Submitting our final package! What I've learned in 2 months

[lazylady 6]

Hello fellow visajourney members, 

 

We finally completed assembling our package for AOS from F-1 visa to green card yesterday after 2 months prepping and sent it out just this morning. I want to shout out a huge THANK YOU to all the mods and everyone on this forum, you have been so helpful, so understanding, and the info I found here is precious! Hoping this submission will go well 🤞

 

           

 

Just want to share few things I found after spending days on this forum and hundreds of dollars consulting with various immigration attorneys before I forget anything 😛  

 

• If you are about to start your application: plan your travels abroad ahead. For non-immigrant visas, leaving the country while AOS is in process and without advanced parole and then come back under non-immigrant visa can mean you abandon your AOS. H1B is dual intent so should be fine.

 

• If you are not married yet: 
  • Be aware of 90-day guidance by DOS. Info here and here. In short this means if you came to the US under a non-immigrant visa and then proceed to get married within 90 days of your latest entry, there will be a bias of visa fraud or misrepresentation on you at consular processing and point of entry. If you go back to your country and then try to enter the US on non-immigrant visa again, it could be a lot of headache, in worst case you might not be able to enter the US. Since this is a guidance for DOS and not-binding on USCIS officers, so just file AOS from within the US (see Matter of Battista and Cavazos). According to my attorney, in the interview, USCIS officer might not mention the 90 day rule explicitly, but might ask related questions like "When did you decide to get married", "When did you buy your rings", etc.
  • Things that will help your application: 
    • If you move in together, make sure both of your names are on the lease
    • Have a joint bank account/brokerage account with both of you as holders and both names appear on account statements.
    • Save your photos together. Know when/where it was taken. 
    • Routinely note down your physical addresses along with dates if you move often (Yes, I have 18 addresses within the last 5 years)
    • If you are in the US, open a credit card to have credit score (take 6 month - 1 year to have score) and/or have your spouse add you as authorized user of his/her card
    • Save your flight ticket confirmation and other proof that you visited each other.  
  • If you think about having a prenup, that's fine but consult with a good attorney. Prenups can't have terms that bypass immigration laws, especially not bypassing the affidavit of support.
  • When you get married:
    • Save photos of the wedding and celebration
    • Ask your spouse to add you as beneficiary on his/her life insurance, retirement account and vice versa - this can be used as proof of co-mingling financial resources in a bona fide marriage.

 

• If you are married to a US citizen and are starting your application: 
  • Check out the basic steps and example forms on visajourney's guides. I started with the forum first but could have saved more time to start with the guides
  • Make sure you have to correct form version 
    • Why? Because the links for old versions of many forms still float around and, this happened to us, we googled for I-485 when we first started and ended up with an outdated form, outdated instructions and almost missed the new requirement for I-944. I saw that happened to other folks here too. That could have resulted in a rejection. 
    • How? Always start here https://www.uscis.gov/forms, click on the form you need, and see edition date
  • Read the instructions carefully. I know many parts of the forms seem simple enough and it's daunting because some instructions are longer than the form itself, but USCIS can be very specific about what they want, and the instructions help explain many questions I see on this forum (e.g: where to get tax transcript and credit report, renewal vs new application for I-765; need to fill out "N/A" for prior spouses info even though you already fill you are married only once above) 
  • Working with attorneys:
    • Immigration is federal law so you can hire attorneys with active bar from any state. It's better to work with someone local who you can meet face-to-face and go with you to the interview (yes you can bring an immigration attorney into the interview to defend/explain on your behalf should the questions turn into unfavorable directions), but hiring someone in another state and work online can save a lot of money. I've been quoted between $2000 - $5000 flat fee for attorneys in CT, NY and OH. Hourly rate I've seen range from $200 - $300/hr. I also know someone who spent $7000 - $10,000 on their case, with $2000 - $3000 added for every addition complication the attorney found. 
    • Check out your attorney's reputation and reviews before doing a first consultation. I used avoo and martindale hubbell
    • Take advantage of you consultation sessions, especially if you are charged for it. Try filling out the forms on your own first, have a list of questions and be ready to fire these in consultation. Some attorneys offer free consultation, some will charge hourly rate for it ($200 - $300). Free consultation typically sounds like a sales pitch, attorneys will go over what's included in their service, explain the process, payment terms, and give you a retainer/list of info/document they need. You can present your case, ask general questions like timeline, how to communicate, and just a few question specific to your own case. Some charge even for their first session, but will include that fee in the flat fee whole package if you choose to retain their service. This is when you want to take advantage of every minute, explain your case precisely, make sure the attorney hears all the important details, fire your questions, take good notes, know what page/part on the form you are referring to. A good attorney should be able to answer most of your questions about how to fill out forms, or at least point out where you can look for information. Some attorneys will use scare tactics to woo you into hiring them, so be careful. 
    •  Use reputable free resources online: we found attorney Carl Shusterman Youtube channel helpful, and if you are Vietnamese like me, there's a live Q&A with attorney Huy Tuan on Youtube every week. I was suspect of how useful a live Q&A can be, but hey it was free, and turns out attorney Huy-Tuan is very knowledgeable and experienced. There could be other great attorneys online too, so please put them in the comments if you know one. There are also terrible ones that give terrible/outdated advice too. 
    • Most attorneys will tell you it's either you hire them to do everything, or you do everything and there is no in-between option. But what worked for us is we found a great attorney, we prepped our application on our own and do a consultation session with her whenever we have gathered a long list of questions. I felt confident and had all of my questions answered after 3 sessions. What usually happens is that our attorney is so good she answered what I thought would take an hour in about 30 minutes, and then we can chit chat a bit and I can email 1-2 questions if I come up with more at no cost because of the extra time. What I fear with this approach is that I don't know what I don't know... But I count on combing through visajourney forum because if something is an issue for me, most likely it would have happened to other people here too 😛 

