NPM

My return flight is tomorrow night and when I called the airline company to cancel, the lady said I couldn't! She said I can reschedule it (and pay a 200 dollar fee) but not cancel. I told her I've heard that a lot of people who don't show up for their flights still have their names in the list that says they left the country, I don't want this to happen to me. She said she has no idea about that, she's never heard of it.

I was insistent about canceling my ticket, but apparently the conditions under which I bought the tickets (with miles and super cheap) only allows me to reschedule the flight and not cancel it.

So what I'm gonna do now is keep on checking my I-94 around the time the flight is supposed to depart. I'll probably keep checking it daily for a week just to make sure. If my departure shows, I'll get in touch with CBP right away.

Hey everybody,

My fiance and I are February filers from TSC. Earlier this month, I came to the U.S. to visit him on my B2 visa. At the POE, I even showed the immigration officer our K1 petition and she let me in, saying "well, you guys seem to be doing everything the right way"; my passport was stamped for a 6-month stay.

A few days after my arrival, our visa gets approved. Our lawyer gets in touch with us and pretty much says there's nothing they can do on this second step of the visa (the consulate part) and says we're on our own - which actually bothers me, because we have discussed things about this stage of the visa before we hired him and it really seemed like he was going to be with us until I got the visa.

Anyways, my biggest problem with doing this stage alone is the Affidavit of Support. My fiance is a retired veteran from the military and has spent the last 4 years going to school, paid for by the military. Which means his income was not taxable and therefore we don't have the last 3 years of tax returns they require. Yes, we are using his sister as a co-sponsor, but I'm still afraid that the fact he doesn't have any tax returns will be a big problem, since he's the primary sponsor. He has a job since last June and it pays well, but I know a few months won't do much.

The thing is, I'm here right now. I was allowed 6 months in here. We're not too eager about separating again and not knowing when are we gonna see each other again.

We're thinking about getting married and adjusting my status. I know it sounds crazy.

But if you think about it, you're considered to have committed visa fraud if you come into this country on a non-immigrant visa with the intention of becoming an immigrant. That's not my case. When I got in, I had all the intention to go back to my country and go to the interview in the consulate.

So is it really that bad?

It just feels like everything is so good right now, why would I leave.

I don't know, I'd really like some opinions from everybody here, if possible. We're considering speaking to another lawyer about this, I just don't know any good ones around here yet.

Also, I do realize the Affidavit of Support that I fear so much would still be a problem if I married him and adjusted my status, but at least it's something we can go through together.

What do you guys think? We don't want to be apart anymore and we're willing to pay for whatever lawyer fees/forms we have to pay to go through this.

We've been approved!! I got the e-mail 25min ago!

Hi NPM,

I'm a Jan 28th filer and on July 29th recieved an RFE (which was really pointless because we'd already answered their question). On August 5th the acknowledged a reciept of my response then on August 6th I received the exact same email. I promptly sent it to my lawyer (don't hire one, waste of money imho) and she said exactly that....just means they're working on my case. No need for concern. She's not sure why the system updates some on this step and not others. In her opinion, no need for any alarm.

I'm hoping it means that we're in final clearance steps. Just wanted you to know you're not alone.

Thank you for your answer! I hope that's what it means.. Good luck and I hope you get an approval soon

Today I got an e-mail from USCIS saying this:

"*** DO NOT RESPOND TO THIS E-MAIL ***

There has been a recent processing action taken on your case.

Receipt Number: SRC------------

Application Type: I129F, PETITION FOR FIANCE(E)

Your Case Status: Initial Review

On August 10, 2015, we updated your name for your Form I129F, PETITION FOR FIANCE(E), Receipt Number SRC-----------. If you move, go towww.uscis.gov/addresschange to give us your new mailing address.

