Form I-131 emergency

[Mulugulu 23]

14 minutes ago, nguyenddvuong said:

Off topic question, would there be an issue if USCIS knew you have a wedding ceremony/reception outside US?

I can't imagine what issue USCIS could possibly have with that. 

[Mulugulu 23]

19 minutes ago, p-ana said:

It’s been YEARS since the ead/ap was granted in less than 3 months. I filed 3 years ago at it took over 90 days already...

Damn, that is terrible news. The first lawyer I contacted today told me that I will have my ap by June. But with uscis nothing is a guarantee. I reached out to a few more lawyers to see which opportunities I have.

[Mollie09 1,543]

15 minutes ago, Mulugulu said:

Damn, that is terrible news. The first lawyer I contacted today told me that I will have my ap by June. But with uscis nothing is a guarantee. I reached out to a few more lawyers to see which opportunities I have.

Let us know how it goes.

 

FWIW, severe financial loss usually refers to an event that couldn't have been predicted in advance, and related to job loss/not being able to accept a job.

[D&D_NYC 58]

1 hour ago, Mulugulu said:

Damn, that is terrible news. The first lawyer I contacted today told me that I will have my ap by June. But with uscis nothing is a guarantee. I reached out to a few more lawyers to see which opportunities I have.

June is also being very optimistic...usually the minimum amount of time for AP processing is 4 months, and they are telling you 3? If you're paying them, lawyers might tell you what you want to hear, but they can't do anything to help you in this situation. You just have to submit the expedite request and/or change your plans.

For what it's worth, I submitted an AP expedite request by phone a few weeks ago (to attend a work conference on behalf of my boss who could no longer attend), and it was rejected a day later. Basically, it seems like anything that's not a major, time-sensitive emergency like a relative dying isn't worthy of an expedite in their eyes, so I wouldn't pin my hopes on it.

 

It's a shame that you put so much money down, but you were unfortunately misguided in assuming you would get your AP in 3 months. 

[Boiler 43,426]

Most Immigration Lawyers have little involvement with Family Migration and are probably not up to date with EAD processing times etc.

[Cryssiekins 976]

1 minute ago, Boiler said:

Most Immigration Lawyers have little involvement with Family Migration and are probably not up to date with EAD processing times etc.

Accurate.  They focus their work on large corporations who have employment based immigration needs.  Family matter, unless overly complex, are simply easy money.

[Ontarkie 13,913]

~~Duplicate account shut down.~~ 

[mushroomspore 3,043]

6 minutes ago, Ontarkie said:

~~Duplicate account shut down.~~ 

😶

1 hour ago, Mulugulu said:

Damn, that is terrible news. The first lawyer I contacted today told me that I will have my ap by June. But with uscis nothing is a guarantee. I reached out to a few more lawyers to see which opportunities I have.

Uhh, June is VERY optimistic. That's if you get SUPER lucky and your file ends up on the desk of a case worker who works really fast. But even a fast worker has a lot of cases to get through. The only other possible option is to abandon AoS, attend your wedding and you stay in Germany while you guys file for a spousal visa, which take a year+ to obtain. Depends how badly you guys want this wedding to happen. Not sure where you heard EAD/AP was only taking 3 months, but it hasn't been like that in years now.

Edited March 13, 2019 by mushroomspore

[SalishSea 16,769]

6 hours ago, Mulugulu said:

Hi everybody, 

 

I have a problem and will try to explain my whole case in a few sentences, hoping someone will be able to help me: 

 

We applied for the 129f in March of 2018, I was admitted to the US on December 20th as a K1 Visa holder. 

My then fiancé and I got married on the 21st of February and applied for AOS (485) along with AP (131) and EAD (765) on March 1st. Two days ago I received an email stating, that the case was received on March 8th.

 

We planned our wedding which will take place in Germany on July 6th of 2019 in the beginning of last year, booked our venue, florists, dj, cake, photo-/videographer and sent out our invites in the beginning of this year.

 

Since it is a destination wedding we are expecting guests not just from America and Germany, but from all around the world. A lot of guests already booked their flights and also booked their hotels. 

 

Last night I checked, how long the processing times for the i131 are and I got stunned. The uscis website says it will take between 5-7 months. I have to be in Germany in 3 1/2 months. 

