Shushulsan

Today after only 1 day in transit from Missouri to Florida, I received my 10 year Permanent Residence Card. I was delivered one day early.

This forum has been very helpful with lots of kind and generous friends. I would be around to answer any questions you might have or if I could be of any help.

God bless you all on your way to resolve your immigration as well as greater lives issues.

21 minutes ago, KimberleyVDB said:

I had to do that too. I haven't had a response though. I had my interview on Nov 29(!). And still no movement. He verbally approved me on the spot. I went in for an infopas appointment and they said it is till at the FBI for background check.. I thought they did that before the interview. .. I'm so confused. I hope my congresswoman can and will help me.

Sorry to hear that. If he doesn't, remember you also have to State Senators that you can reach out to.

An update.

I had my interview on 24th of January and Officer asked no questions of my USC spouse and he needed no evidence, absolutely nothing. It was like not having an interview. We had more than 600 pages of documents spanning 16 years of relationship. He verbally approved me with no written proof and we were walked out. Yesterday I got an approval I-797 notice of action in the mail. It confirms that I was approved on the same day of our interview.

Since Jan 27th my status online shows "Card Was Mailed to Me". I called USCIS twice yesterday inquiring about tracking number. The first guy I spoke to was very unfriendly and said card hasn't been mailed and hung up on me. I called for a second time and officer was super friendly. He said card hasn't been mailed out yet but will ship today. He went an extra mile and found me the tracking number of the package and gave it to me. It was shipped out of National Benefit Center in  Missouri yesterday. The moral of story: people are different and if someone gives you an attitude don't be disheartened, call back and talk to another one.

My case was stuck on "ready to schedule an interview" since June 2017. In late October I called USCIS to see why it is not moving. To my surprise, I was informed that my case is sitting motionless in NBC for all that time. I was so frustrated. I immediately found our member of US House of Representative. I live in West Palm, FL and ours is Brian Mast. He is a 39 year old veteran. His office immediately took action on my behalf. They contacted USCIS and send me letter in December informing me that they are waiting for a response from USCIS. Soon after I got an Interview Notice. Later his office forwarded USCIS's response that my case is ready for interview on so and so date. In fact the congressman's letter came after I got the interview appointment letter. All corespondents with his office was signd personally by him. I don't know if it was his push to move this case forward or its just moved on it own but what I know for sure that he is a very nice and responsive representative. If your case is stuck, you owe it to yourself to contact your representative. You never know! They might be as awesome as Brian Mast. 

We had our interview yesterday and was told verbally that it's approved. My online status is stuck at "ready to scheduled interview appointment" so not very accurate. Officer said that our card will get to us in 2-3 weeks. I called USCIS and talked to level 2 officer right after our interview and he informed me that nothing is approved. I speciafically asked our interview officer if my case needs his supervisor's approval and he said no. He clicked through his computer stating that all it needs is that he checks boxes and submit the card production which he did in front of us. We are very worried.

8 hours ago, agnesita84 said:

Hi guys.

So I finally got an answer to my second service request (the first one was not assigned for processing). I got a letter in the mail that says "Due to workload factors not related to your case, USCIS anticipates a delay in completing your case. USCIS is committed to adjudicating immigration benefits in the order received and in a timely and efficient manner.", etc etc.

My case status has been on "Fingerprints" since April 4. My AOS processing date is March 30. Field office is San Antonio TX, and I have talked to several people that applied way after me (May, July...) and already have their green cards or interview dates (I'm talking about same field office, same process: AOS from K1). I don't understand why there's a delay with my case but not with theirs.

Also, this letter was sent from the National Benefits Center. Does that mean that my case is still there, stuck at background check?

USCIS follows no order and things are very arbitrary. It is a practice in frustration as far as an applicant is concerned.

8 minutes ago, kimy33 said:

Thank you for sharing your interview experience. Congrats on your approval! Hope you will receive your card soon! 

Thanks you so much. One thing that worries me is that he did not give me any paper stating our approval. It was all verbal.

Today we had our interview for marriage based adjustment of status in West Palm, FL.

