J&B

I received my combo card today. I am so disappointed though because my last name is not hyphenated like I asked on the form and told USCIS numerous times. Now on the phone with USCIS and got told I would have to reapply. It could take another 5months. And now can't travel to see my ailing mother who has stage 4 cancer. I wanna cry.   

I never let a day go by without checking the app. Today I was so busy and completely forgot. So now when I got into bed I checked and it said new card is being produced. Will update my timeline when I get my letters and card. I hope that it is soon. 

Could someone tell me what the old site vs new site is? 

I also got an email on December 10th. I'll attach a picture of it below. 

@C90 was your email like that as well? 

14 minutes ago, KatziGuthmann said:

My application wasn’t expedited, I have no idea why it went through so fast. I wasn’t expecting it until next Christmas. I’m not complaining though! 😄

14 minutes ago, KatziGuthmann said:

My application wasn’t expedited, I have no idea why it went through so fast. I wasn’t expecting it until next Christmas. I’m not complaining though! 😄

That's what I thought. There is only one other person from the Seattle area that filed in September that also had their interview already. I am also expecting my interview to be around Christmas this year, but hopefully I get lucky too. 

My status has not changed on the app since I filed, not even after boimetrics. I did however receive an email notice on December 10th that the last status update to my case was made on November 26th. Do not know what that even means. 

59 minutes ago, KatziGuthmann said:

Hello, dear Berries! I'm here to share my interview experience.

It was yesterday, on January 15th in Seattle, WA. It was very easy and we got approved at spot.

 

We arrived 40 minutes earlier, went through security check (they most likely will ask you to take your shoes off - pretty much like in an airport), then got our number (it was 52) and went upstairs where the interview rooms are. We heard numbers 34 and 35 called and were sure to get stuck for a couple hours. But we were called next, about 5 minutes before our scheduled time.

 

The officer was very nice and really made the interview to not feel as such an official thing. At first we swore to tell the truth, only truth and nothing but truth. Then he asked us for our passports and IDs since he saw them in our folder. Then he took a picture of me (for identification purposes he said) and fingerprints of both index fingers. Then he said we'd go through the form to confirm the data. He asked me pretty much all the question from I-485: my full name, date of birth, previous names, address and work history, names of my parents, number of marriages and children, my wife's full name and date of birth. During that he asked me if I was working since I arrived. I said no, and he asked, "How do you guys pay for stuff?". My wife said that she's working full-time, and he seemed to be pleased with the answer. Then he went through all the yes/no questions. When I answered he was crossing out every point all this time. After that he signed the form and asked me for another signature. 

 

After this part he asked how we met. We told the whole story from our first message till our days. He asked when exactly we started dating and if the website we met on was a dating site. Then he was like "Okay, I see you brought some papers for me, let's see them". He was only interested in relationship proofs, he didn't asked for any additional financial papers or of what was already submitted - so no birth certificates/marriage certificates/ SSNs. He took the vet bills with both our names on it. It was the only type of bills we had - before that we told him we're living on the land owned by my wife's dad, so he was fine with us not giving any utility bills. Also he added to our case the print out of phone bill that shows that I'm added to the family plan, copies of wedding/Christmas card sent to both of us and a letter from the insurance company that shows me as dependent. Then he flipped through our photo album (approx. 60 photos since our first meeting till Christmas). He asked about people in a few of the pictures, then asked where our wedding ceremony took place. There was a cute moment when he saw a picture of us with our puppy and was like "Oh is it your dog?? Okay, now you're all the way in." Oh and also at some point he asked what field I want to work in.

 

That was it. He said, "Now you can relax, I'm gonna approve your case" and asked me if I'd like to get a stamp in my passport that will serve as a temporary Green Card. Of course I said yes (I feel more secure with this stamp haha). He said he'd bring it in about 15 minutes downstairs, so we waited there for him. The I-551 stamp says it's employment authorized and valid for 2 months. We left the building and were in the car at 11.00 (interview was scheduled for 10.30). Last night my status changed twice - first to "Interview was completed and my case must be reviewed" and then in a couple hours to "New card is being produced".

 

So overall it was a VERY easy and pleasant experience. I hope everyone waiting will ave their interviews soon and as nice as mine!

@KatziGuthmann was your application expidited? I'm much more in the dark about the green card, EAD, and AP process  than I was with the initial I-129F filing. I guess it's cause this application is field office specific. We share the same field office, Seattle. In fact my husband and I live down the road from the office (so lucky:) In any case it seems that you filed about 15 days before us. If that's the case, is there reason to think that I'll have my interview soon as well? 

Also to everybody here, is there a way to do a search for those people/profiles on VJ who have gone to interviews at a specific field office?

