the.ronin

Generally, your filing window is the 90 days preceding the expiration date of your conditional green card. Don't file any earlier than that window - they'll send it back.

Ok that is what I thought. So in my case, sometime after 10/11/2010 but definitely well before 1/9/2011.

Sorry for beating this to death, folks.

Conditional GC Granted: 1/9/2009

2 year anniversary: 1/9/2011

90 days before 2y anniversary: 9/16/2010

Given that both December and October are 31 day months, 90 days before 1/9/2011 is October 11, 2010...not 9/16/2010. Get the I-751 delivered to them before 10/11/2010.

I'm sorry you are absolutely right about 10/11/2010 being the 90 days prior to my 2 year anniversay.

However, are you sure I should submit BEFORE this date? As I understand the verbiage, I'm to submit NO SOONER than this date but BEFORE the 2 yr anniversary. Or specifically, I need to submit AFTER 10/11/2001 but BEFORE 1/9/2011.

As reference, here is what it says in the VJ faq:

It is very important to file the I-751 within the correct window of time, and be sure not to file it before the 90-day window. If you file it too early, they will send your application back. You may file at any time during the 90 day window, but it is prudent to file fairly early in the window.

If anyone can please clarify. Thanks again.

I'll apologize in advance for yet another "is my I-751 timing right" thread. But just having received a letter from USCIS entitled (in caps), NOTICE OF REQUIREMENT TO FILE JOINT PETITION TO REMOVE THE CONDITIONAL BASIS OF AN ALIEN'S PERMANENT RESIDENT STATUS, I thought I would make sure.

My wife originally K-1 and had her interview on 1/9/2009. Based on the instructions that came with the Notice to Conditional Permanent Resident Alien that was provided after the interview, we needed to file I-751 within a 90 day period immediately preceding the second anniversary of the date you were granted conditional status. The Visa Journey faq confirms this but the USCIS I-751 page doesn't specifically say.

So assuming the 90 days still holds:

Conditional GC Granted: 1/9/2009

2 year anniversary: 1/9/2011

90 days before 2y anniversary: 9/16/2010

So am I safe in submitting I-751 into the mail on or shortly after 9/16/2010?

Thanks and again sorry for the potentially trivial post ... the USCIS letter just brought back some K-1 and AOS flashbacks lol.

Thank you all for the responses and support.

I just got off the phone with the “investigator” handling the “case.” Evidently, whoever submitted the case to this special “DMV Investigations” office (Irvine, California) indicated that they were suspicious of the documentation provided – presumably the conditional green card. The “investigator” said that could be anything from a “strange looking font” to any number of reasons. And that his job was to ensure that the documents provided are legitimate.

I asked why this couldn’t be done with a simply call to the USCIS and he said that would be the case but also with the social security office (to verify the ss#) and with family members (to verify date of birth)?!?! #######???

I don’t think it helped that my wife loses all manner of concentration when she’s put under stress. I think she got her dates off when asked when she initially took her written test, driving test, and what docs she provided.

This is a mess.

As far as they're concerned, they need to only see her greencard (regardless if it's conditional). It's NOT their job to determine whether or not your marriage is real, USCIS has that covered.

This is what I suspected ... what should I do about this???

My wife came here on a K-1 Visa and she has adjuste status as a conditional resident. We are waiting to file for removal of condition 90 days prior to the 2nd year anniversary of the AOS interview we had which would make it approx October of this year as the earliest time to file for I-751.

My wife took her driver test at the Santa Ana, CA, DMV and passed receiving a temporary license which expires at the end of this month. We haven’t received her license.

It turns out her case was sent to DMV Investigations since she applied for the license with a conditional green card. We were given the phone number to the investigations office who told us she needed to visit and bring along all manner of documents – birth certificate, marriage certificate, whatever we had. At this appointment, they basically grilled her on whether everything was real. They took copies and notified her that they would follow up with each document to make sure they were legitimate.