 

• • Tips and tricks I learned: 
    • USCIS official tips here .  Black ink, print 1-sided, no staple, make 2 copies of your entire application
    • PDF form won't let you fill letter/number/specific characters in a field? Try disabling Acrobat Javascript like Esya did here. Still can't fill what you want? Just print out form and hand-write in black ink
    • What USCIS officers look for (in short): 
    1. Your spouse is a real US citizen (or greencard holder)
    2. Marriage is legal
    3. Marriage is bona fide
    4. All questions on I-485 are applicable in interview
    • Third party affidavits as proof of bona fide marriage: according to my attorney she won't add this to straight forward case, unless there is something to explain. The reasoning behind this is most third party affidavits are too short for their purpose and could be asked about in interview. Therefore it is not included in my case, but hey maybe someone might need it.
    • What are the worst cases and what to do: hopefully this won't happen but just know what you can do: 
      • I-130 denied: you can appeal
      • I-130 approved but I-485 denied: Motion to reopen your AOS
      • I-130 denied and I-485 approved: No such case
    • Know the difference between "denied" and "rejected". Our attorney explained that "rejected" means that USCIS doesn't take your fee and send back your application. "Denied" means USCIS take your fee and you have to file again.
    • Document certified translation: you can have a friend do it - just follow USCIS requirements, but there are also plenty of good online service that will return in 24 - 48 hrs for $25/page. Personally I like Rushtranslate - super fast turnaround, easy to send review and ask them to fix things here and there. 
    • Education Evaluation: I used SpanTran because they allow submitting scanned documents online. Paid extra for 5 days, took 3 weeks. They are hard to contact - but I got the evaluation finally. Please share if you know better service

 

Good luck to everyone! If you have more tips or tricks, please share below. I would really appreciate your input and I think it will help people who are starting this journey. 

 

[geowrian 22,336]

56 minutes ago, lazylady said:

If you are about to start your application: plan your travels abroad ahead. For non-immigrant visas, leaving the country while AOS is in process and without advanced parole and then come back under non-immigrant visa can mean you abandon your AOS. H1B is dual intent so should be fine.

The departure w/o AP is what triggers the abandonment of AOS. Re-entry on an NIV (barring certain work ones) after a recently filed AOS application would be unlikely IMO.