I'm just curious how we are already seeing some interviews scheduled. Other than last time around when I followed the September and preceding groups quite closely, I don't have my finger on the pulse so well. So I'm uber confused, but happy for those who have interviews scheduled. Looks like some of these cases won't even need EAP/AP cards cause the green card will precede it? 🤔

On 11/1/2018 at 7:33 PM, sheenaph said:

I was in the same situation too. It took them 39 days to issue me a SSN and the guy said it may take another 2 weeks for the card to arrive (still currently waiting for it). 

It is worth noting that I called the SSA office (waited for 2 hours on the line) on day 37 they told me that they hadn't issued/processed my SSN. Three days later, at the local SSA office I was told my SSN was issued the day before. It's kinda odd that my SSN was issued the day after I called, right? Can't say for sure, but yeah.

I struggled to no end with SSA and on two occasions either my case was updated on SAVE or an action was taken to initiate another level of verification, both times coincidentally the day after I call.   

4 hours ago, Miroslav91 said:

Hello everyone, i just received my interview notice, its for Nov 15. I wished that is this month but still very good. I hope everyone else gets their notices soon.

Wait, I'm so confused. So from filing to green card interview is less than three months? How does that even make sense? You would have a green card before the EAD even gets processed. 

Has anybody had difficulty in opening a bank account or a delay in getting a SSN? 

I applied for a SSN the day after I arrived and was told it could take 4 weeks to verify my identity. Then when I called my local SSA office this week, they told me they have to submit additional documents to DHS so it will take a further two weeks. I was so disappointed. It's my understanding that you can't open a bank account without a SSN. Am I correct?

Getting ready to send our package by tomorrow. Good to see some familiar names on here from last years September i-129F filing group. Here we go again! 

How can you be so sure? We are just worried it will create a problem with CBP.

Hi, 

I am a K1 visa beneficiary. I am flying out to the US with my finance next Monday August 27th from Seoul to Seattle.

This evening I discovered that the address we are going to be staying at in the US is wrong on the approved i-129F. I also took the wrong address to the medical exam, which means the same wrong address is also on my medical papers. Neither of us caught the mistake before, during, or immediately after the interview. This is because we both have lived overseas in Korea we are returning to my fiance's sister's address and so its not an address he has ever lived at so we didn't realize we transposed two numbers i the street number. All the numbers are there they are just written in the wrong order.

SO: Right now I have my visa in my passport. I have the packet to hand to the CBP officer in Seattle. We made a mistake, and obviously wouldn't want to make more mistakes by knowingly giving CBP a wrong address.  Please HELP us. What should we do? Right now we are already going to call the Embassy on Tuesday morning (since its Monday night where we are). What else could we do? Anybody made a similar mistake before?  

Any help or feedback would be so helpful.  

1 hour ago, Greenbaum said:

That should be enough not to do another medical in the States right? YES BUT - when you are ready to submit your paperwork I suggest that you print a copy of page 4 of the I-485 instructions, highlighting section 7c that states the vaccination record is all that is required for the K-1 and staple it to your copy of the DS-3025.  There has been contact with USCIS regarding that some adjudicators are requesting the I-693 where it is not needed.  So unless you had a class A medical condition, no I-693 is required.

 

1

@Greenbaum 

Thanks for the swift response. I looked at the instructions for form i-485 and cannot find section 7c that states all that K1 applicants need is the vaccination record. I do understand though why you are suggesting I add it since some adjudicators might be confused. I just cannot seem to find the section in the instructions. 

Hey all! 

We went for the visa interview yesterday in Seoul, South Korea and was approved. My fiancé was there with me and the interview itself took about 5mins. I'll post more detail on my timeline. 

I do have a question though. My fiancé and I both live and work in South Korea. I know the visa is valid for six month from the date of the medical. I also know that we have to get married within the first 90 days of entering the US. That's no problem since we have set September 8 as our wedding day. That's less than two weeks after POE. My question is about AOS. Do I have to file for adjustment of status before the medical runs out on  October 11th to not have to repeat the medical? Right now my vaccination worksheet says that I voluntarily completed all the required vaccinations. That should be enough not to do another medical in the States right? We are obviously trying to save as money as possible by planning ahead. Any insights would be appreciated. Thanks all! 

2 hours ago, John & Rose said:

I am at a loss...they took Rose's visa and said all was fine.  Today she was denied.  Not even another 221g.  Just a refusal...Can anyone help me figure out what is going on????

 

I am completely losing it.  There were no problems at the interview.  They kept the passports.  She needed an NBI AKA because of a misspelling on Aira's birth certificate... 

 

 

John, 

I don't know much but to my knowledge, if the CO kept the passports he/she expected to issue the visa based on the information submitted for the 221G request. And if the only issue was the name on the birth certificate based on what you said, then maybe this is a mistake? Maybe call the embassy and ask them why CEAC says denied.    

3 hours ago, enfinity83 said:

WE GOT IT!!!!

My fiancee said the process was very smooth, but she had to wait a while. Total time was about 2 hours...

 

she's coming here in mid may! FINALLY!!!!!

