Michelle M

On 12/4/2019 at 11:28 AM, dc91226 said:

Good morning everyone,

 

Yesterday Tuesday December 3rd, I had my interview at Federal Plaza on 7th floor. My wife and I got there pretty early, almost 1 1/2 ahead of interview schedule. I did not foresee that there as a significant wait time just to check in to get your biometrics done picture/fingerprint. We waited in line for over an hour and over another hour and a half just waiting to get called in. We literally did not get called in for the interview until 2 hours after scheduled interview time. 

 

Anyways interview went well, it literally took 5 mins. We got called in, this is exactly what he asked

• Where we got married and asked for pics
  • Gave our wedding Album
• Asked for financial Documents
  • Joint Tax return
  • Copy of purchase offer for house
• Asked for our birth certificate
• Asked if we worked

Interviewing officer was  very neutral, not rude but not smiling either. At the end of the interview he got up he said everything looks great and that I should be getting the card in the mail within the month.

 

My wife and I were starving so we decided to eat around the are. Literally 2 hours after the interview checked the app and status said that card is ordered to be produced!!

 

My suggestion, if possible please please please arrive 3 hours earlier than interview.

 

Good luck everyone!

We were an hour late for ours but I don't think it affect the wait time significantly we were out in two hours, not sure if it was due to the snow on the 2nd of December. 

34 minutes ago, pizzaday said:

Fascinating. Our interview was Monday (Dec 2nd) at Federal Plaza as well, and went a little different. The interview took close to an hour!

 

Registration was quick and easy, but we waited for the actual interview for almost 2h.

Once we were called in and sworn in, we were asked for our identity docs (passports, birth certificates, marriage certificate, SSNs). The officer checked all of these against the copies we had filled, including my expired passports. She spent quite some time flipping through our (massive) file trying to find the right pages.
 

We talked at length about our relationship. My SO described how we met, I talked about Thanksgiving, my relationship with his parents and how we got engaged and what our wedding was like. We were asked about each other's families and when we met them, the full names and ages of our parents and siblings, when and where we were born, each other's work history, when and where we went to school, all the places we've lived together, what our time living abroad was like. Basically, we went over and confirmed all our answers from our I-485, and then some.

It didn't feel like an interrogation though, she was very engaged in our stories, responsive and good-humored.

That makes me think how the interview goes down *really* depends on the officer. Ours might've been a bit more junior — she stumbled over the question in part 8 of the I-485 a bit specifically. We did not get an approval on the spot, I think because she wasn't sure if I needed to redo my medical. Basically same story as @LizMs interview. Really bummed out about this. I've spent a lot of time researching the validity of the medical and nothing in the official documentation states I would need to redo it.

 

We had front-loaded our application with a lot of evidence and submitted a few new docs and pictures at the interview. She took it all at the end of the interview without looking at it. We were told we'll have an answer within 120 days and a potential RFE for the medical within a week. I hope that means we could also get an approval instead of the RFE within the week, but who knows 🤷‍♀️

Funny we had our interview on December 2nd at 26 Federal plaza but ours was so different.  It took about and hour in that hour he looked through our file, typed on the computer, talked about previous cases, his ex-wife , his love for food , a few questions about us, went our the yes and no questions.  At the end he told us we were approved and should get the GC in 10 days. He never asked to see one piece of evidence ( we were confused). However, the next morning we got an update that the card is being produced. 

He has worked there for 15 years, maybe that plays a role in how the interview went. 

We finally got an interview date, Dec 2nd. 

On 12/21/2018 at 12:20 PM, LizM said:

So sorry to hear about his mother. Hope you guys are doing well.

 

We're flying out to Sweden from JFK this afternoon, coming back in January on combo, I don't really have any worries other than losing my combo card while in Sweden.

 

Anyone here have any news on their GCs?

Thank you we are doing well. 

You won't lose it  Enjoy your trip.

On 11/9/2018 at 8:33 AM, missileman said:

That is an entirely different situation.  I challenge anyone to give me more than one advantage of a K-1.......

Personally, I didn't want to spend my first year of Marriage living apart. While doing the K1 process he wasn't my husband so canI change my mind before he enters the US without any legal issues, but once you are married  if you changed your mind, you'd still have to get divorced.  That was my thought process.

On 11/17/2018 at 6:28 PM, NjK said:

Hi NYC fillers!

On November 14 did biometrics. How many days the status change to ready to be scheduled for interview?

No one knows for sure, I waited 100 plus days. 

My husband reentered (JFK NY ) with is EAD/AP combo card, per him they just asked him why he visited Jamaica (his mom funeral) and then verified somethings in the computer, stamped his passport and sent him on his way.

My husband reentered (JFK ) with is EAD/AP combo card, per him they just asked him why he visited Jamaica (his mom funeral) and then verified somethings in the computer, stamped his passport and sent him on his way.

My husband reentered (JFK ) with is EAD/AP combo card, per him they just asked him why he visited Jamaica (his mom funeral) and then verified somethings in the computer, stamped his passport and sent him on his way. 

19 hours ago, Michael & Michele said:

He allowed me to handle his paycheck and I was giving him spending money weekly and still paying ALL household expenses.

Were you saving when he was allowing you to handle his paycheck?  

