Confused about biometrics for EAD (K1 visa adjustment of status)

[AnnoyedAtTSC 2]

Hi,

I filed i465 and i785 back in January. Other than NOAs for each i've not heard a peep regarding either of them. The EAD timelines here suggest they are processing Feb filers now and my NOA was Jan 29th.

I've not received a biometrics appointment for either EAD or green card. Some places say i might not need one as they can use biometrics taken from my visa process. How do i know if that applies to me? I've tried ringing USCIS, utter waste of time as the people can't even see my file. I've contacted my local congressman's office and they are supposedly looking into it, but that's all gone quiet too.

I've opened service requests with USCIS for both my i465 and i785 but naturally i can't do anything with those until they've had a whole month to respond.

I started looking for jobs because i foolishly believed the 3 months processing timeframe given by USCIS but now i'm concerned that i might not even be close to getting at EAD because of the biometrics.

I'm booked in for an infopass appointment, but again the wait is a few weeks.

What else can i do? I just want to be able to work. I've done my time waiting and i'm kinda getting sick of being treated like a piece of dirt on the US government's shoe.

Who else can i harass about this?

Anything similar happen to anyone else? Outcome?

[KayDeeCee 4,892]

If you call the USCIS, you need to ask for your call to be escalated to a an actual immigration officer that has access to your case information.

[Mad & J 25]

Hi,

I filed i465 and i785 back in January. Other than NOAs for each i've not heard a peep regarding either of them. The EAD timelines here suggest they are processing Feb filers now and my NOA was Jan 29th.

I've not received a biometrics appointment for either EAD or green card. Some places say i might not need one as they can use biometrics taken from my visa process. How do i know if that applies to me? I've tried ringing USCIS, utter waste of time as the people can't even see my file. I've contacted my local congressman's office and they are supposedly looking into it, but that's all gone quiet too.

I've opened service requests with USCIS for both my i465 and i785 but naturally i can't do anything with those until they've had a whole month to respond.

I started looking for jobs because i foolishly believed the 3 months processing timeframe given by USCIS but now i'm concerned that i might not even be close to getting at EAD because of the biometrics.

I'm booked in for an infopass appointment, but again the wait is a few weeks.

What else can i do? I just want to be able to work. I've done my time waiting and i'm kinda getting sick of being treated like a piece of dirt on the US government's shoe.

Who else can i harass about this?

Anything similar happen to anyone else? Outcome?

Hi! As your NOA1 is dated January 29th, I think you're one of the missing-address victims of whatever technical glitch happened on that day. There are several of us who had this same issue, all with NOA1s on the same date. Basically there was a problem with the way our addresses were entered (or not entered) in their system so that no address appears on our files, which makes it impossible for them to schedule the biometrics appointment. All of us did receive our hard copy NOA1s in the mail so obviously they have the addresses somewhere, just not in one specific section of their system it seems. Who knows exactly what happened, but the bottom line is that they made a mistake on that day and most of the people I've talked to about it don't know how to fix it.

You could call and talk to an immigration officer (tier 2) and ask them to verify your address. They are supposed to be able to update it manually if it's missing, but even after they did that for me I didn't receive my appointment letter. The only thing that worked for me (and several others it seems) was to reach out to my congressman and explain the details of my situation. They were able to put pressure on USCIS to fix their mistake and schedule the biometrics appointment. I see you've already contacted your congressman, but I'd call his office again and give them more detailed information about your case if possible. Stress that USCIS mishandled your case, made a mistake, and that they have put no real effort into fixing the issue. You could also get one or both of your senators involved. Otherwise the infopass appointment might help too, even if that is a few weeks away. I didn't have to get that far (yet!).

I was finally able to do my biometrics last Monday, after fighting USCIS since the end of February. Hopefully my case will get back on track now! Another fellow missing-address VJer just got their EAD/AP approval 10 days after their biometrics, so there is hope that we won't have to wait too long for them to catch up on our cases.

Best of luck! Sorry you ended up in the unlucky group like I did!

