Waiting_In_SC

I would think so.This is the biggest proof we got because we have no joint accounts or anything with both our names.I just got a social so I couldnt be added to anything .Its scary that someof you think having a child together isnt enough and are questioning why we dont have a lot of pics together.Really ?

Just like previous people have said, we're trying to help you, not bash you.

And I'm going to say this and leave it alone: If you believe that having a child together and having a marriage certificate is enough evidence for USCIS, then by all means, take that, and only that to the interview and take your chances. The overwhelming majority of folks who have replied to your posts are telling you that's probably not going to be enough.

At the end of the day, we aren't the people you have to convince. You only have to convince one person; the USCIS employee who interviews you.

Good luck.

Well we've been married for 5 years and have a child together.If thats not real then what is

Again, I'm not trying to argue or flame you, so I hope you don't think that. You do, however, have to look at the situation realistically. A USCIS officer, who is trained to try to sniff out 'fake' marriages, is going to interview you to ensure that your marriage is real, or as they put it, 'bona fide'. I do think that having a child together is a positive thing for you. On the other hand, I know lots and lots of people who have children together that are either not married (nor intend to become married to the other parent), or are married and living apart.

The USCIS officer wants to see evidence that your marriage is 'bona fide' and that you live together, share a life together, and intend to continue doing so. They don't visit you at your home or follow you around to see you kissing, holding hands, being parents together, and just generally sharing life as a married couple. They can only go on what evidence you provide them, so they are limited to relying on photos, shared or 'co-mingled' financial resources, leases, loans, having health/life insurance together, etc.

I certainly don't know what a USCIS officer is going to view as a minimum amount of evidence of a 'bona fide' marriage, but I fear that walking through the door for your interview with only a marriage license and evidence of having a child together is pushing it. I'd definitely try to get some photos put together, and gather anything and everything with both of your names on it to take with you.

Good luck! I certainly hope your case goes well. Everyone deserves a chance at happiness, and I hope that USCIS will give you that chance.

What can I use to show this is a real marriage even though its totally obvious that it is?

Please don't think I'm flaming you here, because I'm not... but what makes it 'totally obvious' that your marriage is real? You have to look at it from the eyes of an outsider that doesn't know you from a hole in the wall. What, to them, makes it obvious?

Thanks in advance to anyone who can enlighten us on this topic...

Our I-130 packet was mailed out on May 19, 2012 by a "middleman". Today is June 12, 2012 and we have not received a NOA1. Our packet was

reviewed by an immigration lawyer prior to being sent out and everything was in order.

What might be the reason for the delay in receiving NOA1? Could it be that the USCIS still have not received it?

Thank you.

It took 19 days for us to receive our four NOA hard copies in the mail. I never received a single text message or email, despite completing the G-1145 form and placing it right on the top of my package. The first indicator that USCIS had opened my package and begun processing it was logging into my checking account online and seeing the 2 checks cashed.

I know you are worried, and I would be too, but you're still within the 30-day window, so it will probably come any day now. If, after 4 weeks total, you still haven't heard anything, I'd definitely call USCIS.

Good luck!

None of the cases will show an update after biometrics or after the FBI returns their results. The next update will either be your EAD/AP approval (takes on average a month after the biometrics appt) or you receive your interview notice. Alternatively you might get an RFE that also changes the status.

Thanks, wifi. I was under the false assumption that since we went in and had her biometrics done, the office (in our case, Charleston, SC) had to update her case with a completed bio appointment, therefore the 'last updated' date would change.

I appreciate the response.

Hello Waiting_In_SC,

I completely agree with you. Attorneys are a complete waste of money. I feel quite competent that I can complete this paperwork. I think it just takes time and research. And my goodness, the Internet makes everything 100 times easier...especially when I can receive information from these forums! However, for specific questions like mine, I do think a consultation is extremely beneficial. With that being said, I have an appointment with an Attorney on Wednesday!

I am glad you have reaffirmed what my wife had said: that I-94s are not issued until traveling outside the approved area within the US. My wife said she last entered in October 2001....and her Border Crossing Card didn't expire until a number of years after. After her last entrance on 10/2001, she immediately enrolled in high school. Then after high school, she immediately enrolled in college. She currently is in college still. So, we do have transcripts to back up her presence here. I just don't know if immigration will accept them because they are not "official" federal documents.

