Calypso's US Immigration Timeline

Petitioner's Name: Prince Beneficiary's Name: Yumi VJ Member: Calypso Country: Philippines Last Updated: 2013-06-14 Add Comment to Timeline Register or log in to follow this timeline

Immigration Checklist for Prince & Yumi:

USCIS I-129F Petition:       Dept of State K1 Visa:     USCIS I-485 Petition:   USCIS I-765 Petition:       USCIS I-131 Petition:       USCIS I-751 Petition:   USCIS N-400 Petition:

K1 Visa Event Date Service Center : California Service Center Transferred? No Consulate : Manila, Philippines I-129F Sent : 2009-05-29 I-129F NOA1 : 2009-06-01 I-129F RFE(s) : none RFE Reply(s) : I-129F NOA2 : 2009-08-25 NVC Received : 2009-09-25 Date Case #, IIN, and BIN assigned : NVC Left : 2009-09-30 Consulate Received : 2009-10-05 Packet 3 Received : Packet 3 Sent : Packet 4 Received : Interview Date : 2009-10-20 Submit Review Interview Result : Approved Second Interview (If Required): Second Interview Result: Visa Received : 2009-10-27 US Entry : 2009-10-27 Marriage : 2009-12-01 Comments : Touches: 06/05/09 08/25/09 Mailed the NVC- 09/22/09 Faxed the Congressman- 09/23/09 The interview schedule I had was at 7 a.m. today. I was already outside the U.S. Embassy at 5:30 a.m. with all the other people who arrived there a whole lot earlier. In spite of the queue, I was already done at 9:30 a.m. The consular officer congratulated me with a warm smile. I requested her to allow me to just pick up my visa instead of getting it through the courier. She replied, "Sure. We'll call you when your visa is ready so you can pick it up." The guy at Window 37 noted my contact details and told me the same thing-- they'd give me a ring when I could finally pick up the visa. That means an open date. Is it all right to call the Embassy tomorrow morning, as in 24 hours from the interview to ask for a specific date aside from waiting for them to contact me? I want to go back to Cebu as soon as I hold my visa. And oh, here are some of the questions during my interview (not in particular order though and I may not have remembered all of the questions): How old are you? How did you meet your fiance? (I posted a personal ad online in December last year and he e-mailed me on December 25 as a response to that ad then we began e-mailing each other at least once daily. It took us three weeks from the first mail to start chatting. The consular officer asked, "How old are you again?" I said, "I am now 22 years old." She added, "How come you posted an online ad when you could just meet guys around?" My answer was, "Oh well people say that it's fine to broaden one's horizon. Cliche.") How old is he? What is his work? Is he single? Does he have children? Do you have children? (My fiance and I are both single, as in purely single with no children yet.) When did he visit you? Where are his parents from? Would you like to have children? How many? Will you want to work when you get to the U.S.? (I said yes. So she continued...) How does he feel about that? (My answer: We have already talked about it and he said it's totally up to me. He is very supportive in all ways.) What are his hobbies? (I answered, "He likes scuba diving a lot. In fact, we went to a few beaches when he was in Cebu." She asked again, "Did you go scuba diving with him?" I replied, "I still don't know how to swim but he taught me snorkeling with a life vest on." She laughed, "Oh! You can't swim?" Highest praises to the Creator of mankind! 09/25/09- the NVC said, "Your case is just being put into the system." Highest praises to God Almighty. 09/28/09- new case number given 09/29/09- AP declared. I hope it's only for a few days. Lord Jesus, have mercy. 09/30/09- "Your case was forwarded to the Embassy." Thank You, Lord God! AP for just a day. Ahehehe... 10/13/09- medical exam 10/14/09- results of the medical exam were released I passed. Thank you, best friend Jesus. You have always been with me. 10/20/09- interview passed. I have an authorization slip to pick up the visa once it is ready for release. Loving God, please help us. We intend to meet again in October using the K1 Visa. Processing Estimates/Stats : Your I-129f was approved in 85 days from your NOA1 date. Your interview took 141 days from your I-129F NOA1 date.

