H1B Visa Stamping-OTTAWA -After 221g blue/TAL(technlogy fields)-some general tips also

[snoopreddy]

Hi All

Hopefully this info will help others, who might be going through this or who might fall in this category for future stampings.

 

This is my H1B stamping experience at Ottawa Canada. Please note that the things I am mentioning in this post  are mostly for people who have received a technology based admin processing or who might fall under this admin processing for their future stampings (Google 221g TAL and you will get all the info on this). I had a lot of time during my wait in Canada, so the information i am putting in this post has been gathered from personal experience and extensive research on various forums.

 

1)  Applied for Canada temporary visa, it took almost 2 months for them to approve and send the visa back, they gave me a 5 year visa. Please make sure that you apply for a MULTIPLE ENTRY VISA. It is just 75 dollars more, but trust me it will be very useful in case you have to leave the country and comeback again.

 

2) Book your visa dates accordingly. From my experience i have found that the best time to attend visa interviews is between OCT to MAY. If you can, try to avoid the months of Jun, July, Aug and Sep. These are peak visa months because a lot of students and visitors apply for visas during these months and if in case you are put under admin processing, it might take a lot of time for the consulate to respond back.

 

3) Book your hotels or car rentals or anything that u can think of booking online, using deals or coupons. Canada is ridiculously expensive, If you have to stay for a long period of time i would suggest you to look up 'airbnb' website and find room rentals for weekly or monthly basis. It will cut your cost by half, the food part of the expense you cannot avoid. If you drive their watch out for gas prices ($5.50+) and speed limits(in kms)!!

 

4)Now to my visa interview. Appointment at 7:30am but didn't let us in until 8:15, asked for my passport/ I797A and gave me a token number and was told to wait. Waited for 10 min and my number was called. The VO was a white guy in his early 40's with a beard and bald head.

 

a) what do you do?

ans- told him i am a direct federal contractor and i work in medical/bio informatics ( Also told him i have a Level 5 government security clearance)

 

b) what is your educational background?

ans- told him BS in  biotech and microbiology (very good US university) and MS in bioinformatics (again a very god US university).

 

He said everything looks good, but your case needs some admin processing and it might take anywhere between 2 weeks to 2 months. He asked me for my resume, but i also gave him a letter from my federal manager explaining everything in detail on what i do and all. I told him that this is the second time i am having to go through this (first time i got it back in 2010 when i went for F1 renewal during my MS, it took 3 weeks back then). SO the VO told me that they do this check for 20% of the applicants and if you had to go through this check once, then you will have to go through the admin processing every time you attend a visa interview. From My observation i have realized that if you have anything remotely related to BIO or chemical degrees be prepared for this, if you are an IT/electrical/mechanical engineering......you can still get this check but not that widely.

 

So i waited for 3 days in Ottawa and then drove to Toronto to my cousins place. Luckily i was able to crash at my cousins place for almost 2 months with out any issues and also i was able to work from home, but i was very close to losing my job during this wait. I kept calling the department of state (DOS) phone number every other day but got the same response that the case is in admin processing. I contacted the senators office and they inquired on my behalf but they also got the same response saying the case is in admin processing. I called the Ottawa consulate (ext-5361), if you are lucky someone will pickup the phone and might help you find the status, i was able to get to them twice and they were helpful in giving me some sort of an estimate on how much more time it might take. Also you can go to the 'ceac' website and look up your status.

 

Tip: There is a Chinese tracker website called 'checkee' for cases specifically like this. it was a very good indicator for how long the admin processing cases were taking.

 

Finally after 7 1/2weeks i got an email (on Thursday) saying my visa was approved and i need to submit my passport, went and submitted the very next day and the visa was ready for pickup on Tuesday. SO went and picked up the passport and drove back to US the same night.

