Ejoriah

How long until your checks got cashed? California service center received my package (via USPS) on Thursday Aug. 9 but they have not cashed my check yet... Wondering if I should be worried. 

I am the beneficiary, my boyfriend is from the US and i'm from Mauritius. We haven't filed for the fiance visa petition yet, still gathering information. The meeting was so short because he couldnt get more days off work (he actually used his sick leave) he wont get a vacation leave from work until 2018. And we met in london as it was easier for him and that way we got to spend more time together (he would have had to take 2 flights to come to my country of 18hours, that would have been more than a day of travelling including the layover). And there's no way i could go meet him to the US as i would need a tourist visa for that and i obviously wouldnt be able to say im going to meet my boyfriend that would get me rejected instantly, it would be suspicious for me to go alone. I dont even have family members in the US. Also the interview for the k1 is being held in South Africa now for mauritians, no longer in Nairobi.

You can't take that for granted. There are members here who were granted tourist visas even when saying they were visiting their boyfriend/girlfriend. It's not that unusual for tourists to travel alone, too. Mauritius-US can be very expensive depending on the time of year you fly, but I would suggest doing some research on airfare and trying for a tourist visa.

I received my greencard in the mail today, a week after my interview. I'm glad to be done with this process for now, until ROC!

Hi,

As you can see from my timeline it took around 11 days from expedite approval to having the card in hand. My online status did not update with tracking information until after I received the card.

I see you have an Infopass appointment closer to your day of travel. They should be able to stamp your passport with a temporary AP or something like that. When I went for my expedite request the person at the Infopass told me to come back closer to my travel date if I didn't get the AP in the mail in time, and they would stamp my passport.

How long has it been since approval?

My husband got promoted to where he was making well above the needed amount about two months before we applied for AOS. We submitted his employment letter (stating how much money he'll be making per year) as well as pay stubs reflecting the change. We got approved yesterday with no RFE and no joint sponsor.

I had my interview today and got approved on the spot!

My case changed to "ready to schedule for interview" on June 2, but we didn't get scheduled until September. Our interview date is today.

My status was updated online stating that my interview is scheduled for October 21st! Now I'm eagerly awaiting the notice in the mail...

If you are adjusting status (filing both I-130 and I-485 at the same time) then you need to be in the US for the duration, until you at least get Advance Parole. Leaving the country with a pending I-485 and without Advance Parole basically means you've abandoned the petition.

Hello everyone, I have a question:

Until 2 weeks ago, my AOS case on the USCIS site read "As of June 18, 2016, we are ready to schedule your Form I-485 ....". Now, when I look at the same case, the case reads "As of July 28, 2016, we are ready to schedule your Form I-485"

Is it normal ? why the date change ? is it a simple update to prevent any inquiry or what ? I'm a bit confused

Do you guys have any idea ?

Same happened to me. Originally the date was June 2, but then it changed to July 28.

It might also throw a red flag that after just one semester of school you are out of money. Part of being granted an F-1 visa is that you can prove that you have enough money to support yourself and pay tuition for one year. Granted sometimes circumstances change, but after only three months? If I was the CO I would wonder if you lied on the F-1 visa application concerning your available funds.

Still no interview letter on my end

Why doesn't your mother want her USC husband to petition for her? I believe the process would be much easier/faster if he was to do it, instead of you.

I got my EAD/AP card today, 10 days after the status changed to "in production" (but the July 4th holiday was also in that time frame so that probably delayed things). Also this happened after I made an infopass appointment to ask for an expedite, which was successful. I got the notices that I was approved on Saturday, and then today (Monday) I got the card in the mail.

Still no word on when the interview would be but I'm not in a rush.

Edited to add: they used my biometrics picture instead of the picture I sent in with my application. It's a shame because I looked better on the pictures I sent in, instead of the one they took at biometrics

You don't need copies of the certified marriage certificate with the EAD/AP application.

You can put in your receipt number on the USCIS website: https://egov.uscis.gov/casestatus/landing.do

Now you wait to see if they need more evidence (RFE). If not you'll probably need to go to an interview, although that is sometimes waived. More info here: http://www.visajourney.com/content/k1k3aos

Good to see another person from the Phoenix, AZ area! Good luck on your process. My experiences with the Phoenix local office have been good so far.

If she is living in the US then she should just file for IR-1/CR-1 from there. DCF is typically for US citizens who are living abroad.

http://www.visajourney.com/content/compare

It's not hard to get advanced parole. Apply for it at the same time as filing the I-485/I-130 and you should receive it within 90 days. I haven't personally traveled on AP yet but search around this forum, many people have used AP without issue.

Also as I've already stated earlier you really shouldn't enter on a nonimmigrant visa (which the student visa is) with intent to immigrate by adjusting status.

Hi everyone, I want to share my story in case it helps anyone. I a Mauritian citizen on an F-1 visa since 2010. I am adjusting my status following my marriage to a USC. I am currently in grad school and am scheduled to go abroad for research in my home country this month.

