Expedite Request

[J & K 2]

I placed an expedite request today because of the major earthquake in Japan. My fiancee is fine. Her region was not badly damaged. The size and devastation of this earthquake was truly horrendous. Besides the people killed or left homeless, this will be a serious blow to their already stagnant economy. I pray for those lost and those who will have a tough time ahead of them.

My concern for our case is if this expedite request will be denied because her city was not badly damaged and if so, will that have any negative effect on our case. Does anyone have any thoughts

BTW we have already been waiting for almost 6 months since our NOA1.

Edited March 11, 2011 by J & K

[KiwiBird 132]

No way to really tell how the earthquake and tsunami will affect USCIS. Maybe Japanese will get expedites, maybe not. Only time will tell, so you'll just have to wait for a response.

[Inky 1,110]

There will be no negative affect, you will either be approved for the expedite or not.

[Yagisama 93]

For a bit I was tempted to request an expedite too but Tokyo is rather far away from the Sendai area so I wasn't sure if I should request it or not.

[Yagisama 93]

OK I wimped out and called in an expedite.

An unbelievable easy and simple process and my first contact with USCIS over the phone.

Even if they deny it, I can at least think that I gave it a shot.

Now, there is a chance that my fiancee might not be able to come until end of May but at least we will have the option if needed.

[danik713 21]

I placed an expedite request today because of the major earthquake in Japan. My fiancee is fine. Her region was not badly damaged.

So, why are you trying to expedite? There undoubtedly are many individuals who have been severely effected from this catastrophe who are alsowaiting on the USCIS, and you are going to try and jump on the bandwagon? *shakes head* My heart goes out to all those who have been effected - losing homes, loved ones, and life as they previously knew it, in Japan and beyond.

I'm not all fluffy and going to tell you good luck like others. This seems selfish to me and you are seeking to utilize the misfortune of others to your own benefit. Requesting an expedite due to the earthquake is completely different from your having to wait 6+ months. I do hope you get your NOA2 soon as you have clearly waited your turn and been patient for so long, but really frown upon such an expedite request.

[Afrikan Queen 11]

I placed an expedite request today because of the major earthquake in Japan. My fiancee is fine. Her region was not badly damaged. The size and devastation of this earthquake was truly horrendous. Besides the people killed or left homeless, this will be a serious blow to their already stagnant economy. I pray for those lost and those who will have a tough time ahead of them.

My concern for our case is if this expedite request will be denied because her city was not badly damaged and if so, will that have any negative effect on our case. Does anyone have any thoughts

BTW we have already been waiting for almost 6 months since our NOA1.

Why not? They expedited Haiti because of their disaster. Who knows? I'm sure you'll here something since it's been 6 months anyways.

[B_J 2,752]

I placed an expedite request today because of the major earthquake in Japan. My fiancee is fine. Her region was not badly damaged. The size and devastation of this earthquake was truly horrendous. Besides the people killed or left homeless, this will be a serious blow to their already stagnant economy. I pray for those lost and those who will have a tough time ahead of them.

My concern for our case is if this expedite request will be denied because her city was not badly damaged and if so, will that have any negative effect on our case. Does anyone have any thoughts

BTW we have already been waiting for almost 6 months since our NOA1.

Go ahead. You've waited almost 6 months so I'm not sure it's an expedite request. It's more like a request that they finally do their job.

[Jorge N Ayaka 0]

OK I wimped out and called in an expedite.

An unbelievable easy and simple process and my first contact with USCIS over the phone.

Even if they deny it, I can at least think that I gave it a shot.

Now, there is a chance that my fiancee might not be able to come until end of May but at least we will have the option if needed.

I requested an expedite for my fiance in chiba. Her place suffered some damages and the whole experience was pretty shocking. There are reports of maybe future earthquakes. This whole thing is pretty scary. Might as well try our best to bring our loved ones near us. Hope for the best!!

[Yagisama 93]

I just got word from a friend of mine in Tokyo that she had to walk 5 hours home from work to check on her family since phone and internet was down!

[Andy and Pui 16]

I just got word from a friend of mine in Tokyo that she had to walk 5 hours home from work to check on her family since phone and internet was down!

I hope everybody is safe. Good luck with your expedites everybody.

