MarcyLuis

Why wait 5 years? You can apply in 3.

Because we are happy with the greencard and are in no rush to stress out over paperwork and getting more marriage documents together again. I've been looking at the citizenship forum and its looks like its easier to just wait five years and you don't have to get any marriage proof together.

My husband got his green card in the mail today!!! Its good for ten years. We will probably apply for citizenship in 5 years. So happy we don't have to worry about anything anymore. Good luck to everyone else that is waiting.

Well we had our interview today...

The appt. was for 10:30 we arrived at 10, we got called in at 11:15 .

The officer apologized for the wait time(he said he needed to check on the bounced check).

Our original submitted payment was not paid because we had to close the checking acct. because of ********.

Then he made a comment about me telling my wife not to pick the tomatoes when there green and wait until they turn red.

The funny thing is our back yard is full of green tomatoes right now and I am constantly telling her DON'T PICK THE GREEN ONES !!!!!!

He got that info from our submitted 129F application which included our printed yahoo conversations.

He had every paper we have submitted to date.

He was went thru our complete application and wanted some original doc's. i.e. birth cert.s marriage.

and then asked for prof the we are a couple... ins. papers checking acct.. bills.

At one point he said enough... I believe you two are a couple and that later today he would order card production.

and...

On July 15, 2011, we ordered production of your new card. Please allow 30 days for your card to be mailed to you. If we need something from you we will contact you. If you move before you receive the card, call customer service at 1-800-375-5283.

He said we would get it in 10-20 days.

Wow what a journey....What a blessing Visa journey is

Congratulations

Congrats to everyone who got approved!

I have a question about the interview environment. Is there any way we can bring our kids to the building( 6 and 7 years old)?

I don't see why not. I didn't see anything that said no children. I assume every office is different though. In the phoenix office it was just a small waiting room with a TV and the security booth. I would make sure they don't have any metal on them so they can just walk through the metal detector and have a seat with no issues. In the interviewers office there were only two chairs, but they can probably sit on the floor if they can stay still for a little while. I personally would not bring my children, but they are younger and would be very impatient and noisy. Good luck.

It looks like it was just received at the post office, that must be their zipcode where they sort all the mail. They havn't delivered it yet. So nothing to worry about yet, just wait to see where it is delivered.

My husband got approved!!!!

Here is our experience if anyone is interested.

Our interview was scheduled for 10:55am in phoenix AZ. We showed up at 10:00 and my husband went inside to make sure it was the right building. The security officer told him to come back at 10:30 because they were busy. We both went in at 10:30. When we opened the door all that was there was an elevator. We took the elevator up to the 2nd floor and it opened up to a security guard. We handed the security officer our appointment letter and Ids. He made my husband empty his pockets and take off his belt. He looked through my purse and had me walk through the metal detector. Another security officer used the wand on me to check for metal. Then my husband went through the metal detector and we had a seat. The security officer turned in the appointment letter for us.

About 10 minutes later a guy called my husbands name and walked us back to his office. He asked us to sit down and show him our ID's. Then he asked us to stand up and swear to tell the truth and told us we were being video taped. He started looking through the file and checked off names and addresses that matched our ID's. Then asked my husband his date of birth and checked that off. Then he asked for mine and my husbands and our three kids birth certificates and wrote something on his copy's that they were good and returned them to us. Then he asked to see our marriage certificate and wrote on his copy and gave us ours back. Then he stamped our i-130 approved. Then he asked my husband some of the questions from the i-145. Then he asked us why it took us so long to file (we've been married for 5 and a half years). After we answered he stamped the i-485 approved and gave my husband a paper saying he was recommended from approval and should receive the green card within 30 days. We were out of their by 11:20 and he didn't even ask to see our photos or any evidence that I spent so much time preparing lol.

We just got home at 8pm and checked the status online and its says documentation production ordered!!!

Thanks to everyone that answered our questions and gave us advise.

Getting ready to head to Phoenix in a few hours. Our interview is tomorrow morning, we are happy and nervous. I'll let you all know how it goes sometime tomorrow night. =)

Had interview today, and was granted PR! Very happy! Approved!

Congratulations

Our email that we received for interview said the same thing. But when the letter showed up in the mail it said the interview was at the phoenix uscis office (not our closest office, but i think the only one in AZ?)

