February 2010 filers??

[nats6624 0]

Hello All,

I am a February filler too.. I am just obsessively checking my case online status, since I saw that other people with similar time lines got Interview letters already

Has anybody had any problem with maiden/married name things? The lady at bio appointment gave me hard time that I didn't change my passport to my married name (I am applying for GC with my married name) since I got married in May. I thought once I get the GC I will just go and change my passport in my home country without all the explanations and difficulties? Because my passport is also the only form of ID I have on me.

Also is it really necessary to have both, my husband's and my names on the utility bills as a proof? Now I have couple of bills in my name and he has couple of other bills in his name (all at the same address)?

I haven't even received the interview letter, but I am getting prepared already and I am scared

Good luck to everyone!

I haven't received my interview letter yet either but i am sure i will get it this week hopefully. Based on your timeline you should probably get yours this week too.

[nats6624 0]

Yeah I could do that. Im just not sure I should even worry about my EAD since my interview is just 4 weeks away. Im prety sure I will my get my greencard before my cards are ordered.

Yeah everyones interviews seem to be coming and no one is receiving there EAD's maybe they decided to do it faster and differently now. I know they changed the places where you file your AOS applications now and maybe that has something to with why everything is going so fast, there trying to push cases through.

[nats6624 0]

I was thinking about getting that, but it's really expensive! And I'm picking up a lot just being here, considering pretty much everyone speaks Spanish anyway. Even at the store. Probably once I get a job and money isn't so tight, we'll have another look at Rosetta Stone.

I'm so relieved there are lots of people the same age as us applying!

Yeah i thought it was expensive i just wasn't sure how much. My dad is from france and his whole family lives there so i wanted to try Rosetta Stone so i could talk to them. I did french immersion in grade 6 and 7 but i don't really remember anything other than asking to go the bathroom lol.

[nats6624 0]

Thanks, Marie! If you don't mind me asking, how long did your interview take? And what kinds of questions did they ask? I'm kind of nervous they'll be questioning our intelligence because we're pretty young and broke to be married.

Ok so i am not the only one that feels broke all the time lol.

[EmVee 3]

Has anybody had any problem with maiden/married name things? The lady at bio appointment gave me hard time that I didn't change my passport to my married name (I am applying for GC with my married name) since I got married in May. I thought once I get the GC I will just go and change my passport in my home country without all the explanations and difficulties? Because my passport is also the only form of ID I have on me.

I have no idea about the maiden/married name thing, but I'm the same as you. The lady at biometrics was giving me the whole "this is so inconvenient for me!" treatment just because my passport was still my maiden name. Are we meant to go dig up some new ID with our married name? I assumed I could wait til I have my residency card in my married name and then try and sort out my passport back home.

I've heard of people getting a hard time at interview about it as well. And also, you have to pay something like $200 to get your residency card changed to your married name if they print it in your maiden name. I definitely do NOT have any more money that I'm willing to hand over to USCIS for this. So I want to know how to make sure that doesn't happen.

[LT.Nora 7]

I have no idea about the maiden/married name thing, but I'm the same as you. The lady at biometrics was giving me the whole "this is so inconvenient for me!" treatment just because my passport was still my maiden name. Are we meant to go dig up some new ID with our married name? I assumed I could wait til I have my residency card in my married name and then try and sort out my passport back home.

I've heard of people getting a hard time at interview about it as well. And also, you have to pay something like $200 to get your residency card changed to your married name if they print it in your maiden name. I definitely do NOT have any more money that I'm willing to hand over to USCIS for this. So I want to know how to make sure that doesn't happen.

The lady at my bio appointment was telling me that I had plenty of time to change my passport to my married name (I got married in May) and such long time is unacceptable. My plan was that once I get my EAD, then I will apply for state ID, SSN and DL with my married name and I will be able to use my DL or state ID for ID purposes and forget about my passport until I go back to my country.

When I told my lawyer about what happened, she recommended I changed my passport. But the process is so dificult that I don't even want to start it. And anyway it takes two months for the new passport to be ordered.

I just hope that as long as I have our marriage certificate together with my passport they will be fine with it

I will not be paying them any $200, the imigration is the reason why I am broke! And can't even go to work LOL or travel.. Or drive LOL

[EmVee 3]

So we're not able to get driver's license permits until we're legal residents, right? If we were, then we could do that and use them as our married name ID. But I think that it's not allowed until we have conditional residency... I don't know.

USCIS are really ####### at explaining wth is going on most of the time. Without VJ I'd still be scratching my head wondering what paperwork to file.

[LT.Nora 7]

So we're not able to get driver's license permits until we're legal residents, right? If we were, then we could do that and use them as our married name ID. But I think that it's not allowed until we have conditional residency... I don't know.

USCIS are really ####### at explaining wth is going on most of the time. Without VJ I'd still be scratching my head wondering what paperwork to file.

Yes, DMV need to see EAD, GC or some sort of document proving legal stay (not expired I-94 in my case). I had a temporary driving license issued to me, but it was valid only until the expiry of I-94. They don't accept any NOA from USCIS or anything else, but those documents. If your stay is still valid (you are not out of status), you can get one, a temporary one.

After paying them all that money and getting all those vaccinations, blood taken (horrific side effects + incompetent doctor in my case) and not able to work, I think at least they could do is give us a driving license...

