jaaaaamas

I have not been on this site in nearly 2 years. Not because it's not an informative and lovely one, it's just...I'm not really sure!

But I did want to come back here and let everyone know how our interview went and update our timeline so that everyone can use it as a reference point!

Our original service center was Vermont. It was in New Jersey that we had our AOS interview. Now we live in Seattle, going through the California Service center. We had our interview here in Seattle.

So as a brief timeline for lifting conditions:

1-22-2008: NOA - 1 year extension for conditional resident status

1-28-2008: Dean received an NOA for Biometrics

2-19-2008: Biometrics appointment

3-28-2008: RFE - given until 6-20-2008 to get more evidence in

6-?-2008: We finally submitted more evidence. Slackers!

9-10-2008: Interview Notice arrives

10-16-2008: Interview to remove conditions

So let's go to this morning, at our 8:00am appointment.

The morning and the night before started out terrifying. Dean could not find his passport. Anywhere. After hours of searching to no avail, we had to leave it be. We thought for sure we would get turned away at the door, especially since that was the first thing on the list they asked you to bring.

However, we arrive on time and they only ask for our state IDs at the door. We sign in, head to the waiting room and wait for only 10 minutes tops before we are called into the room by a very bubbly woman who informed us she usually works over at the Yakima branch but was filling in for someone today.

Honestly, the interview was ridiculously simple. I can hardly believe it. First she asked for my state ID and Dean's conditional permanent resident card. She didn't want to see Dean's passport. In fact, later on we brought up that it was currently missing, and she didn't care at all.

She flipped through our big folder of paperwork, updated our address on the computer and in our folder and took a few photocopies of some paperwork. She asked not one question. She stated our wedding date and had us confirm it was correct. From that point forwards she pretty much said, "Okay, show me whatever you got!"

All we produced was our last 2 leases for our apartment, our housing insurance for our current apartment, and a joint bank statement. She also photocopied my health insurance card, but I told her that Dean wasn't actually on my insurance. She was fine with that. We had more evidence than that but she already had the rest of the evidence we sent in, in our folder which she looked over.

Yes, so as simple as all that sounds, with that she said our case looked good and she was giving us the okay to pass! But she also said now a supervisor has to confirm that he gets his greencard. If for some reason he hesitates, we will just get an RFE for more evidence, but won't have a second interview or anything.

That was it. We walked out and now we wait. But I feel positive about everything and can't even believe how much more calm life already feels after almost 4 years or so of waiting!

Thanks to all the fantastic help that everyone on this site provided us in the past. Honestly, I have to say that without this site, I couldn't have done this.

Are there states where you dont need ID to marry? Sounded like he didnt have any at all.

It's not up to an individual clerk or state to verify immigration status. Chances are good he has SOMETHING to prove his identify and if not, clearly he needs to get something. If everything was stolen months ago and he has NOT yet replaced his identification, I would very seriously question the entire story.

To the OP, re-reading this story, I think it's all bullsh!t. Who does nothing when their visa and "all his paperwork" were stolen? His "work visa" ran out? Who sponsored his "work visa"? Is he still working? Did he report the theft? Did he make an infopass appointment to see how he could replace the visa? Did he go to the Mexican consulate in the US to request assistance with replacing his passport/ID/etc?

Smells like an illegal entry and there is no way he can adjust his status in the US.

It's not actually. My family would never pull an illegal entry after all the help they gave in helping me with my LEGIT marriage.

This man is 25 and has dreamed all his life of being a musician in America after getting fairly well known at an early age in Mexico. He befriended a US woman last year who worked as his sponsor and brought he and his other musician friend into the country to make music, because she had her own recording studio in Chicago. A fight broke out however between his friend and the woman sponsor about 3 months into their stay. With the help of her husband she took their visas and their passports and a great deal of their belongings after the fight and tossed them out of her house. They could never get them back.

They moved from Chicago to Washington when a friend offered to help house them. They have been here ever since even though they no longer had their visas in hand anymore. My sisters boyfriend never once tried to work illegally or do anything that he is not welcome to do. His friend went back and my sisters boyfriend stayed because he met her and they had started their relationship. My sisters boyfriend has a passport, he has been to the Mexican consulate several times, he has copies of all the paperwork he ever needed of his whole visa process, he just doesn't have the actual real copy in hand. That was stolen.

He IS legitimate. But he doesn't understand the whole visa process that well, USCIS has been giving him conflicting information every time he calls (as they ALWAYS do), his English isn't 100% so he doesn't understand a lot of the things he hears from them and then he hears a different story when he goes to the embassy.