Just wait for the actually letter and it probably will say San Diego. Good luck.

So we're APPROVED!!! 2 year GC is on it's way in 7-10 days.

Interview Recap (before I forget anything lol):

Our appointment was for 1:45pm in the Atlanta, GA office on Parklake Dr. Thank God we arrived an hour early because for some reason the line was wrapped around the building and took us about 30 mintues just to get to security. Security was exactly like airport security so be prepared to take off your shoes, belts, take out hair pins, empty your pockets etc...

We finally made it to an "check-in" area around 1:15pm at which point they instructed us to go to the second floor for our appt. After a quick potty break (is this TMI?? LOL) we were in the waiting room around 1:30pm. At 1:50pm we were called in your our interview.

The IO was very nice and friendly..even joking while walking back to his office. We were sworn in and he asked hubby the usual questions (have you ever been convicted of a crime, been arrested, sold drugs, plan to be a terrorist etc)..of course Vic said no to each one. The he asked us each our birth dates, where we were born and for some reason if we were born a woman/man and still remain a woman/man respectively HAHAHAHA I thought this was a weird question??

Then he proceeded to ask how we met, how did we maintain our long distance relationship, how many siblings each of us has, the names of our parents and if my Dad was upset about me moving to Atlanta to marry my husband....BUT there were (what felt like) LONG pauses in between each question. After that he asked for our supporting documents and we basically filled his desk with paperwork (bank stmts, life insurance, car insurance, lease, 2010 tax return)! LOL After that..one more long pause then he said he was going to approve us today and gave us the run down of what to expect next. He saw we had a small photo album so he asked to look through it and made some weird remarks again about how attractive I am and if my ex-boyfriends are jealous Yeah like I said..weird but all I could think about was being APPROVED!!

It sounds like a lot but we were back in our car on the way home at 2:05pm I thank God for bringing us this far and for everything there is to come. And although I don't comment a lot, I really feel you guys (my March filer crew) has been so supportive of everyone, including us, on this journey! I'll update once we have GC in hand...

Good Luck to everyone else still in the process!

Congratulations!

Well, I have to say, the interview today went far better than I thought. I got approved for a 10 year GC.

The IO was very pleasant. He hardly asked any questions, just a few on how we met and where we married. He asked us for 2-3 documents to show the co-mingling financial side. He then looked at both of us and he said approved with a 10 GC based on 2 years of marriage.

On the downside, he said my wife didn't need to file the I-130, but I don't care, better safe than sorry and money well spent as far as I'm concerned.

Congratulations!

Hows all the March Filers doing?

Got my interview interview tomorrow at 12:30pm. I will post the outcome when I can.

Keep your fingers and legs crossed for us lol.

Good luck!

The same exact thing happened to my RFE response to Lee's Summit even though we told the USPS office we did not want a signature because it was going to a P.O Box. I did freak out at first, but later the same day it did show as delivered. Someone from USCIS must go to the post office and sign for them and pick them up. Don't worry.

Hello everyone,

I'm new here and I was hoping someone could help me with a couple of questions. I'm engaged to a USC, our wedding is next month and I want to submit all pertinent documentation for AOS without a lawyer. However my brother already went through the process and he did use one. I have a copy of the full package his lawyer submitted as a guide for my case since they are almost exactly the same. We (Mom, Brother and I) EWI in 2000. Thankfully my mother had an I-130 filed on her behalf by her USC brother before April, 30 2001. We are therefore covered under 245i. In my brother's package as part of the I-485 Supplement A he included proof of his physical presence in the US (school transcripts, medical records) However there is nothing that establishes my mother's presence in the country. I have read conflicting information on whether my mother's proof of presence is necessary. Also I think his lawyer made a mistake by submitting for I-131. He filed the form and received a work authorization card along with advance parole, however since we EWI wouldn't traveling trigger the 10 yr ban? Do I need to file I-131? Lastly am I making a mistake by not hiring a lawyer? In this and other forums I've read that most people adjusting under 245i are advised to use one. Thank you in advance for your help!

