americanboy

We have EAD/AP card, but still waiting on an interview for AOS.  "Ready for interview to be scheduled" for 98 days.  Can't wait to hit that 100 day mark, woohoooo!

Oh well.  Patience.

Why do people track the number of days, is there an important deadline or number to keep in mind?  And when does the tracking start, from when USCIS received your application?

2 hours ago, Suss&Camm said:

This works in Texas (I used my i485 NOA1) and some other states, CA is not one of them. OP will need EAD. CA does have another type of License though, that's AB-60 that's valid only in CA and is for ppl who cannot establish legal presence at the time. 

I am the OP.  It worked in CA, at least for the learner's permit.  I'm certain it won't get her a license, though, no.

Just to inform anyone searching up this thread in the future... we took a chance and went to the DMV this morning.  They were willing to accept our Marriage Certificate (a photocopy) and a Notice of Action from USCIS as her two forms of "proof of address" (they both had her name + our address on them).

There was a moment of drama when we realized her I-94 had expired, so they'd need to use the NOA as proof of legal presence in the country.  The lady wasn't sure whether she'd be allowed to use the NOA to serve both functions (proof of address + proof of legal presence), but she went and asked a superior, and got the go-ahead.

The written test was passed, pictures were taken, learner's permit acquired.

We sent a huge packet of stuff, but since we were filing the I-485, I-131, and I-765 concurrently, it didn't occur to me to send duplicates of some items.  We sent:

1. one copy of her electronic I-94,
2. one (photo)copy of her passport/visa,
3. one (photo)copy of the marriage certificate, and
4. only two passport photos.

Somehow, after staring at instructions and checklists for weeks, I still managed not to realize we should send in all of the above for all three of the forms we were filing.

I realize it may (to some extent) be at the discretion of the particular agent who looks through our package, but I'm expecting a big fat RFE.

Should we re-file the entire package if and when the RFE arrives?  How long can I expect this to delay everything?  Maybe we'll slip through on what we submitted, but somehow I doubt it.

Just now, kandikandi said:

Just tried it with YOUR_ID at the end (with the intro in place of profile).  Still not working...

Well, just to be clear, it needs to be your ID (a number) and not the literal string "YOUR_ID," right?

That's why I suggested going back to the previous page (My Timeline) and editing the address bar there, because it has your ID in the URL already.

Go to My Timeline, and change the url from ".../timeline/profile.php?id=123456" to ".../timeline/intro.php?id=123456"

1 hour ago, Denis & San said:

Is there an issue with editing timelines right now?  I keep getting an error when trying to get there.  Thanks

1 hour ago, KimberleyVDB said:

I think so. I have the same problem. Can't even get on the site with my laptop or anyother device when I'm on wifi. It's very annoying I must say.

Check here:

Just now, kandikandi said:

Got the same error message.  And when I looked at the URL of the error page, it said intro.php .

Did it say anything after intro.php, though?  The issue is that you need the end of the URL to be ?id=YOUR_ID instead of the broken ?cfl= junk.

Just now, kandikandi said:

Should I be doing this on my phone or my computer?  Because on my computer (who's wifi IP is blocked), the VJ site isnt even loading.  Its saying Safar can't open the page because the server isnt responding.

Wherever you're trying and failing to edit your timeline.  When you get the "should you be here?" error message, look at the URL bar.  It's probably got some gobbledygook in it like:

http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/intro.php?cfl=<?php%20echo%20;%20?>

That's the bug.  Go back to the "profile.php" page and change it to "intro.php?id=..." and you can get past the bug.  Should work on a phone too.

I had the same problem yesterday, it's a bug.  Here's a workaround.  From the "My Timeline" page (click your name on the top right of the site, then click "My Timeline") ...

visajourney.com/timeline/profile.php?id=YOUR_ID

...you can just change "profile.php" to "intro.php" and leave the rest (including YOUR_ID).  Hit enter, and you should be able to skip the error message.

Looks like "Instruction Permit" is the terminology to look for in CA.  Thanks for digging!

Hi there.  Title pretty much says it all.  I know my wife can't get a Driver's License until she's got (at least) her EAD.  We've sent in the AOS package, waiting for NOA, fully expect to wait until at least July for EAD... but in the mean time, I'd love it if she could take the written test and get her learner's permit, so I can get her some driving practice between now and then.  Apparently the rules differ from state to state, so I'm curious whether anybody knows the specifics for CA?

If you fill in your timeline you can see more from the Swedish people.

Oh, whoops -- I still had the US Consulate listed as Armenia, which... I guess must be the default. Changed that to Sweden! She's actually Danish, but the embassy she'll be interviewing at is in Stockholm.

Also join the Scandinavian thread.

I keep forgetting to post in the Scandinavian forum. I told my girlfriend to do it, though. She's the Scandinavian one, after all.

The embassy in Stockholm is very easy. I don't know how far you are over the poverty line but we didn't provide any of all that evidens. I gave them the I-134 and his tax return and that was fine but you can bring as much evidence as you want. a couple of months of pay stubs are always good to have.

You have to send it to her and she will bring it with her into the embassy

Oh, that's great to hear. Thanks for the info, that helps a lot.

I've received my second Notice of Action form (NOA2), and so now I'm in the process of gathering documents to mail overseas. Most notably, the I-134 and associated supporting evidence.

