Starkilla09

12 hours ago, amisa said:

I mailed my N-400 package on 11/17/17. My first NOA is dated on 11/21/17. I did a walk-in bio on 12/01/17.

Congrats @amisa! Don't forget to come back and keep us updated. I wonder if there's any November filer on this thread still waiting. @Curve you and I have very close priority dates. Mine is 12/05/17 and yours is 12/08/17. If we're lucky we should get notifications before the month end or perhaps in January. We should keep an eye on each other. This wait has been really agonizing I'm on my second I-551 stamp with no 10 year green card in hand. The only good thing behind this fiasco is Seattle has same day oaths or even next day ones as well.

In that case his only recourse at the moment will be to apply for a B2 visa at the U.S. embassy/consulate in his home country or where he currently resides to attend your wedding.

He can still succeed provided he has strong ties back home to demonstrate proof of non-immigrant intent. The reason behind his ESTA refusal will also play a factor as well with this B2 adjudication and that will depend on the severity of it.

Her residency at this point has been considered abandoned due to such a prolong absence. She will need an SB1 returning visa (which is highly unlikely to be issued based on the aforementioned facts) to be able to get back. 

Her other recourse is to attempt to get to get back to the U.S. where she will face two options. If very lucky based on her situation and which CBP officer handles her admission she could still be let in. Yes, it can still happen where people have lived out of the U.S. for a few years and successfully still being admitted after being questioned why they stayed so long. This isn’t a very common occurrence though just to be clear.

The other scenario is the CBP officer will parole her, take her greencard and book her to see an immigration judge in court to determine if she gets to keep her status or not. If all fails she will then need to be re-petitioned again. Since she lives In Mexico, it shouldn’t hurt her wallet that much to attempt to get in and try her luck.

Seattle office has some really lazy ### sloppy immigration officers when it comes to processing. So far it appears pace hasn’t picked up steam as only a few October 2017 have had notifications.

You’ll think by now November 2017 filers should be getting notices considering the fact that Seattle has about 20,000 pending N 400s, while other offices like Dallas with 27,000 and Houston with 44,000 are really picking up steam. 

For Christ’s sake Houston office with the highest in the nation is scheduling January 2018 filers at the moment! At this pace those of us in December will probably get notifications in February if we’re lucky. Seattle office is a big mess indeed. USCIS is all about jacking up fees with the promise of faster processing and quality is still flat lined.

Agreed as above. The question is if you’ve ever been arrested and isn’t selective of where the arrest occurred. It shouldn’t be an issue since your already answered yes to this similar question on your I-485 and had your green card with your approved waiver. 

No provided you keep the trips abroad temporary under 6 months. If you stay more than 6 months this will break your continuous residency requirement and you’ll be ineligible.

As for the marriage since you’re filing under 5 year rule it’s not dependent on it anymore, however; they can still ask about the marriage which you procured your original green card. This is just to make sure one more time the marriage was bona fide as entered and not a sham.

You can log in on your online account and disable the notifications.

Yes that’s sufficient enough. They’ll know because they also have records of it.

It’s quite normal now for N400 to take even more than a year depending on how terribly backlogged your local USCIS field office is. I’m a Seattle December 2017 filer as well and our field office has been taking 14 months on average to schedule interviews.

If your green card is going to expire try booking an infopass appointment about 30 days prior to get an I-551 stamp on your passport. This will serve as proof of permanent residency for travel and employment purposes.

12 hours ago, DR_UA said:

Any 2017 online filers here? I submitted mine online 11/30/17. Apparently it didn't shorten my waiting time at all. It's also "taking longer than expected" and January as completion time for me.

Seattle is one of those offices where online or paper filing haven’t made any difference since inception. It’s been steadily so even when online filing was still a pilot program around August 2017, and online filers in many different field offices were having lightening speed interviews compared to paper filers. It wasn’t until September 2018 when those Seattle August 2017 online and paper filers started having interviews.

For you to qualify for a B1/B2 visitor visa you’ll need to convince the consular officer that you have proof of non-immigrant intent. To do so you’ll need to show strong social, economic and financial ties back home. The letters from your U.S. contacts as well as copies of their passports or financials carry no weight. Your application will be accessed on the totality of the circumstances factoring the aforementioned ties back home, to make sure if issued a visa you’ll comply with the terms and conditions and not overstay in the U.S. unlawfully.

