Anyone considered supplying the USCIS with additional info. for their "packet"?

For example, their 2007 joint IRS tax return (to be filed by April 15 of this year)?

Rememeber when they originally received our applications back at the TSC, they sent us a letter stating that we could at any time add to it.

I am wondering by forcing the VSC officers to dig out our appliactions upon receipt of new information, so that they can add to it, they'll think "Gee, let me just go ahead and adjudicate while I am at it"

Or do you think it just creates unnecessary confusion and possibly angering the VSC staff

(ie: We have TSC receipt numbers, the VSC guys may get ticked off at us for making them go dig through the pile to add the evidence and say "okay, that dude just wasted 30 minutes of my precious time adding more evidence to his thick application - I'll just move his to the bottom")


Anyone care to chime in?

I'm sitting tight. Our petition was current when we sent it in -- if they feel it's not current enough when they finally get around to adjudicating it, they can look in the mirror to see who to blame.

I doubt that our I 751 application process is organized by any random pail order, they are processed by applications receipt number (SCR07185xxxxx), SRC=TX, 07=year the application was received, 185= on the day the application was received and, xxxxx= your specific application number. I assume that each adjuster have to report to a supervisor who is actually monitoring approvals based on our SCR number and stamp and sign off. I do believe we will shortly see a lot of SRC 's go trough.

this wishful thinking had been around for a while now.... I just wonder when "shortly" will finally happen

this wishful thinking had been around for a while now.... I just wonder when "shortly" will finally happen
[/quote]

Tweety - I have to agree with you. If you saw James's post last week regarding an "estimate" of the applications sitting at VSC (TSC transfers to VSC) we're in for a wait beyond the time they actually start looking at the first TSC transfer.

The point is, we haven't seen any TSC transfer being adjudicated on. I'm looking for word from A_C but, alas, nothing.

Imailin,

I met an USCIS officer today with an infopass. One of my questions was: what if the 1 year extension pass and I have an expired passport (which I do). She said they would prefer a valid passport but, in case I do not get one by that time, I can come back to the office with photos and they would be able to give me some kind of card or paper stating my legal residence in USA. I hope she knows what she is talking about.

thanks for the reply but, what I really meant was that I wont try to get my passport stamp (my passport still valid, not expired yet, just the stamp from my first interview is expired) because they may tell me that I still have to wait until my NOA 1 year "anniversary" ,... But thanks anyways!!!! meaning I have to stick around with my SS restrictions.... meaning no words of changing my job soon.... no matter I am 4 months pregnant I wont change now either!

Just checking in again ... unfortunately, no news. And this is one of the few scenarios when "no news, does NOT mean, good news".
I try to check my uscis account daily - so rest assured, I will put an update on here if I see any movement ...

this blows. marc 18, 2008!! nothing. it's been a year!!

i should go ahead and apply for citizen ship.........let me make my way over to that forum and look at how long that is taking. i don't want to get into another line.

She does, amazingly enough. CIS policy provides that if the conditional resident whose NOA1 has or is about to expire is not in possession of an unexpired foreign passport, the CIS officer at the InfoPass appointment should issue a Form I-94 (arrival portion) containing a temporary I-551 stamp with a 12-month expiration date and a photograph of the conditional resident.

[/quote]

She does, amazingly enough. CIS policy provides that if the conditional resident whose NOA1 has or is about to expire is not in possession of an unexpired foreign passport, the CIS officer at the InfoPass appointment should issue a Form I-94 (arrival portion) containing a temporary I-551 stamp with a 12-month expiration date and a photograph of the conditional resident.
[/quote]


James - where do they take this photograph? If we go to the local USCIS field office (which is more likely now as the VSC drags their feet) will we have to provide it or will they take n on the spot (like your Drivers license).

My point is that we want to be virtually assured of a stamp with no hassles. If they claim "you need a photograph" then should we take a sample set at our local Walgreens before heading to our shcduled INFOPASS appt. at our local USCIS office (100 miles away)?

That's what I would do, or even take one myself if you have a digital camera and photo printer. (We did that for my son's passport with no problems.) But remember, you would only need to go the I-94 route with photos if your passport has expired or is about to expire.

James, thank you for confirming what USCIS says. It means a lot to me. Though there is plenty of time left until my NOA1 expires, getting a passport from my country, while in USA, is a very long and painful process.

P.S.This forum and its people is a gold mine.