First a little background:

I came to the states as F-1 student 18 years ago. Went to school, graduated and worked my OPT for one year. I married my current spouse who was also an F-1 student 12 years ago. She got job after graduating and we move together and started a family. By this time, I was out of status. She finally got green card via employment and eventually became a citizen last year. Finally, after 11 years of being out of status I applied for adjustment of status in March 2017.

What we took to interview:

1.      Original & Copy of Marriage Certificate (2006)

2.      Original & Copy of Child Birth Certificate (2011)

3.      Original & Copy of Spouse Citizenship Certificate

4.      Original & Copy of Spouse Name Change

5.      Original & Copy of I-94

6.      Original & Copy of entry Visa

7.      Original & Copy of entry Passport

8.      Original renewed Passport

9.      Original & Copy of both parties Birth Certificates

10.  Original & Copy of Spouse US Passport

11.  Original & Copy of Child US Passport

12.  Original & Copy of all EAD cards

13.  Original & Copy of all I-20s

14.  Copy of Bachelors and Master Degrees for both of us

15.  Copy & Original approved I-130 filling

16.  Copy of I-485, I-864, I-693, I-765 fillings

17.  Sealed I-693 Envelope

18.  Joint Taxes 1040 (2007-2017) 11 years

19.  Spouse’s past 6 months of pas stubs

20.  Copy of letters to us by friends (2007-2017) 11 years

21.  Copy of emails to us by friends (2007-2017) 11 years

22.  Copy of letters written to us by us (2002-2017) 16 years

23.  Joint Stock Brokerage Account (2013-2018) 5 years

24.  Joint Car Insurance (2007-2018) 12 years

25.  Joint Saving/Checking Account (2009-2018) 10 years

26.  Joint Credit Account (2007-2017) 11 years

27.  Joint previous Title to a Vehicles

28.  Joint Health Insurance (2007-2017) 11 years

29.  Joint Dental Insurance (2007-2014) 8 years

30.  115 Photos (2002-2018) 16 years

31.  Apartment Leases (2004-2018) 15 years

32.  Spouse 401k stating I am 100% beneficiary

Interview Experience:

Our interview was scheduled at 7:15am in the morning. We arrived around 6:40 behind West Palm, FL USCIS building. Doors were opened around 7:00am. We passed the inspection, got ticket at reception and were the first ones to be issued a number for interview.

Minutes after we arrived, we were called in by a gentleman in his 50’s. He took us to his room and closed the door. My daughter was also in the room on an iPad to keep her busy. At first, he was very quiet. He was going through my thick file and marking vigorously with a red pen and intermittently entering information on this computer.

He neither made us swear to tell the truth, nor asked us yes/no questions from I-485.  He asked for my original passports, our driver licenses, my EADs, marriage certificate, our daughter’s birth certificate and my spouse’s citizenship certificate. He also asked that I have been here for so long how could I possibly support myself? Which I answered that I have had a supporting spouse with good income. Then discussion when to a lot of unrelated stuffs. From life in Florida, to his grandparents being immigrants and him being familiar with other cultures. At some point he was waiting for systems to respond due to servers being down. I offered to show him our 16 years album of over 100 photos. He commented that it spans such long time. I offered the album to him in its entirety and he accepted to include it into our folder.

At the end he said everything is good and I should get the card by Valentine’s day, which is in 3 weeks. I tried to get his confirmation regarding approval of my case and he said “Yes”. I also asked him why he did not ask anything of my US citizen spouse or asked me more questions? Or if this in fact was the result of a very long-term relationship that needs no further proof? Her replied “that and other evidences and that every case is different”. He also mentioned that he can tell if something is wrong and the fact that they receive a lot of fraudulent marriage applications, which he suspects next case is from that category.

At the end he took the print of both index fingers and a photo using a desk cam. At this point he said he has submitted my card to be produced and I should get a notice of action soon. We shook hands, thanked him and said goodbye.

The whole process took around 50-60 minutes and it was very pleasant. Now we are crossing our fingers that nothing goes wrong during this process and can get that elusive car in our hands soon.