[EmVee 3]

Yes, DMV need to see EAD, GC or some sort of document proving legal stay (not expired I-94 in my case). I had a temporary driving license issued to me, but it was valid only until the expiry of I-94. They don't accept any NOA from USCIS or anything else, but those documents. If your stay is still valid (you are not out of status), you can get one, a temporary one.

After paying them all that money and getting all those vaccinations, blood taken (horrific side effects + incompetent doctor in my case) and not able to work, I think at least they could do is give us a driving license...

So basically, unless we have the EAD we can't get any ID with our married names.

But it looks like we're not going to GET the EAD before the interview.

So we have nothing with our married names. And this is our fault.

[cali_girl 0]

So basically, unless we have the EAD we can't get any ID with our married names.

But it looks like we're not going to GET the EAD before the interview.

So we have nothing with our married names. And this is our fault.

No need to worry about it. I myself didnt change my last name. All our joint bills are in our own names. Its my personal choice not to change my last name and also my husband's last name sounds odd. LOL

[EmVee 3]

No need to worry about it. I myself didnt change my last name. All our joint bills are in our own names. Its my personal choice not to change my last name and also my husband's last name sounds odd. LOL

But I want my husband's last name, LOL! So it would be a pain in the butt to have to pay them to re-issue the residency card in my married name.

Hopefully we'll get an IO who's a bit understanding of the predicament we're in.

[Luckygoat 2]

The lady at my bio appointment was telling me that I had plenty of time to change my passport to my married name (I got married in May) and such long time is unacceptable. My plan was that once I get my EAD, then I will apply for state ID, SSN and DL with my married name and I will be able to use my DL or state ID for ID purposes and forget about my passport until I go back to my country.

When I told my lawyer about what happened, she recommended I changed my passport. But the process is so dificult that I don't even want to start it. And anyway it takes two months for the new passport to be ordered.

I just hope that as long as I have our marriage certificate together with my passport they will be fine with it

I will not be paying them any $200, the imigration is the reason why I am broke! And can't even go to work LOL or travel.. Or drive LOL

thats so f**kin stupid...excuse my language but i think they realise how difficult the process if changing a name on a passport is and its expensive. I don't know couples who even bother worry about changin names on documents after marriage. This whole interview process is long and expensive as it is....no one wants to worry abotu changin names on all those damn documents. It makes more sense to deal with that after u already dealt with AOS.

But then again I guess they would want your green card and EAD to be in marriage.

[Luckygoat 2]

So me and the wifey was looking through our documents yesterday and all of the sudden she feels we dont have enough stuff, primarily becuz she saw that alot of ppl on here took photo albums and wedding photos and we dont have any of those things. tell me what u guys think cuz now she gat me feeling nervous. We have our lease, light bill, renters insurance, 2 accounts and normal photos.

[EmVee 3]

So me and the wifey was looking through our documents yesterday and all of the sudden she feels we dont have enough stuff, primarily becuz she saw that alot of ppl on here took photo albums and wedding photos and we dont have any of those things. tell me what u guys think cuz now she gat me feeling nervous. We have our lease, light bill, renters insurance, 2 accounts and normal photos.

As long as you have photographs that track you relationship over a period of time you should be fine. For example, we don't have a wedding album. We got married in Las Vegas quite quickly, so there are only a few photos of the ceremony and the only people in attendance were my sisters-in-law and a couple of friends. But we have lots of other photos from various trips back and forth, there are pics of me with his family, him with my family, Christmases, birthdays, Halloween... As long as you have a good amount of photos that show you guys with family and friends, it should be fine. And if you don't, get out the digital camera now and take snaps this weekend, or on whatever days between now and the interview that you're with family and friends.

What I found when I was organizing my photos is that a lot of the first year of our relationship is just "us" and nobody else. Because even though he visited my family, and I visited his, we were mostly together doing sight-seeing or hanging out at the park, and everyone else was in work or school. So the family snaps are all much later, and there aren't as many of them.

[Luckygoat 2]

As long as you have photographs that track you relationship over a period of time you should be fine. For example, we don't have a wedding album. We got married in Las Vegas quite quickly, so there are only a few photos of the ceremony and the only people in attendance were my sisters-in-law and a couple of friends. But we have lots of other photos from various trips back and forth, there are pics of me with his family, him with my family, Christmases, birthdays, Halloween... As long as you have a good amount of photos that show you guys with family and friends, it should be fine. And if you don't, get out the digital camera now and take snaps this weekend, or on whatever days between now and the interview that you're with family and friends.

What I found when I was organizing my photos is that a lot of the first year of our relationship is just "us" and nobody else. Because even though he visited my family, and I visited his, we were mostly together doing sight-seeing or hanging out at the park, and everyone else was in work or school. So the family snaps are all much later, and there aren't as many of them.

kool. we have a good amount but not a drastic amount becuz were not picture ppl but we do have picx thru out our 2 years, and pics from holidays with her family members

about what u said about start takin picx, I dont recommend no one to do that becuz i just read somewhere of a couple being denied because they had tons a pictures that they apparently took a few days b4 the interview and the officer picked up on it because the wife's hair style/color/length didnt change once through out the photos and they were claimin that some of th epics were taken years ago. lol