I saw on the NSC thread that they were recommending sending a letter to the immigration ombudsman to inquire about one's case.
Do you think this will help, or only cause more problems? My senator still hasn't heard anything back yet, and I have heard in the past that inquiring too many times can actually slow a petition down.

Is anyone here planning on writing the ombudsman?

licianne, do you think your senator will truly hear by the end of the month what is going on? If uscis claims something will happen by then, maybe there is hope and we are all in a special pile...

Yes, and Santa Claus, too.

What's an ombudsman?

The immigration ombudsman is a person that works in the Dept. of Homeland Security, but not for USCIS. They are set up to handle inquiries from people that have cases that are outside the normal processing times or are causing you hardship. The guy on the NSC thread credits his letter to the ombudsman for getting him his approval.....

The ombudsman also uses our inquiries to make suggestions for changes in USCIS.

There is a special form to fill out and everything. I clicked on the link that was listed on the NSC thread and printed off the form and address. I am thinking of sending it when we reach the one year mark next month.

I'm not holding my breath.......................

i can not help it!!! this forum makes me angry!!! where is my approval?? everyone is getting approved but us???? Half of all the other threats are "approved" !!!!!

If you are planning on writing your Senator, congressman or the USCIS ombundsman, or meeting with a USCIS oficer please site this statement copied directly from the USCISwebsite, under "Processing Times and Case Status":

"To be fair to all our customers, we process cases that are the same type based on the order of when they were filed"

Now, how has this been "fair" or "on the order they were filed"??

TSC filers filing in September/October 2007 have been long approved.

I can see James's/imailin's frustration/agitation with others being approved.

Kind of funny too, the USCIS classifies us as being "customers". If you were a customer in a business the following line would work:

Can I please speak to a supervisor please?

Unfortunately, this does not work. If they really believed in "customer" satisfaction, they would approve our applications and return our money, since the time projected (6 months) has far exceeded the time we've waited (12 months). Good busniess practice would do this.

Businesses always issue refunds if they want their customers to come back, especially if they know they did not provide the service they stated they would.

In fact they would want to do this, because they know we'll be back, applying for citizenship...the problem is, they are the only game in town - a monopoly.

I agree. The whole transfer game is nothing but a cheap trick. For some reaosn we are always at the receiving end. First, TSC filers after July got transferred and we had to wait, seeing them get approved. Now we have been transferred but this time it slowed things down and we are put back in the far end of the line. I predict several months of seeing Jan/Feb TSC filers getting approved and VSC filers from late 2007 before we even get touched!!! This is what jokes about bureaucracy are made from!!!

You got that right. Some guy who filed his I-751 with the TSC in OCTOBER, 2007 just got approved and was crowing about it in another thread. Meanwhile we're getting it up the tailpipe without any lube. Your tax dollars at work. NOT!

Let's not even mention the chick who filed in NSC in JANUARY 2008, was transferred to CSC, and was approved the other week. Two, count 'em, two months. Do they have a rubber stamp for transfers at CSC? I wish they would lend it to VSC.

Anyway, so much for the express CIS policy of first come, first served. Another example of government lying to the sheeple to cover up its incompetence.

James, I don't know if you saw this for all of us transfers this video is for you. Approaching 1 year in 8 days with no touches, what a bummer.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-30BZtpvaTY

Cute video!

Anyone from the US who mocks the Third World is probably not aware of the extent to which THEY are moving up and we are declining. In Colombia a citizen can get a passport in a day and a spousal visa is processed in a matter of weeks. And don't get me started on the economy. The US dollar used to buy 2900 Colombian pesos in 2003 and now buys about 1800 and going down. My wife's apartment in Medellin which was worth about $30,000 back then is now worth over $100,000.

My traditional Monday complaints: People get approved left and right, usually filed with TSc around October or later. whne will we ever be looked at?
Complaint number two: where are the new processing times? Any guess on VSC? I bet it will be March 15 2007!!!

Hmmm... it's strange you choose to live in the U.S.

My prediction: March 1, 2007 - no movement. Anything else and they are lying.... A_C has not been touched A_C's a Feb. 2007 filer.

We are still SRC applicants i.e. they have not changed our SRC# to EAC# we still have our SRC# and should be treated in the order as we applied. I swap my SRC# to EAC# (Vermont applicant# just to verify that they haven’t done anything to our number) and did case status search but that EAC# belongs to someone else.

Hope fully that mean we are not mixed with any VRC applicants. And hopefully ,,,,,,, very soon.

I like you attitude!!!! I am a very positive person, but this puts me down!!! I am sick and tired of USCIS.... for real!