2 hours ago, Ck207 said:

I am seeking for your experience with Norwegian Airline. I have i751 pending plus N400 also pending. I am on the study abroad program and heading back to the State in December 17th. I heard that Norwegian Airline is not familiar with i551 stamp (this information is 3 years old, I read it online). 

Has anyone here traveled with Norwegian Air and with their i551 recently? Please let me know your experience. 

Don’t despair Norwegian Airlines is familiar with the I-551 stamp. I also used my I-551 stamp to get back to the U.S. with Norwegian Air this past summer from my vacation in London. I was there for a 2 week vacation with my wife. Upon checking in the check in staff had to call homeland security as part of the protocol for them to confirm my status and stamp verification.

It took roughly 5 mins simultaneously while I was weighing my bags to be completed. He got the green light then proceeded to print my boarding pass. The boarding pass had an inscription on it saying stamp on passport has been verified. 

What happened next at the boarding gate got me a little pissed while waiting for at my zone to board the plane. A chubby ####### with a badge on his neck with no manners came and asked to see my passport, opened a few pages and immediately asked in a condescending way what business I have in the U.S. 

I got pissed and reprimanded him in his face telling him to approach people better. He said he was with homeland security, asked for my visa which I told him I’m a permanent resident and don’t need one. Told him I’ve already been through this with homeland security in the U.S. and I don’t appreciate him wasting my time while we’re boarding in and I have clearance printed on my pass. 

He took out a mobile scanner and scanned through my passport pulling out my immigration record with DHS while scrolling through. He gave it back and told me good luck. Arrival in the U.S. in Seattle was a breeze though. CBP officer apologized for the monstrous wait times we’re experiencing here in Seattle. Told him “it’s alright that’s the federal government for ya” and he laughed then stamped and welcomed me home.

On 11/23/2018 at 9:45 AM, Curve said:

As expected my estimated wait time went from 1 day to “we are taking longer than expected to process your case.”

I guess mine will be following suit in the next 8 days as well. Estimated wait time is supposed to be December with a completion time in January. Getting close though, my priority date is December 5th 2017. What about you?

Fellow Seattle peeps our waiting has been an agony, however; most of us will be done early next year. Seattle seems to be trying to pick up pace as I’ve been following another site. Currently they’ve been taking 14 months for total competition on average. The latest I know of is a September 29th 2017 filer who had his interview on November 8th 2018.

November 2017 filers should start expecting interview notifications next month for January 2019 interview dates, and those of us December 2017 filers should expect interview notifications in January 2019 for February 2019 dates.

Seattle currently has about 20,000 pending N 400s among one of the highest in the nation. Houston office has the crown jewel  nationwide with 44,000 pending N 400s. They’re taking close to 24 months to sort this mess out and it just keeps piling everywhere. Dallas trails at second place with about 27,000.  Let’s support one another and don’t forget to update changes. Happy thanksgiving in advance!

On 10/23/2018 at 11:23 PM, AustinCanada said:

I am American now!       Thank you for all your support!  

How was your combo interview experience?

You’re a landed U.S. resident since you have an immigrant visa for permanent residency in the U.S.

16 hours ago, Visitor User said:

If I am not travelling outside of USA then they won't stamp my Passport as proof of PR from that day until I get my card in the mail?

Yes, you’ll need proof of travel for that to occur if not you have to wait for the card.

On 10/29/2018 at 5:48 PM, Visitor User said:

seem to be standard with documents to bring like Birth Certificate, I-94, etc.

 

EAD can also be ID right?

 

So if I am approved on the spot at the USCIS FO. This means I am officially a PR that day right?

 

 

•  

If you’re approved on the spot you’ll officially be a permanent resident as of that day, however; since the green card needs to arrive by mail you won’t have evidence of it until then or if they stamp your passport with a temporary I-551 stamp. Yes your EAD is also one of those documents you have to bring with you as well on your interview.

1 hour ago, Visitor User said:

I can also bring in my valid state driver license as ID too right? 

 

I have no plans to travel outside of USA.

 

If approved on the spot. What is my proof walking out of the office that I am a parmanent resident? Would I get some kind of a paper receipt there?

 

My AOS is not based on marriage so there would be no such thing as a removal of conditions right? This means I would directly get the green card for 10 years and eligible for naturalization in 4 years and 9 months?

Your interview letter will specify documents you have to bring with you on your interview, and yes they’ll require your state issued driver license as well. 

If you’re not traveling out of the country you won’t be issued the temporary I-551 stamp (green card stamp) on your passport then even if you’re approved on the spot.