[AnnoyedAtTSC 2]

Hi! As your NOA1 is dated January 29th, I think you're one of the missing-address victims of whatever technical glitch happened on that day. There are several of us who had this same issue, all with NOA1s on the same date. Basically there was a problem with the way our addresses were entered (or not entered) in their system so that no address appears on our files, which makes it impossible for them to schedule the biometrics appointment. All of us did receive our hard copy NOA1s in the mail so obviously they have the addresses somewhere, just not in one specific section of their system it seems. Who knows exactly what happened, but the bottom line is that they made a mistake on that day and most of the people I've talked to about it don't know how to fix it.

You could call and talk to an immigration officer (tier 2) and ask them to verify your address. They are supposed to be able to update it manually if it's missing, but even after they did that for me I didn't receive my appointment letter. The only thing that worked for me (and several others it seems) was to reach out to my congressman and explain the details of my situation. They were able to put pressure on USCIS to fix their mistake and schedule the biometrics appointment. I see you've already contacted your congressman, but I'd call his office again and give them more detailed information about your case if possible. Stress that USCIS mishandled your case, made a mistake, and that they have put no real effort into fixing the issue. You could also get one or both of your senators involved. Otherwise the infopass appointment might help too, even if that is a few weeks away. I didn't have to get that far (yet!).

I was finally able to do my biometrics last Monday, after fighting USCIS since the end of February. Hopefully my case will get back on track now! Another fellow missing-address VJer just got their EAD/AP approval 10 days after their biometrics, so there is hope that we won't have to wait too long for them to catch up on our cases.

Best of luck! Sorry you ended up in the unlucky group like I did!

You have GOT to be kidding me? Just when i thought USCIS could not sink any lower in my estimations i hear something like this! This is really great info, thanks so much.

Unbelievable institution/agency, complete joke.

[AnnoyedAtTSC 2]

Ok, so i was unable to get to a tier 2 person, was told they would have no further info on my case than whoever i was talking to. However, this person did actually seem to have more details on my case than others i have spoken to.

She had my correct address. She could also tell me that according to them they sent a biometrics appointment on the 17th Feb, that is news to me. Alas, because of that they've blamed USPS so i can't even apply to have the rest of the process expedited due to "mistake by USCIS".

So, it looks like i could be looking at another 2+ months before its all done. So depressed.

[Mad & J 25]

Agreed about USCIS being a ridiculous agency. The lack of accountability is the most frustrating part for me.

I was so sure your problem would be the same as mine, considering your NOA1 date! Did you manage to reschedule your appointment? I'm suspicious of them saying they had your correct address if you never received the notice. I'd advise calling back and insisting to speak to Tier 2... they are supposed to transfer you, especially if you insist right off the bat. I had to argue with them a few times but did manage to get transferred the last few times I called. I'd ask Tier 2 to verify your address, just to be on the safe side. But that's me, after this debacle I don't trust what they tell me anymore! Especially the customer service folks who first answer the phone. I'd verify all the info you got with an actual immigration officer (tier 2).

Good luck!! If nothing else an infopass appointment might help. Keep us posted!

[AnnoyedAtTSC 2]

Agreed about USCIS being a ridiculous agency. The lack of accountability is the most frustrating part for me.

I was so sure your problem would be the same as mine, considering your NOA1 date! Did you manage to reschedule your appointment? I'm suspicious of them saying they had your correct address if you never received the notice. I'd advise calling back and insisting to speak to Tier 2... they are supposed to transfer you, especially if you insist right off the bat. I had to argue with them a few times but did manage to get transferred the last few times I called. I'd ask Tier 2 to verify your address, just to be on the safe side. But that's me, after this debacle I don't trust what they tell me anymore! Especially the customer service folks who first answer the phone. I'd verify all the info you got with an actual immigration officer (tier 2).

Good luck!! If nothing else an infopass appointment might help. Keep us posted!

I might get my wife to call, she's nicer than me and might be able to extract the next round of contradictory evidence. The person I spoke to gave me my correct address without me giving it to them first.

This could all be avoided by better case tracking and time schedules. Eg, this is where we're at, this is what we need from you next, you should get X after this many days etc etc.

They don't even need to get better at their jobs, just make information available

[AnnoyedAtTSC 2]

Good news, i like to think some rapid action was prompted due to our hassling of USCIS but i'm aware that is probably just coincidence....

