AOS: when can I work?

[EmilyTim 3]

Hi everyone!

I moved to the US on a K1 visa in August. Our wedding date is set for the 6th October. I hope to have all the paperwork ready prior to this date, so we can apply for adjustment of status as soon as we have the marriage certificate. After sending the AOS paperwork, when will I be able to work? I can't seem to find any recent info on this.

I admit I'm finding the whole process pretty confusing. Would it be a better idea for me to apply for the work authorisation before getting married? How long would I have to wait before working?

Going a bit crazy, stuck at home with no way of working!

Thanks in advance for your help!

[K1visaHopeful 2,661]

Category A6 EADs are obsolete due the processing times taking longer than its validity under A6 (it would expire on day 90) so you cant apply for EAD unless you apply for it concurrently with the I485 as a category C9.

Currently they are reported to process at 3.5 to 5.5 months but most recently it has taken up to 6 to 8.

Not working is just one of the pitfalls for the K1 process. If required, it would have been better to apply for a Spousal Visa instead if working upon arrival was a must. You can always volunteer (carefully).

Edited September 3, 2019 by K1visaHopeful

[WandY 430]

Your post is confusing. You seem to know that on a K-1 you have to get married first. Then submit paperwork and wait for the card. You cannot legally work in America without authorization. If you wanted to work upon arrival, you should have gone the CR-1 marriage route.

Be patient.

[EmilyTim 3]

14 minutes ago, K1visaHopeful said:

Category A6 EADs are obsolete due the processing times taking longer than its validity under A6 (it would expire on day 90) so you cant apply for EAD unless you apply for it concurrently with the I485 as a category C9.

Currently they are reported to process at 3.5 to 5.5 months but most recently it has taken up to 6 to 8.

Not working is just one of the pitfalls for the K1 process. If required, it would have been better to apply for a Spousal Visa instead if working upon arrival was a must. You can always volunteer (carefully).

Thank you - really appreciate your help. 

Working upon arrival isn't a must for me, I'm just eager to start working as soon as possible  I think volunteering will be the way forward for the meantime

 

[EmilyTim 3]

13 minutes ago, WandY said:

Your post is confusing. You seem to know that on a K-1 you have to get married first. Then submit paperwork and wait for the card. You cannot legally work in America without authorization. If you wanted to work upon arrival, you should have gone the CR-1 marriage route.

Be patient.

I (mostly) understand the process. I'm just trying to get an idea of waiting times

[DaveAndAnastasia 2,078]

23 minutes ago, EmilyTim said:

I (mostly) understand the process. I'm just trying to get an idea of waiting times

Basically once you apply for AOS + EAD + AP, there's a race going between AOS and EAD. You can work legally when either EAD or AOS is complete.

 

EAD for people adjusting from a K-1 is always processed at the National Benefits Center in Missouri, and the processing times have been mentioned above (both official and VJ users' reported experience).

 

However, if your AOS is approved first, that's when you can work. You'll have your AOS interview at your local field office ( go to https://www.uscis.gov/about-us/find-uscis-office/field-offices and search by zip code, though there was an official memo earlier this summer saying that they're trying to shift work from backlogged field offices, so if your local field office is slow, you may end up at another field office ).

You can get official processing time range estimates by searching for I-485 and your field office here: https://egov.uscis.gov/processing-times/ and then looking at the line for family-based AOS.

You can see what other VJ users going through your field office experienced recently by looking here: https://www.visajourney.com/timeline/aosstats.php?cfl=

[payxibka 10,044]

42 minutes ago, EmilyTim said:

I (mostly) understand the process. I'm just trying to get an idea of waiting times

USCIS has online tools including case processing time estimates 

[SalishSea 16,770]

5 hours ago, EmilyTim said:

Hi everyone!

I moved to the US on a K1 visa in August. Our wedding date is set for the 6th October. I hope to have all the paperwork ready prior to this date, so we can apply for adjustment of status as soon as we have the marriage certificate. After sending the AOS paperwork, when will I be able to work? I can't seem to find any recent info on this.

I admit I'm finding the whole process pretty confusing. Would it be a better idea for me to apply for the work authorisation before getting married? How long would I have to wait before working?

Going a bit crazy, stuck at home with no way of working!

Thanks in advance for your help!