What’s gonna happen is you’ll have to wait for your green card by mail which should come within a week or so though they say it can take up to 60 days.

You’ll equally receive a welcome letter as well by mail within a few days after approval welcoming you as a permanent resident of the U.S. 

Since your adjustment of status is not marriage based then yes you’ll get a 10 year green card and won’t have to file for removal of conditions. You’ll equally be eligible to apply for naturalization 90 days prior to your 5th year anniversary of being a permanent resident as of the “resident since” date inscribed on your green card.

Your passport validity or how many you’ve had have no effect on your adjustment of status as well as naturalization down the road. During all your immigration interviews you’ll be expected to bring all expired and current passport, however; this is mainly for identity verification purposes and not the sole determination of adjudication of the immigration benefit you’ll be seeking. If during your adjustment of status interview you’re approved on the spot and have an urgent international travel before receiving your green card in the mail, you can then request a temporary I-551 stamp to be affixed on your current unexpired passport so you can travel. This is the only scenario where they stamp your passport. The other option is during removal of conditions where your 2 year conditional green card has expired as well as the extension letter authorizing employment and travel, or if you lost your expired conditional green card and need evidence of your status for same aforementioned reasons.

No he doesn’t need any waiver. Since it’s been 11 years since he last departed the U.S. his 10 year bar of unlawfully presence has been lifted, however; because of his past immigration violation getting a non-immigrant visa will be an uphill battle. He will need strong ties in Brazil to convince the consular officer that he intends to leave after his visit and not circumvent U.S. immigration law by overstaying again. Nothing hurts to try though but as mentioned it won’t be easy. 

On 10/24/2018 at 2:04 PM, staticvoidmain said:

My interview is tomorrow. Hopefully I get same-day oath, as my interview is at 10-ish.

 

Can I bring anyone with me while I am interviewed (are they allowed in the building and wait for the interview to be over)?

Also with oath taking, can someone be there with me? I am thinking of my wife. Thanks in advance.

How was your interview experience?

There’s no requirement for naturalization that says you must be employed. You’re perfectly fine don’t worry about it. Keep in mind though that you should be able to explain if you drastically changed quit your job the moment you got your green card. That might make your intent questionable that you didn’t intend to work for the employer who filed your petition. 

A little good news fellas! It appears Seattle is picking up some steam. I’ve been following some other filers on trackitt and one September 25th 2017 as well as an October 5th 2017 filer just recently had interviews scheduled for November 5th 2018 and November 9th 2018 respectively. Below is the current quarterly results for Seattle field office naturalization. Still waiting for 3rd quarter to get published. Hopefully this keeps up so we all get interviews soon. 
 

Received Approved Denied Pending 
2018 Q2: 4,750 2,187 195 18,464 
2018 Q1: 3,813 2,829 191 16,053 
2017 Q4: 3,878 3,061 219 15,144 
2017 Q3: 4,711 2,443 282 13,501 
2017 Q2: 6,072 3,822 223 12,480 
2017 Q1: 4,680 2,615 173 10,197 
2016 Q4: 4,142 2,901 350 8,230 
2016 Q3: 4,484 4,079 354 7,737 
2016 Q2: 4,611 6,706 345 7,687 
2016 Q1: 3,562 3,951 425 9,989 
2015 Q4: 3,746 3,774 382 10,644 
2015 Q3: 3,963 2,933 292 10,961 
2015 Q2: 3,836 2,610 315 10,213 
2015 Q1: 3,151 1,741 215 9,327

31 minutes ago, beekeepe said:

If I file for AoS and have a child, what would happen if I got rejected for some reason? Would the infant have to stay here while I go away? Would it be smarter to leave and apply to come back or?

 

I have not filed for AoS yet, I'm considering leaving to have the child and apply from outside.. But I would really like to keep my family together (fiance, myself, baby). I'm fairly confident in the process of adjusting status.. except, fiance and I will be fresh out of college when we marry (December), so we will not have a lot of money or assets. Though, we do have a family member willing to co-sponsor. This is just causing me so much anxiety 

AOS for spouses of U.S. citizens is hardly rejected unless there are issues such as marriage fraud, material misrepresentation, inadmissibilities such as criminal, drug or public charge issues. Anyways in case it’s rejected and you have a child who is a U.S. citizen, you will have the option to either leave your child in the U.S. or take your child with you. As as U.S. citizen your child is entitled to live in the U.S, but that doesn’t stop you as a parent who is not entitled not to take your child away with you provided your spouse also has given the consent as well.