US Immigration from Thailand

i have submitted an I-130 for my wife last December and have this in my USCIS case status right now

i applied for I-485 AOS together with I-846 and I-765 about 10 days ago to the Chicago lockbox

what now? i just wait to hear back?

i'm a bit confused the relationship between the USCIS and the NVC and dept of state. not sure who is processing the I-485 now.

thanks

Hi VJ,

Is it normal to not have any response to an I-130 other than a receipt with the receipt number after they received it on January 19, 2021? This is for my grown up step daughter in Thailand.

Case Is Being Actively Reviewed By USCIS

As of January 19, 2021, we are actively reviewing your Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, Receipt Number IOE____. Our records show nothing is outstanding at this time. We will let you know if we need anything from you. If you move, go to www.uscis.gov/addresschange to give us your new mailing address.

Thanks in advance, VJ has always been really helpful to us. - Tango777

my wife is 52 now and we are applying for I-485 adjustment of status, I-130 is already approved, we're hoping for green card some time next year.

assuming she starts working at 53 and works 10 years, and earns more than $5,880 per year (she'll be self employed i expect) she will get the 40 points necessary to qualify for SS (https://www.aarp.org/retirement/social-security/questions-answers/work-length-social-security/)

so i have a couple of questions. if she earns less than $12800, which she likely will, she's not required to file a tax return. but we would want to just so we can pay SS contributions. how do we file for that? note that i think we will not file jointly since i am on SS already.

at 63, when she has 40 points, if she elects to start getting SS, how much will it be? all the calculators i've seen on line assume you have worked all your life, not just 10 years. but i'm assuming it will be the minimum benefit of $886 per month (2020 number). is that correct?

would there be any point in her waiting to 65 or 67 given that her contributions are so small?

and finally, i would hope she has citizenship in 10 years but if she's still on a green card, i think she's still eligible for SS right?

thanks, steve

my wife (Thai) is in the US now, just filed I-485, I-130 approved already, and she has a buyer for a house she owns in Thailand. The buyer is Thai living in Texas and wants to pay in USD in the US.

should she open a US bank account and put the money in there? or have the buyer wire transfer to her Thai bank account? i think ultimately my wife would like the money in a Thai bank, but no hurry since we plan to live in the US for at least 10 years.

The only worry i have is if the US IRS sees $30-100k USD suddenly appear in a bank, is there going to be tax or other issues? what would we need to show to prove its not illicit money and the only capital gain (which there is barely any) would be in Thailand?

thx

My wife extended her stay in Thailand due to covid-19 and was in possession of her 2 year conditional green card.

While in Thailand her green card expired, and she is not able to re-enter the US. She did not have a re-entry permit.

We have been to the US Embassy in Bangkok, and with the help of an attorney she will be getting a re-entry permit to get back in to the USA.

My question is, once she is back in the US, do we need to file for a new green card for her first? I am assuming this will be a 10 year green card?

OR, can we just do file for a removal of conditions while she is on her re-entry permit?

I am under the impression that we need to get her the green card first, and once she has her green card, we can then file for a removal of conditions.

Can someone please validate if my thinking is correct? What should our next steps be?

Thanks so much in advance for helping make sense out of such a complicated process and crappy situation. :)