My husband and I did the exact same thing. We followed a copy a lawyer submitted for his brother under 245(i). The only thing that is different is that he had an approved i-130 filed for him directly from his LPR mother. I'm not sure how it works if only your mother had an approved i-130, but if it worked for your bother then I don't think you should have a problem. I don't think its necessary to hire a lawyer unless you have something else that might affect your case. Many lawyers we went to told us we didn't qualify to adjust status anyways and we haven't had any problems so far. As far as the proof of being in the united states, we didn't have to do that because his petition was filed in 1994. I would just advice you to do as much research as you can and submit as much evidence as you can. Also leaving the united states would trigger the ban, so I would not file for the AP. Good luck.

To all VJers:

Great News and a Happy Anniversary to us!!!

We had a really good interview, and it went really smooth. But the best news of the day was that the decision was not made today, but will be made tomorrow. The agent was nice enough to look into this matter for us and we are thankful for it. Do you want to know why? Well its a long story and we will keep it short. But we may be helpful to a lot of people in the process later on.

Take a close look at our timeline, if you notice that my wife entered the U.S. on March 21, 2009. And the key here is, that we got married on June 17, 2009. That means that tomorrow is our anniversary. And we got a good anniversary present today. After my wife arrived, I was laid off from a very good job. We were ready to file AOS but we delayed the process until now due to we did not know if we would be able to pass the income requirements. I did not get back to a good income like I had before until August 2010. We thought that there would be penalties for waiting so long to file the AOS. We married within the 90 days after my wife's arrival though. This was important in todays interview, because the agent did inform us that her decision would most likely be approved, but that she would allow her decision to be made tomorrow so that she would have no conditions on her status.

Anyway other than that the interview went smooth.

We had our interview at the local office in San Jose, CA on Monterey Rd. It is about 7 minutes drive from our home. We arrived at 9:55a, our appt was at 10:15a. We went as a family (my wife, 18 yr old daughter, 15 month old son and myself) so this took us a while to get in through the security (like an airport). Not many people were around. No long lines, and most of the waiting rooms were empty. We went upstairs to the 2nd floor, by elevator, and went to RM. 200 and put our interview letter in a window labeled "Appointment Letters". Minutes later we could see someone grabbing our letter. Then at about 10:15a a lady agent comes out and calls one applicant (who was with her husband) who is also a member here on VJ (my wife and her have been talking), and the lady agent also called my wife's name as well. The agent escorted all of us to another room (RM 219), and asked my wife and I to have a seat, and she then took the other couple in for their interview. They came out (with smiles of course ) at about 10:45a. At 10:50a we were called by the same agent. We were immediately sworn in. Then she asked some basic questions to check off on her sheet. She asked for some original documents like the my son's birth certificate, our marriage certificate, my wife's birth certificate, and her late husbands death certificate. This is when she asked told us that she would consider making her decision tomorrow rather than today so that there would be no conditions.

After we discussed that she asked my wife if there were any health issues. She then asked a range of legal questions (about 10-12 questions). Have you committed a crime?...Are you a part of a communist party??...Do you want to blow up America...etc. As my wife said no to all, the agent checked off her form. She then asked "Is there any other evidence you have for me?" We handed her many things:

1. Bank Statements

2. Car Insurance

3. Health Insurance

4. Lease Agreement

5. Costco Membership

6. Photos

7. I mentioned we own a car together

Then we looked at the agent and she looked like this So we slowed down, but we had much more to pile up on her desk if she needed it. She then looked through our pics. She smiled and said my son looks like me. She then asked if she could keep some of our pics, and we gave her the ones she wanted plus ones that we picked out for her....lol. She then said she would make her decision and we should hear something soon. We thanked her more than once, and we were on our way at 11:15a. Our appointment took about 25 minutes. And it was easy. There were no problems or anything to be concerned about, and we are happy to be able to skip a step. All and all, its been a great Anniversary present.

Congratulations, and thanks for sharing.

I was reading a lot in the ROC forums and I saw it mentioned a couple of times that children's birth certificates don't really mean much but both parents involved in their care means more. So I was looking through my daughters pre-school papers and found a "contact report". It has who attended the meeting(has me and my husband listed), the date, what was discussed and all that. And I found two different Papers showing that both my husband and I attended two different meetings for my sons special education program. Would these be good to show at the interview? What do you guys think?