He fully intended on moving back to Mexico a few months ago, but after talking to his family they have agreed the relationship is important and that he should carry on the relationship. The only reason he doesn't want to go back to Mexico is NOT because he's trying to smuggle into this country, but because he's afraid that since he overstayed his visa that they won't allow him to marry my sister and come back to the US and he will lose EVERYTHING he cares about in the process. So he has just frozen himself here, not wanting to do anything until he gets some advice. It doesn't help that he has not worked in months after his visa ran out so he has no money to GET back home even if he wanted to.

I am smart enough not to put up a bullshit immigration story on an open, often watched forum. What's more, I don't support the fake marriage of illegitimate immigrants because it's for that very reason that REAL genuine cases of marriage have to go through all of this frustrating process. I myself have been going through it for years now and if my sister or ANYONE I knew was ever trying to pull a fast one like what you accused, after everything I myself have gone through, I would never support it nor try to help. In fact, I would probably report them.

This man is my family, like a brother to me, and I don't appreciate any accusations of his legitimacy when I am coming here for some true, honest help.

Okay guys, I have a weird scenario to let you in on. I am hoping that someone will be able to offer some guidance and honesty.

My husband and I did the k-1 visa and now he's got his 2 year permanent resident card and everything is good.

But now...it's my sister's turn for a journey! But she has a very odd case.

Her boyfriend is from Mexico. He came here to America on some sort of a working visa. He's a musician and he came here to play music. I believe he was on a 6 month visa or something. However, a few months ago his visa and all his paperwork were stolen. He no longer has anything of the sort in his possession. Then, his visa ran out like 2 months ago and he is still here in the US now.

The reason why he did not leave is because he was in a legitimate relationship with my sister and did not want to leave. He was frightened that if he left, he'd never get back here. But now she is ready to marry him and is eager to get on the process so they can start a life together.

Our concerns though are:

1) He overstayed his visa and never left the country. They will probably want to deport him as soon as he attempts to marry my sister.

2) It will probably appear that he wants to marry my sister BECAUSE his visa is up, and this is simply not the case.

3) They are frightened that if he goes back to Mexico, it'll be hard for him to ever get back into the country and they will lose eachother.

What is your advice? How should they start this process if they can at all? What visa would this be categorized under? Should they appeal for a marriage here or does he have to go back to Mexico first?

This seems like a confusing case.

Thanks for any and all help.

We were a little late in sending the AR-11 and the I-865 repectively. I think I missed the deadline for the first one by a few days, I sent the second one on time, though.

That said, I have not received any confirmation on any of those from USCIS. I will call them this week to see what address they have on file, and if it is the incorrect one, then to get it updated.

Yeah I would give them a call. I received a confirmation letter within a week stating the address was updated, from the new service center where I sent the I-865 to. I never got one for the AR-11, but I did receive a confirmation from the post office that it was delivered safely. I think I remember reading on here that you don't get a letter back for the AR-11. Correct me if I'm wrong on that, anyone..

Either way, I am moving AGAIN in about 3 days so will have to do this all over again for the second time in less than a month. I am sure they love us over at USCIS by now

If there is no case pending actually, she still still must notify the USCIS about the Change of Adress and in this case mail the Ar-11 and I-865 to the Local Service Center and another AR-11 to Kentucky and still call the 1-800 number.

Best wishes.

Sincerely.

When you say to send that AR-11 and the I-865 to the Local Service Center, do you mean the Service Center that processed, in this case, our case, or do you mean the Local Service Center closest to where you live now? We moved across country to the west coast and I assuming this means I write to my Service Center in NJ where our case was processed, as opposed to writing to the one here in Seattle?

To be safe, yes, I would send them a change of address now, and then again when you move in a few weeks.

Luckily, the forms aren't too big of a deal to fill out.

Thanks Raymaga! Yeah the forms really were easy to fill out. I was shocked.

My only concern right now is it asks on my husband's form for the name of his employer. Since moving here to Washington, we've both yet to find new jobs. We don't want to start looking until we move into our more permanent home, which will be an hour or so away from where we are now.

Does anyone think that's going to cause any trouble?

My husband and I are sending out our change of address forms tomorrow. He'll be doing the AR-11 and I'll be doing the I-865.

I know this had to be done within 10 days of moving, but we're actually on day 13 today. Will this be a problem, do you think? They'll know because we filed for a change of address at the post office the day before we left. I have been so busy since we have moved, and honestly, all this immigration stuff slipped my mind until now.

Also, we are moving AGAIN in a few weeks to a month. This address was just a temporary place, as we're staying with my sisters. But I know since we filed for a change of address at the post office, it means USCIS counts this as a new address. Also I recently took out loans using this address as well. So I guess I just have to send out ANOTHER form again in a month's time?

Maybe you should consider getting a P.O. Box until you are stable? Have all mail forwarded to the box and then file a change of address when you have your permanent address. And of course follow up with everything.

