divorcedgayman

Hello, I will soon be filing N400 (5 year residency). I have 2 questions:

• I was adjusting status from F-1 to CR1. However, my spouse and I submitted the paperwork several weeks after the 60 day OPT grace period ended. Will this pose a problem for N400 process?

• I was reading on the forum (a post from 2012) that traveling immediately after receiving a green card breaks a continuous residence. A couple of days after I received my greencard, I traveled to visit my family for 3 weeks. Does it mean that the continuous residence was broken, and that I need to start counting the time from the day I returned to the US after my 3-week trip? That is, I will be eligible to apply 90 days prior to the return from my trip? 

On 5/10/2020 at 5:29 PM, arken said:

I’d say NO for that minor thing. 

Thank you.

Should I bring this up in the interview, just to be clear? I want to be 100% clear. 

It was a stupid mistake, and I’ve taken measures not to repeat it ever again.

I have a question regarding question #31 on the N400 form: Have you ever given any US government officials any information or documentation that was false, fraudulent or misleading?

About 9 years ago, I made an honest mistake. When I was traveling to the US, I packed some fruits in my luggage, and I completely forgot about them. When asked at the immigration whether I was carrying any foods, I said no.

I was then screened by customs, and they found the fruits. In the end, I received a verbal warning from the officer (but did not have to pay any fees). It was an honest mistake. Ever since, I have been making sure to be on a side of caution. If I bring any food at all (whether it was chocolate, candy or anything edible), I mark and answer "Yes, I am bringing." I then get a chance to explain what it is that I bring.

With that, how do I answer question #31?

2 minutes ago, sweetswinks said:

 

I made a spreadsheet for tracking https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/11zRvIHWRI_DbxJC4nqhekYmuHM1gOytWC7K-qnrVC2Y/edit?usp=sharing

Sounds good. Make it anonymous so nobody can see your name and picture on the spreadsheet. (or maybe don't use your real gmail for that?)

Plus make it editable for anonymous people.

Hi everyone,

Let's get some data here to understand whether it's a glitch or not. Please feel free to fill out whatever you feel comfortable sharing.

24 minutes ago, Chidivj said:

Yes, just noticed that now below the notice date

That must be it! Do you / does anyone know if they are doing fingerprint matching on the spot?

As soon as my fingerprints were taken, the computer had a message "searching for matches." I was curious whether they were doing background check on the spot, or they were simply trying to match with the old fingerprints?

19 minutes ago, Chidivj said:

Yeah same with mine, I asked why the lady said it's only 4 fingers that is required on my own case

Hmmm. Maybe that's because we have already left 10 fingerprints before? Did your biometric letter contain code 5?

HI everyone! Just wanted to update that I did my biometrics earlier today. The process was very quick and smooth. I showed up a little bit earlier, and they immediately took me for pictures, fingerprints and signature. I was surprised because they only took 4 fingerprints, as opposed to 10. Is that normal?

2 hours ago, Amhara said:

Your original post made me chuckle...and was spot on!  Unrelated note, why are there "government shut down" clocks that include the weekend?  When the federal government is closed on the weekend, not much impact there, but it sounds much better than "well, the government shut down for a day and then they got on with agreeing to a budget..."

Hahaha, i was hoping nobody noticed hihi

3 minutes ago, Jovi&James said:

I just watched the news and they said the current shut down of the government will affect the Immigration Services because all activities have been suspended.

 

Out of sheer curiosity, what station was this?

Here's the source: https://www.uscis.gov/news/alerts/lapse-federal-funding-certain-uscis-operations

4 minutes ago, stomo said:

Yes, this is what I saw too.  

That's pretty exciting! I hope the pace will remain the same (or increase). I was looking at old timelines. In 2012, the processing time of i-751 was 4 months...

Hello there, again!

What is the dresscode for the biometrics appointment?

UPDATED 1/17/2017 with DoraS

California Service Center (19 applicants, 0 approved - 0%)

19 minutes ago, Name O Boy said:

That's not correct

LOLz. That's what I said! I said not to falsely claim US citizenship.

34 minutes ago, sandy303 said:

thank you for your comment. I thouht that going wth VAWAs oly pssible if I dont have my conditional card yet. in my case I do have it and its about to expire.

I had nevr filed taxes before, this year is gonna be my first year im filing since i worked last year. so the only reason to go to IRS to find out how my ex filed andget a copy of it. but i dont want him to get notified about it that im gettting alllthese documents since im glad enough he had stopped writing me a couple months ago. .. i hope he will never contact me ever again.

we lived together for 7 months and then i left him. escaped. but his parents were our landlords.. and no bills were on any of our names. nor phone bills, nothing since it was on a big family plan. and i dont want to contact any of them for affidativs snce i know how all of them turned against me, although they knew what was going on.. 