I booked the tickets to do research back in early march, thinking I would renew my student visa while in Mauritius. However as I researched visa renewals I realized it would be fraudulent of me to re-enter the US on a student visa while engaged to a US citizen and planning to marry and AOS about 9 months after my return. Therefore we got married as fast as possible in order to do things lawfully. Unfortunately it took some weeks to get the certified marriage certificate, which led to our packet being sent less than three months before my intended departure (I am leaving July 11). However I filled in my timeline information here and originally VJ said the case would get adjudicated in late June. I thought that was just in time for needing to travel.

Unfortunately my receipt number never worked on the website so I couldn't track progress, and as I followed timelines and threads here I realized that EAD/AP adjudication was now taking the full 90 days on average. I tried calling but couldn't make sense of the automated system to get connected to an actual person, and as I mentioned my receipt number was not recognized. I decided to set up an InfoPass at my local office and thankfully there was an opening for two days later.

I asked my academic advisor to write a letter on university letterhead explaining why this research was crucial to my career, and I also wrote a letter explaining why I was asking for an AP expedite. I brought all my receipts, copy of the plane ticket and all the immigration documents I have, including my passport and copies of all my former I-20s.

When it was my turn to speak to the officer, I was really nervous. Not only is this research crucial to my career but the plane ticket is also non-refundable (I know, I know, don't make plans until you have card-in-hand, but as mentioned above at the time I thought I could simply renew my student visa). He asked to see the receipts that prove that I did file for AOS and AP. Then I told him I am asking for an expedite because I am scheduled to travel for academic purposes on July 11. He asked to see the plane ticket, then called (I assume) the office where my file was. He gave my A-number to the person on the phone and then told them I was requesting an expedite because of travel for academic purposes on July 11. I was prepared to argue my case and show proof that this travel was incredibly important and would result in significant losses for me if I couldn't go, but he never asked to see any of it.

Once he hung up he told me that they agreed to expedite (yay!) but that it might not get there in time for me to travel. He also said that they could give an emergency advance parole directly in my passport right there in the office, but that those are only valid for 30 days and my trip is supposed to take 31 days. He then asked me to wait as he talked to his superior. I was getting somewhat nervous during that time again, relieved that they would expedite my request but worried that I would need to pay $$$ to change my plane ticket and come back a few days early. He came back and told me that they could give me a 45-day authorization for a $360 fee, which would amply cover my needs. He then said I could wait until July 8 to see if my card would get there in the mail, and if it does not I could come back to the office with the fee and they would give me the authorization in my passport. He then wrote a note on my appointment receipt telling them to please let me back in on July 8 and send me to his window so that I can get the authorization.

The day after the appointment (July 1) my receipt was updated to say that the card is in production. With the long weekend I don't know if I'll get it in time but I hope I do so I don't have to pay the fee. At any rate, this was a very pleasant experience. I expected to have to plead and beg and show all the proof I could, but the officer took me at my word, the only documents he needed to see was my ID, receipts, and plane tickets.

A bit late to the party, but I wanted to add that I am adjusting from F-1 (bachelor's degree, 1 year OPT, and currently in grad school) and did not submit any I-20 with my application, just a copy of my visa and my I-94 (last entry was in 2012 when they still used paper forms). I did not receive any RFE and my case is ready to be scheduled for an interview.

I also recently went to my local office to request an expedite on my AP and he told me that re-entering the country on AP is only ever an issue if you entered the country illegally in the first place, and then tried to adjust. If you came into the country legally and secured AP before leaving and re-entering, there shouldn't be a problem. So you don't necessarily have to be in status, but you need to have entered the US legally.

Follow the guides here on VJ. You would be adjusting status (AOS) from a student to a permanent resident. The guides go in detail about what is required or not.

Honestly the problem I see with your case is that the two of you probably don't make enough money (over $20,025, see here: https://www.uscis.gov/i-864p).You might need to use a joint sponsor to make up the difference if you don't make enough money.

Be careful of traveling out of the country and then coming back on your F-1. You now have immigrant intent and it is technically fraudulent to enter the US on a nonimmigrant visa when you've already made up your mind that you are going to adjust status. My advice is to get legally married and file for AOS and advance parole/employment authorization.

EDIT: I am still in the process and haven't been interviewed yet, so I don't know how deep immigration officers can dig. Maybe someone else will chime in.

Did you just get a letter from them stating that your case was ready to be scheduled for interview?

No, I checked my receipt number and it was updated. But just the receipt number for the I-485, not for EAD or AP.

Page 9 of the I-864 instructions:

"In order to qualify based on the value of your assets, the total value of your assets must equal at least five times the difference between your total household income and the current Federal Poverty Guidelines for your household size, however, if you are a U.S. citizen and you are sponsoring your spouse or minor child, the total value of your assets must only be equal to at least three times the difference."