Well, the good thing is that we are living with my aunt right now and she will still be here after we move. So anything we may receive in the mail here, she can forward on to me.

Do you think it's worth it to do a change of address form to a P.O. Box in WA for the time being, and then once I move to the permanent apartment do a SECOND change of address form? It feels excessive, but I just don't want to break any rules that could jeopardise our future. I am not sure how strict they are in enforcing the penalties in not notifying them within 10 days of moving.

Hi everyone! It's been months since I have been on this site, but now I am in need of a bit of help.

My husband has received his 2 year green card and won't have to apply for his 10 year until 2007.

We are however, moving from New Jersey to Washington state in 3 days. The problem being, we have no place to live yet! We are moving in with my sisters for the first few weeks, then finding a place with a monthly rent between Tacoma and Seattle for a month or two, and then finally settling in an apartment in Seattle itself.

So....how should I go about contacting USCIS about our change of address? Do you think it will be okay to just not mention it until we move into our permanent apartment in a few months time? I can't imagine them attempting to contact us between now and then, but I don't want to piss them off either.

Also, by moving to another state now, will all my future paperwork for the 10 year card be sent to the USCIS in Seattle or will it stay in Jersey?

Thanks for any help! I hope everyone on here has been having success in their application processes!

Jamie

I really doubt that this would upset them. I think since you're both young students, it's a natural thing to want to study abroad. (I did!) And I don't think they would expect your wife to stop such experiences, simply because she's married to a foreign citizen. It is not as if you are both living in two seperate places, you know? She is just there to study.

How long is she going for?

I honestly think they will be completely fine. I know that when they lift conditions they usually don't call you in for a second interview if you have plenty of evidence. Just keep in mind that on the off chance they do schedule you for an interview, that she'll have to come back home for that.

Hello everyone! This is my first post in this forum and I am excited. It's such a nice feeling to finally advance into this sectio of the process.

My husband and I are moving from NJ to Seattle, WA in the summer. As I have read on here numerous times, we will need to fill out an AR-11 form when we get there. I also know that as a sponsor, I must fill out the I-825 to show my change of address.

However, I am not the only sponsor who's address will be changing. My aunt is my husband's joint sponsor and she will be moving to a new home around the same time as us. So I am assuming she will need to fill out an I-865 as well, being a joint sponsor?

I know there is no fee for the forms, but do we need to send in any supporting documents or evidence of our new homes? And is it customary to send out the forms in advance before you move or after you move into your new home?

Thanks for your help! I know this is a popular and repititive topic.

Yay! It's a relief, isn't it?

Congratulations!! Yes the interview is never anything to worry about. I feel so silly now for all the worrying I did!

Though I will say, if you have to notify USCIS within 10 days of moving into your new place, what has to be done in my situation where I am first staying with my sisters until we find a new place?

Should I just keep my staying there quiet until we find a new apartment and THEN file for the change of address? I want to be as honest as possible, but I also don't want to have to file for this twice.

Wonderful news! Congratulations!

Congratulations!!

ETA: Actually, sorry I didn't realize how frequent a question this was recently! Apologies for being redundant and annoying :/

Hello all! Life's going well now that we have the 2 year green card. It's a nice break from paperwork for awhile.

A question I did have for the future is this:

My husband and I are moving from NJ to Seattle at the end of August. As of right now, we do not have an apartment found over there, obviously. We won't know of where we are going to be living until we get out there in August. When we first get there, we will be living with my older sisters until we find a new place to rent.

So my question is, should I notify USCIS ahead of time, before we actually move, that we will be going to Washington? Or do I just keep quiet until we are out there and completely moved out my sister's place and into our new apartment? I am assuming they won't be contacting us via mail for awhile, as we already have the 2 year card now.

Also, as I have never filled out a change of address for USCIS, what sort of documents, if any, do they need and is there a fee?

Thanks for all your help and hope all your timelines are going well these days!

HOORAY! Congrats! I told you Newark was a piece of cake. I felt so ridiculous afterwards, for all the nerves and worrying I've been harboring inside me for the past few months.

I am so happy you guys did well

Congratulations! Now you can stop and take a breath and prepare for your new, form-free life for awhile. It's wonderful, isn't it?

Congrats on the smooth interview!

Congratulations! Glad to hear it all went so well!

Congratulations!!!

Congratulations! It's such a relief, isn't it?

I had similar fears! We were sheduled for two seperate biometrics dates in the end, and one arrived just before we did a 2 week honeymoon to Seattle. I was so nervous the other would arrive while we were gone. Luckily enough, we were okay and didn't get the second appointment until after we arrived home.

We recieved our first biometrics appointment (for the EAD) just under a month after recieving our NOA's.

Yay congrats on the approval and happy job hunting!!!