LinG2018

Good afternoon family, had my interview this morning at 9, got there early plus it was raining (We took the train) but not too bad. We checked in approx 8:45 and there was a fair amount of people waiting so we just watched HGTV until we were called in.
The officer was very professional and very nice.
After we swore in he asked:
How long have we known each other
How did we meet
Any kids
Previous marriages
About our change of address
Any proof of cohabitation
We provided proof of that
He then asked me the usual security questions
Afterwards he started to explain the 2 year conditional green card and how to prepare for the application to lift the conditions.
He then told us that it was approved!.
Process took a little under an hour from entry to leaving. I am so grateful.
Definitely wishing you guys the best and i ain't leaving the site.
 

Sorry if I missed some details....following the thread for the tax question along with all the other updates is not a fun experience.
 
If filing MFJ, you must be considered a resident alien (RA) for the entire tax year. This is noted in the instructions for filing statuses.
The spouse of a USC or LPR can elect to be treated as an RA for the entire tax year. A letter confirming this election is required. The letter makes filing via eFile impossible right now, but you can still do the taxes online, print them, attach the letter + W-2s (if any), and mail it in. It's a PITA, but it is what it is.
 
A consequence of being an RA for the entire tax year is that you must report all worldwide income just like a USC or LPR must do. This income can then be excluded via the FEIE (Form 2555/2555EZ) for up to roughly $100k.
 
If you became a resident (not just LPR) at any time in the year then you are a dual-status alien. You can either file based solely on when you became an RA onwards (no need to report worldwide income), or do the election to be an RA for the entire year still. The amount of FEIE eligible for exclusion would be proportional to the time before become a resident (i.e. if you entered on July 1st, you would be roughly able up to claim half the full exclusion). This is calculated on the 2555 based on the number of days abroad / 365.
 
Option 2 is to file MFS, and no worldwide income is necessary to be reported by the NRA (just US income, if any).
 
But keep in mind MFJ has double the standard deduction ($12.2k) than MFS. Unless the NRA's income is more than the FEIE (and/or FTC if applicable) + $12.2k, that's leaving money on the table. Filing MFJ can generally reduce your tax liability by thousands of dollars.

Be sure to hold on to records of the foreign income in case you are audited (just as you should do for record of any income...not just foreign! ). But nothing needs to be sent as evidence of the foreign income with the 1040. W-2s must be sent for any US income, though.
 
Here's one I used for 2017 taxes, with personal information masked out.
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1oFYM0MbbUxFPLTxOzn6qsk_eZMLhF42O9zRUs-KtVzU

Interview scheduled for tomorrow at Fairfax office. God is Able! I will post a review

Congratulations! So happy for you! And thanks for sharing your experience. That's really detailed and useful.
Hopefully my interview can be scheduled as soon as possible.

Interview went beautifully and like an hour later, CARD IN PRODUCTION! Yayyyy!
 
officer was so nice and easy to talk to. He asked us how we met, first date, where was the wedding, how many guests, where have we travelled, where do we live, birth dates, social, previous addresses, work history, very detailed. First time into the US? Which visa? History of entering the leaving the country, port of entry, schools I went to. Extremely detailed but that’s his job. Asked all questions on ineligibility. I will add, my hubby was laid off in December and the officer asked if he still worked at his old job. We told him the truth but he didn’t ask for a new affidavit or anything like that. 
 
He then looked at our pictures, I had two albums, took like 5-6 pictures and done! He did tell us about the 2 years provision and when I can apply for citizenship and that it may take 2-3 months to get the card. Fairfax office is the best, we talked to some lovely security guards and happy going front desk people. Good luck y’all! I’m glad our journey is over for 2 years!  
 
 

Either you are married or you are not. If you present a wedding certificate dated prior to receiving the K-1 and from another country that may or may not present issues of fraud. 
Why not have her use the K-1 since she already has it, come to the US and get married. She can leave with no problem. Then you can begin the CR-1 process which will take over 1 year.
Once the CR-1 is granted and she enters the US she will receive a stamp in her passport which acts as a green card for one year. 