Port of Entry Review Event Date Port of Entry : Los Angeles POE Date : 2009-10-27 Submit Review Got EAD Stamp : Biometrics Taken : Harassment Level : 0 Comments : SSN- December 22, 2009

Adjustment of Status Event Date CIS Office : Los Angeles CA Date Filed : 2010-01-14 NOA Date : 2010-01-22 RFE(s) : none Bio. Appt. : 2010-02-12 AOS Transfer** : Interview Date : 2010-03-29 Submit Review Approval / Denial Date : 2010-03-29 Approved : Yes Got I551 Stamp : Greencard Received: 2010-04-05 Comments : Package delivered by USPS on January 18, 2010 USCIS Acceptance Confirmation e-mail arrived on January 22, 2010 All three receipt numbers are finally here NOA1 and biometrics letter are next to come Biometrics letter received: 02/01/2010 Interview letter received: 02/24/2010

Employment Authorization Document Event Date CIS Office : Chicago National Office Filing Method : Mail Filing Instance : First Date Filed : 2010-01-14 NOA Date : 2010-01-22 RFE(s) : Bio. Appt. : 2010-02-12 Approved Date : 2010-03-18 Date Card Received : 2010-03-25 Comments : Processing Estimates/Stats : Your EAD was approved in 63 days.

Advance Parole Event Date CIS Office : Chicago National Office Filing Method :   Filing Instance : First Date Filed : 2010-01-14 NOA Date : 2010-01-22 RFE(s) : Date Received : 2010-03-25 Comments : Approved on 03/19 Processing Estimates/Stats : Your AP was approved in 64 days.

Lifting Conditions Event Date CIS Office : California Service Center Date Filed : 2012-01-11 NOA Date : 2012-01-12 RFE(s) : Bio. Appt. : 2012-02-17 Interview Date : Approval / Denial Date : 2012-06-19 Approved : Yes Got I551 Stamp : Green Card Received : 2012-06-27 Comments : -submitted packet on 01/11/12 around 4 p.m. Expressmail, signature not waived -mail delivered in CSC on 01/12/12 at 11:01 a.m., signed by J. Seelke -the receipt notice (NOA) arrived in our mailbox on 1/18/12, postmarked 1/17/12 -biometrics letter received 01/24/12, postmarked 1/23/12 -06/21/12 my husband forwarded a text message from USCIS stating that my case status has been updated I checked my email and it says that card production has been ordered, time stamp 11 am my USCIS online account says the same thing Thanks, God!

Citizenship Event Date Service Center : Phoenix AZ Lockbox CIS Office : Los Angeles CA Date Filed : 2013-02-25 NOA Date : 2013-02-28 Bio. Appt. : 2013-03-13 Interview Date : 2013-06-03 Approved : Yes Oath Ceremony : 2013-06-26 Comments :

Member Reviews:

Local US CIS Office Review: Los Angeles CA Review Topic: cis_topic Event Description Review Date : March 30, 2010 Embassy Review : Nota bene: The immigration officer has apparently familiarized himself with our case. He didn't ask for my husband's birth certificate, passport, or any proof of U.S. citizenship. He didn't even mention anything that related to affidavit of support. The IO didn't care to ask for W-2s, 1040s, pay stubs, letter of employment, etc. although I brought them all. He must have seen those documents and forms from our initial submission. I believe that he was particularly assigned to us and was selected for a reason by the higher ranks way ahead of time. He has been to the Philippines more than once and commented that he knew my hometown Cebu even before I found out such a place existed. When my AOS journey began, I hoped a lot for my case to be moved to CSC so that I wouldn't have an interview. I just learned one day that applicants residing in California rarely or do not get transferred to CSC. On February 24 this year, I received my interview letter with the date March 29, 2010. I noticed the advantage of having an interview and have been very excited for it. I kept thinking that I have one specific day to get a sure approval or denial instead of waiting and guessing when. My husband and I arrived outside the Federal Building on 300 North Los Angeles St., Los Angeles at past 12:20 p.m. today. There were many people outside so we asked the guard if we still ought to join the queue in spite of our appointment letter. It was a yes and it took us approximately 30 minutes before we had the security check. We hastily headed for the elevator after passing through the detectors and guards. There were signs on the fourth floor that led us to Room 4377. We spotted a female officer inside the room and we told her we were there for the interview. She instructed us to drop our appointment letter to Window 1. The man inside Window 1 asked us to choose a seat and wait for my name to be called. Different groups of people were inside Room 4377 and most of them seemed to have lawyers. One person was called to go to Door # 1. A few others sitting with that individual stood up with her and went to Door # 1. Less than 10 minutes from the moment my husband and I arrived in that room, the man in Window 1 spoke my name and urged me to proceed to Door # 1. A non-Caucasian man opened Door # 1 and directed us to follow him. We reached his office in a few strides and started the oath that ended with "So help me God." The IO asked even before the three of us sat, "You have been married for a year already, right?" My brows met and I shook my head then said NO. The rest of the interview was a soothing breeze. There must have been less than 20 questions. It was more like a casual conversation between people getting to know each other rather than a formal interview. His questions for my husband: How did you meet? Do you have kids? (He answered not yet and the IO commented that was good.) What do you do? His questions for me: Where did you live in the Philippines? What's your complete address at present? What was your major in college? Did you have a strict upbringing? Are you currently working? Did you have a big or a small wedding? The officer sang once in a while. He is a very pleasant and cheerful man. He asked if I had received my EAD and AP. I showed those to him. He kept them and said that I don't need those because all I have to use is my green card. He also wanted to see my birth certificate and marriage certificate. Once he saw the original versions of those, he gave them back to me. He continued, "You don't have papers with your name together like joint bank accounts because the time was very short to secure those, right?" I said that my husband added my name in his health insurance and we have a joint bank account. I showed him the health insurance certificate, the separate paper from another company for the dental and vision insurance, joint bank account, and four notarized letters (from both of my parents-in-law, one of our neighbors here, and my husband's childhood friend who lives several blocks from our place). I also presented our YMCA membership IDs, twin credit cards, twin ATM cards, two real health insurance cards, and another two actual cards for the vision and dental insurance. He let me keep the cards after seeing them but took the original insurance certificates and bank statements. He then skimmed through my album and after seeing a few pages, he gave it back to me without bothering to look at other portions of it. The IO stamped the front page of my I-485 "Approved" and began facing the computer while singing. He explained to me that he'd print a few notes and then we could get out of there already. He said that he already notified the right people who would produce my green card and they replied that my green card would show up rapidly. He also elaborated what permanent residency is and said that mine is still conditional so I should return in less than two years to lift conditions and that I could already be a U.S. citizen in three years. He handed me the papers he had printed. One has the line "Congratulations! Your application to adjust status has been approved." The other paper has the title "Notice to Conditional Permanent Resident Alien." According to the IO, the date he wrote there would be the actual expiration date of my green card and I should use Form I-751 to remove conditions within 90 days preceding the second anniversary of the date my conditional permanent resident status was granted. I thank our Eternal God for His loving kindness and magnanimity; my exceptional baby love husband for being the best every single day; our cat Prince; all other helpful people around me; my fellow January 2010 AOS filers (you guys are amazing); my OT playmates and chopfvck friends; and VJ for being a fun playground. My husband and I left our phones inside his car. There was a text message saying that my case was already updated online. I logged in to my USCIS account and that round thing moved to "Card production ordered" for my I-485. I got the same e-mail. My baby and I went back to the restaurant (Cravings in West Hollywood) where we got married in order to celebrate the approval of my AOS. God bless us constantly and may we all have a contemplative Holy Week. Blessed be the name of the Lord. Harassment Level : Very Good

Timeline Comments: None yet, be the first!



*Notice about estimates: The estimates are based off averages of other members recent experiences
(documented in their timelines) for the same benefit/petition/application at the same filing location.
Individual results may vary as every case is not always 'average'. Past performance does not necessarily
predict future results. The 'as early as date' may change over time based on current reported processing
times from members. There have historically been cases where a benefit/petition/application processing
briefly slows down or stops and this can not be predicted. Use these dates as reference only and do not
rely on them for planning. As always you should check the USCIS processing times to see if your application
is past due.

** Not all cases are transfered

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