Assuming they would assign us EAC numbers, they couldn't be the same anyway because the numbers have meaning as to year, day, etc. -- I can't remember the protocol. I still think that we will be treated as if we had actually filed with VSC on our TSC NOA1 dates. Although I'm still hard-pressed to explain why a month has gone by and VSC has yet to adjudicate even the earliest of our petitions.

I think we need to face reality here. I have been "hoping" since March 2007 for a speedy resolution. In case you haven't realised, there is a phrase known as "the politics of hope". And we are victims of it, plain and simple.

One only has to look at the NSC thread to see that there are people with cases filed in 2006 that have not been adjudicated on. You have to admire their patience but the facts are clear:

1. They filed long beore many people and have still not been adjudicted on.

2. They paid application fees and the USCIS violated its own policy of "processing cases in the order we receive them"

3. Some have had their passports renewed not only once but two or three times. Some had to enure the indignity of getting 2 or 6 months renewals.

4. Some have applied for Citizenship and forced the USCIS to adjudicate on their meaningless Green Card renewals (I say meaningless because if somebody is offering you a renewal or US Citizenship, you take the citizenship).

Its all very clear to me that we are looking at a substantial waiting period at the VSC,and that everyone, depending on their circumstances needs to "dig-in".

Unless you make some fat contribution to some politician's war chest, nothing is going to happen soon.

No need to get stressed about this before it has gone more than 10 to 12 months, USCIS webpage says that it will take 10 to 12 months. i.e. if it is more the 12 months count days and if it is less then 10 months count weeks before approvals . Applicants approved in less then 10 months are just lucky and there are always some of those.

Fair enough. Our filing date was recorded as March 23, 2007.

Today's date is March 24,2008.

I'm counting days then. Or should I?

A_C, the first of the TSC to VSC filers has been counting days, which have turned to months.

I'll give the USCIS a break as it is Easter Monday (although most of the general populace has to work), but I think I'll be counting months pretty soon, just based on our estimates here at VisaJourney (James et al) on the number of TSC transfers sitting at the VSC (numbered to be in the 1000s).

i was wondering....

so far the lack of renewal hasn't really hindered our ability to do anything - i mean it really hasn't made a difference in day to day life. the only thing i can imagine is that if the wife needed to leave the country it might be a problem as we are a year into having applied.

so outside of being outright annoying - what real difference has it made on anyones lives? really..? i'm not trying to say that the USCIS is right in taking so long - what i am trying to find out is what adverse affect has it had on anyone - substantial affect...

Unless we get lucky in the next three months before the NOA1 expires, my wife is going to have to do an InfoPass (w/at least one kid in tow) to get the stamp.

Okay, so how is this any different than a person that has had a green card for 3,4,5,6,7,8,9 years applying for US Citizenship? No different. But, US Citizenship applications have been expedited. Just look at every statement coming from Emilio Gonzalez, the USCIS head honcho. Yet he mentions nothing about I-751 applicants. Why haven't I-751 applicants been expedited, at least for us transferees?


My wife's parents reside overseas. If something were to happen tomorrow and she needed to get back, she would need all her travel documents in order. I'm sure that's the case with a majority, not a minority here. That means a valid passport and a valid Green Card. So we don't have a valid green card which means a 200 mile roundtrip to the USCIS field office on a business day to get an extension stamp in a passport. Thats $$$ for gas, and $$$ in lost income for both of us as we have to take the entire day off. Me, being the US Citizen might as well be there in case they ask, "So where's the dude you married?" So we can't claim the lost income from the USCIS.

The point is we paid $$$ for the original application and no service has been rendered beyond acknowledgement of receipt.

What the USCIS has fogotten in all of this is that the US Citizen spouses of I-751 applicants vote too. We're just as entitled to get our spouse's cases resolved like some person filing an N-400. And most I-751 applicants are law abiding, tax paying residents. Yet, they ignore us...

So travelling to the USCIS office is an expense, but going overseas isn't?

Hm.

In any case, the only adverse affect the wait is having on me is the uncertainty given my current domestic situation. I'll lawyer up if needs be but, yeah, it's been over a year for me as well. It's pretty ridiculous - ESPECIALLY since TSC applicants from October 2007 are getting approved! You'll have to excuse my annoyance on that one.

Hi Homies!

I dont know if this is the most updated list but i am adding to it!