 

Quote

• If you are not married yet: 
  • Be aware of 90-day guidance by DOS. Info here and here. In short this means if you came to the US under a non-immigrant visa and then proceed to get married within 90 days of your latest entry, there will be a bias of visa fraud or misrepresentation on you at consular processing and point of entry. If you go back to your country and then try to enter the US on non-immigrant visa again, it could be a lot of headache, in worst case you might not be able to enter the US. Since this is a guidance for DOS and not-binding on USCIS officers, so just file AOS from within the US (see Matter of Battista and Cavazos). According to my attorney, in the interview, USCIS officer might not mention the 90 day rule explicitly, but might ask related questions like "When did you decide to get married", "When did you buy your rings", etc.

There is no reason to be aware of a rule that doesn't exist. DOS handles visas. USCIS  (DHS) handles AOS. There is no reason to wait 90 days for anything...it doesn't change what happened at POE.

The only issue would be is if there was misrepresentation at POE, but that doesn't change based on when you marry or file.

 

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• • Things that will help your application: 

The main things are to show that you live together (if you do, obviously...sometimes people do live apart for work or school but visit very regularly) and that you commingle finances.

The latter doesn't necessarily mean having joint accounts or something (many people can't get a bank account due to lack of SSN), but that you are responsible for each other. This could be via insurance beneficiaries, credit cards used to purchase stuff together, utilities in each other's names, medical designation, etc. (like the items you listed further down ).

 

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Save your flight ticket confirmation and other proof that you visited each other.  

I-94s and passport stamps would show this. Flight confirmations don't show you actually traveled. For example, I have a flight ticket confirmation for a trip to Japan in April that I never got on (due to COVID).

 

Quote

• When you get married:
  • Save photos of the wedding and celebration

I disagree...they don't really care IMO. The Marriage Certificate is all they need to see a legal marriage. Many, many, many people have a courthouse wedding and a celebration of going out to eat or for drinks. Both options are equal.

 

Quote

• If you are married to a US citizen and are starting your application: 
  • Working with attorneys:
    • Immigration is federal law so you can hire attorneys with active bar from any state. It's better to work with someone local who you can meet face-to-face and go with you to the interview (yes you can bring an immigration attorney into the interview to defend/explain on your behalf should the questions turn into unfavorable directions), but hiring someone in another state and work online can save a lot of money.

Yes you can bring an attorney. No, do not expect them to defend you or explain something on your behalf. The IOs are not interviewing the attorney and will direct the questions to the individuals.

An attorney can be useful in providing clarity of what is being asked and such, but the IO will need the answers from the applicant and petitioner. They will not get involved with the lawyer.

A lawyer is most useful there as a means of 1) having a 3rd party (so they can't just make something up if you are really concerned about that sort of corruption) and 2) having a clear record of what was asked, how you responded, and what to expect next. The info from #2 is often very undervalued, but specifics like that are critical IMO.

 

Quote

• Most attorneys will tell you it's either you hire them to do everything, or you do everything and there is no in-between option. But what worked for us is we found a great attorney, we prepped our application on our own and do a consultation session with her whenever we have gathered a long list of questions. I felt confident and had all of my questions answered after 3 sessions. What usually happens is that our attorney is so good she answered what I thought would take an hour in about 30 minutes, and then we can chit chat a bit and I can email 1-2 questions if I come up with more at no cost because of the extra time. What I fear with this approach is that I don't know what I don't know... But I count on combing through visajourney forum because if something is an issue for me, most likely it would have happened to other people here too 😛 

And as always, you are responsible for your own case. Too many people think if they go the attorney route, they just give them the info they need, show up to the interview, and it's done.

Always stay on top of your own case.

Always review every single form in its entirety before signing it. That far, far, far too many cases of a significant mistake (or omission of an important document) by an attorney.

Always stay informed
Ask questions. Find out why something is being done, not just what is needed. Understanding the process is important.

 

Remember: The attorney never pays the price for their mistakes (unless you can successfully sue them or get them in trouble with the bar...and that doesn't fix your own situation still). You always are held responsible for whatever is on the forms, and you will pay the consequences for any mistakes.

 

(Note that this isn't directed at you - just adding some advice on top of what you provided)

 

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• PDF form won't let you fill letter/number/specific characters in a field? Try disabling Acrobat Javascript like Esya did here. Still can't fill what you want? Just print out form and hand-write in black ink

Yes, except for forms with a 2D barcode (the barcode that contains the form's typed data on it, at the bottom of each page).