During this step, USCIS initiates the background checks of the applicant/petitioner and identifies issues that may need to be addressed either during an interview or by asking the applicant/petitioner to submit additional information or documentation. USCIS reviews the applicant's/petitioner's criminal history, determines if there are national security concerns that need to be addressed, and reviews the application/petition for fraud indicators. If you have filed an I-485, I-589, I-751, N-400, I-90, I-821, I-131 or I-765, you can expect to receive an appointment notice to appear at an Application Support Center to have your fingerprints and/or photographs taken. The timing of your appointment is determined by the number of applicants ahead of you that also need a biometric appointment. We try to schedule biometric appointments as quickly as possible and in most cases you will receive your appointment notice within 30 days of submitting your application. We will send your appointment notice approximately 14 days ahead of your scheduled appointment. It is important that you keep this appointment. If absolutely necessary, you can request that your appointment be rescheduled however, please be aware that rescheduling may delay the processing of your application. Please follow the instructions on your appointment notice if you need to reschedule. Occasionally, you may receive an appointment notice to appear at an Application Support Center to have your fingerprints taken when you have filed a form other than those listed above. In these situations, you may receive your appointment notice more than 30 days after submitting your application or petition.

• Log-in to your myUSCIS account to view your case history and understand what you can expect to happen next on your case.
• Current processing times can be found on the USCIS website at under Check Processing Times.

Sincerely,

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) "

And then, when I log in to my account on their website, instead of "My Case Was Received" like in the past, it says "My Name Was Updated".

Does it basically mean they're working on our case right now?

Do they work on weekends? I'm wondering if I should expect an approval (or RFE) on Saturdays and Sundays..

Yeah, filing the K1 is kind of the nail in the coffin if you ever intended on doing that. It's ok, they say patience is a virtue, right? And good things come to those who wait? Let's hope

I know, it's too late now! The good part is our relationship is definitely getting stronger and more enduring with this wait.. Can a CSC filer say the same? Uh, I don't think so

Yes, sorta makes you wish you didn't do it the "right way", huh? It's sad; it's almost like they're discouraging us from following the legal procedures with these wait times. Meanwhile people come over on tourists visas, get married, apply for an AOS, and usually don't have a problem -- it's much faster and the couple never has to be apart. USCIS sure has a screwy incentive system.

That's exactly how we feel. Not a day goes by where we don't regret applying for K1. I was seriously thinking about marrying my fiance on my next trip to the U.S. on B2, but we realize it would be much harder to convince them we didn't intend to marry and apply for AOS with a cancelled K1 in our history.

Got an email that I got an RFE. But at least they have touched my application. I am sure others will get some approvals!!

I'm sorry about that.. Can you share what the RFE was about?

I keep telling myself to only start hoping for the approval (or RFE, geesh, I hope not!) after mid-August. It feels more realistic and I don't have to get close to a stroke everyday expecting to hear from Texas.

I'm visiting my fiance in the U.S. on August 7th and all my anxiety is directed towards wether I will be let in again or not.

I really appreciate the updates in here from those who got the Immifairy membership. Hey, at least a few feb approvals have happened already, that's better than nothing.

5 months yesterday! 4 months more and that will have been enough time for a baby to go from a little bean to a real person. It takes longer to get a K1 visa approved than it takes to generate and give birth to another human being.

Hi NPM,

thanks for the advice The address change form is confusing me though. There are 5 rows for forms / case numbers and I can't remove the ones I don't need, plus once I select I129F the language switches to Italian (and the popup messages are in Spanish).. very odd What do I select under "In the US as a" (just below the citizenship information)? "This form is completed by the Application or Petitioner" - is that me or my fiancé?

When we filed the I129F I had entered my parents' address as my mailing address, knowing that it is not going to change in years to come, and now this is also my new address, so the USCIS already has my new address as my mailing address - the answers my fiancé got from them make it sound like the actual address of residence is not important, only the mailing address. Or am I wrong?

Hi Sarah89,

I'm glad TabeaK answered your questions. I just wanted to say that when I filed for change of address, everything remained in english and there were no pop-ups, so yes, the language changing to Italian and pop-up messages coming out on Spanish are weird indeed.. I just checked the link again and it was the same page I used to make the petition, so I don't know what's up with that.