Well, I'll tell you this; my wife and I did every bit of our paperwork. Time will tell if we get RFEs or have issues, but I feel pretty confident that we did a good job. That having been said, we did pay a good immigration attorney for an hour of his time before starting all of the paperwork just to ask questions and ensure that we had every angle covered. We told him up front that we didn't intend to retain him for this process, but that it was worth the cost of an hour of his time to ask our list of questions.

I have to tell you that we got some very good information from him; things that we may have missed otherwise. For us, it was well worth it.

Good luck. I hope you get good news from the attorney you speak with.

For those of you who have already received your EAD, how long after your biometrics appointment did it for your case to be shown as 'updated' online? My wife had hers done last Friday, and I figured since something was going to be done on our cases (I-485, I-765), I'd see the 'last updated' date change. So far, there's been nothing.

I'm just wondering how long it took for that to happen for those who have gotten their EAD. I'm just not sure what to expect.

Thanks!

Based on what I know about the immigration process (which admittedly, is a fraction of what others on this site know), the biggest drawback to you getting married right now is that you limit your options somewhat for which immigration path you take when the time comes.

For instance, if you are not currently married when you decide for him to immigrate to the US, you can get married and do a CR-1 or a K-3, or you can bring him over on a K-1 'fiance' visa and get married in the US once he arrives. In my opinion, there are positives and negatives to each process, and you would have to decide which one to choose. If you get married now, you're removing (at least) the K-1 from the list of options, and that may or may not be a drawback to you.

I'm also married to a Mexican national, and your wife is correct. With the BCC, the general rules are that they A)have to stay withing a 75 mile radius of where they crossed the border, and B)they can stay in the country for up to 30 days. If they are not planning to go farther away than 75 miles or stay for longer than 30 days, then no I-94 is necessary.

I don't know how you can prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that she's here legally, however, the USCIS representatives should know the above rules regarding the BCC, and I'd think that your documentation of her living in the US should at least be a bit of proof that she came in legally, then just stayed (illegally). I'd also guess that her BCC was scanned or swiped the last time she entered legally, and there should be proof of that when they do their background investigation on her.

I'd collect as much proof as I could that she had a life here over the entire period of time she's been here, whether she was overstaying or not. That, combined with the record her her legal entrance into the US years ago, may be enough to convince the folks at USCIS that she was admitted legally, and just overstayed.

You may want to seriously consider finding a good immigration attorney and discussing this situation with them. In most cases that are very straight-forward, I personally think attorneys are a waste of money, but it sounds to me like you have a real issue that may warrant spending a couple hundred dollars on just to be sure.

Here's a question for all you folks that have done your biometrics appointment. How long after you completed the appointment did it take for your case with USCIS to be updated when you check it online?

We went last Thursday and have my wife's bio appt completed, and I thought for sure we'd have seen the 'Last Updated' date change, but it hasn't so far.

Hey May filers!

I'm so excited to share the news with you: I just got an email saying that on June 10, 2012 they sent us an appointment notice for an interview. It is scheduled for July 12, 2012. So now I will be waiting impatiently for that date and getting ready for the interview. Yet, no updates on EAD and AP...

Good luck to everyone!

Wow! We sent our packages in on the same day, and you've already got an interview scheduled? That's awesome! Good for you.

Good luck, and please keep us updated!

Thanks!

Good luck to your case too

Yes, so fast. Congrats! Mine doesn't seem to be moving so quickly.

Today we got my wife's biometrics done!

For those who aren't up to date on our situation, last week we received a notice in the mail that my wife's biometrics appointment would be June 14 at 2:00 pm. Unfortunately, I had a business trip scheduled for next week, and I couldn't change it, so we decided to do an early walk-in.

On Tuesday, I went online to InfoPass and set an appointment for this morning at 11:00. We showed up this morning at about 10:45, and showed the guard our InfoPass appointment information that we printed out. He passed us through.