 

The wedding party costs approximately 30k and that just includes the costs me and my wife have. 

 

Would I be eligible for an expedited AP? 

Is this reason for an emergency, since I would take a severe financial damage of I can't make it to my own wedding? 

Should I just sit and wait and hope that my documents get to me on time? 

 

Thank you in advance everyone! 

 

 

I don't understand how you didn't already know this ahead of time?  We sent our petition one month before you did, and have always known that the combo card would take 4-6 months. 

 

That is not an emergency or a legit reason for expedite.

 

Maybe you will get extra lucky, like we did,, and the combo card will be processed quickly.  The text/email that the card is being produced arrived on day 132 after filing for AOS.

[SalishSea 16,769]

5 hours ago, Cryssiekins said:

I literally love Roel’s posts.  Tactful with no bs, and that’s exactly how it should be.

Same here.  She's my fave.

[Nat&Amy 623]

I relate to the OP in the sense that I too planned a destination wedding.

 

And unfortunately for me, just like the OP., I did not do my research right because I was counting on the whole K1 visa being issued in 6 months.

 

Irony or not, my NOA2 was issued on the day my wedding was supposed to take place.

 

And yes... all my guests had to reschedule their flights, we did lose our deposit, but it was not the end of the world. We ended up getting married in October last year and it was worth every cent we spent. Some people are not into big parties, oithers are and that is okay. Lesson to be learnt here is that it is not the USCIS job to work within your timeline, even because timelines change ALL THE TIME in immigration. You plan, the burden of any financial loss is on you. We definitely learnt from the experience and we definitely learnt to check Visajourney before making any major decisions involving travel plans.

 

And if I have any word of advice, it would be for the OP to work with their wedding planner, explain the situation, and find a way to cut their losses. Rescheduling comes with a price but trust me, messing up your spouse's visa will cost you even more.

Edited March 13, 2019 by Nat&Amy

[beloved_dingo 1,932]

I'm curious as to why you would wait to file AOS in March when you've been in the U.S. since December. If you'd married quickly and applied for AOS within say - 30 days or so - you likely would have received AP before the overseas wedding celebration (though still no guarantees). Even if EAD/AP was being processed in 90 days, you did not give yourself much wiggle room at all by filing in March and planning a wedding overseas 3 months later.

 

Quite frankly I feel bad for the people who have made plans to be at your wedding in Germany and booked flights etc. They trusted your judgment and the poor planning involved is likely going to cost a lot of your friends/family money.

[Loren Y 2,731]

Looks like OP took a gamble with not good odds and is going to be paying the house on this one ( I love Las Vegas references). I took a gamble myself and booked a trip back to Thailand in the Middle of November this year ( I couldn't pass up 2 round trip tickets for $657 and change). I just did Biometrics today for AOS, but I bought tickets in February, so I now have 8 Months for the AP/EAD card to arrive, when I booked the tickets I was 9 months out, and I was still thinking I might not get the EAD/AP card in time, and I was 9 months out. I think my odds are better than yours, but I could still end up paying the house also, but only to the tune of $657 dollars, I can take that loss, no way 30k, that hurts and I wish you the best of luck.

[SalishSea 16,769]

4 minutes ago, Loren Y said:

Looks like OP took a gamble with not good odds and is going to be paying the house on this one ( I love Las Vegas references). I took a gamble myself and booked a trip back to Thailand in the Middle of November this year ( I couldn't pass up 2 round trip tickets for $657 and change). I just did Biometrics today for AOS, but I bought tickets in February, so I now have 8 Months for the AP/EAD card to arrive, when I booked the tickets I was 9 months out, and I was still thinking I might not get the EAD/AP card in time, and I was 9 months out. I think my odds are better than yours, but I could still end up paying the house also, but only to the tune of $657 dollars, I can take that loss, no way 30k, that hurts and I wish you the best of luck.

I think the odds are in your favor!  My husband's biometrics appointment was 11/30/18, and on Monday (3/11), he was notified that the combo card is being produced.  We hope to receive it within ten days or so.  Good luck!

[TheKingmaker 153]

3 hours ago, Mulugulu said:

Damn, that is terrible news. The first lawyer I contacted today told me that I will have my ap by June. But with uscis nothing is a guarantee. I reached out to a few more lawyers to see which opportunities I have.

Lol stop wasting more money!!