I'm glad it's all solved now, though

We're all one day closer to the approval today!

Hi @tm11216, sorry for the long silence, it was a rough and busy week. Here's what my fiancé replied when I asked him:

"I don't know the name of the TSC rep who answered, but tm's post sounds very similar to what the guy told me. He said October 8th, and when I specifically asked for an estimate of how long it would take, he said the 4 month answer."

The number he called was 1-800-375-5283 (as stated here (without the first hyphen): www.immi-help.com/directory/texas-service-center.jsp).We had prepared a list of questions that he was going to ask:

1. I’m about to change my address in Boston, and this new apartment is where we will be living when she arrives on the K1. This will make the address used on the form (when we applied for the K1 back in February) outdated. Do I have to update this information now, or when she arrives in the next few months? What is the exact procedure to update this information?

2. My spouse is changing her address in Germany in a week. Does she have to update this information? What is the exact procedure to update this information?

3. Is there any way to estimate how long this whole process would take? What is a reasonable estimate?

4. She would like to visit me in either September or October, for 3 weeks or so. The K1 almost certainly will not be granted by then. Is this acceptable, or are we putting ourselves at risk?

And this is how they answered them last Monday (I'm quoting my fiancé again):

"As for questions #1 and #2, as long as the new address is not the mailing address, there is no need to update the address. As for #3, the guy told me they are processing applications from the 8th of October, not September. Could he have read this information wrong? I don't know where you saw the information. In any event, he estimated that our file would be processed by them in 4 months or so...

As for #4, he didn't have an answer, but said they typically do not advise people to come in when they have a pending file, but that if exact days are spelled out it might be possible. For a more definitive answer, he told me to contact these folks: http://www.cbp.gov/contact"

I will chance my address tomorrow, I'm moving back to my parents' house - to save money and to have a little more emotional support in these tough (waiting) times

I wish all of you a great Sunday and the strength to endure this useless, arbitrary waiting - let's keep our spirits up!

Hi, about the change of address and visiting your fiancé in the U.S.:

My fiancé just moved and the process to change the address is pretty easy, you just have to go here https://egov.uscis.gov/coa/displayCOAForm.doand give some information (case number, old address, new address, all that jazz) and thats it. You'll be taken to a confirmation page and also will get a letter on your new address confirming the change.

About visiting, maybe this thread might be helpful: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/67796-yes-you-can-visit/ . I used to think it was impossible to visit my fiancé during the process, but this thread made me feel much better. I actually bought a ticket to come visit him this August.

Sorry I couldn't answer your other questions, but I hope this helps.

Best of luck to you!

All of the people who applied after March 27 got automatically routed to CSC. That was USCIS's messed up way of "fixing" the backlog. All those people think that they still are at TSC. So they're messing up the VJ averages. Looking at the real-time data for TSC, nothing has changed. Sorry :/

Yep, now that you mention it, it makes sense. Oh well :/

Anything new? The prediction on my VJ timeline went from mid-September to late August. I'm wondering what caused that..

Today is one of those days where the waiting takes a toll on us.

My fiancé and I both helped each other a lot - even with the distance - with our college workload. He graduated in May and it was painful to not be able to go to his graduation after everything I've done to support him make it there. I was so happy and proud of him and it was so hard missing his big moment. Only a few days later he got a great job. I was beyond myself with pride. All I wanted was to hug him, kiss him and say how much he deserved all this. The job is in a new city, so I was the one who went online looking for our new house and doing other related researches. After we decided on a place, I sent him the money for half the amount needed to move in and am slowly looking online for furniture, etc.

I wasn't there for the moving, and call me silly, but I wanted to have had that experience with him. I wanted to have helped out more and now I want nothing more than make that new place a home with him.

He had good news at work today and called me first thing to tell me all about it and I took the opportunity to tell him again how proud I am of him and that he deserves all that he's getting because of all his hard work. That's when he told me that all of these happy moments have been deeply bittersweet because I'm a part of all of them, but I'm not there to share the happiness with him, that he's always sad in these good moments because we're never together to celebrate them.