After my application sat around for a month longer than all of yours at TSC, it did eventually get transferred to VSC on last Friday March 21st 08 - pretty weird. My NOA is also more recent than everyone on the list...

Sadly, if I were you guys, I would pony up the time and money to go get a stamp. With her having parents that live out of the country, one never knows what will happen. We had a horror story when my husband had to travel for an emergency to be with me while I was in Argentina visiting his parents. In the chaos of everything, he forgot his NOA and couldn't board the plane in Argentina with his expired greencard. Knowing what I know now, I tell everyone who is on the fence of the year timeframe with their NOA, get the stamp - you don't want to be without it at a critical time.

Furthermore, I know all about the expense, as we are in Tallahassee and our District Office is in Jacksonville - almost 200 miles away. We received his notice for biometrics, which were scheduled on a Tuesday and had to drive there and back in one day. We missed work, almost two tanks of gas and for what - 20 minutes inside the DO.

Good luck and stay strong.

Thanks Staashi for the advice - we have no problem going to the USCIS office and ponying up the dollars for gas and lost income...

I agree with you that it so easy to forget that golden piece of paper when you go on a foreign trip.

As for Ihateemo I think you missed the point:

1. Going overseas for a family emergency is a necessary but an unforseen expense.

2. Going to your local (distant) USCIS is an unnecessary expense. I mean, why would you spend money to see people you really don't want to see, and who really don't want to see you if they could help it? If they had handled your original application correctly ("processed in the order we receive them"), you wouldn't have to spend the time and money to get down there.

Don't get me wrong, I am not faulting USCIS employees but USCIS lack of enforcement of their own policies.

Think about it - they ask you to apply to remove conditions 90 days before your Green card expires. If this were a well-oiled machine, you'd get your green card within 90 days. Instead you get this generated letter that automatically renews your card for a year. This is really unique among all USCIS appplications. I can't think of any other application that gives you an instant renewal before adjudicating the facts at hand. Why? Because they are so far behind and they cling to this 1 year renewal timeframe hoping they can catch up. Well, guess what? You can't catch up if you divert I-751 adjudicators and stick them on N-400 applications.

I also have no problem going for fingerprints and interveiws if its all within the standard processing of an application. Any Canadian that has come into the country on an I-130 can atest to the fact that if you reside in Vancouver, you have to fly to Montreal for a 15 min interview - almost CAD $800 roundtrip on a weekday. Its the equivalent of flying from Miami to Seattle for an interview. But we had no problem paying that- part of the standard processing.

The USCIS does not realise that beyond their standard fees that they charge, they are lots of other expenses that others must endure just to satisfy their requirements, and even more when they botch I-751 processing.

Still no news here, it's been exactly a month now since the last touch.

As someone mentioned above .. so far, the whole procedure did not affect me at all - except for being impatient and just wanting to get it over with That's why I haven't been too bothered hearing of people getting approved left and right who filed months after I did, as long as I had reasonable hope that I would get my docs before my GC runs out.

HOWEVER, I am quickly approaching the end of my extension notice and now I AM starting to get pissed off big time that I have to make arrangements to go to some stinky office again to fix something that should not have happened in the first place. I have a job and ALL my family is overseas, so I cannot and do not want to go without valid documents for any day (murphy's law, ya know ...). On top of that, I just found out that apparently I have to go to Louisville, KY for Infopass. Can I pick the office myself??? My fingerprints were done in Cinci, OH - the drive would be the same, with the advantage that I would hit up the newly opened IKEA in Cinci, which would make me much happier Anyone know how it goes with the local office?? Can I call somewhere to get an app at a different office than the suggested one??

I don't what the deal is with the TSC applicants from October who have just been approved. They actually had to wait a bit longer than most of the TSC-CSC transferees. There were TSC applicants from July -- a month after the very last of us -- who were approved way back in September.

Good news for you! But that IS weird. Wonder why TSC just sat on it for a month? And I wonder if that means the other handful of folks who were left behind have been (with early February 2007 and late June 2007 NOA1 dates) have been/are being transferred?