[J & K 2]

Now there is another very big disaster close to happening in Japan. They are having very serious problems at two different nuclear power plants. The earthquake knocked out the cooling systems and the nuclear reactors are getting closer and closer to a meltdown. If a country the size of Japan has even one nuclear meltdown let alone two, it will almost certainly make nearly one quarter of the land uninhabitable. Just ask the people of the Ukraine.

The region of Japan where this is taking place is a major center of manufacturing and rice farming. There will be very serious consequences if they cannot get these reactors under control.

If the worst case does happen, I would be very worried about the food supply in the Pacific Region. Both of these power plants are next to the ocean and a meltdown would most likely spill into the sea.

I truly hope that this situation turns out to be a Three Mile Island event and not a Chernobyl.

Many people do not realize that the effects of an earthquake are not always limited to the immediate area around the center. I am very worried about my fiancee and want her here now.

Edited March 12, 2011 by J & K

[Penny Lane 8,159]

I placed an expedite request today because of the major earthquake in Japan. My fiancee is fine. Her region was not badly damaged.

So, why the need for an expedite?

[J & K 2]

So, why the need for an expedite?

Please refer to my previous post.

[Sergi9 110]

So, why are you trying to expedite? There undoubtedly are many individuals who have been severely effected from this catastrophe who are alsowaiting on the USCIS, and you are going to try and jump on the bandwagon? *shakes head* My heart goes out to all those who have been effected - losing homes, loved ones, and life as they previously knew it, in Japan and beyond.

I'm not all fluffy and going to tell you good luck like others. This seems selfish to me and you are seeking to utilize the misfortune of others to your own benefit. Requesting an expedite due to the earthquake is completely different from your having to wait 6+ months. I do hope you get your NOA2 soon as you have clearly waited your turn and been patient for so long, but really frown upon such an expedite request.

Not sure how the USCIS will treat expedite requests by fiances and spouses who have relatives that have been relatively unaffected by the Tsnuami and Earthquake in Japan. Not sure really how you can expect to get an approved expedite without submitting evidence of hardship. But as you mentioned the bandwagon seems to have left the station.

Since the US Embassy in Japan has the primary mission of the safety and security of US Citizens abroad, while these folks might get USCIS stateside to "bite" on an expedite request if its already submitted, they will hit a brick wall at the Embassy. The embassy will more than likely suspend normal VISA processing operations soon if they have not done so already temporarily to free up personnel to deal with the situation on the ground in Japan right now.

They will be heavily involved in searching for US Citizens, identifying remains if US Citizens have been killed in the disaster and of course coordinating evacuations back to the States for any US Citizens who will have to leave. Then there is the issue of travel documents for anyone who lost their paperwork in the Quake or Tsunami.

USCIS also has to deal with folks here in the US who have nothing to go back to that are stranded in the states. So.... to make a long story short if I was a USCIS adjudicator and your file passed my desk with no evidence requesting and expedite in the middle of a serious emergency.....hmmmmmm what would I do with it?

Hope USCIS adjudicator doesn't take one of those RFE's and put your file in the "hold" bin waiting for your "evidence".

I am not sure taking your petition out of the normal processing que to send it to an office that is about to get slammed with humanitarian extensions was the best idea at this time.

Here is some info on the situation:

In response to the devastation caused by the earthquake around Sendai, Japan yesterday, the US Citizenship and Immigraiton Services (USCIS) issued an advisory to Japanese nationals and others who cannot return to their home countries due to earthquake and tsunami disruption in the Pacific. This is of particular importance to those who are here on visitor visas (B-1 or B-2), visa waiver, or other non-immigrant visas such as H-1B, L-1A, L-1B, F-1, J-1, M-1, etc.

From time to time, the US government permits citizens from certain countries to remain in the USA -- even after their visas or landing permits have expired -- due to emergency circumstances in the home country. This special designation -- which is called Temporary Protected Status (TPS) -- is made by the US government. At the present time, Japan has not yet been designated a TPS-eligible country by the US government.

However, the USCIS advisory, issued at 5:35pm today advises that people should visit their local USCIS office if they have overstayed their I-94s or will become an overstay because they cannot now return to their homes in the Pacific. In certain cases, the USCIS may allow for an additional 30 days be granted in order to depart without facing unlawful presence or other serious immigration violation. USCIS will likely control such applications with high scrutiny and enforcement. We do not recommend that Japanese citizens go to USCIS to obtain assistance without first consulting an immigration attorney.

Edited March 12, 2011 by Sergi9