This could take forever.

Has this happened to anyone else? Shouldn’t the DMV be able to talk to USCIS and get confirmation?

Well, I got through to the brain trust that is the USCIS and their official stance is that they have no idea whether this was an error and advised that we show up for the appointment anyway. The only thing Agent Genius could think of was that it was part of the I-751 process which, since it hasn't nearly been 2 years since we've been granted conditional residence, isn't yet required of us.

So ... where exactly does the 1 grand I paid go to?? General Motors?? It sure as hell isn't going to staff the USCIS with anyone with the mental capacity greater than that of a spoon.

Thank you for the responses ... it appears this has happened to others before. What really throws me off is that this letter specifically states to bring the conditional green card and also unlike the first biometrics letter, it doesn't stipulate a fee.

We just got a I-797C, Notice of Action today indicating that we have an appointment next week to have biometrics taken otherwise our I485 Application will be "considered abandoned." The thing is, we had our interview back in January 2009 and have already gotten a conditional Green Card.

What is this about??

So we’ve scrambled to get vaccinations and I’m happy to say we’ve just got the last one – the uber expensive HPV Gardacil vaccination. Luckily my insurance covered this. So all in all $30 to transcribe the vaccinations by a USCIS civil surgeon and $15 copay on the HPV vaccination.

Ok wish us luck!

HPV is mandatory for all women up to (and including) 26 years of age.

If you are 27 or older, you don't need a letter, the Civil Surgeon will mark "NOT AGE APPROPRIATE" on the form automatically.

If you are 26 or under, and have insurance, go to your doctor and ask for it. You don't need to explain what it's for. You should try and not say anything about immigration because doctors like to say that insurance doesn't cover for immigration purposes. That's a lie. The truth is that insurance covers all vaccines that are age-appropriate, not matter what the reason. Doctors lie because they want to charge you a higher amount in cash.

This is exactly what we did. Totally out of pocket was just the $15 copay.

Thanks all for your feedback on this.

Ok so we are scrambling to get vaccinations in time for our AOS interview. We got all except one for free at a community hospital.

The last one is the Human Pappilomavirus vaccination which was evidently added to the list by the CDC in May 2008. The USCIS civil surgeon says it is $170.

Is this right???

Ok stressing pretty bad here. Please help ...

We have our AOS interview this Friday. My wife entered the U.S. on a K-1. When we went to the consulate in her country for the K-1 interview, we got the medical examination but NOT the vaccination since it was not necessary for the K-1. The K-1 medical exam and interview was in September 2007. We married in December 2007 and sent in the I-485 AOS application in April 2008.

1) I’m reading that the K-1 medical exam is good for AOS so long as you file the AOS application within 1 year of the exam. Accurate?

2) The AOS interview invitation requires a “vaccination supplement”. We never got vaccinations for the K-1 medical exam. So I can’t even take the vaccination form to a USCIS civil surgeon to do the copy / paste to the supplement. Actually, the medical info was sealed in a brown envelope which we surrendered at the point of entry. What can we do? Or do we need to do anything? Should or can I schedule with a USCIS civil surgeon tomorrow to do just vaccinations?

Our interview is at the Santa Ana, CA, office. I understand that it can be hit or miss with respect to the medical exam. I had read that they want you to go to the interview even if you don’t have the medical / vaccination supplement – that it can be provided after. In these cases, I’ve read instances where the GC was processed after they received the medical / vacc supp in a timely manner. I’ve also read cases where it was delayed horribly.

Please help!!!!!

Thanks for the response, Haole ...

2) Item 2 on the interview notice references a medical examination (Form I-693) unless already submitted. We went through the K1 process and a full medical was taken if I remember correctly. I'm assuming that ominous brown envelope is what is sent to them to fulfill this item?

WRONG ASSUMPTION. YOU NEED A I-693 FILLED OUT BY A USCIS DESIGNATED CIVIL SURGEON!