God bless you all.

On 1/21/2018 at 11:41 AM, DelilahBrz said:

Do you have a Florida ID card?

I renewed my license before going for interview. So yes I did have Florida driver license despite being a temporary one (under 6 months validity)

On 1/12/2018 at 2:18 PM, Californiansunset said:

I wasn't asked for my ID at the interview, only passport. Unless you want to use it as proof of a bonafide marriage showing that both your IDs have the same address and thus are living together I don't think you need to go through the hassle of ordering a new one. I don't think it will get to you on time before the interview anyways. 

I already did what I had to do and got Florida license in one day. I just lost my 4 years valid out of state license. But as always, better be safe than sorry. My new license is only valid for 6 months (my EAD remaining validity). We will see what will happen in my interview. Thanks for your kind input.

I finally did bite the bullet and updated my drives license. They only gave me 6 months license as my EAD is valid for that duration. Now waiting and hoping for the best.

Thanks everybody and good luck.

On 1/10/2018 at 10:36 AM, DelilahBrz said:

How long ago did you move from NM to FL? Where is your car registered? 

3 years a go. FL registered cars.

Greeting,

God willing I will have my interview this coming Jan 24, 2018 and I have a question regarding drivers license.

I currently live in the state of Florida but have license from state of New Mexico. I also have my EAD so I can apply for Florida license but will only be given to me for the duration of my EAD validity. On the other hand, my New Mexico license is valid till 2022 so I have been using that all these years.

Do you think I need a Florida license where my interview will be as a form of ID or I can use my EAD as an ID plus my previous state drives license?

Any input is highly appreciated.

Greeting,

God willing I will have my interview this coming Jan 24, 2018 and I have a question regarding drivers license.

I currently live in the state of Florida but have license from state of New Mexico. I also have my EAD so I can apply for Florida license but will only be given to me for the duration of my EAD validity. On the other hand, my New Mexico license is valid till 2022 so I have been using that all these years.

Do you think I need a Florida license where my interview will be as a form of ID or I can use my EAD as an ID plus my previous state drives license?

Any input is highly appreciated.

1 minute ago, SandraO said:

Turned out to be i 485 approval/noa letter/ Welcome to the US.

 

Just got notification her case was updated online. They sent her new card 1/5!

Congratulations.

19 hours ago, Californiansunset said:

Looks like a RFE, because if it was an interview letter, the box where it has the date should be your Application Number. Obviously I could be wrong too and your interview letter looks different. Also my online status didn't change to "interview scheduled" until days after the interview letter was already sent so you can't go by the online status. The whole tracking online is extremely lacking in accuracy at the moment. It took 4 days for it to show that I was approved too...

It is likely an interview letter.

49 minutes ago, raulgon2493 said:

Just stay positive. Keep in mind that the time frame is up to 12 months - so lets start worrying until then. 

You are right. We shall wait and see.

What gives me a lot of worry is even if an appointment is scheduled or attended one wouldn't be out of the woods yet. I have red many horror stories of people often times waiting for months or years for approval/denial decisions. Excuses for such delays are often in line of "pending background check" or  "pending approval by manager". Either ways, Interview seems to be the tip of iceberg of troubles instead of light at the end of a tunnel.

All we can do is pray and who we won't need to go through it.

Greetings to all my friends. I just received my interview letter. No update on the USCIS portal just a letter from 12/19/2017. Took 7 days for it to get to me. The interview is scheduled for 01/24/2018 which would make it 303 days from my initial day of filing. The only thing that makes me worry is that my interview letter states "appear for initial interview"! What does it mean would there be more than once? hence initial?

Good luck to all.

Greetings to all my friends. I just received my interview letter. No update on the USCIS portal just a letter from 12/19/2017. Took 7 days for it to get to me. The interview is scheduled for 01/24/2018 which would make it 303 days from my initial day of filing. The only thing that makes me worry is that my interview letter states "appear for initial interview"! What does it mean would there be more than once? hence initial?

