appointment on Nov 14th at the Toronto consulate. My wife and I went to the Canadian consulate in Detroit for tourist visas. This we got easily...the Canadians have no problem giving visas to non US citizens!!

So armed with our visas, my wife and I drove into Canada on the 13th. We checked into a hotel couple of miles from the consulate. On the next day, Nov 14th..we took the bus to the consulate. Showed the appointment letter to the security guard outside and got in. We then went to a guy sitting at a counter who took our passports,the DS-160 confirmation page and put it into a clear file. We then waited to give this file to another person sitting inside one of the counter windows, who asked us on what visas we were in Canada. He asked if my wife was my dependent, then took only my 797. He did not take my wife's 797 then gave us a token.

So we took the token and waited in this room till they called us to get our fingerprints taken. We then waited for about 40 minutes before they called us for the interview. The lady was very nice with some small talk on how long I have been working and what I work on. She also told my wife she should get a H1 of her own. So just as I was relaxing thinking that everything was going fine and dandy..she lowered the boom. She asked me if I have an open DS 160 in Frankfurt..I told her the truth about what happened. So she told us that she could not issue us visas till my open DS -160 was closed by the Frankfurt consulate. She gave us the standard white form with the visa approved information and told us it would take 2-3 more days than usual to get the visas.

So we have been waiting in Toronto for the last one week. I got an email from the consulate 2 days back saying that the passports should be ready for pick up early next week. So piece of advice to all applicants..do not fill multiple DS 160 applications, because they do not get expired and they stay in the system.

Toronto is nice but it is expensive and I have finished up all my PTO's for the year due to this issue. So hopefully we should be back home in couple more days.

[sampitroda]

Some background information before I start on my stamping experience in Canada.

I was supposed to go to Frankfurt in September for business..as my H1b visa expired in Feb of this year, I thought I will go to the Frankfurt consulate and get it stamped there. So I filled up the DS 160 and booked an appointment there. I then went to the German consulate to get a tourist visa but the German consulate in the US will not give business visas to non citizens who do not have a valid US visa on their passport( like me!!) so that trip was cancelled. Keep this in mind travelers to Germany.

So I decided that instead of waiting till another trip to India to re stamp the visa, I would go to Toronto and visit the consulate there. So I booked an appointment on Nov 14th at the Toronto consulate. My wife and I went to the Canadian consulate in Detroit for tourist visas. This we got easily...the Canadians have no problem giving visas to non US citizens!!

So armed with our visas, my wife and I drove into Canada on the 13th. We checked into a hotel couple of miles from the consulate. On the next day, Nov 14th..we took the bus to the consulate. Showed the appointment letter to the security guard outside and got in. We then went to a guy sitting at a counter who took our passports,the DS-160 confirmation page and put it into a clear file. We then waited to give this file to another person sitting inside one of the counter windows, who asked us on what visas we were in Canada. He asked if my wife was my dependent, then took only my 797. He did not take my wife's 797 then gave us a token.

So we took the token and waited in this room till they called us to get our fingerprints taken. We then waited for about 40 minutes before they called us for the interview. The lady was very nice with some small talk on how long I have been working and what I work on. She also told my wife she should get a H1 of her own. So just as I was relaxing thinking that everything was going fine and dandy..she lowered the boom. She asked me if I have an open DS 160 in Frankfurt..I told her the truth about what happened. So she told us that she could not issue us visas till my open DS -160 was closed by the Frankfurt consulate. She gave us the standard white form with the visa approved information and told us it would take 2-3 more days than usual to get the visas.

So we have been waiting in Toronto for the last one week. I got an email from the consulate 2 days back saying that the passports should be ready for pick up early next week. So piece of advice to all applicants..do not fill multiple DS 160 applications, because they do not get expired and they stay in the system.

Toronto is nice but it is expensive and I have finished up all my PTO's for the year due to this issue. So hopefully we should be back home in couple more days.

Did you use the same DS160 Confirmation code for toronto appointment that was used for Franfurt appointment? I think that may be the reason.

[GNH]

No I did not use the same DS 160 confirmation code..it is not even possible as you need to fill up different DS 160's at different consulates.

Well I got an email that the passports are ready for pickup today..so I am just about to go pick them up. The process took exactly one week and one day.

Lots of money and time wasted here.:(

[GNH]

Update on my sad story here..only my passport was returned with the visa but not my wife's. As she is my dependent how that is possible is beyond me...we are still waiting :(

[torontoh1bstamping]

May be you have already done this but.......did you check your wife's email which you had provided in her DS-160 form?

My wife and I completed successful stamping in Toronto last month. Each applicant gets separate email with separate DHL Waybill Number. I didn't know it when I went to pick up our passports. So from DHL location we went to retrive her email and found an email with Waybill number. Then went back to DHL and picked up her passports.

[GNH]

No she has not recieved anything on her email..the funny thing is if she had gone on her own she would have got her passport back a long time ago as the delay was due to 2 DS-160 forms filled by me...still nothing as of today morning. This is really fustrating. I need to get back to work. It sucks!!

[torontoh1bstamping]

I stayed at Quality Inn & Suites on 2180 Islington Ave., @ Hwy. 401, Toronto, ON M9P 3P1. I had booked them through hotwire and got $47/day deal. If you have a car this is a decent hotel to stay and pretty cheap.

I don't know how much are you paying at your current place of stay but see if this helps you in lowering expenses while you are waiting.

I pray for your passport be received soon.

[kartek]

@GNH,

I got 221G and waiting to hear from consulate. Pls share any cheap price hotels if you get to know. Currently I am in Downtown near to consulate building. Thanks..

[GNH]

I stayed at Quality Inn & Suites on 2180 Islington Ave., @ Hwy. 401, Toronto, ON M9P 3P1. I had booked them through hotwire and got $47/day deal. If you have a car this is a decent hotel to stay and pretty cheap.

I don't know how much are you paying at your current place of stay but see if this helps you in lowering expenses while you are waiting.

I pray for your passport be received soon.

I moved 4 times as I was not sure when the passports were going to come so we booked 2 days at a time at each place...I am right now staying at the Quality inn you talked about. My wife's passport has come..we are going to pick it up today and drive straight for the border!!

[GNH]

@GNH,

I got 221G and waiting to hear from consulate. Pls share any cheap price hotels if you get to know. Currently I am in Downtown near to consulate building. Thanks..

This place, Quality Inn & Suites on 2180 Islington Ave., @ Hwy. 401, Toronto, ON M9P 3P1 is very good.

[jayvj]

@GNH,

I got 221G and waiting to hear from consulate. Pls share any cheap price hotels if you get to know. Currently I am in Downtown near to consulate building. Thanks..

Hi Kartek, when I went for stamping in Calgary in 2008, I stayed at international hostel in Banff. It was fairly less expensive and a decent place to stay. I think, toronto has an international hostel in downtown area. You can check at hihosteldotcom.

[GNH]

Well..we picked up my wife's passport in the morning and drove like an arrow from a bowstring straight to the border ;)

The border crossing was cool..we went in, showed our documents,paid the 12 bucks and got through.

So we are back home right now... piece of advice. DO NOT GO ANYWHERE ELSE OTHER THAN YOUR HOME COUNTRY. My case is as straightforward as can be but I got stuck for a week and half and spent well over 1500 dollars on our stay and finished all my PTO's on this trip.