Can anybody confirm this? I came across this in the K1 / AOS FAQ ...

11. I-693, Medical Examination of Aliens Seeking Adjustment of Status. (If you already have this from your overseas Visa Interview submit a copy that medical check form; No fee is required in this case. If you are a K-1 fiancé(e) or K-2 dependent who had a medical examination within the past year as required for the nonimmigrant fiancé(e) visa, you only need to submit a vaccination supplement, not the entire medical report. You may include the vaccination supplement with your adjustment of status application.)

For any K1 AOS folks out there, what exactly did you bring?

Ok so we've got our interview this Friday ... finally. We are both starting to freak out. I went kind of super ####### on the K1 process (see the link to my K1 interview report below in my signature). But between the holidays and things going crazy at work due to the economy, I haven't had nearly the time to put in on the AOS interview. In particular, some searches I've done for interviews in Santa Ana, CA, show a few pretty horrendous reports. Most are ok though. For those looking, here are some links to those interviews for the Santa Ana office:

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...st&p=438745

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...st&p=615735

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...st&p=708977

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...st&p=720827

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...st&p=843878

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...t&p=1485360

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...t&p=1488908

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...t&p=2207056

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...t&p=2337650

I hope that helps. Now if I may ask you guys a few questions ...

1) I worry that our evidence is thin. Can you recommend anything else, as creative as it may sound (like holiday cards was a great suggestion I got)? Here's what we're bringing:

- 2007 Federal Returns filed jointly

- Apartment lease agreement with both of our names, initialed by both on each page, and signed by both

- Company health plan with her named as dependent and beneficiary

- Company health plan and dental cards with both names

- Cell phone bill with both phone numbers

- Health club contracts for me and her with same address and billing info

- Check (void) with both of our names and address; my concern here is that I don't have a bank statement with both of our names as my bank will not issue that.

- 2 photo albums - 1 for the wedding (50 photos) and 1 with photos since she crossed the border (100 photos); my concern here is that they are not time stamped.

- Stack of wedding, birthday, and holiday cards addressed to both of us

For all of these documents except photos and cards, I have a copy.

2) Item 2 on the interview notice references a medical examination (Form I-693) unless already submitted. We went through the K1 process and a full medical was taken if I remember correctly. I'm assuming that ominous brown envelope is what is sent to them to fulfill this item?

3) Item 3 on the interview notice references the Affidavit of Support (Form I-864) which I believe was already submitted when we sent in the I-485 application. I'm bringing a copy of the entire I-485 application anyway with updated pay stubs and salary increase indications from my employer. Does this sound right?

4) Item 8 asks for the petitioner's birth certificate AND evidence of U.S. Citizenship. I do not have my birth certificate. I have relied on my U.S. passport and SS# as proof of citizenship throughout this process. Is this an issue?

5) My wife can hold a decent conversation in English having taken ESL (English as a Second Language) classes since she crossed the border a year ago. However, she is not "fluent." Would it be wise to bring a translator just in case? If so, can she bring her friend or does it have to be some sort of certified professional translator?

6) What is appropriate attire? I was planning on suit and tie but others have recommended something a little more casual. My wife plans to go in a pant suit outfit.

Thanks so much in advance for reading this and any suggestions or comments would be greatly appreciated especially if it's about the Santa Ana office in particular.

Well fellow March filers, we FINALLY got our interview date!!

I don't even remember how long it's been I'll have to check my signature after I post this. Congrats to everyone else that has seen some positive progress. Sorry to hear about your experience, Wrights ... hang in there. I'm sure everything will sort itself out.

Wow folks ... this is getting a little old. Still nothing since June 9. Not even a touch.

Should I be worried and/or taking action?

Congrat's to those who had their interviews or got their green cards!! I'm very happy for all of you!!