Here is the most recent list:

UserName............NOA1 Date.......Biometrics......Last Touch......Approved
A_C.................02/21/07........03/15/07........02/25/08........--/--/--
ihateemo............03/03/07........04/??/07........02/25/08........--/--/--
tweety..............03/09/07........04/06/07........02/25/08........--/--/-- (service request)
junglee069..........03/13/07........04/14/07........02/25/08........--/--/--
burs................03/19/07........04/12/07........02/25/08........--/--/--
Gaston..............03/19/07........04/17/07........02/25/08........--/--/--
moben...............03/20/07........03/28/07........02/25/08........--/--/--
kn687...............03/21/07........03/29/07........02/25/08........--/--/-- (service request)
kalstravels.........03/23/07........04/20/07........02/25/08........--/--/-- (service request)
jsouthwick..........03/30/07........??/??/07........02/25/08........--/--/--
us1415..............04/18/07........05/12/07........02/25/08........--/--/--
utopiacowboy........04/19/07........05/??/07........02/25/08........--/--/--
licianne............04/20/07........04/25/07........02/25/08........--/--/-- (senator involved)
James...............04/20/07........05/31/07........02/25/08........--/--/--
Angel7422...........04/25/07........05/24/07........02/25/08........--/--/--
smartie.............05/03/07........06/09/07........02/25/08........--/--/--
Cassie..............05/09/07........06/04/07........02/26/08........--/--/--
baunzerbrudi........05/19/07........06/14/07........02/26/08........--/--/--
rhenryv.............05/30/07........06/18/07........02/26/08........--/--/--
Pici0274............05/30/07........07/05/07........02/26/08........--/--/--
BBAN................05/31/07........07/07/07........02/26/08........--/--/--
imailin.............06/07/07........08/??/07........02/26/08........--/--/--
emmysphere..........06/10/07........07/05/07........02/26/08........--/--/--
Muergana............06/25/07........07/??/07........03/21/08........--/--/--

That's exactly what is supposed to happen, i.e., what the statute and the regulations implementing the statute contemplate. By the end of 90 days, you're supposed to either have had your petition adjudicated or have been called in for an interview.

What's odd is that CSC has in many cases been able to do precisely that. You would think that the powers that be at CIS would tell the other service center directors to do whatever it is that is working at CSC. But then again, "senior management" at CIS is anything but -- they are merely incompetent political appointees, cronies, and hacks. The "heckuva job, Brownie" crowd.

Look at the USCIS main webpage at www.uscis.gov

Under the "WHATS NEW" heading look at the first article "Fit to Print" where Emilio Gonzales issues a rebuttal to the NY Times article. Then scroll down and look at the user comments. Yes, the USCIS lets you comment on the statement. What is surprising is that the vast majority of comments are negative - they actually praise the NY Times! I was about to post a statement of fact and realise that I did not have to do this - there are *tons* of comments there that vent my frustration....

Looks like this supposed "rebuttal" backfired on the USCIS. And its on their website!!

let me tell you I ;left a comment, could not resist the temptation
what I said:

Wow!!! that is just a nasty nasty lie!! How you explained that same centers are faster than others? California service Center is the fastest one, while if you have the misfortune to filed with the Texas Service Center you would wait for decades before something happens on your case.. Ashamed in the system, every year they charge more for services and the services get slower by the minute! Promises!!! How long that it take to approve cases that only need the removal of conditions like the I-751?? How came that the extension letter NOA gives you a year extension, but then same government agencies like The Social Security number will not issue Socials with that letter? "We have different rules here on SS department", what they answered me when I lost my Social... of course they did not replace it! Ashamed on the system.... ashamed of the first world.

I'm approved finally got the email today (copied it below). I was transferred to VSC and like a lot of you guys I thought this process would never end.
Now I have to fork over $675 to start the citizenship wait.

The last processing action taken on your case

Receipt Number: SRC07xxxxxxxx

Application Type: CRI89 , PETITION TO REMOVE CONDITIONS OF PERMANENT
RESIDENT STATUS RECEIVED

Current Status: Card production ordered.

On March 25, 2008, we ordered production of your new card. Please allow
30 days for your card to be mailed to you. If we need something from
you we will contact you. If you move before you receive the card, call
customer service. You can also receive automatic e-mail updates as we
process your case. Just follow the link below to register.

If you have questions or concerns about your application or the case
status results listed above, or if you have not received a decision from
USCIS within the current processing time listed*, please contact USCIS
Customer Service at (800) 375-5283.

*Current processing times can be found on the USCIS website at
www.uscis.gov under Case Status and Processing Dates.
*** Please do not respond to this e-mail message.


Sincerely,


The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)

Congratulations! So I guess there is light at the end of the tunnel....

The evidence suggests that they have apportioned the cases to different adjudicator's desks and are not looking in cases in chronological order, as A_C should have theoretically been the first. Random batches...anyone else care to chime in?
Keeping my fingers crossed....
Congratulations anyway!!