The way I feel is my life has started and I'm not there to live it.

Two weeks ago, I bought a ticket to go visit him on August 7th. I'm kind of freaked out about it, because last time I spent two months (December - February) and even though I didn't go to the secondary questioning room, the immigration officer in Miami asked me a whole lot of questions before letting me in and seemed suspicious. The subject of me knowing somebody in the U.S. never came up, by the way. Now I'm afraid I'm on some kind of list and I'm worried as to how it's gonna go this next time.

I'm sorry for venting, but I felt like other February filers in TSC would understand how frustrating it is to have to wait until September (possibly) to find out if they got an RFE that would delay their case even more or if they've finally been allowed to go on to another phase of waiting. I do understand that my fiancé and I are very lucky to have seen each other for a month or two every semester and that most people don't have that opportunity. I also realize I'm upset for not being with him to share GOOD news and that there are so many people in a much worst situation.

I don't know.. let's just keep in mind that we're over halfway through the Texas blackhole (supposedly) and that if fate is kind, we might be with our loved ones this year still. I say that supposing everything will go smoothly and the approvals come in September and the Consulate interviews come at the most 3 months later, in December (I know that in my case, it takes about two months for the interview in Rio after NOA2, but who knows).

Once again, I'm sorry for letting it all out here, but I had no other group of people that would understand how it feels as well as people here would. I don't wanna be this melancholic around my fiancé because he's suffering too and I need to be strong enough around him today to say that everything is gonna be ok and that we will be together in no time.

To everybody here, I just wish you all a lot of love and patience. Don't forget to tell your fiancés you love them today, and that they're more than worth all the hassle and wait. This is just a phase. People go their entire lives without finding their soulmates and we are lucky enough the be one of the people that did.

My fiancé just called them. It was a very long shot since we're February filers, but hey, you never know. Our case has not been transferred. At least not yet (oh, the never ending hope..) hahahahaha

Well, good luck to everybody, I really hope these transfers help out a lot of people.

I assumed that we wouldn't hear anything happen until next week or even the week after next. So I'm not let down at all. Friday was probably the day they were organizing all of the data together to get ready for the transfers. I believe they are going to route some new cases to CSC and then transfer a full load from TSC to CSC. That should definitely even out the balance if they were smart about it. Of course that's only my educated thought...so who knows... bring on the next couple of weeks with optimism!

That's what I've been thinking also. Yesterday a part of me kept expecting to get a text or e-mail saying our case got transferred - one dares to dream sometimes -, but I feel like yesterday was more of an internal organization kind of day. Maybe they were setting aside the cases to be transferred and are still going to notify the filers. Maybe their policy will be just routing cases straight to California as it's been happening, but what if they're gonna do both things? Transfer old cases to deal with the backlog and re-route new ones (their standards being unknown, since it's not been happening to all recent filers) to avoid yet a bigger accumulation of work.

I don't know, I'm still hopeful and I'm probably being very naive.

Let's just be positive and wait. After all, waiting is something we're beginning to be pros in.

I have spent the weekend looking over the data inside VJ using the tables. It seems to me that in the 2nd quarter of 2014 TSC got killed with more applications they could handle. In looking at our VJ data a number of applications in April and May 2014 were shown here to have moved from TSC to CSC and were expedited. If we can believe that VJ data is a representative sample of what is happening at USCIS for K-1 visa's I think I can see why they are not transferring any cases. The reason is that the number of actual cases (which they know measured in NOA1i applications) in the back half of 2014 actually is going down. Here is my table to show it.