 

My time line:

Interview attended: 24th July 2013 (221g blue/TAL)

clearance received: 12th sep 2013

ppt submitted:13 sep 2013

ppt picked up: 17th sep 2013

 

Tip: This worked for a couple cases i know, If you get an admin processing during your interview. You can drive back to US with in 30 days, if you have your Passport, old I94(the white card that they give at port of entry), and I797A. If the VO keeps the I797A then you can use the I797C to try to get back in. The I94 and old visa can be expired and still it is ok. I knew about this after my 30 days were done so i couldn't go back and also the VO kept my I797A and i didn't have my I797C with me.

 

So finally, if you get this check there is nothing you can do to speed up the process. Please carry a resume with you to the interview and make sure that the resume is clean and can be understood by someone who is not technical. In off peak months it takes 4 to 6 weeks for clearance, in peak months it takes 6 to 10 weeks for clearance, so plan accordingly. End of the day you will get your visa, but take all measures in advance so that you don't lose your job during this wait.

 

Good luck !!

[SPrasad]

Hi Snoopreddy,

 

I got admin processing today at Calgary. Are you sure about your statement "You can drive back to US with in 30 days, if you have your Passport, old I94(the white card that they give at port of entry)".

 

I got my passport back but they kept my I 797 A. I have copy of it. I have old I94 too. Can I go back to USA on that using photo copy of I 797 A & my Passport?

 

Can I verify this from some authentic officer?

 

Regards,

Shiv.

[kalyan_chakri31]

Hi Snoopreddy,

 

I got admin processing today at Calgary. Are you sure about your statement "You can drive back to US with in 30 days, if you have your Passport, old I94(the white card that they give at port of entry)".

 

I got my passport back but they kept my I 797 A. I have copy of it. I have old I94 too. Can I go back to USA on that using photo copy of I 797 A & my Passport?

 

Can I verify this from some authentic officer?

 

Regards,

Shiv.

Dude let me know if you try this route. I am in a similar situation like yours. I have my passport, no valid visa on it. I don't have 797a but have a copy and have original 797c. If your try and it worked then let me know and I will give it a shot

[kalyan_chakri31]

@snoopreddy great job with the summary dude! Congrats!

I got 221g don't know the reason ....go didn't mentioned. He just said we need some administrative processing. .... Idk if it's TAL or something els...

Interview @toronto on 11 September...ceac update date still 11 sept withou any update

Very frustrating!!

[rahul412]

Tip: This worked for a couple cases i know, If you get an admin processing during your interview. You can drive back to US with in 30 days, if you have your Passport, old I94(the white card that they give at port of entry), and I797A. If the VO keeps the I797A then you can use the I797C to try to get back in. The I94 and old visa can be expired and still it is ok. I knew about this after my 30 days were done so i couldn't go back and also the VO kept my I797A and i didn't have my I797C with me.

Are you sure about this??

That's nothing but AVR, but its not valid when you attend visa interview. I guess you are wrong here.If that's the case then no one would get stuck in Canada after 221g.

[vineethkrvs]

Shivshankar14, kalyan_chakri31,

 

You can try going back to USA with your passport, old I94 card (doesnt matter if your H1 visa is expired) and you should have  either your I797A or I797c. 

[rahul412]

Shivshankar14, kalyan_chakri31,

 

You can try going back to USA with your passport, old I94 card (doesnt matter if your H1 visa is expired) and you should have  either your I797A or I797c. 

No, that's not possible if a person has attended visa interview.

[mmohankr]

Tip: This worked for a couple cases i know, If you get an admin processing during your interview. You can drive back to US with in 30 days, if you have your Passport, old I94(the white card that they give at port of entry), and I797A. If the VO keeps the I797A then you can use the I797C to try to get back in. The I94 and old visa can be expired and still it is ok.

 

I am in the same situation. 221g (since 3 weeks) at Ottawa. Do you really think this works even if we attended  Visa Interview? Like Rahul412 had mentioned above, I read on multiple forums and that you cannot. My only concern is, if I do try, and if they don't let me in, would they misunderstand my attempt to enter US, which will be a trouble  am not willing to take? Any advices?