I explained our situation to the young lady at the main window, and she said 'No problem,' and told us to go through the door on the left, where we were greeted by another lady. We showed her our appointment notice, and she had us fill out a form. Once we were done, a gentleman took my wife back and fingerprinted and photographer her and we left; in and out in about 20 minutes.

The folks in the Charleston, SC office were very nice and professional. It was a good experience, and we're happy to be one step closer to having this all done!

Well, we're packed and ready to head to Charleston for our 'walk-in' appointment. I hope they'll process the wife tomorrow.

Wish us luck!

By the way, I have been trying to maintain my timeline, and I can't for the life of me figure out how to add the I-130 into it. I've got I-485, I-131, and I-765, but just can't figure out how to add the I-130. Anyone got a suggestion here?

I posted earlier that my wife's biometric appointment letter had arrived, and it is scheduled for June 14 (next Thursday). Unfortunately, I'm scheduled for a business trip next week, and can't reschedule.

Today I went to InfoPass and scheduled an appointment for her for this coming Friday morning. I'm hoping the office (Charleston, SC) will allow her to go ahead and do her biometric stuff early, especially since we actually made an appointment. I really wanted to be there with her when she goes. My Dad is standing by to take her next week if we are refused this week, but I hope it won't be necessary.

I'll update you guys with what happens Friday.

I got appointment notice in the mail today... biometrics scheduled for 06/13 yayyyy

Awesome! We got ours in the mail today, too; June 14. Problem is, I didn't expect it to happen that quickly, and I scheduled myself to be out of town on a business trip; a trip I can't change this late in the game. I thought about driving my wife down to the office (Charleston, SC) and trying to do a walk-in late this week. I suppose it couldn't hurt to try.

Has anyone attempted to do an early walk-in biometrics procedure. We got our letter for our appointment today and I am scheduled to be out of town on business that week. I want to be able to take my wife when she goes.

Finally, we got our 4 receipt notices in the mail today. My wife now has an A number, and we're officially off and running in this process.

Now waiting patiently for the biometrics letter. Ok, maybe not so patiently waiting.

Very good. The hardcopies should be there soon and it may take another couple of days for the biometrics appointment to follow. Good luck.

Thanks, Old_Dog. Looking forward to getting all of that, especially the bio appt letter. That's the next step, I suppose.

That's wonderful news! Congratulations!

Thanks! We were really excited last night. I hung up the phone, threw my arms in the air, and screamed YESSSS!!!!

Finally, some good news to report. I noticed last week that our checks had been cashed, although I never received an e-notification. Well, today I called USCIS, and after waiting for about 10 minutes, was assisted by a very pleasant and helpful woman who looked up my information, verified that my cases had been filed, and gave me case numbers for all 4 of our petitions.

I have created an account on the USCIS website, and can see all four of them there.

She did tell me that our NOAs had been sent via USPS last Tuesday. I'm figuring that since yesterday was a holiday, they should arrive tomorrow or Thursday.

Anyway, it feels good to know that things are finally on the move, even if just barely!

Hello,

I didin't hear anything abut my case since may 18th, starting to get worried?!?!

Really hope I will get something tomorrow.....

I need to start working my husband is the only one working and we have 2 kids.....very hard for me right now.

My package was received at USCIS on May 11. Today is the 29th and I still have received no e-notifications, letter, nothing. My checks were cashed, so I know someone opened my package, but that didn't happen until late last week. I wouldn't worry yet.

That's good. For some reason they probably didn't activate your electronic notification. When you get your hard copies, you can do it then.

I know it's stressful when things don't go exactly the way they're "supposed" to, but at least they are going in the right direction!

This is true. The lack of e-notification is bothersome, especially since I'm an 'electronic' kind of guy. I prefer to do almost everything via internet. That having been said, it's not a show-stopper, and I'm just really, really happy that our package has been opened, and evidently, processed by someone. I feel a bit better now.

Well, some movement to report, finally. I check my bank account about 5 minutes ago, and my checks were cashed. Still no notifications, electronic or otherwise, but at the very least we now know someone opened our package and looked through it. Today is 2 weeks exactly since our package arrived.

That's something, at least.

Well, tomorrow is 14 days since my package arrived in Chicago, and still nothing. This sucks.