Recently married and filing AOS

[JayJayH 546]

Hi there!

We are recently married, wife is a US citizen, husband is adjusting status from F-1 student on OPT to LPR. We feel very confident in most of the paperwork that goes into the i-130 and i-485 package, but have a couple of questions.

1. We live in Hawaii, but will be going to Alaska for 4 - 5 months in the summer for wife's work. Husband will be joining while application is pending. If we send in the package the first week of April, and we plan to leave for Alaska one month later, should we use our Hawaii address, or our expected Alaska address? Maybe wife's parents' address? Also, which USCIS office should be listed as local office, Anchorage or Honolulu?

2. We need more details about I-131, for travel purposes. If filing i-131 along with i-130 and i-485, how long will it take before husband would be allowed to travel, and re-enter the US? We are planning a trip abroad at the end of the summer, for wife and husband's family to meet.

3. So far, we are working on i-130, i-485, i-765, i-864 and i-693. We also plan to file i-131. Beyond these forms, are there any other forms that we should be aware of, when filing adjustment of status?

4. Our marriage licensing agent informed us that getting the marriage certificate takes approx. 4 - 6 weeks. Husband's OPT status recently expired, and husband is currently legally on grace period for another 5 weeks. If it should take 6 weeks for the marriage certificate to arrive, is it still safe to file adjustment of status while husband has been out of status for one week, or should the marriage certificate be sent separately, a week later?

Thank you for your help!

[Little_My 464]

You should be posting in the AOS from tourist, student etc. visa forum since your husband is adjusting from F1 - you'll get more advice there

1. You should use an address where someone is most definitely going to check your mail, and if necessary, forward it to you if that address is not where you will be residing in. Everything from USCIS comes via snail mail, so if your current residence in Hawaii will be empty after you leave, you shouldn't use that one. Where do your parents live? You could use that address, if your parents could check the mail and make sure you know whenever something comes from USCIS.

2. AP and EAD usually come after the petitioner has done biometrics. That can be anywhere between 2-4 months from submitting the application, based on averages on VJ. You can look at the timeline section here on Visajourney to get a better idea of how long it takes.. shouldn't be more than 4 months (assuming there are no delays like RFEs along the way) and most likely won't be less than 2 months. Before he has his AP, he cannot leave the US. Or, he can leave. He just won't be able to come back. So no traveling before AP, unfortunately..

3. No additional forms (at least none I can think of) - that's the package! Just sent mine a couple of weeks ago, I am also adjusting from F1.

4. Are you sure the marriage license has to take that long? I have no idea how these things work in Hawaii, and I know NYC is special in the sense that here you get it straight away after the ceremony, but 4-6 weeks sounds like a long time.. Anyhow, overstay is forgiven for people AOSing from F1 based on marriage to a USC, so he shouldn't have problems. It is good to submit the AOS as soon as possible though, and always better to submit before his status expires. Don't send the marriage certificate separately, if you file the forms without that they will probably be send right back to you. They won't look at the petition without the marriage certificate - that is what his AOS is based on.

Hope this helped. And say Hi from Finland to your hubby Here it's the other way around, I'm the petitioner and my husband is the USC. Hope all goes smoothly for you! And congrats on the marriage

[JayJayH 546]

Thank you very much! I'm pretty new here, but I'll keep in mind to post in the right category from now on

I'm trying to see if I can get out of going to Alaska for those months and just stay at home. Would make things much less complicating. If not, we'll just use my parents' address..

As for the marriage license.. They're rather slow at the Hawaii State Health Dept., our marriage license agent informed us they're getting swamped with people inquiring about Obama's birth certificate but I think that may have been meant jokingly lol. Either way, turns out there is a way to get it expedited, so shouldn't be a problem at all!

Congrats on your marriage as well, and best of luck to you both!

Btw, would you happen to know if I can use my 2010 W-2 forms instead of tax returns for the I-864? And, since you were in F1 status, do you know if my husband should put F1 or OPT as "current status"?

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

You'll also need G-325A for both husband and wife. This is required with the I-130 petition. Don't forget passport style photos, as well. There's a VJ guide specifically for this scenario:

http://www.visajourney.com/content/i130guide2

Traveling, even within the United States, is risky while your AOS is pending. You have no control over when they schedule the biometrics or interview appointments, and if you miss either of those appointments then your application could be denied. Make sure whomever is receiving your mail is on the ball, and that they are contacting you immediately when they receive any correspondence from the US government. Keep your plans loose enough that you can drop what you're doing, if needed, to attend an appointment.

The I-864 requires a tax return or IRS transcript for the most recent tax year. You cannot substitute W2's for a tax return. Call the IRS and order a transcript. They're free, and you'll get them within two weeks.

I'd write F1 for the current status.

[Little_My 464]

F1 in stead of OPT.OPT isn't really a visa status, he is still an F1 when doing his practical training. If you file in Hawaii, I think your biometrics and interview will be scheduled to your closest office there - so, if you are in Alaska and get a biometrics appointment and then later an interview, you would have to come back. Like JimVaPhuong said, keep your schedule opened. Biometrics will be only for your husband, but interview you both need to attend. So if your husband is definitely going to Alaska, make sure he knows he might have to fly back for the biometrics appointment.. From what I've gathered, biometrics usually happens anywhere between 60-90 days from sending the AOS appointment. They will send a letter about that, with more or less a months notice before the appointment.

Does anyone know if the petitioning husband could, in this case, do a walk in for biometrics in Alaska if he is there when the appointment is scheduled, even though they are filing from Hawaii? That way he wouldn't have to come back until the interview.. Just a thought. But I'm not sure how tied you are to a certain office once you have filed your paperwork in a specific state and city. Maybe someone else here knows more about that!

I totally forgot to mention G325-A Luckily Jim seems to reeeeally know his s*** when it comes to immigration One form for both of you. I filed AOS from F1, and if I remember correctly, you need 1 passport photo, and the intending immigrant, i.e. your husband will need 7 photos. Doe he have his birth certificate here? Since you have to wait around for your marriage certificate, you have plenty of time to make sure everything else is in order and be ready to send out the package as soon as the certificate comes in.

And for Obama's birth certificate.. I wouldn't be surprised if they weren't joking Which is quite depressing. Some things in this country I will never understand. This witch hunt against Obama's heritage is one of them.

Good luck for your journey!

[Zenda 0]

Hello! It's nice to see another Norwegian filer!

We've had longstanding problems with the U.S. Post Office in getting mail delivered, and because of this we changed our mailing address during both the K-1 and AOS processes. This worked out fine for us in the end, but, her EAD was delayed and our AP paperwork was lost by USCIS, because the change-of-address was entered into their computer after the AOS/EAD/AP NOA1s were issued.

Long story short, make sure your change of address work is done as early in the process as possible. We used my parents' home address and that worked out fine.

Also, I found this going through Hawaii's vital records website - http://hawaii.gov/health/vital-records/vital-records/vital_records.html

Specifically : Certified copies are usually not issued on the day the application is made. Same-Day service may be provided upon presentation of written documentation establishing the need for urgency. Certified copies will normally be available for pick-up about 10 working days after the request is approved.

Hopefully the time-sensitive nature of the situation can get that marriage certificate copy to you sooner, either within 10 working days or possibly even the same day.

Best of luck!