[rahul412]

Tip: This worked for a couple cases i know, If you get an admin processing during your interview. You can drive back to US with in 30 days, if you have your Passport, old I94(the white card that they give at port of entry), and I797A. If the VO keeps the I797A then you can use the I797C to try to get back in. The I94 and old visa can be expired and still it is ok.

 

I am in the same situation. 221g (since 3 weeks) at Ottawa. Do you really think this works even if we attended  Visa Interview? Like Rahul412 had mentioned above, I read on multiple forums and that you cannot. My only concern is, if I do try, and if they don't let me in, would they misunderstand my attempt to enter US, which will be a trouble  am not willing to take? Any advices?

This is NOT possible. what OP explained is nothing but AVR, and AVR is not valid if you attended visa interview. So don't try to enter into US without legal status, you will mess up your entire career.

 

If a person visa's is in pending (221g) he/she cannot enter into US. So in this case, based on what visa you will enter into US?? Can you answer this??

[mmohankr]

This is NOT possible. what OP explained is nothing but AVR, and AVR is not valid if you attended visa interview. So don't try to enter into US without legal status, you will mess up your entire career.

 

If a person visa's is in pending (221g) he/she cannot enter into US. So in this case, based on what visa you will enter into US?? Can you answer this??

You are right Rahul. I chose not to take that risk. Per my research on multiple websites about this, you could legally try to re-enter US if you have a valid visa on your passport (not expired), and show your I797 approval to show your current status. This still doesn't obligate the CBP officer to let you in but you are in your own luck then. If you do not have a valid unexpired visa stamp on your passport (My F1 expired on my passport and VO noted it as Cancelled during my interview), you should not try to re-enter united states. Hence, I did not!

[mmohankr]

Any updates anyone?

[mmohankr]

Hi All

Hopefully this info will help others, who might be going through this or who might fall in this category for future stampings.

 

This is my H1B stamping experience at Ottawa Canada. Please note that the things I am mentioning in this post  are mostly for people who have received a technology based admin processing or who might fall under this admin processing for their future stampings (Google 221g TAL and you will get all the info on this). I had a lot of time during my wait in Canada, so the information i am putting in this post has been gathered from personal experience and extensive research on various forums.

 

1)  Applied for Canada temporary visa, it took almost 2 months for them to approve and send the visa back, they gave me a 5 year visa. Please make sure that you apply for a MULTIPLE ENTRY VISA. It is just 75 dollars more, but trust me it will be very useful in case you have to leave the country and comeback again.

 

2) Book your visa dates accordingly. From my experience i have found that the best time to attend visa interviews is between OCT to MAY. If you can, try to avoid the months of Jun, July, Aug and Sep. These are peak visa months because a lot of students and visitors apply for visas during these months and if in case you are put under admin processing, it might take a lot of time for the consulate to respond back.

 

3) Book your hotels or car rentals or anything that u can think of booking online, using deals or coupons. Canada is ridiculously expensive, If you have to stay for a long period of time i would suggest you to look up 'airbnb' website and find room rentals for weekly or monthly basis. It will cut your cost by half, the food part of the expense you cannot avoid. If you drive their watch out for gas prices ($5.50+) and speed limits(in kms)!!

 

4)Now to my visa interview. Appointment at 7:30am but didn't let us in until 8:15, asked for my passport/ I797A and gave me a token number and was told to wait. Waited for 10 min and my number was called. The VO was a white guy in his early 40's with a beard and bald head.

 

a) what do you do?

ans- told him i am a direct federal contractor and i work in medical/bio informatics ( Also told him i have a Level 5 government security clearance)

 

b) what is your educational background?

ans- told him BS in  biotech and microbiology (very good US university) and MS in bioinformatics (again a very god US university).