This includes the I-131 right now, but the next-to-latest versions of the I-485 and I-864 had it before. They may or may not bring it back...the current version of those 2 forms were kind of rushed out the door to get moving on the new DHS public charge rule, so they may have just skipped the 2D barcode for now. Or they may not bother and will just wait for the forms to be fully electronic (web forms). Who knows.

 

Quote

• Third party affidavits as proof of bona fide marriage: according to my attorney she won't add this to straight forward case, unless there is something to explain. The reasoning behind this is most third party affidavits are too short for their purpose and could be asked about in interview. Therefore it is not included in my case, but hey maybe someone might need it.

Affidavits are often considered to add little to no value. Nobody provides a negative one, and they don't have a practical means to contest it.

It remains on the list of examples of items to provide, and if you had nothing else I guess go with that, but always rely on the other evidence (namely time spent together/living together, financial commingling, etc.).

 

Quote

• What are the worst cases and what to do: hopefully this won't happen but just know what you can do: 
  • I-130 denied: you can appeal
  • I-130 approved but I-485 denied: Motion to reopen your AOS
  • I-130 denied and I-485 approved: No such case

Case 1 is really I-130 + I-485 (and therefore the I-131 + I-765) denied: you can appeal. If the I-130 is denied, everything dependent on it is denied as well.

 

Option 2 (much more common) is to refile (assuming still eligible for AOS).

An appeal is only applicable if you can demonstrate that USCIS made an incorrect or improper decision with the information they were given.

 

Quote

• Document certified translation: you can have a friend do it - just follow USCIS requirements, but there are also plenty of good online service that will return in 24 - 48 hrs for $25/page. Personally I like Rushtranslate - super fast turnaround, easy to send review and ask them to fix things here and there. 

Or you can do it yourself, if fluent in both languages. Just be sure to attach the appropriate certifications statement:

 

Edit: That's quite a stack of paper. Although I can't imagine any IO ever reading it...jsut make sure they can easily get to the important pieces.

Quality >> Quantity

Edited June 27, 2020 by geowrian

[geowrian 22,336]

32 minutes ago, geowrian said:

Yes, except for forms with a 2D barcode (the barcode that contains the form's typed data on it, at the bottom of each page).

This includes the I-131 right now, but the next-to-latest versions of the I-485 and I-864 had it before. They may or may not bring it back...the current version of those 2 forms were kind of rushed out the door to get moving on the new DHS public charge rule, so they may have just skipped the 2D barcode for now. Or they may not bother and will just wait for the forms to be fully electronic (web forms). Who knows.

I forgot to explain why, whoops...

 

A 2D barcode form that is completed electronically has the entered data from the form embedded into it. This gets scanned into their system, it reads the barcode, and completes the data entry. No OCR or other acquisition mechanism is needed.

If you also write-in values, this won't get picked up.

 

An actual person looking at the form could understand it fine, but a system that sees a missing or invalid required value could flag it for rejection or an RFE/RFIE.

[itscarly 114]

4 hours ago, lazylady said:

Education Evaluation: I used SpanTran because they allow submitting scanned documents online. Paid extra for 5 days, took 3 weeks. They are hard to contact - but I got the evaluation finally. Please share if you know better service

I used IEE and I recommend it. It took 7 days between sending my scanned documents and them sending me the evaluation by email, and 2 days later I received a printed copy by mail. It was $148.50, and they evaluated my high school diploma+transcripts and my college diploma+transcripts. 

 

Good luck to you too!

Edited June 27, 2020 by itscarly

[juancarlos 122]

I am sending my application this next Monday after more than 2 months! Applying from a F-1. I am not in rush though because I am working on campus and studying a masters but I hope to get the travel permit ASAP, and who knows now with covid19.

 

And yes, careful with those 2D forms!!! Like the I-131 right now as mentioned. I realized a couple days ago because I unabled the javascript option and I have to redo it again.

 

 

[JACKP 52]

13 hours ago, lazylady said:

• • • Education Evaluation: I used SpanTran because they allow submitting scanned documents online. Paid extra for 5 days, took 3 weeks. They are hard to contact - but I got the evaluation finally. Please share if you know better service

Are they (NACES) certified ,as i think USCIS suggest or requires that ?

[lazylady 6]

@JACKP  Yes they are a member of NACES