Hello everyone, had my AOS interview on June 13th in Buffalo, NY. It was a very pleasant experience, the officer was very friendly and even had a very non-american sounding accent. There was another person in the back with a pen and pad writing something during our interview. He made us swear an oath, after which he verified some information on the forms. After that he asked some questions like "Where did you meet?", "Who proposed to whom?", "what was the ceremony like?". I showed him some photos from the ceremony and from before of my wife and I, and our families. Then he asked for some evidence of common property etc - we showed him our car title and bank statement with both our names on them. After that he told us that I am "approvable," which meant that I would know the decision by the end of the day and that I can expect the card in the mail in 3-10 days. He then went and copied the photos and documents I had showed him, returned, and that was it. All in all, a very relaxed experience. Two hours later I got an email and text saying card production ordered. All done - PHEW!

Congratulations!

This morning at 8:30 my wife and I went to Salt Lake City for my wife's interview. We were called in about 8:35, and we were done by 8:50. He went over some paperwork, I showed him both of our names on our bank statements, and he stamped a few things, and put the packet together. He was very nice and didn't ask any questions hardly at all. He said that the Green Card was Approved and we should get it in 7-10 days. It may have helped having our 9 month old there with us smiling away at the agent, but whatever the case it was very easy and a pleasant experience. Two hours later our case status was updated and it showed that they had ordered the production of my wife's green card.

Overall, it was an easy experience, and I am glad it is over for awhile. Good luck to everyone else!

congratulations!

Question for Everyone....

Does the Status list help you, is it of good use?

Please let me know either good or bad...!

Yes it does help. I like to see where everyone else is at and try to compare. I appreciate you taking the time to create and update it for us! Thank you.

MarcyLuis - for folks to (perhaps) give you some more ideas (lots of good stuff above already) - and so you don't get surprised by the elephant in the room; What sort of visa is your husband's AOS based on? (fiance, visitor, etc.)

It could be very important and equally important to know what evidence you've supplied already.

All we have sent with our application was what was asked for in the 1-485, nothing extra. Children's birth certificates, our birth certificates and his translation, copy of rental lease, and copy of his old approved petition.

Thank you everyone for the advice so far, anything else would be greatly appreciated.

None. He entered without inspection when he was 4 years old. He had an approved petition file for him in 1994 that his mother never followed through with and he aged out of. Now married to me(USC) he qualifies to adjust status through the 245(i) act.

Good luck on your interview!

We got our interview letter in the mail the other day and am trying to get everything together. It is not very specific about what i should bring for supporting evidence of our relationship.

The letter says - Supporting evidence of your relationship, such as copies of any documentation regarding joint assets or liabilities you and your spouse may have together. This may include: tax returns, bank statements, insurance documents (car, life, health), property documents (Car, house, etc.), rental agreements, utility bills, credit cards, contracts, leases, photos, correspondence and/or any other documents you feel may substantiate your relationship.

My husband (the beneficiary) and I have been married for over five years and have three kids. We do have a joint bank account, joint rental agreement, joint car insurance, and some photos.

My questions are,

1. Should we just bring the most recent bank statement and car insurance bill or several?

2. Is the rental agreement that was signed over a year ago okay, or should we get a current letter from our landlord? Also should we try to get past rental agreements since we lived in several different places since being married for five years?

3. For the photos, should we only choose pictures that my husband is in with my family and me with his family, or just us and our kids? We were never the kind of people that like to be in pictures, we mostly take tons of pictures of our kids, but I'm sure we can dig some up.

4. I've heard people say to get notarized affidavits from family and friends, but the interview letter said nothing about that. Is it good to have family write letters, and if so what about?

I would appreciate anyone's input. Thank you so much.

So we got our interview letter in the mail yesterday. They are sending us four hours away to phoenix where we don't know the area and are going to have to get a hotel the night before to make sure we are on time. I thought for sure we would go to Vegas which is only two hours away. I know people that live in the same area as me that dealt with Las Vegas. Oh well, just glad to be almost done with this.

OMG the website was updated and our interview is July 12th!! We are so happy. We thought we would be one of the last of the march filers to get an interview because we got a RFE. I havn't heard of any other March filers getting a RFE so I thought we were pushed way behind everyone. But we were wrong, YAY!