An Iranian woman who has lived in Chicago for 10 years said she is stuck in Canada, unable to enter the U.S. as her visa application remains pending.
Mona Rahimi is a teacher at a local university who traveled out of the country nine months ago for a conference and has yet to return, she said Monday.
Her husband Adam Schuman said the days have turned into weeks and the weeks into months with no end in sight.
“I miss my wife," Schuman said. "It’s challenging."
“With the current administration, I was concerned,” he added.
Rahimi said she applied for a temporary work and travel visa, as she’s done in the past, but months later, her application is still pending, leaving her stuck in Canada and unable to enter the U.S.
“There’s no harmony to it,” said Schuman. “She is being vetted but she has a job here and a husband here. She was living with me for five years. It seems a little excessive.”
Local
As their lives remain on hold, the couple said they reached out to Senator Dick Durbin for help.
“His office reached out to the consulate but we have not gotten any more information,” Rahimi said. “Other than it's under administrative processing.”
In the meantime, they remain hopeful that Mona will be back in the country soon.
The couple said they plan to re-evaluate their situation in August and decide if they should leave the U.S. and move to Canada.
