Urgent time-critical Humanitarian Crisis

[Boiler 43,392]

20 minutes ago, TBoneTX said:

Might be a language barrier, plus residency issues if stuck there, but good to know.

I was explaining what visa on arrival meant, not suggesting these are good places to go

[Boiler 43,392]

I think I mentioned this in another thread LATimes had an article a few days back and the way they described it there are big lines to get passports etc, there is only 30,000 a month between 4 countries so could well be a big backlog.

[TBoneTX 43,017]

4 hours ago, Boiler said:

I was explaining what visa on arrival meant, not suggesting these are good places to go

Understood, with thanks.

[wazzujoel 59]

18 hours ago, Boiler said:

I think I mentioned this in another thread LATimes had an article a few days back and the way they described it there are big lines to get passports etc, there is only 30,000 a month between 4 countries so could well be a big backlog.

 

Last month they approved 5k Cubans, and I would imagine Cuba would have the most applications from these 4 countries because they have a larger representation here. 

 

Not that this is any surprise, however I applied on the first day (Jan 6th). I can assure you that my application couldn't be any more simple and straight forward approval. If someone at USCIS looked at my application for 5 minutes it would be a clear an obvious immediate approval. I would bet anyone who is against immigration in general, if they looked at the details of my sponsorship they would say "This is the sort of immigration we should be approving". Anyways, not that this is surprising, but my application submitted on the first day remain completely untouched, while people who submitted days ago already have their beneficiary in the US. I even read about someone getting approved to be a sponsor when they are living in Section 8 housing and on SNAP food stamps. It's extremely frustrating when you read about unqualified people getting approved in a matter of days for people that will come here and also live off the taxpayers like the sponsor is, while people like me who are sponsoring a highly educated person and have a clean background and ideal financial picture sit completely untouched. 

[TBoneTX 43,017]

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[Boiler 43,392]

My impression is that you are grossly overthinking this.

 

The basic requirement is that you are a citizen of one of the 4 countries, well also not a dual citizen of another country but that would be very unusual.

 

We have the experience of the Ukrainian program but the numbers involved were much lower and I have not seen any mention of there being a big increase in staff, who knows.

 

As long as you fill it out correctly then I do not see a real issue for any applicant. Other than of course it is numerically limited so I would expect a long wait to form. U Visa is a good example of this.

 

The need for the I 134a escapes me and as you point out a minimum or part time job would meet the obligation.

 

Your big plus is getting in on day one, I would hope they process them on first in first out. Yet again we do not know.

 

It will be interesting to see the number of applicants from different countries, I would hope they split the allocation equally but not seen anything mentioned.

 

 

[wazzujoel 59]

1 minute ago, Boiler said:

My impression is that you are grossly overthinking this.

 

 

I am an engineer. Of course I am over analyzing this to death.... Need to remember to stay calm, deep breaths, one day at a time.... 

 

1 minute ago, Boiler said:

 

It will be interesting to see the number of applicants from different countries, I would hope they split the allocation equally but not seen anything mentioned.

 

 

 

I suspect (and have no proof) but applications regardless of the country are thrown into a big pool of applicants. The numbers for the cases being assigned are random, and a lower number 100% does not mean you applied first. The agents working on these cases have no obvious pattern, and it is my belief that the allocation is not spread evenly but is determined by random draw and approval numbers are likely skewed to the country that has the most applicants. Again I don't have proof of this, but I am plugged into a lot of communities tracking all this, and it's what I have seen. Many many people are filing multiple duplicate applications because there is no application fee. I have heard that USCIS gets cranky when people do this, however this is a problem that USCIS has created for themselves so I don't feel sorry. If they didn't want to have a problem of duplicate applications then it has a very simple solution.... process applications IN ORDER

[TBoneTX 43,017]

A post questioning a Moderation decision has been removed in favor of an explanatory PM.  Any badgering of the OP will result in administrative action.

Edited February 8, 2023 by TBoneTX

[wazzujoel 59]

I have seen one example of a case being approved where the sponsor did not meet the requirements of the system. I am not saying my case is any more qualified than the others that are applying... But I am saying that I did apply on the first day, my case remains untouched, and I have credible information that the Cuban regime is moving forward with blocking my beneficiary from ever being able to leave the country. My beneficiary is not unique in this urgent issue, however I do believe anyone under similar circumstances should have their processing accelerated.  

