Dashinka

I have mentioned this many times, back in 2015, interview waivers were taking on average of 12-16 (if I recall correctly) months to get a GC from when the I485 was filed, those that had interviews (like my wife) got their GC in a much shorter time period (just under 6 months for my wife). At that time there were serious questions here on VJ asking how to change from an interview waiver to an interview. Also quite a few AOS folks were also in need of renewing APs and EADs.

Again, the best case is to let Maryland take back the majority of the land and the residents become Maryland residents with appropriate representation. This would all but nullify the 23rd amendment without needing to repeal it since DC would no longer have any residents/voters (other than the President and their family who usually vote in their home district). Let Washington DC be redefined as the WH, the Capitol, and the Supreme Court building, they don't have to even be contiguous to each other, they could just be little island enclaves.

So good that CA decided to give DLs and CDLs to illegal aliens.

For GE yes depending on being able to get an interview at a CBP office, once you have GE, you can use the app.

That is really not the main worry in my eyes (deportation). If it were me it would be all about each other's life, and the effects of making a big change all at once. As you said, he has a job, and also property, probably family, etc. that will be difficult to deal with while awaiting a GC (sure he can apply for AP, but AP is really meant for emergency travel). I agree with the others, think about your situation now, and in the long-term, and decide what is best. Yes, LDRs can be difficult, but in this day and age of instant video communication, plus the fact that he has ESTA privileges will make it easier, so I would also recommend going for a spousal visa. You can get married now however you want (Vegas, Utah Zoom, Justice of the Peace, etc.), start filling out the I130 and once you have the marriage certificate in hand submit it, and then pursue consulate processing with him or you making visits when you can. You will have time to gather marital evidence over the next 14-16 months or so that can be presented at the visa interview when it occurs. Good Luck!

Moved to the Working & Traveling During US Immigration forum.

I agree with the esteemed members above, do not travel domestically until you have your I485 NOA. CBP officers are sometimes near the TSA check points, and they can always stop folks. You also need to consider the same thing if you are traveling by car within 100 or so miles of the Southern border. Good Luck!

You needed to use the GE App. Not a single question by CBP.

Nope, not at all. My wife and I were in the same boat for 3-4 years after she got her GC. The GC was in her married name, and her passport was in her maiden name. Also, we often traveled in a similar manner, where we would go visit family in Russia arriving together, and then I would leave two weeks later to get back to work, and my wife would stay for a few more weeks (sometimes the opposite as well where I would come two weeks after my wife, and we would return together). We never had any issues, my wife always carried a copy of our marriage certificate with her (no one ever asked to see it), and we always booked the tickets in the name on her Russian passport until she naturalized. You may face different questions by a CBP officer, but I would not worry to much about it, just answer truthfully, don't be extraneous in your answers, and you will be fine. Good Luck!

Shouldn't be an issue.

There are pros and cons to whatever path you choose. Is he able to essentially stop his life right now for the next several months, go without leaving the US, or work? If so, get married and adjust away. If you want to move more slowly, I would recommend following a spousal visa path rather than a K1, but again that is your choice. You have a couple of options, so you need to decide, but to answer your initial question, yes, plenty of folks are adjusting from ESTA/B2's. Good Luck!

Can you clarify if your BF is currently in the US?

Except the President and his family I guess.

Sums it up pretty good. It is amazing that the Left/Progressives always want to repeat the same mistakes expecting a different result. My Socialist Mayor Part 2 Public transport is a good example of socialist confusion about what makes things work. I ask people, “Who do you think built New York’s subways?” Most say: “the government.” Who else could afford to dig tunnels and buy trains so everyone, rich and poor, can ride? Private businesses wouldn’t do it. They wouldn’t be able to charge enough to cover their costs. That’s why government must do it! But actually, private companies built most of New York’s subways. The trains only became government-run after 1939, when the capitalists proposed raising the fare from 5 to 7 cents. NYC’s mayor called that “a grab for the public’s pocket” and took control. https://www.dailysignal.com/2025/08/17/my-socialist-mayor-part-2/