These docs are all listed under "What to send to your fiance once the I-129F is approved" on the K1 guide: http://www.visajourney.com/content/k1guide

I'm a little confused, though -- does the affidavit of support need to go to my girlfriend for her interview in Stockholm? Or do I file it with the Department of State myself? Seems strange for her to present my affidavit, but okay...

Regarding the "evidence," the I-134 instructions list the following requirements:

(A) Statement from an officer of the bank/financial institution with your deposits, identifying the following: 1. date account opened; 2. total amount deposited for the past year; 3. present balance

(B) Statement(s) from your employer on business stationary showing: 1. Date and nature of employment; 2. salary paid; 3. whether position is temporary or permanent (also include copies of your last two pay stubs and your previous W-2 for the associated employer if available)

( C) If Self Employed: 1. Copy of last income tax return filed (or IRS transcripts); or 2. report of commercial rating concern

(D) List containing serial numbers and denominations of bonds and name of record owner(s).

For (B), I've got an open ticket with HR at my job. But for (A), I've got two questions... first, do you just walk into a branch and ask for a manager? And second, do they also want letters from investment houses (e.g. Vanguard, Fidelity, etc) to cover retirement/brokerage accounts and stuff, or just from the bank that receives my paychecks every month?

There's a US Embassy in Copenhagen, Denmark (which is also where my girlfriend lives)... but I've been told on these forums (and confirmed for myself online) that interviews are conducted in Stockholm, Sweden.

http://cdn.ustraveldocs.com/dk/dk-iv-visaapplyinfo.asp

However, regarding Question #20 on the I-129F, which reads:

"Your fiancee will apply for a visa abroad at the American embassy or consulate at..."

If this is where the USCIS will send paperwork and so forth, it makes sense to specify Copenhagen. If the question is where will the interview take place, it makes sense to say Stockholm. Which is it?

Wow, this is pretty overwhelming! Thanks to everyone for all the helpful tips.

Basically, dealing with USCIS is a lottery.

Wow, great!

Add me to the list of k1s who wish I would have done cr1. ... If I could do it over, I would weigh the options more and rely on emotion less.

It sounds like there's a (potentially) long wait going either route, K-1 or CR-1. With K-1, the wait is in the US. With CR-1, it's abroad. But with CR-1, since you're automatically a legal permanent resident upon arriving in the US, you never have to sit around unemployed/uninsured/unlicensed in either country. Would you say that's roughly correct?

I am glad my wife and I chose the CR1 route, but beware of some of these estimates. 12 months is optimistic. ... Conceivably, tomorrow you can submit the K-1 package. But again, I'm glad we went the CR1 route so she was an immediate permanent resident upon landing in the US. No AOS. And a little less expensive.

It's almost an even split between K-1 and CR-1. I should put up a straw poll.

Same for me. We chose K1 for your same reasons, but now I wish we would've just done CR1. Planning a destination wedding in JA would've been much better than rushing around trying to figure out something within 90 days is too much. Plus the added cost and drama of AOS. Oh well, hindsight is 20/20. Im grateful he's here now!

Finally, a light in the darkness; we have no plans for a fancy wedding. Having to rush and get married in the 90-day window for a K-1 is no hardship for us.

Being here on a k1 and waiting around for adjustment of status has been a challenging experience. Never have I felt this helpless, dependent and unwelcomed.

That's really terrible, I'm sorry to hear it. And I wouldn't want to force anyone to go through it. Ugh.

Just a "warning", the K-1 might not be faster than the CR-1 at all. It most likely won't be for us. Had we known it'd take this long we would definitely have went for the CR-1 instead, that would've saved us some money, we would've been done with the AOS part when I enter the US and the process would've been just as fast.

I totally regret the K-1 but at this point it has gone so far so we can't really change our minds.

Uh oh... that doesn't sound good. Are there any specifics to your situation that make this the case, or is CR-1 just generally faster than K-1?

Good luck! Come join us in the Scandinavian regional forum if you like :-)

Wow, forums for everything around here.

Thanks for all the replies. I guess the best way here is just the LONG way after all. Now to begin the K-1 research.

what your lawyer suggests is fraudulent.

Well, that sure puts a damper on that plan.

First of all, I'm sorry if this is the wrong subforum. This is my first attempt to figure anything out, and there's an overwhelming pile of Visa Spaghetti on my screen right now.

I -- a US citizen -- am in a roughly 1.5-year long distance relationship with a Dane. I've made several trips there, stayed for up to a month. She's made several trips here, staying for up to three months. At this point, I think it's probably time to figure out how to get her into the US permanently.

Reading over the comparison (http://www.visajourney.com/content/compare) it sounds like the fastest and cheapest way to do this is with an IR-1/CR-1 via the "direct consular filing" method. I'll be in Denmark later this year, so I could conceivably stop by the consulate in person... however, I'm not a Danish resident myself, so this might not work.

Spoke with a lawyer and he suggested some kind of "get spontaneously married, then ask forgiveness afterward" approach, since it would result in her staying here in the US with me while paperwork is resolved. That sounds fishy to me, but I like that it's fast. Unfortunately he wants to be paid several thousand dollars for his help in navigating said paperwork. Ouch.

I really have no clue where to start. I'm going to do more reading on this site, so please tell me if I'm wasting everyone's time, but I hoped to just throw a question out there. Is DCF an option? Is it the best option?