Good luck to all.

3 hours ago, TL2016 said:

If you look for things to support your side, of course you'll find them. Just like the flat-earthers will find plenty of "evidence" to support their claims. You can tell the same lie a thousand times, but it never gets any more true. Just have a look at the posts after you. Someone from Mexico, Australia and the United Kingdom, and are all in the same boat. I know this process is infuriating and I got the long end of the stick, but like I said playing the victim card won't help. Especially when there's plenty of other people from all different backgrounds are in the same situation.

 

And for the second part, you're also not correct here. This forum sub-section is specifically for people adjusting from Family Based visas , not people adjusting through family. The title literally says "from K1 and K3 Family Based Visas" and the description doesn't help your case either: "Discussion on filing for Adjustment of Status (AOS) from K1 and K3 Visas to become a permanent resident in America.". Your profile is not mentioning either of them, even though the K-3 is kind of obsolete. 

That doesn't mean that you can't be here, in fact the more the merrier. People just love to confuse the actual category they're adjusting from (not that it matters here though). I'm just pointing out that your case will be handled slightly different than the majority of K-1 adjusters. And that isn't because of your race or origin, but because you're required to have an interview while others may not have one.

 

It's also hilariously funny that you look at a single thing on my profile and then put me in a drawer. You do not need to know this, but I'm half Iranian myself and share many traits with my Iranian side of the family. But of course it's once again easier to label something, play the victim card and then move on. Right? 

No sir you are not. You are as much of an Iranian as Trump is of German. I am also Jewish Iranian but I can not have the privilege of Israeli Jews in America. Debating with you is akin to trying to wake a person who pretends to be asleep. It would be a practice in futility. 

Those people from other countries (Australia, UK) that you refer to are anomaly. Majority of Europeans or there so-called western people of southern hemisphere have it way easier. And lastly I am waiting for my interview not for interview waiver, even though they are interviewing everyone including K-1 application recently. 

I don't know what is your intention picking a fight with me? But I hate to break it to you, I am not here for a fight or finger pointing at least toward the people here. You know the government has plenty of advocates and unless you are on the payroll I suggest you don't do free work.

4 hours ago, Suudsu said:

For what it's worth, I'm Australian and a mid-February 2017 filer (day 286, 9.4 months today). I also filed a beyond six-months service request in October for my I-485 and it was never assigned for work. The wait is agonising and boring.

 

I have a slow field office (San Francisco), which currently has an average wait of about 315 days from PD to interview. It's by no means the slowest field office in the country, but it's getting worse each month (as almost all field offices are).

 

I can't see from your profile which field office you have, but your field office might be slow too. Scanning the VisaJourney timeline data for Florida offices, Orlando and Jacksonville don't appear to be up to March filers yet.

http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/aoslist.php?cfl=&op5=5,6,8,9,10,11

 

Wishing everyone the best of luck and understanding!

I am in West Palm Beach field office. It is a relatively fast office. My wife became citizen there in 4.5 months.

45 minutes ago, raulgon2493 said:

We are all feeling a little stressed. I felt like the tier 2 officer did not care about being of any help to me (the reason for that I don't know and will not come up with one) - it did upset me because he doesn't understand that any little progress or update makes the biggest difference to us. Let's try to continue to support each other and leave the rest out. There is a lot of reports out there that say one thing but you can also find reports saying the opposite. Receiving AOS is a privilege - they can easily say no and move on to the next. Let's continue to be patient. Some people in this group are going into their 9th month, we really could see movement soon. 

Amen.

5 minutes ago, TL2016 said:

Now that's very far-fetched. I know this process is frustrating, but throwing out wild accusations like this does nothing good. 

Looking at your timeline, you will need an interview no matter what. You didn't come on a K-1, so you're in the wrong subsection to begin with. You also cannot compare your case to others. I lucked out and received an interview waiver, but if I didn't, I would have had to wait another 2-3 months to even be considered for an interview in NYC. And if I didn't like that thought, would I have started throwing around accusations saying I'm being scrutinized because of WW2 Germany? Nah. 

