Scandi

Yes, this is poor planning. There's zero reason to wait until the last day to send in the AOS. A marriage license shouldn't take longer than a week to get a hold of, then you marry at the court house - takes a few hours to a few days to get an appointment for the ceremony? Then you're married and ship the AOS as soon as you receive the marriage certificate (which in some counties can take a long while, but OP says for them it only takes a day).

My husband didn't remember the wedding date either, and the divorce decree did not have the marriage date on it, only divorce date. So we just did a guesstimate (went back and looked at the old check books to see payments for venue etc), and it was never an issue, and nobody ever asked anything about his previous marriage either. His previous marriage was brief and ended many years before we even met - maybe it would be more of an issue if they somehow thought the marriages "overlapped" (it wasn't anywhere near overlapping in our case).

We did that too and it was never an issue. We sent every single bank statements from the past 2+ years, so even if they only saw half of them it was plenty enough.

Possibly, in my case they refused my passport and specifically asked for my SS card and non-expired driver license.

I don't know if there's any truth to it, but I have read posts more than once, by people claiming their states give you a "special" driver license when you're not a citizen (different from the license they give to "undocumented") - and for those states it's a good idea to update your status and get the "citizen DL". That is not the case in CA at least.

They don't "give" you anything you don't apply for. The Real ID requires that you go to your local DMV in person and bring the required documents (your physical SS card is one of them). Here in CA (and possibly all other states too?) you fill out the Real ID application online before you go to your DMV. And Real ID is for greencard holders too, don't need to be a citizen for that. Just apply for one.

In CA, no you don't need to update anything. I didn't give them any info until it was time to renew my license and I decided to get the Real ID instead of just a regular renewal.

The 3 year rule is for those who are eligible and don't want to wait for 5 years. You have already waited 5+ years, so you will automatically be filing under the 5 year rule.

That's normal, in most cases when you file the N-400 your i-751 gets transferred to NBC so it later can be routed to your local field office together with your N-400 for a combo interview. What you experienced is a combo interview even if the IO didn't go through it with you but had done so prior to your interview.

They just weren't caught.

Fire the attorney - file on your own like the rest of us. You have already wasted $4000 on a lawyer that never even sent your petition, who did nothing for you. Don't keep wasting money - or time for that matter.

Agreed, I edited my post to mention the ceremony.

Not an issue, as the visa process will likely take 2 years. So if you start the police training soon it will be long done before a potential visa is issued. I second what others have said - if they find out about you religious ceremony (could be anything from a text message or email on her phone, to photos on social media etc), she will no longer be able to use the K-1 visa as they will look at her as married, no longer a fiance. You will then have to start over with a spousal visa (ie another 2 year long process).

Which isn't that common, but hence I used the word "usually".

When I filed mine in Los Angeles the estimated time was 10 months, my case ended up taking slightly over 10 months. The estimation time changed after my interview was scheduled, but the whole process stayed true to the very first estimation. So in my case it was also very accurate.

Nobody can tell you if it'll speed up your case or not, as it's very case specific. In my case, it's very possible it would've delayed my i-751 with 10 months if I had filed my N-400, as my i-751 may have been transferred to NBC after filing the N-400. Because of not filing the N-400, my case stayed with the service center it was routed to, so I was approved fairly quick and without an interview. It's up to you if you want to file the N-400 now or wait. Whichever way you choose will work fine, but nobody can tell you if it'll speed up your i-751 or not.

That's the norm, you have an interview for one or the other, usually not both.

It's very common, tons of us never had an interview for ROC. The general "rule" is if you had an interview for AOS, you don't get one for ROC. Obviously an IO can request an interview for anybody if they feel there's something fishy going on or if the evidence isn't enough, but generally you don't get one for ROC if you had one for AOS.

All I needed to do was to update the website over and over until an appointment popped up. Only took a few minutes, people cancel their appointments all the time, snag one of those.

There is no such thing as "Homeland security updating SSN status". You need to go to a SSA office that knows what they are doing, as the person you talked to lied to you or simply didn't know any better. I myself had to go to two different offices here in Los Angeles before I could apply for my SSN. The first person at the first office also told lies.

What type of name change? If you wanted a name change that is more than just switching out your last name for your spouse's last name, you need to go through court to get a name change. You can then use that name change document to update your IDs, SSN, greencard etc.

Well that's good then, they have records of the i-90 and that you sent it in good time. It does unfortunately take "forever" for something that should be easy and quick to fix.

I received SSSS as a tourist on ESTA, only once. Did not get it for my K-1. It's random, or they have their reasons, but I highly doubt it has anything to do with what visa you travel with or that you're getting married.

The reason you got the letter is because in USCIS system you're a conditional greencard holder and should file for ROC. This is why it's important to file the i-90 for correction the second you receive the card with the wrong info on it, so it's corrected before the system thinks you should file your ROC. So at this point, since it doesn't appear that you have had it corrected, you will be "flagged" in the system if you don't file for ROC, and since you're technically not a conditional greencard holder you can't file for ROC. It's a catch 22. While many applicants file their ROC too late and are just fine, even by several years, others receive letters about their status being terminated and a notice to appear in immigration court. So be prepared that this COULD potentially happen. In the end you will be fine as it's not your error, but not having your status corrected at day 1 could lead to some extra work and headaches.

Ah, I thought you meant everyone - as in EVERYONE - gets the review letter, which I figured must've been a new-ish thing if so since I didn't get one "back in the day" (how old am I). Either way, yes just like with any other application I guess it's either approval, review or denial. My approval notice was certainly nothing fancy, I received the official approval letter in the mail a week later. OP: Held for review is perfectly normal and nobody can tell you how long it will take, unfortunately. Like powerpuff said, sometimes the person interviewing you isn't even allowed to make the final decision and will have to go to a supervisor to get that done, and if that supervisor is very busy you may have to wait a while. Since the person who interviewed you talked about your greencard it seems he didn't see any issues with your case - so I wouldn't worry about that if I were you. Like with everything else USCIS related, it's just a waiting game.