US Immigration from Italy

Hi everyone,

I know similar questions have been asked before, but I m hoping to hear from anyone with recent experience given the current climate.

My wife is an Italian citizen living in Italy. We submitted the I-130 petition in October 2024, and it s still pending. She s planning to visit me in the U.S. soon using her ESTA. She has strong ties to Italy a full-time job, an active mortgage, a return flight booked, and no intention of staying in the U.S. permanently during this visit.

We re aware that having a pending I-130 can raise flags at the port of entry, so we re trying to be cautious. She does have the ability to work remotely, though again, her job is based in Italy and she fully plans to return home after the visit.

My question is:

Should we be worried about the ESTA entry given the pending petition? Has anyone gone through this recently? And if she s asked whether she can work remotely, should we be concerned about how that might be interpreted?

For her, this visit is purely a vacation there are no plans or expectations from her employer for her to work remotely while in the U.S. She typically travels with her work computer, and in the past, she s entered with it without any issues or second thoughts.

I m prompted to ask now because of the heightened focus on immigration enforcement in the news. It s easy to start overthinking things. I recently came across a post about someone bringing a work laptop into the U.S., and although their situation was quite different from ours, it reminded me that there may be considerations we haven t thought through yet.

Thanks in advance for any advice or stories you re willing to share.

Six years after beginning my immigration journey, I officially became a US citizen today. I want to thank this community for all the support I received throughout this process. To everyone still going through this journey, I wish you the best of luck - your time will come!

Hello, I have a question but haven't found an answer yet. Can I extend the Noa2 but the reason is not because there is not a date available for the interview but because I have exams at university I want to finish before moving to the USA. So I would book my interview after my dateline? Is that possible?

Hello everyone again! I just want to say that I love this community, guys. You helped me through my immigration journey every time I needed it. You are great!

So on January 26 i ended up filing N-400 to become citizen by myself with no lawyer, today February 14 after less than 3 weeks i got notification that my interview is being scheduled already and i was like whaat!?

I did check the processing time for my center, and it is of 7.5 months, so I was very confused about why they are scheduling so early, but I was expecting to be scheduled around July, but apparently I have been scheduled for March 21, so less than 2 months after I applied!

I am kind of shocked at the moment; what is going on? Does this mean that after the interview they are going to let me wait months for the oath ceremony? I did not even start study yet because i thought i had way more time for this xD Does anyone have an explanation for this?

On (Date): Friday, March 21, 2025 At (Time): 10:45AM

Failure to appear for the scheduled appointment without prior notification and without good cause may result in the denial of your application. (8 CFR 103.2) You are notified to appear before a USCIS officer regarding the application identified above at the date, time, and place indicated above. Waiting room capacity is limited. Please do not arrive any earlier than 30 minutes before your scheduled appointment time. The proceeding can take about two hours. If you cannot keep this appointment, call the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Contact Center at 1-800-375-5283 (TTY 1-800-767-1833) as soon as possible to reschedule your appointment. If you are applying for citizenship for yourself, you will be tested on your knowledge of the government and history of the United States. You will also be tested on reading, writing, and speaking English, unless on the day you filed your application, you have been living in the United States for a total of at least 20 years as a lawful permanent resident and are over 50 years old, or you have been living in the United States for a total of 15 years as a lawful permanent resident and are over 55 years old, or unless you have a medically determinable disability. For more information and to find study materials for the naturalization test, visit the Citizenship Resource Center at uscis.gov/citizenship. You MUST BRING the following with you to the interview: This letter. Your Alien Registration Card ("green card"). Any evidence of Selective Service Registration. Your passport and/or any other documents you used in connection with any entries into the United States. Those items noted below which are applicable to you: If applying for NATURALIZATION AS THE SPOUSE of a United States Citizen; Your marriage certificate. Proof of death or divorce for each prior marriage of yourself or spouse. Your spouse's birth or naturalization certificate or certificate of citizenship. If applying for NATURALIZATION as a member of the United States Armed Forces; Your discharge certificate, or form DD214. If copies of a document were submitted as evidence with your N400 application, the originals of those documents should be brought to the interview. PLEASE keep this appointment, even if you do not have all the items indicated above. To request a disability accommodation, go to www.uscis.gov/accommodations or call the USCIS Contact Center at as soon as possible, even if you indicated on your application that you require an accommodation. For questions about your application, you can use our many online tools (uscis.gov/tools) including our virtual assistant, Emma. If you are not able to find the information you need online, you can reach out to the USCIS Contact Center by visiting uscis.gov/contactcenter.

Hi everyone, thanks as always for your help! Quick question how likely is it that an expedite request for an I-130 petition will be approved if the U.S. citizen spouse receives a job offer in the U.S.? We are currently living together in Italy!