Edited February 8, 2023 by TBoneTX
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[TBoneTX 43,017]

A post has been edited to remove quoted text that was in process of being removed as the reply was being composed.

[Boiler 43,392]

I nearly became an Actuary and VJ has always had people making estimations based on very incomplete data with no understanding as to what they do behind the scenes.

 

I do know that for every category I can think of this has been a discussion, how are they allocated, why was this case approved before mine, they applied later etc etc.

 

I am not surprised there are multiple applications, I have been waiting a week perhaps they lost it apply again. Or maybe like Expedites, why not.

 

I wondered if internally they allocate cases in batches and then the individual works their way through them and then gets another batch? Just a guess. If your person happens to have a skiing trip lined up then that batch takes a lot longer to process.

[Boiler 43,392]

8 minutes ago, wazzujoel said:

I have seen one example of a case being approved where the sponsor did not meet the requirements of the system. I am not saying my case is any more qualified than the others that are applying... But I am saying that I did apply on the first day, my case remains untouched, and I have credible information that the Cuban regime is moving forward with blocking my beneficiary from ever being able to leave the country. My beneficiary is not unique in this urgent issue, however I do believe anyone under similar circumstances should have their processing accelerated.  

As far as I know, always an important consideration, the applications are not graded, qualification is very simple, you do or you do not. Most do.

 

If you are talking about Section 8 etc then that is not relevant, I think one of the reasons that the Sponsorship requirements are so low is that housing is not included in the calculation but that is another story. If they increased the levels to numbers that make sense I can only imagine the howls of outrage.

[DiamondEyes490 126]

On 2/7/2023 at 12:42 PM, wazzujoel said:

 

Yes, expect to pay 1k in airfare, and then living in Trinidad and Tobago isn't cheap either. Trying to get to Nicaragua or Guyana would be cheaper to live, but I think most flights you find will need to transit between Panama which requires a transit visa and they aren't really given them to cubans anymore. I wish I had better news for you but it's a lot of dead ends no matter what way I look. And USCIS is no help in trying to get urgent support. 

 

I've read stories of people being approved for parole when the sponsor is living in Section 8 housing and is on SNAP (food stamps). 

 

Yet here I am with a spotless record, hold government clearances so I've had more stringent background investigations than anything USCIS can do, hold advanced degrees in Engineering and work for a prestigious fortune 500 company, no debt, own my own home... And my beneficiary holds a dental degree, has plans to practice dentistry in the US after she passes her boards and does two additional years of education in a International Dental Program, and has also never had trouble with the law. Applied on 1/6 and my application hasn't been touched. I've been in line to talk to a Tier 2 agent for 120 business hours which they have told me multiple times I would be contracted within 72 hours. Oh and my case is marked Urgent. 

 

USCIS is awful. I wish I could get some national news to pick up my story. I'd love to put them on blast and show the would just how incompetent they are. Oh and my K1 application has been in process now for 16 months while the bulk of approvals for K1 now are people that have been waiting 14 months. 

 

I wish you a luck but I can't say I have any faith in the US immigration process. I swear their goal is to keep families apart and do nothing to help people that might actually contribute to our society. Sorry Im a little jaded and frustrated right now. 

I lived with my husband in T&T for 3 months while we were waiting for his interview back in 2017. I will warn you that their immigration treats Cubans like #######. (We were initially only given a 30-day visa despite no seeming red flags.) Make sure you arrive there with her if at all possible and have proof of funds, housing, etc. ready for immigration. Also, I recommend checking Airbnb as they offer monthly discounts.

If possible, I'd recommend Grenada instead. A little less developed, but they treat Cubans like royalty (a lot of older people worked with Cubans that built the airport, etc. during Maurice Bishop's time) and a lot safer. Cubans can stay 60 days without a visa. Same rec for Airbnb there.

[wazzujoel 59]

My last update to this post. The law I was worried about being enacted in Cuba is still only rumor and speculation. After a couple of months of daily action and analysis to find some way to get movement with USCIS, I am convinced there is nothing that can get this organization to process your application any faster. You best hope is to be patient and work on your own mental health to try and not go crazy over how unfair the system was. 

 

I received approval last Friday (really 11:46PM on 3/24) after I had submitted applications for her family on 3/20. It was one of her family members applications which triggered being confirmed on 3/24 which then caused all other applications to be confirmed. My partner will be coming to the US next week 🙂 Here is an update success thread I made 

 

 

 

[TBoneTX 43,017]

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