Follow the money.... Can we now label these groups as BIG E? Polar Bears Thriving, Bees Buzzing—So Why the Hysteria? Unmasking the Tactics of Big Green Once upon a time, the big threat to development was NIMBY: Not In My Back Yard. Today, it’s BANANA: Build Absolutely Nothing, Anywhere, Near Anyone. “What that means is we don’t get the lifestyle that we want,” says Fisher. “If you wanted to build a new house, what kind of permits do you have to get? Who do you have to talk to? Is the Sierra Club going to sue?” I’m ashamed that I once fell for their scams. WCBS TV even ran ads promoting my environmental reporting with a headline that said, “If you wore a gas mask … you might be better off.” Now I realize that the big environmental groups fed me lies. https://www.dailysignal.com/2025/07/20/big-energy-got-rich-feeding-people-lies/

Hmm, surprise, surprise, people lie to other people to avoid confrontation. What else is new? Cost of Conformity: 88% of Students Feel Compelled to Adopt Liberal-Left Facade, Study Finds And this loss is profound. The researchers argued that ideological conformity stifles authenticity, a quality “once considered a psychological good,” but now “a social liability.” Students, they say, “learn to compartmentalize. Publicly, they conform; privately, they question—often in isolation.” This dissonance fractures identity and halts personal growth, as students trade genuine self-discovery for survival. So, within the classroom, what does this look like? According to the research, 78% self-censor on gender identity, 77% on politics, and 68% on family values. Alarmingly, 80% admit to submitting classwork that misrepresents their beliefs to align with professors’ expectations—a practice so ingrained it’s become “second nature” for many. And unfortunately, this “fragmentation doesn’t end at the classroom door.” Some 73% of respondents confessed they don’t even trust having “conversations about these values with close friends,” adding: “Nearly half said they routinely conceal beliefs in intimate relationships for fear of ideological fallout.” https://www.dailysignal.com/2025/08/17/cost-of-conformity-88-of-students-feel-compelled-to-adopt-liberal-left-facade-study-finds/

Trying to figure out how Turley was wrong? He is not suggesting creating a new state, but rather allowing most of the area, primarily the residential areas, to go back to Maryland.

Moved to US Citizenship General Discussion Forum.

Not sure it really matters relative to getting easier questions. Just give an acceptable answer and move on IMO. Good Luck!

Another further complication is with the older kids now outside the U.S. they cannot AOS anymore.

Yes, combo cards were stopped in April 2022 right around the time she filed the I360. I am not completely up to speed on the I360, does that cover the children as well? I do love the story saying she was living legally in the U.S. under a “combo card”. It was really her I360/I485 receipt that allowed for authorized stay. Of course the question now is that since she abandoned her I485 via the I360 is her EAD even valid anymore?

You can email them, and also bring it up at the interview. Good Luck!

Yes, the pendulum swings. I am curious as to how you believe she was actually admissible short of being given HP?

Having to say what? Doesn't she now have a fairly large charity site now, seems her savings is growing. Where does the discretion end? What if discretion is used and it turns out it is not the case of a relatively harmless person entering the US at the discretion of a CBP officer that just met her. The simple fact is this was her issue and her consequences. Your spouse got lucky, he could have easily been turned around as CBP does not always follow what the DoS says. Anyway, it is enough of the debate, she had no documentation to re-enter the US, sure detention was probably not the best course, but I doubt she could return to Canada. If she had come to VJ, would you have advised her to go to Canada without AP?

Is she paying for detention? How is her savings being depleted? Also, I am not aware of airlines having discretion relative to allowing anyone to board a flight without some form of documentation accepted in the Carrier Guide. I imagine if an airline employee let's someone on a plane without proper or verified entrance documentation, it could be that employee paying for the cost of having to fly the person back. In the end, it is the person's responsibility to have their documents in order (not sure where you are going with "paperwork error", elaborate please. I can imagine what it is like for her and her family, but it of her own making. When she left the US without proper re-entry documentation or a valid visa, what was the CBP officer supposed to do? Ideally, she would have been turned around, I don't believe someone from NZ has to have a visa for Canada, so she could have returned to the airport and got on the next flight to Auckland.