Got a new biometrics appointment for 3rd May through the post today! Yay. Read online that people have had luck getting it done early so i took a chance and went over to the Nashville USCIS office. There was absolutely nobody there, other than employees. Asked if i could do it early.... "of course, not a problem".....filled out a form, got a number and took a seat.....immediately got called due to being the only person there. Wham bam, Bob's your uncle, biometrics done in 10mins flat.

Anyone know what sort of timeframe i'm looking at before the next case status update? I've got an infopass appointment on tuesday too so i'm gonna go to that and hopefully keep up the pressure. Fingers crossed i might even have a job offer by then that i might be able to use to persuade some further action.

My case will be outside normally processing time next thursday so as soon as that comes around i'll submit one of those enquiries online.

Am i right in thinking there is nothing else required from me now, other than hassling USCIS at every opportunity?

[Mad & J 25]

Good news, i like to think some rapid action was prompted due to our hassling of USCIS but i'm aware that is probably just coincidence....

Got a new biometrics appointment for 3rd May through the post today! Yay. Read online that people have had luck getting it done early so i took a chance and went over to the Nashville USCIS office. There was absolutely nobody there, other than employees. Asked if i could do it early.... "of course, not a problem".....filled out a form, got a number and took a seat.....immediately got called due to being the only person there. Wham bam, Bob's your uncle, biometrics done in 10mins flat.

Anyone know what sort of timeframe i'm looking at before the next case status update? I've got an infopass appointment on tuesday too so i'm gonna go to that and hopefully keep up the pressure. Fingers crossed i might even have a job offer by then that i might be able to use to persuade some further action.

My case will be outside normally processing time next thursday so as soon as that comes around i'll submit one of those enquiries online.

Am i right in thinking there is nothing else required from me now, other than hassling USCIS at every opportunity?

That's great! Glad to hear you were able to get your biometrics done early. I think now you just have to give them some time to work on your case, but yeah, I would keep on prodding them with that infopass appointment next week and a service request, just to make sure they don't forget about you.

I hope we both get some good news soon!

[AnnoyedAtTSC 2]

Went for my infopass appointment, what an utter waste of time and energy that was!

First off they pulled up my file (woo, they have my file i thought), closely followed by "was this filed with an i-485 as we don't have that on the system"......WHAT?!?!?

Luckily i had my NOA1 for it and they were able to find it and linked them together, apparently that should have been done at the beginning.

Next she sees i have a service request on the application and says "i see you have a service request already, that is more than i'm able to do". From that point onwards i know i'm wasting my time. A few more questions and answers and its confirmed that she has no authority or ability to do anything of any use. The best bit of info i got was that my biometrics were indeed on file.

So i got home and rang the 1-800 number for what feels like the thousandth time. They were able to create an expedite request for me. They did it on the grounds that its been over 90 days and put in the notes that i have a job offer waiting and that i can provide proof if needed. They said they try and reply to expedite requests in 5 days, which is positively light speed for USCIS. Then added on the caveat that it could take 30 days. Sigh.

I dunno if i'm making progress or not tbh. Part of me feels all this effort is just snake oil and USCIS will just continue in their crappy ways regardless. We've got half the elected officials of Tennessee watching the case and requesting info now :-D

[AnnoyedAtTSC 2]

I've now got this on my case tracking for my i765......

On April 27, 2016, we requested information on your case to best respond to your inquiry about the status of your Employment Authorization application, referral number T1DXXXXXXXXXXMSC.

Anyone know what information they might need at this point in time? I rang the helpline and they couldn't tell me what it was.

[KayDeeCee 4,892]

They cannot tell you what the RFE is for over the phone. You must wait for the letter.

[AnnoyedAtTSC 2]

I don't think it is a RFE though. Infopass lady said they had everything and wouldn't the case status change like it does for the visas?

[Loki_Go 126]

It looks like they may be requesting proof of a job offer that AnnoyedAtTSC said they could provide.

[AnnoyedAtTSC 2]

That is the only thing i could think of, but is that not an RFE? Should the status have changed? They took my email and phone number when i submitted the expedite request and I've heard zero from them.
The way its worded doesn't actually mean they've requested information from ME though. This is just another one of the seemingly endless list of issues/questions that would be completely avoided with better information coming out of USCIS.

If i ring USCIS should they be able to tell me that they've sent me a letter? The woman i spoke to yesterday was so not interested in helping me and basically kept repeating "wait 30 days"