Nicole&Ryan

I got my text today that they received my package and my husband confirmed that the check was cashed. I also saw in USPS Informed Delivery that I am receiving a letter from USCIS. I guess now we wait 16-21.5 months 😂

Hey guys just thought I’d add my experience as I have the MN office too. I came to the U.S via K1 visa and I filed for AOS in December 2016. Received an email saying they had got my case and was processing it a few days after I sent it in. A year later I hadn’t heard anything at all so I thought I’d get in touch with USCIS through phone and they told me to fill out the “Case outside of normal processing time” form on their site. I did that a few days ago, so today I decided to check the case status on the USCIS app and it now says “Card was mailed to me”. I always thought I’d be having an interview and some communication but apparently not, I definitely don’t mind though now my green card is hopefully on its way   I hope everyone gets their cases processed soon! - Nicole

Thank you  ah I didn’t know it was the norm to get it waived, I probably should have done more research on it. Yeah I applied for advance parole and employment authorization and they sent me that combo card 3 months after they recieved the case. It’s been a really easy process so far, hopefully yours is the same! Good luck 🍀 

Thank you! I It is always good to hear good news  

Congrats! Getting the interview waived is pretty standard for k-1 visas. They burden of proof for k-1 is that you two had met within the past two years and are intending to marry. Thus, you proved that on your initial interview.
 As long as you marry within the required 90 days and submit solid evidence with the AOS package, it’s smooth sailing from what I’ve seen.
The office does move at glacial pace. Had you also applied for Advance Parole and Employment Authorization?
I’m about to file for my spouse and how long it’s taking at this field office, is promising.
 
congrats!

Hey guys just thought I’d add my experience as I have the MN office too. I came to the U.S via K1 visa and I filed for AOS in December 2016. Received an email saying they had got my case and was processing it a few days after I sent it in. A year later I hadn’t heard anything at all so I thought I’d get in touch with USCIS through phone and they told me to fill out the “Case outside of normal processing time” form on their site. I did that a few days ago, so today I decided to check the case status on the USCIS app and it now says “Card was mailed to me”. I always thought I’d be having an interview and some communication but apparently not, I definitely don’t mind though now my green card is hopefully on its way   I hope everyone gets their cases processed soon! - Nicole

Hello all,
Last week I had my medical at Knightsbridge in London. I was extremely nervous about this due to a history of self-harm, depression, and an in-patient stay in a psychiatric ward during my teenage years. But everything went fine and I was approved with no problem, and am now waiting on my embassy interview date.
This forum was extremely helpful in preparing for the interview, particularly this thread.
This is what I did:
1. I spoke to my GP as early as possible.
There were several reasons I was nervous about this. I did not have a long-standing relationship with this GP. In fact, I had only been part of his practice for a few months and his practice has a reputation for being slow to act. After speaking with him and reviewing my medical history, he made it clear that he would be happy to sign me off as mentally healthy, but wouldn't go out of his way to put together a letter for me. So I did it for him. I went to the library next door and printed out a letter that said:

"DATE
To whom it may concern,
I, DR NAME, can confirm that [LURDINO] has been registered at my practice since [DATE].

[LURDINO] has informed me that as a teenager she engaged in self-harming behaviours and has visible scars as a result. There is no physical evidence or any evidence on her medical file to suggest that she still engages in these behaviours and nothing to contradict her statement that it has been ten years since she has harmed herself.
I have no concerns about [LURDINO] posing a threat either to herself or others.
Yours sincerely,
[DR NAME]"
He reviewed the letter, agreed that he was happy with its contents, and signed it and stamped it with his practice stamp. You'll notice that it's not exactly a glowing recommendation, or particularly detailed. It also wasn't printed on the GP's letterhead. What's important is that it's what the Dr was comfortable signing his name to considering our brief acquaintance, is factually correct, and has the extremely important phrase: not a threat to herself or others.
2. I wrote my own explanation
I wrote a short explanation of when I was depressed/self-harming, why I think I did it, what I did to stop and how I cope with stressors now.

Now, I was depressed in this way over a decade ago. I couldn't remember exact dates or names of medications. What really helped me was mostly informal support from friends and youth leaders, and I made that clear. The account was less than a single page. I tried to be brief but clear.
3. I asked for references from friends
I got a reference from a friend I've had for over ten years, a youth leader from the time I was depressed, my fiancée, and my fiancée's mother. These all included 1. how the person knows me and for how long; 2. a brief statement about me (ranging from "I knew Lurdino when she was really messed up and she's way better now" to "I understand that Lurdino was depressed when she was a teenager but she seems pretty okay these days"; 3. the all-important phase: Lurdino is not a danger to herself or to others. The letters from my fiancée and future MIL had been signed and scanned over, everything else had a wet signature.
4. What I didn't have

Ideally I would have had some kind of medical records about medications I took or therapy I went to - but things were so long ago, my GP hasn't known me that long and was unwilling to dig out medical records from 10+ years ago, and I was unable to make the trip to the GP office in my hometown (hours away from where I live now) to find out if they'd be able to provide anything.
So what happened when I had my medical?
On the medical questionnaire it asks about three things that are relevant: if you've ever had a mental disorder including depression, if you've ever harmed yourself or others, and if you've ever been hospitalised. I ticked yes to all of these. The doctor asked about it straight away and I pulled out my sheaf of letters.

She read the letter from the doctor and the account I'd written very carefully, and speed-read the other letters too. She then asked me for a few extra details, for instance if I'd ever been on medication. I answered that I had, but I couldn't remember what or for how long. She double checked the dates I'd provided ("So you would have been how old? And how long was that?" etc.) She told me that I had everything I needed in the doctor's letter. She didn't even ask to see my arms - though of course she saw them during the medical, while I was wearing my robes.
And that was it.
I guess what I took from this experience is: be prepared and gather as much evidence as possible. What matters is having a GP confirm that you're not a danger/threat to yourself or others. It probably helped that in my case I haven't harmed myself in so long. If it was within the last few years I think it would have been doable with enough evidence from a GP, plus a counsellor. And even though she didn't read all the references I brought, I think it was useful to have a number of them with me - just as visual evidence that multiple people know about my issues and still think I'm a safe and responsible human being.

I've received a lot of help from this forum - I hope that this might be useful to someone in a similar situation. Obviously everything I've written is only my own experience and things might not go the same way for every person.

I was very impressed with Fred and with his help our application was approved and the interview process was quick and we were both (more her then me) prepared.
Once my fiancé got here and then we got married, then I did all of the other paperwork/apps myself, Green Card etc.
Feel free to hit me up w/any other questions - and best of luck to you both.
Bill

Hi Banjo monkey,
I went for my medical in December, and there was no way of me being able to hide the scars on my arms.
I was in an abusive relationship, and that's why I did what I did.
I explained to the doctor that it was a cry for help at the time, and that I hadn't done it since.
She wrote a letter for me to give to my doctor, asking about passed depression and self harm. My doctor faxed back that I'm not at risk and I've not harmed myself since.
I checked with the medical doctors that they had received the fax from my doc, which they had. I didn't hear another word.
I got my embassy interview, it was never mentioned there, and I was approved.