That's fantastic news. Hope you guys will write about her experience in a bit more detail at some point. What questions did they ask her? 

9 hours ago, enfinity83 said:

My baby's interview is today! 7:45am local, but my time tonight at 6:45pm! She's super nervous but i'm sure it'll be fine

Good luck you guys. I look forward to hearing how I went. Our interview is also at 7:45AM but on May 1st.

54 minutes ago, Jessica829 said:

Bulent had his medical in Ankara yesterday and all's well other than his arm is very sore from all the shots. Going on on 4/26 for his interview on 5/2. Finally feels really real now!  

Omg I went for my medical on 4/11 and today is 4/13 and my arm is still sore from the shots. 

Hi everybody,

I am posting the following question here in our group as well since I am not having much luck getting a speedy answer out in the general forum. 

I am currently busy filling out the DS-160 and got stumped by two questions or section that I am not sure how to proceed on. Under the Family section, there are two further subsections called 'Relatives' and 'Fiancé/Fiancée' respectively.

To understand my confusion with these seemingly easy questions, a bit of background is necessary. 

We are a same-sex couple, both living and working in Seoul, South Korea. He is an American (petitioner) and I am South African (beneficiary). We are both planning to move to the US later this year. We know we will face a few unique challenges with regards to the affidavit of support and proof of the USC's intent to re-establish domicile. We have a co-sponsor, a place to live rent-free for a year or for as long as we need, and a well-thought-out plan to secure ourselves financially. Usually, when people file for K1 visas the USC is in the United States and therefore the following questions would be easy to answer. 

My questions:

1. Under Relatives subsection is the question: Do you have any immediate relatives, not including parents, in the United States? (You have to click YES or NO). I opted to click YES. Is this right, even though my fiance is not physically present in the US right now?

2. Under the Fiancé/Fiancée subsection, I have to fill out his address. Which address do I fill out? The one where we will live for the first year of marriage in the States? Or the one we live at right now in Korea? 

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. 

Let me also tag some people who seem to have gone through the same thing: @Bryonym  @T+E

3 hours ago, Perfect two 💑 said:

Are you the beneficiary or petitioner?

 

For question
1) the answer should be no since it is related to you (beneficiary). Petitioner is not your relative. Unless you are having other immediate relative there, you can answer yes for this. 

 

2) May I know which part is it? You should at least provide the part for others to help you. 

@Perfect two 💑 Sorry if I wasn't explicit or more clear in my post. I am the beneficiary. It is the beneficiary who has to fill out the DS-160.

About the first question that I asked about: The help function on the website (located just next to the question I am referring to) defines relatives as follows:

"Immediate Relatives Means fiancé/fiancée, spouse (husband/wife), child (son/daughter), or sibling (brother/sister)."

The question asks: "Do you have any immediate relatives, not including parents, in the United States?" By that definition, the petitioner, my fiance is my relative, but I am struggling with whether to say yes because of his physical address at this moment in time. 

About the second question. It is located under Family and then you click on Fiance/Fiancee. The problem is that the USC lives outside the US  

Hi Fellow Visa Journeyers,

I am currently busy filling out the DS-160 and got stumped by two questions or section that I am not sure how to proceed on. Under the Family section, there are two further subsections called 'Relatives' and 'Fiancé/Fiancée' respectively.

To understand my confusion with these seemingly easy questions, a bit of background is necessary. 

We are a same-sex couple, both living and working in Seoul, South Korea. he is an American and I am South African. We are both planning to move to the US later this year. We know we will face a few unique challenges with regards to the affidavit of support and proof of the USC's intent to re-establish domicile. We have a co-sponsor, a place to live rent-free for a year or for as long as we need, and a well-thought-out plan to secure ourselves financially. Usually, when people file for K1 visas the USC is in the United States and therefore the following questions would be easy to answer. 

My questions:

1. Under Relatives is the question: Do you have any immediate relatives, not including parents, in the United States? (You have to click YES or NO). I opted to click YES. Is this right, even though he is not physically present in the US right now?

2. Under the Fiancé/Fiancée, I have to fill out his address. Which address do I fill out? The one where we will live for the first year of marriage in the States? Or the one we live at right now in Korea? 

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. 

@Naes Congrats! You've been invaluable in the process for so many of us. I hope you can find some rest from your anxiety. Take really good care of yourself. And don't forget to celebrate!!!!! 🎉 

@enfinity83 our case reflects ready this morning. It took about six days as well. Now let's see how long it takes to receive packet 3 via email.

16 minutes ago, enfinity83 said:

We have scheduled our interview!

We saw that April 13th was available, but thought that might be pushing it with needing to assemble documents/go to the hospital.  

 

Instead the interview has been scheduled for April 20th! 

Great. I scheduled my medical for April 16th. The hospital said I need the letter with the case number from packet 3 so hopefully from today till April 16th is enough time for my case to arrive and for the embassy to send me packet 3 via email.