The EAD/AP combo card can be applied for concurrently with the AOS, for free.  I believe it is taking about 6 months on average to receive the combo card.

[Diane and Chris 651]

Maybe the middle of January if you’re lucky. 

[designguy 1,179]

10 hours ago, EmilyTim said:

I think volunteering will be the way forward for the meantime

Just be careful with volunteering to make sure you don't fall into a gray "unpaid work" scenario. Best of luck!

[JunkTardis 183]

13 hours ago, EmilyTim said:

Hi everyone!

I moved to the US on a K1 visa in August. Our wedding date is set for the 6th October. I hope to have all the paperwork ready prior to this date, so we can apply for adjustment of status as soon as we have the marriage certificate. After sending the AOS paperwork, when will I be able to work? I can't seem to find any recent info on this.

I admit I'm finding the whole process pretty confusing. Would it be a better idea for me to apply for the work authorisation before getting married? How long would I have to wait before working?

Going a bit crazy, stuck at home with no way of working!

Thanks in advance for your help!

I moved to the US in October 2018, filed for EAD/AP/AOS in November and got EAD/AP in July and Green Card in August. You're in for a wait, the wait times are still bad. As far as I know, volunteering is out of the question too since it is also a form of working. my thoughts for you is if you're able, get your drivers license whilst the K1 visa is within it's 90 days and do a little driving around your area. You'll want to be familiar with the roads around your area prior to working. This is exactly what I did, and it really helped since I now work about a block away from the National Benefits Center in Lee's Summit, right where the AOS/EAD Green Cards are processed. 

[EnglishLove 112]

16 hours ago, EmilyTim said:

Hi everyone!

I moved to the US on a K1 visa in August. Our wedding date is set for the 6th October. I hope to have all the paperwork ready prior to this date, so we can apply for adjustment of status as soon as we have the marriage certificate. After sending the AOS paperwork, when will I be able to work? I can't seem to find any recent info on this.

I admit I'm finding the whole process pretty confusing. Would it be a better idea for me to apply for the work authorisation before getting married? How long would I have to wait before working?

Going a bit crazy, stuck at home with no way of working!

Thanks in advance for your help!

Your timeline is almost the same as mine!! My fiance just moved here on the K-1 from England on the 27th of August and were getting married on the 5th of October. I'm a little confused on the processing stuff since I thought we were going to be denied so I was looking at all the waivers. Since getting approved, I've been scrambling to do all my research on paperwork and timelines for it all. A lot of it seems redundant but I'll be glad when it's all over. I wish I had done my research better and I would have gone with the CR-1 but I didn't find this website until after I already sent in the K-1 application. Good luck with your journey!! Right now I'm waiting for Homeland to fix my fiance's name in the database. They put his first and middle name together as his first so he can't get his SSN until it's fixed 🙄

[Ironclad43 131]

Currently, EADs are taking forever. I got mine a month and a half ago, and we submitted in January. We submitted a request to expedite after almost 7 months of waiting because the estimated wait times were adjusted to be beyond my wife's due date, and because I had a job lined up already.

 

You will be waiting a long time, so try to get a plan together for how you're going to 1. financially handle a single income and 2. how you're going to mentally/emotionally handle the wait.

Edited September 4, 2019 by Ironclad43

[sam.e 19]

19 hours ago, EmilyTim said:

Thank you - really appreciate your help. 

Working upon arrival isn't a must for me, I'm just eager to start working as soon as possible  I think volunteering will be the way forward for the meantime

 

My Husband applied for AOS the first of march and are still waiting for EAD, but we are hoping it will be approved soon based on current timelines found on here/USCIS processing times page. His greencard is "ready to be scheduled for an interview" since the end of July, but that doesn't mean much until the interview is actually scheduled.

He has volunteered to pass time, but as mentioned you have to be careful not to fall into "unpaid work" grey area. We found the best way to manage that was to volunteer with "volunteer only" positions - as in even if an American were to do the same job it would still be a volunteer basis. Non-profits like the Boys and Girls Club, Big Brother/Big Sister, and some YMCA positions are great options.

 

P.S. I love that you're in Flag, I went to uni at NAU and now we're living in Phoenix... but I miss my little mountain town!

 

Best of luck

Edited September 4, 2019 by sam.e