 

He said everything looks good, but your case needs some admin processing and it might take anywhere between 2 weeks to 2 months. He asked me for my resume, but i also gave him a letter from my federal manager explaining everything in detail on what i do and all. I told him that this is the second time i am having to go through this (first time i got it back in 2010 when i went for F1 renewal during my MS, it took 3 weeks back then). SO the VO told me that they do this check for 20% of the applicants and if you had to go through this check once, then you will have to go through the admin processing every time you attend a visa interview. From My observation i have realized that if you have anything remotely related to BIO or chemical degrees be prepared for this, if you are an IT/electrical/mechanical engineering......you can still get this check but not that widely.

 

So i waited for 3 days in Ottawa and then drove to Toronto to my cousins place. Luckily i was able to crash at my cousins place for almost 2 months with out any issues and also i was able to work from home, but i was very close to losing my job during this wait. I kept calling the department of state (DOS) phone number every other day but got the same response that the case is in admin processing. I contacted the senators office and they inquired on my behalf but they also got the same response saying the case is in admin processing. I called the Ottawa consulate (ext-5361), if you are lucky someone will pickup the phone and might help you find the status, i was able to get to them twice and they were helpful in giving me some sort of an estimate on how much more time it might take. Also you can go to the 'ceac' website and look up your status.

 

Tip: There is a Chinese tracker website called 'checkee' for cases specifically like this. it was a very good indicator for how long the admin processing cases were taking.

 

Finally after 7 1/2weeks i got an email (on Thursday) saying my visa was approved and i need to submit my passport, went and submitted the very next day and the visa was ready for pickup on Tuesday. SO went and picked up the passport and drove back to US the same night.

 

My time line:

Interview attended: 24th July 2013 (221g blue/TAL)

clearance received: 12th sep 2013

ppt submitted:13 sep 2013

ppt picked up: 17th sep 2013

 

Tip: This worked for a couple cases i know, If you get an admin processing during your interview. You can drive back to US with in 30 days, if you have your Passport, old I94(the white card that they give at port of entry), and I797A. If the VO keeps the I797A then you can use the I797C to try to get back in. The I94 and old visa can be expired and still it is ok. I knew about this after my 30 days were done so i couldn't go back and also the VO kept my I797A and i didn't have my I797C with me.

 

So finally, if you get this check there is nothing you can do to speed up the process. Please carry a resume with you to the interview and make sure that the resume is clean and can be understood by someone who is not technical. In off peak months it takes 4 to 6 weeks for clearance, in peak months it takes 6 to 10 weeks for clearance, so plan accordingly. End of the day you will get your visa, but take all measures in advance so that you don't lose your job during this wait.

 

Good luck !!

This was a great summary Snoopreddy. I was told exactly the same thing:  SO the VO told me that they do this check for 20% of the applicants

Mine was a similar setup as your's. BS, MS Biomedical Engineering. Working FTE in Biomedical, have been postponing for my first H1 stamping session because of 221g stuff. Only stamp i had was F1. That could be a reason for 221g too, possibly.

 

Well, VO goofed up that: I could try to reenter United States on a Humanitarian Parole. I had no idea what he was talking about. I didn't know if I could work under this parole. I went through forums and found other people on 221g were also advised the same thing, but that it doesnt work for us. Unless we have an emergency and can prove it, we can't be issued a Humanitarian parole and this application takes 2 months process approximately to be approved, while I am allowed to reenter only within 30 days... Hence, I didn't even try this option. Still waiting for a response, 40 days and counting.. 

 

The wait definitely is frustrating and depressing. I have one question for you: On what basis, were you legal to work from home during this wait in Canada?

 

Technically, to be able to work, you were supposed to be in the location you had your LCA filed for, whcih is in US, but you are working out of Canada.

Reason why I am asking is, my HR never noticed that I was working from home (even though they were notified, pretty common with corps) and that I was being paid. They advised me to be on Leave of Absence upto 3 months or whenever my visa is sorted out, because they think it is going to be a problem to the company, and that they would have to pay taxes to canada govt.