You can travel for business or pleasure but this said, USCIS does not guarantee that they will let you back in even if you have Advance Parole. They stress this multiple times in the letter you receive when your Advance Parole is sent. Also, if you have unlawful presence you could potentially still be barred from entering to the United states back after departure. 
 
Supposedly to be let back in is still to the discretion of the CBP officer who you encounter at the point of entry.
 
Now, I have read a lot of experiences of people traveling with Advance Parole and I have not seen them run into issues. They just make you go to another room, take your Advance Parole card, input your date and then let you go; usually no questions asked.
 
I am going on a cruise on the 17th of this month and will update you guys when I come back with my experience.
 
if anyone knows more or has experience with this, feel free to add.
 
 

Sure! It was very formulaic. The officer started by asking some basic questions about where we live, when we met and so on. He never asked to see wedding invitations and photos. He focused on the bureaucratic questions (no questions about what color is your toothbrush or anything like that). We rehearsed for so long but were relieved that all the questions were very straightforward. Have you met her parents? Where do you currently live? And then no more than 5 questions later the officer transitioned to a long list of questions that he read out loud word for word, using a pencil to underline each word as he read. The questions concern if my husband has ever been involved in any terrorist group and so  on, the same list of questions you filled out when filling out the applications. You have to sit there patiently and say "no" each time. And look serious. That turned out to be the most difficult part, as those questions were repetitive.
 
 
 
 
 

Hi,
 
I just received an interview notice for my 2 years Green card that will be occurred in January, 2019. Please share your experiences and advises for me on the interview, it would be very appreciate I will list below the list of what I bring to the interview day, please comment if I'm missing anything, and what should I fulfill to my package.
 
I live in Virginia, VA, get married to a US citizenship, my husband born in US. I was under OPT of F1- student visa and my OPT expired 07/12/2018. Here is my brief timeline on the process
 
05/20/18: Getting Married I did not celebrate my wedding party yet because i wait for the green card to go back to my country so my parents can attend my wedding. Only married at court with my husband family.
06/20/18: Submit my package to USCIS
07/24/2018: Biometrics done
08/16/2018: my expedite working permit request approved because I have job offer. I have working permit and go to work on September.
12/12/2018: Interview is scheduled
01/16/2018: Interview day
 
Here is what I prepared to bring to the interview:
Passport, driver license, birthcertificate, ssn for both of us
Marriage license 
My Medical form I-693
Letter schedule interview from USCIS 
Tax return for previous 3 years 2015, 2016, 2017 of my husband.
3 pay subs before interview of my husband
Bank statement showing our saving ( both are currently working and both deposit money into the account)
A car Registration showing both of us ownership.
Car Insurance (showing both name)
credit card statement (showing both name)
Life insurance (we both buy it and put each other name as beneficiaries)
401k beneficiaries information for both ( I and Him both have)
Front page at personal info at Work's profile.. my husband is my emergency contact
Airplane tickets to other states of US (5 trips together so far)
Lots of pictures together ( pictures with friends, family, pictures that we are going on trips with friends and family)
Moviepass membership for two in one year (sign up same time)
One month (AUG18) we are in the same health insurance (since I got a job, i choose to split out from him to go with my company insurance because of it its more cheaper than go with him)
ONE Affidavit of friend who verify the authenticity of our relationship (did not submit that in the package)
Outline of our relationship (did not submit that 
 
 
We DO NOT have:
Utility bills - because we still live with his parents, and his parents are paying bills
House rent/ mortgage: same reason above
Wedding ceremony & pictures on the wedding day: my parents can not come to US so we are waiting to go back to my country, and we are saving money to buy house.
Because we do not have a wedding together, that is not normal to all the couple who apply for adjustment of status and that makes me very worry. 
 
Please drop some comments to give me advise . Also, advise me on what will they ask on the interview because we are very worry for the upcoming interview.
 