15-Feb 15-Jan 14-Dec 14-Nov 14-Oct 14-Sep 14-Aug 14-Jul 14-Jun 14-May 14-Apr 14-Mar 14-Feb 14-Jan

VJ List of NOA 1 at TSC Only 85 111 126 137 173 191 182 219 192 62 95 221 202 190

VJ List of NOA 1 at CSC Only 65 121 82 65 97 95 102 138 97 94 110 113 96 82

VJ List of NOA 1 TX from TSC to CSC 19 10 16 20 20 22 21 13 21 123 130 32 24 39

Estimated TSC Workload Before TX 104 121 142 157 193 213 203 232 213 185 225 253 226 229

3 Month Average 122 140 164 188 203 216 216 210 208 221 235 236

% Below Peak -43.4% -35.2% -24.1% -13.1% -6.0% 0.0% Peak Done---------------------------------------------------->

In looking at the data its like big rat in the snake and it needs to get digested which is happening. The peak at TSC with applications measured with NOA1 was maxed out the first half of 2014. We show in VJ data that NOA1's were transferred for two months that made the NOA1's dated April and May 2014 shift to CSC. After May 2014 nothing of note has shifted. If you look at the estimated TSC workload (adding in the transferred cases) the Peak happens in August NOA1's and then drop after that the back half of 2014. In fact the 3 month rolling average for NOA1 cases for Feb 2015 is 43% lower than shown at the peak. So to me I would expect the time to process a case will drop from 200 to ? Not sure how low but less cases means faster processing.

Again there are a lot of if's in my analysis... but if VJ data tracks actual data. (that people sign up for VJ before or around getting NOA1). Then there is hope that the process may speed up over the next 6 months.... provided the output at TSC stays grinding out stuff at the same rate.

I see hope here, but will it mean 60-90 days faster? Maybe? For us February TSC filers I am hoping we may drop from 200+ to closer to 150. That is welcome news for me.

I was looking at the numbers on this post again and decided to make a little graph with all the data.. It was just a way to deal with the anxiety, mostly.. It's not that great, but here it is in case anybody wants to take a look. To member Kyle and Linh, I just wanna say I hope you're right and thank you for taking the time to do this.

Best of luck to everybody.

Hey guys,

First of all, this thread is really helpful. I was sure it wasn't possible to visit my fiancé during K1 process, but after reading the posts here I have renewed hope.

So here's the thing. I am Brazilian and I have a tourist visa that's good until 2022. I have visited my fiancé twice in the last 2 years, January 2014 - February 2014 (1 month) and then again December 2014 - February 2015 (2 months, although the stamp stated I was good to stay until May). Both times I had no issues at all with immigration (my POE is Miami). We are currently waiting for our NOA2, and as a February filer I have no hopes of getting it before mid-September (TSC). I will be graduating in July and would be free to go visit him and continue the wait for the NOA2 together.

If I tried to go, I would definitely take the return ticket with me and a letter from my employer. I live with my parents, so no rent, mortgage, etc.

Do you guys think it would be hard trying to get in for about 2 months this July? My fear is, I just came back from another 2-month stay this February.

The two times I went there, I did not mention I had a fiancé (or boyfriend, on the first time), but I did not lie. He simply didn't ask.

Meanwhile, my love will be visiting me here in Brazil for 10 days arriving this Friday (thanks to spring break), so we will be able to enjoy some more time together.

I appreciate your opinion, guys!

As a September filer, I am hopeful for April and praying that it isn't later than that, which it very well could be. Sorry Jabl2rom, but March is a bit optimistic it seems. Granted, I hope to hell you're correct, but I'm not planning on it at this point.

As for my document at the white house, we had a contact who is supposed to help get it into the right hands, but we haven't heard back from them yet. Gonna ping them either today or tomorrow to see what is happening. In addition, I managed to get in a question about the processing times imbalance to the USCIS director yesterday during the conference call, amazingly enough. I followed up by sending the entire white house packet to their public relations email address afterwards. Point being that we're doing all we can and then some to raise awareness of the issue and affect change. We'll see what happens...

It was you who wrote that letter?? My fiancé and I read it and we feel like you did a wonderful job with it. We are really thankful for what you did representing all of us filers in this journey. Thank you!

I hope that letter a I-129F filer sent to the White House this month helps any. Then again, I wonder the processing times for that letter to be opened by the government officials and where do we stand in their priority's list.