If taxes were filed together, you can request either a transcript or a full certified version of the forms submitted. You are entitled to it, and nobody else will be notified. If filed jointly, all you need to do is provide your SSN, your name and address inserted on the tax forms (I imagine that would be your in-law's address). When you request this, your spouse will not be notified. 

https://www.irs.gov/forms-pubs/about-form-4506 ($50 fee for each certified return)

https://www.irs.gov/individuals/get-transcript (free transcript - some users have hard time accessing this and may need to go to the IRS in person/find some other solution)

I'd get on getting those things soon. IRS will be incredibly busy soon, and processing any form will take forever.

For the living together part, I'd encourage you to think whether you have some other evidence of living together, e.g. driver's license with the address, correspondence you received at the address, affidavit from the leader of the church you mentioned, etc.

This thread should be moved to the Effects of Major Family Changes on Immigration Benefits for better help.

I am very sorry that this happened to you. I know how this feels. I was in a very similar situation to you.

I suggest that you should start collecting all the documents ASAP. Since you are divorced, you may go either 1) VAWA or 2) divorce waiver. @sandranj will be better equipped to help answer questions with VAWA. In either case, you will need to show that you were in love with the person who broke your heart later. Pictures, emails, text messages, social media posts, maybe some cards he gave you from before the marriage are all good ideas. Did you travel together before the marriage?

From the financial documents, I think it would make sense for you to quickly go to the bank and get full bank statements with complete transactions month by month. Go to IRS and ask for either transcript or full tax forms that you submitted.

Did you live together at any point? If so, do you have any documents that show this?

15 hours ago, sandy303 said:

 so yea the evidences i have:

-pictures, emails from the beginning of the relationship up until i escaped (some real nasty email from him after  i left him as well)

-I can go to the bank ask for bank statements ( we had a joint bank account, he was the primary card holder and i had my own card but he had access to it )

- i can go to irs ask for tax copies or see how he filed

- my personal statement

I know its not much and i am very devistated i wasnt more cautious before. i never thpught we d end up the way we are with him so it was a horrible time of my life. I am looking for the time i can get back on my feet and this chapter wuld be the fnal chapter so i can leave the past behind me. 

also i am dealing with health issued and i got fired due to taking too much time off so now im unemployed im hoping to have a I 751 fee waiver approvd. i will attach bank statements , charity care approval form and a written explanation that im going thru financial hardship.

what do you guys think about my story? hopefully there is some ppl out there who is going or went thru the same . 

also the personal statements have to be handwritten or typed in on a computer? 

thank you so much for any replies in advance.

 

9 hours ago, Name O Boy said:

You don't need to show them your extension letter or GC if you don't want to. You can bring your unrestricted SSC and a photo id(state id or drivers license). These should cover list B and List C items listed on Form I-9 for employment. You need one document from list A which would be your GC or proof of U.S citizenship for employment. If you don' t want to do that you can show one item from List B and C as I mentioned above. see the link below.  

https://www.uscis.gov/i-9

If you are not a US citizen, do NOT falsely claim US citizenship on the I-9 form. Also, make sure that the HR department does not make a mistake while submitting information to the DHS for verification. Because you are not showing green card, they may mistakenly assume that you are a citizen presenting an unrestricted SSC and a photo ID.

16 minutes ago, Ksenia_O said:

Well, I wasn't giving you the answers.. In that long reply I was just trying to describe how really we have been "tight" with USCIS since our I-751 submission.

 

My husband also contacted an Immigration Attorney last Friday, again...The answer we got is:

"if a K2 was under 21 and unmarried when he entered the US and a K2 was still unmarried when a conditional green card was received, then I-751 with a K2 listed in Part.5 has been properly filed." 

 

No, obviously nobody knows all the answers... 

Mistakes happen - I get it, and USCIS is not an exception either. But  it's unlikely they have been mistaken at least 3 times during one process for the same person -1 "mistake" -  I-751 was accepted to be processed; 2 "mistake" - two ASC Notices were received with two different case# - for each of us and "mistake" #3 -  I-551 stamp was granted in the passport with a note "I-751 pending, CF2 (a K2 stays under CF2 class of admission, regardless the age. CF2 can not be switched to any other category..  well, unless a K2 changed a marital status during his/her way to LPR). And I'm not mentioning "check-ups & make sure" between...