I still have no RFE, no touches, no interview letter...nothing! It's getting awfully depressing over here in my neck of the woods. I feel like I have the broken down car in traffic and everyone is just passing me by.

You are not alone ... we aren't stressing too much about it though. My wife can work and re-enter the country as she pleases. So basically once we get the GC, nothing will materially change from a day-to-day standpoint.

Are a good amount of people getting their GC without an interview?

Congrats to those who recently got theres by the way.

fwaguy ... excellent advice. Sometimes we get so caught up in finding information in all corners of the web that we forget to try the most simple approach - calling them directly.

For what it's worth to anyone else, I just spoke with people from the San Ysidro POE. As of writing, the smaller office ("special cases"?) is evidently now open 24h / 7 days. I was told you would need to go there first with both AP documents as well as the EAD card. I specifically asked if we needed anything else but the agent said no. We will likely be bringing other documents just in case - at a minimum, marriage certificate and NOA for AOS.

We plan using my wife’s advance parole documents for the first time at the San Ysidro point of entry in California. We will be walking across the border. I know that the first time, you typically have to go to the smaller office just outside of the main facility at the end of that typically humungous line to cross the border.

However, we will likely be crossing the border later at night after that smaller office has closed. I’m fairly certain that they can still process special circumstance crossings such as using AP, but I wanted to make sure and possibly hear from others.

Probably a stretch, but if anyone has crossed using the San Ysidro POE later at night, how did that work? Did you just go through the regular line? Once at the counter of CPB officers, did they process it there or did they send you to the automobile crossing secondary?

Thanks for any insight.

shadtov, thanks again for the insight ... yes, we are in OC. Practically 100 miles to the dot from the border. And yes, I used to have to wait in that horrific pedestrian line every single late Sunday afternoon (possibly the worst time to cross) for the two years before she crossed the border. I remember particularly hot days when that line snaked from the back, made a U all the way back to the bridge, then wrapper around AGAIN!

It's too bad that we actually have to wait in line twice ... although I'm wondering if you are actually escorted back to the big line. You might remember that they stop the big line long before the fence you referred to. Maybe we can sneak in along with the mad rush as they let groups of people through haha! At least you've only got to do it once I guess.

I will definitely be there with my wife. A long time ago, before we were VisaJourney educated, we had actually gone to that little office to flat out ask if we could get her a visitor visa ... on the spot! The agent was very sympathetic and didn't laugh in our face. He just gently made us aware of the involved process and even made a point to tell me that I was a very lucky guy. How crazy would it be if the same guy ended up processing our AP???

We just got my wife's EAD card as well!! Things have been jammin lately!

shadtov, thank you for your response! I nearly forgot about that small office before you enter the main building at San Ysidro ... yes, that line can be as brutal as the "big line" since it is so slow. So you had to go through that when you walked across? Ouch. I was hoping we could just walk to the front of the line. I absolutely hate driving in Mexico and do not want to bring my car. I was hoping to just park at the border and walk across ... as I had done for over two years before we got the K1 visa (didn't take that long to get the visa ... took that long to make sure this was the right thing to do and not be too hasty).

Mind if I ask what time you had to get to the "little office" when you walked across and how long the line was?

Thanks again! Always cool to hear about experiences or would-be experiences so similar to your own.

Thank you both very much for taking the time to respond. This is all very re-assuring. If I hadn't asked, I would have likely brought only one copy thinking the other was for "backup" or what not.

Kathryn41, regarding the ambiguous language, I thought it meant the same as your interpretation - that you cannot be out of the country for more than a year. And, yes, I certainly would not plan on us doing that ... heck, I'd get fired pretty quick haha! My concern was that it was USCIS-ese for not being able to re-use the AP for another year after re-entry. I wish these folks would use plain English.

So you guys think that, in addition to both AP letters, original marriage certificate, and her Mexican passport, it would be overkill to bring the NOAs or other documentation? I would of course like to minimize the amount of original documents we need to bring.