1 hour ago, vaksurik said:

Oh what a nightmare. I didn't realize to get certified copies it was such a hassle. We went on a week-long trip upstate the day after the wedding, so we figured if it was sent by our officiant when we left, certainly it would get back to us by the time returned. No such luck. Are you saying that once we get the marriage cert in the mail, we need to go back to city hall anyway to get actual certified copies in order to send in our paperwork?

I did not use certified copies, I just sent a photocopy and so far no RFE and we got the EAD/AP card. 

On 10/19/2018 at 3:14 PM, march16filer said:

Back when I did it, you would receive your EAD then will go to the SSA office and file for a social security number using the EAD. 

They sent ours separately; we got them within a day of each other. 

2 hours ago, JamesySofia said:

. So my question is: Do the children need his consent every time they want to come back to the USA and can he legally detain them if they are to travel back to CO?

I would consult a lawyer knowledgeable with Colombian law. 

24 minutes ago, zamardii12 said:

This is important... do you (or anyone here) know how long it took USCIS to charge your card for the full amount after you sent it? So for example, if I were to send in my I-485 on Saturday how many days would it take for them to charge the card? 

They charged my cards within three days of  when the they received it, but I don't know if that is standard. 

On 10/12/2018 at 11:26 AM, Mellamanlola said:

Not if he has his EAD and SSN handy. If it’s just the driving permit there are certain steps to follow before he can get it. It is better if he goes to the dmv site and follow the document points for ID on the site and set up an appointment online, it’ll give you a print out with the list of documents to bring, that way no one can give you different information or a hard time like only the dmv knows how to. He is supposed to just go take a test. I am investing my case limbo time on studying for that test since is the first thing I’m doing the moment i get my EAD/SSN because the prospect jobs require DL. Good luck 🍀 the Internet is a powerful tool 

That's is exactly what we did and I sent him off with all the documents ( ss card, EAD, passport, marriage license) along with the printout. Unfortunately the DMV really knows how to give you a hard time.  I took him to the DMV in Yonkers with the same documents and he was able to do the test, which he passed (yay). 

Keep studying, the test is only 20 questions.  

My husband just went to get is drivers permit and they told him that he needs insurance and a bank account to get it. Has anyone had this experience?

3 hours ago, Ben&Zian said:

 

I myself fully agree here. One, people go into this whole ordeal and half of them have no clue what to expect, just assume file some paperwork and poof, magic happens.

Same with the financial part, everyone's situation is different, understood; but if you can barely support yourself how can you then support someone else?

I don't like the whole co-sponsor deal personally either, and I'm sure some people will rant about us not liking it either. 

Because you're right on costs, it isn't just about the filing fees, medical, interview, plane tickets, ect... what about when they get here? New furniture maybe? Down payment on a car? Just extra food and date nights? All of those add up very 

quickly and a lot of people don't even consider that before hand. I took a 5k loan out of my 401k knowing we would need extra on top of it all; but that's planning and realizing a head of time just the minimum won't cut it.

So no offense to anyone; but the whole co-sponsor thing doesn't work for me either.

Never thought I would agree with anything you say on this forum but guess I'm wrong.

I agree with you wholeheartedly.

Maybe it's cultural but asking a family member to co-sponsor would put me and my husband in a bad light therefore, I cannot understand why people so freely do it, even though it's legal.   

2 hours ago, XB123 said:

OMG so I should expect the EAD wait time would be like four months... 😣

 

yep.....that's how the USCIS roll  

Got our AP/EAD and SS card. Whew.... now on to the next step. 

Even though we may be waiting months for an interview date, we got "case is ready to be scheduled for interview" as of 10/4/18.  Whoop.  One step closer.

Even though we may be waiting months for an interview date, we got "case is ready to be scheduled for interview" as of 10/4/18.  Whoop.  One step closer.  

1 hour ago, Tilia said:

No, no it doesn't.

 

I have seen this idea for a while now, and it is WRONG. I don't know where it comes from, but it seems to have made quite a career on this site.

 

In case people are not aware, having kids means co-parenting for at least 18 years with someone. It is very, very much a sign of good faith, especially since in case of separation, shared custody is almost impossible between people from two counties.

 

Compare this to the "strong evidence", aka common bank account. Seriously? All it takes for me to boot my husband off of mine is a call. Same for insurances, credit cards, and so on. Even a house owned in common is way, way easier to figure out than custody issues.

 

Lastly, I have spoken to two USCIS officers, one at my AOS interview and the other at my N-400 interview. They both said having children is the STRONGEST evidence a couple can bring.

 

Just wanted to get this off my chest, lol.

Thank God someone said it, that phrase annoys and pisses me off.

Got a " new card in production" update on Saturday 9/29  making it a 113 days . Thank God for the movement. 

5 hours ago, apawsiopao said:

Hello everyone! Just wanna know if there’s a way on speeding up the case? We filed our k1 visa and received our noa1 last april 11,2018. Up until now there’s still no response for noa2. My fiancé had recently visited me here in the Philippines from May 1- August 21,2018. And blessedly, we are having a baby. I am now 11 weeks pregnant. Our concern is, I need to go to USA before I reach 36 weeks Aog. I want to give birth in US with my fiancé. So do you have idea if there’s a way that we can speed it up? If none, until when will we wait? I will really appreciate for your response! Thank you so much and have a good day!

Congratulations!