 

You are experienced VJ member and I really appreciate your inputs, but with all respect - I'm going with USCIS and immigration Attorney in this case.

Thanks for your time anyway.

 

Thank you, LTGermany.

Yes, we checked the case status. It states "On June... we received your Form CRI-89, Petition to Remove Conditions Of Permanent Resident Status...."

It''s pending  Both cases

 

Thank you, Damara!! 

 

I don't honestly  know if son's A# was entered correct or what.. My husband was there, helping him and he says something they had to submit (my husband and son), and some other things were entered by the store employee...

 

They are thinking about going back and try again but  I disagree and would like them, both, just to wait it out...

 

You know before this FBI email we received we didn't doubt  everything to this point has been done correctly... yes, it was quite a stress

 

Attorney also says we could "follow-up" with the FBI, but honestly - I don't feel like going for that...

It was an "Initial denial " and the appeal has been forwarded for further processing . They currently processing case, received in Nov, 2015.. 

 

I wonder it these are the same people who do our background check?.... If so, it's understanding why people get stuck in background check for years.....

 

 

 

What state are you in? A lot of states do not issue permits to conditional residents. Even though conditional residents are supposed to be treated the same way as permanent residents, there is some other naming in the database. They may refuse you on that basis, and there is nothing you can do about it until conditions are lifted.

Sorry about this. All your son can do is wait.

On 1/13/2018 at 7:13 PM, Roy&Chanel said:

 

Congrats to you both!!!!! Good to see VSC moving. Still no biometrics for me, I'm waiting desperately cos i want to buy my air tickets lol.

@divorcedgayman is the biometrics on the list the appointment date? Trying to add u both but getting confused which date to use  so yeap gonna leave it to u!

Hi @Roy&Chanel ! In a column "Biometrics" we can just put a date of the actual biometrics appointment at the USCIS. If there's a need for the delivery date of the biometrics appointment letter, we can also include it! 

Let me know!

Received my biometrics letter today! From the filing to biometrics, it’s over a month? Takes a while. Will update the list later, but here are the dates:

I-751 delivered: 12/18

NOA 1 date: 12/18

NOA 1 received: 12/26

biometrics letter date: 1/6

biometrics letter received: 12/13

Biometrics appt: 1/25

35 minutes ago, Kayvan said:

133 views and no advice? 

First of all, I am really sorry to hear that your marriage has not been working. I know this is difficult emotionally.

I am by no means an attorney or an expert in immigration law. I do recommend seeking additional legal counsel to discuss your situation.

However, my understanding is that you need to inform USCIS of any changes in your relationship, such as separation or divorce, BEFORE I-751 is adjudicated. Right now, I-751 will be adjudicated together with N-400. It is my understanding that if you are currently separated and you fail to inform the USCIS before I-751 is adjudicated, you may be in some legal trouble. 

If you do inform USCIS that you are separated in a letter or divorced through changing the status of your I-751, I want to believe they will simply ignore your N-400, and adjudicate your I-751 accordingly. 

Just now, Sassy-let said:

Hello, Just need some help..When our extension letter expired..Is it based on the date we received  the letter or the date in our permanent resident card?Thank you..

 

I recieved my extension letter on May 2017 , and my GC expired on Aug 2017..Does it mean  my letter expired on Aug 2018? Am I correct? Thank you so much..

It's 1 year from the expiration of your green card. If it's expiring (or expired), you can make an infopass appointment to get a stamp further extending your document.

7 minutes ago, Lemon23 said:

Just make sure you follow the instructions on the i-751, it's pretty straight forward, but then again if you're doubt or have questions then come back here and ask.

10 minutes ago, Kevin Lee said:

Only reason why I am looking for a lawyer is to make sure I don't make any mistakes.

 

I know there are two schools of thought. One is a self-sufficient applicant who can file it themselves successfully. While that's true, I want to believe that it's safer to work with an attorney. Those are very important documents, and your life depends on how well you prepare the package. The attorney may not be super useful in the initial filing of I-751. However, an attorney familiar with the case from the start may be very helpful in case you need them later. 

In the end, nobody can tell you what to do. If you feel comfortable having an experienced set of eyes look through your documents, then attorney is a way to go. If you want to file yourself, you should be able to do that, too, without any issues.

You can find immigration attorneys through the American Immigration Lawyers Association. I'd also check on your state bar association website whether the attorney of your choice has a clean record.

http://www.aila.org/

2 minutes ago, Roy&Chanel said:

uhhh i think i messed up again  can't seem to adjust tomriesgo approved column.

How's this?