 

I wish nothing but the best for everyone here. But these types of comments do nothing but frustrate you even more. If you look for AOS timelines, it's common for I-485's to take up to a year. There are tons of posts saying exactly the same thing too. But of course it's easier to just play the victim card.

Also, good luck suing the government. 

It is not an accusation. Recent report by inspector general shows that this administration has previously violated court order. This is called an educated guess and anything but a blind accusation. Also has been constantly stated that they don not like certain people based on the geography of their origination. These are neither secrets nor urban legends. It's out there for everyone to see.

This forum is not only for K-1 applications but for anyone filing family based I-485. All I said for those in my shoes to contact their representatives and get some information and don't let time go to waist. But I don't expect a German to understand the situation. You already had it easy and I am very happy for you that your journey was uneventful.

Thanks

I am a late March/early April filer. The reason I am here is to help those in my situation.

As you can see from my timeline in my signature, I have an approved I-130. I am married to my wife for over 11 years, have a 6 year old child with here and have lived in this nation for over 17 years. I have no criminal record that I am aware of. My PD is April 4, 2017. I have also been waiting for my interview since my online status changed to "ready to schedule your appointment" on June 6, 2017, close to 6 months ago. I have filled 2 SRs to shed some light on this case both to no avail. Yesterday I finally got a chance and called USCIS hot line and talked to level 2 officer. He informed me that my case is still sitting motionless in National Benefit Center in Lee Summit, MO. I was so surprised. He told me that he can't see why that is the case but he kindly informed me that based on his experience has to do with background check that is pending. He advised me to contact my local congregational representative. Upon getting off the phone I did exactly that. I found our representative, filled in the online form, printed it, signed it and mailed it all in a matter of an hour. Now need to wait for his office to inquire on my behalf and find out what is going on?

After doing that I got online and start researching. I am a medical researcher and very good at pulling information from dark corners of the web! What I found is not pleasant. Based on my findings citizens of certain nation that this administration isn't on good terms with are receiving the short end of the stick. Most probably they have internally advised department employees to scrutinize, delay, deny and block applications from citizens of those nations that this administration hates/dislikes. You would assume that this can't happen in a democracy without some level of transparency. Based on all public internal memos I could get my hands on from Department of Homeland Security and its subdivision, USCIS, There is nothing that indicates the problem I am describing. But when you collect individual date from forums and post you realize that indeed some nefarious activities are ongoing.

There was a recent media report that during first so-called visa-ban in early days of this administration and subsequent court stay on the order. This administration violated the court order and continued its practice in extrajudicial manner. So the moral of story, if you are a citizen of those ban nations, Mexico, some African and Latin American nations and you have been waiting for your interview for over 7 months and nothing has moved in regard to your application process you owe it to yourself and your family to call, inquire and get in touch with your congregational representative. Don't let the time laps.

16 hours ago, raulgon2493 said:

I spoke to a level 2 office - wasnt very nice nor willing to help.  I wanted further information about why my case has been stuck on "Fingerprint Fee Was Received" since March 31, 2017. He claims that on his end, my case is ready to be scheduled for interview and i need to wait. I asked if he could confirm if my application was at the NBC or at the Orlando field office - his words were "I dont know how that will make a difference, but i will check for you", he placed me on a hold and came back to tell me it was at the NBC pending completion. He couldn't answer why my application hadn't moved from the NBC. Might try to call another day and speak with a different officer. I dont know if we should contact our congressman. 

I didn't waist anytime yesterday. I filled and mailed my request to our house of representative no more than 2 hours after I got off the phone yesterday with USCIS level 2 officer. I am also going to call in again today and talk to a different person since transparency and consistency are not what Department of Homeland Security is known for.

You are Mexican and I am Persian (Iranian). It is safe to assume under current administration we are receiving the short end of the stick. Most probably they have internally advised department employees to scrutinize, delay, deny and block applications from citizens of those nations that this administration hates/dislikes. I am sure eventually someone will file a class-action lawsuit on our behalf.

Good luck contacting your representative.