Visa approved at Calgary but...

[chigodesi]

Hello all,

Here is our experience while attending multiple entry H1-B visa at Calgary US consulate on. Basically, I have a non IT work experience with US degrees (MS and MBA); went with wife and daughter; and of Indian origin without a sensitive last name.

We flew from Chicago to Calgary on Dec 17^th. Booked a return flight on Dec26th considering possible delays. Had a Canada visa, so no problem at the Calgary immigration into Canada.

Our interview was on Dec 20^th 2011 in the morning. Arrived at the consulate on Macleod trail about 15 min earlier and got through the security in the 1^st floor office. (Note that there are no clear signs indicating exact US consulate location. This is in a 10 storied bldg. called Rocky Mountain Plaza , Opposite Calgary Public Library). Most of the items that are not allowed are already listed in the interview confirmation letter. They check everything you get with you incl. your wallet by taking out credit cards. If you came by car then leave the remote control keys in the car or hotel and just carry the manual key.

After the security we were asked for ton load of paperwork, apart from the main documents (passport, 797, i-129, labor certification etc.) These included resume, current employment letter, offer letter, tax docs, paystubs, residency proof, marriage cert for my wife, birth cert for my daughter, EAD cards and bank statements. After initial check our docs were returned to us with a token number.

Then the security took us to 10^th floor. Another consulate employee called our number and started checking papers. She asked when the photos were taken and bunch of unrelated questions like which hotel were we staying and how long.( They might ask for extra photos. So, keep extras with you or you may have to make a trip to 1^st floor photo shop in the RM plaza).

After the second check we were asked to wait. While waiting saw only one person of SE Asian origin, apart from us in the waiting area. A few minutes later we were called to Booth1. The VO Ten printed me and my wife. Questions she asked were:

Me :

Where do you work?

Tell me your job responsibilities

Why did you take up this job?

When did you come to US for the first time?

What US degrees do you have and where?

My Wife :

How are you related to him?

How long were you his wife?

What are you doing now?

My daughter:

Sweetie, how old are you?

After that she said our visas are approved and we should get it from DHL-Loomis office Thursday or Friday. She was neither rude nor friendly. Wished things continued to go smoothly later. We got emails Wed eve, 12/21, from DHL informing that mine and my wife’s passports will be at Calgary DHL office and my Daughter’s passport is being delivered to Richmond, BC !!!

DHL employee handed over mine and my wife’s PP and said that they need US DHS clearance to change our Daughter’s PP delivery back to Calgary and this might take a week. She showed no cooperation and simply blamed US consulate for the mistake. She said that the airport was nearby and suggested to take the next flight to Vancouver (Richmond is a suburb of Vancouver) as if it was a bus ride to downtown! West jet flight was 1200 CAD$ PP for RT for standby. So, we drove all the way to Vancouver over the Canadian Rockies on TransCanada 1 to pick up our daughter’s passport on Dec 23^rd. Drove all the way back to Calgary as one way Car rental and flight change costs were very expensive. The overall drive was extremely beautiful but also very treacherous.

We came back to US on 26^th Dec. They do the entire immigration check incl. I-94 et.. at the Calgary airport before you board the plane, meaning after you get off the plane in the US you directly walk into the regular terminal without further immigration checks. The IO took almost 30 min to go over our paperwork.

Other General info reg. Calgary

Hotels: Downtown hotels during weekdays are expensive. There a few budget hotels around 6000 Macleod area. You can catch C train 201 from here to consulate. For 3 days we stayed further south in holiday inn Express near south central mall and later moved to Econolodge near Children’s hospital. (We met a few desis here who were stuck in admin processing). Generally, used kayak.com to pick hotels. Hotwire and Priceline won’t tell you about extra charges.

Food : use Google maps or GPS to find restaurants. Surprisingly, malls have a good variety of veg food. Steven ave. mall in downtown near Devon gardens had a never ending food court. There is a Canada dosa corner on 17^th street and 52^nd ave, which served tasty dosas. Generally, Calgary has a lot of Indian restaurants.

Parking/ Travel to consulate: if you are travelling alone then try C train, but if you are with family or in a group then it is cost effective to park in downtown, near 8^th and Macleod. We parked in EPCOR bldg. it was 15 CA$. The C train is free from Macleod to 6^th street ( about 8 blocks) for conv. Downtown travel.

Attractions: not much!. There is Calgary tower, about 18 $ a pop. Devon gardens are closed. TELUS Sci Tech Park was a letdown. Zoo was ok. If you are into winter sports then you can visit Banff NP, about 90 min west on TransCanada 1. Watch for the compacted snow on the roads, though! In summer its probably more fun with amusement parks and the Calgary Stampede, which is similar to Rodeo.

My suggestion: If you don’t have a US degree and are in IT based industry then avoid Calgary, if possible. Even though ours was not very hard, I am saying this based on both consulate employees’ attitude and also talking to a few who are stuck in admin processing. If you have decided to come to Calgary consulate anyway then carry lots and lots of related paperwork and book a flexible return flight.

Calgary is a very expensive place and, esp. in winters, using public transportation for extended period, if needed, in freezing weather will not be pleasant. Sorry to paint a bleak picture, but telling you all as is.

Sarath

[mf1]

Glad you arrived safely. Thanks for detailed post.

Enjoy your new year.