Thank you and I really appreciate it
 
Jacklyn.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Just received the EAD combo card in mail 
It turns out that USCIS didn't use the photo I submitted with application. Instead they used the one taken at biometrics appointment.

hi John and Janay! How did your interview go? We had officer townsend, curious if you did too (know it is unlikely though).  

Yes, my online status changed to "approved" during the night after the interview, and the card arrived a week later.  It's not as green as the name would suggest. 

I think there might be a gap in communication here. @Millefleur recommended to file with the USCIS International Office in Frankfurt, Germany. That is not DCF. You are filing with USCIS and not directly with the US Embassy (US Department of State).
 
In a nutshell, the DCF route entails that the petitioner:
1. resides in a country without a USCIS International Office 
2. has exceptional circumstances that merit filing with the US Embassy
3. explains their exceptional circumstances to the US Embassy, which then presents that information to USCIS. At that point, USCIS either approves the request or declines it. If declined, then the petitioner must file their petition with the Chicago Lockbox. 
 
But ALL OF THAT is not needed because OP resides in a country that has a USCIS International Office. 
 
See for yourself here https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/immigrate/the-immigrant-visa-process/petition/submit-a-petition/filing-petitions-outside-the-us.html I also posted key info from that page below.
 
Countries with USCIS Offices
Certain petitions may be filed at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) offices abroad, but these locations are limited in number. Review the list of International Offices on the USCIS website to determine if a USCIS office is located in the country where you reside.
If you reside in a country with a USCIS public office, you may either file Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, with that office or with the USCIS Chicago Lockbox at one of the addresses below. See USCIS Centralizes Filing of Form I-130.
 
Countries without USCIS Offices
I-130 Petitions
Petitioners residing outside the United States are no longer able to routinely file Forms I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, with U.S. Embassies and Consulates. Petitioners residing overseas in countries where USCIS does not have a public counter presence are required to file their Forms I-130 by mail with the USCIS Chicago Lockbox. U.S. embassies and consulates can only accept and process Forms I-130 in exceptional circumstances, as explained below.
 
Filing Form I-130 Petitions in Exceptional Situations
U.S. Embassies and Consulates may only accept I-130 petition filings from petitioners who believe they have exceptional situations that would merit an exception from filing by mail to the USCIS Chicago Lockbox.
Petitioners who believe that their situation merits an exception may contact the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate to request an exception and explain their circumstances in detail. Each request for an exception will be evaluated individually and must be authorized by the USCIS office that is responsible for that specific U.S. embassy or consulate.
USCIS published guidance on circumstances that may qualify as exceptional.
If your request to file an I-130 petition with a U.S. Embassy or Consulate is not authorized by USCIS, then you must file the petition with the USCIS Chicago Lockbox.

Got mail today, interview was scheduled for March 4th! NOA date is August 28th

My case was approved and card is being produced. 😁 
Finally! I was beginning to think this shutdown was going to be the end of me 🤣
Hopefully I get my card in the mail soon.

Ok so! It went pretty well, the office is nice. Super tight security (take off shoes, belts, everything) make the left before the office to get to the parking garage ($7). I wouldn’t get there very early because we had to wait a while. So like 10 min before you appt should be fine.  Interviewer was nice, very businesslike.  
 
  PD July 09, 2018 marriage based AOS from B2 visa from Costa Rica.  I prepared the whole application without a lawyer. 
I think it went well, interviewer asked all of the questions of eligibility (terrorist, drugs etc) to my husband (beneficiary).  He ask him my name and his children’s names., last entrance to the US. Then he asked me my husband’s name and birthday, place of birth, wedding date.  I added some more evidence that I didn’t have when we applied (joint accounts, etc).  
He then said we had a beautiful family (we have a 1 year old who we brought with us).  But that it would be 1 day to 120 days to wait for approval or intent to deny 😨 and that he had to do a final background check and approval from his supervisor.  
So no real closure   We asked if he thought he was recommending us for approval and he said he cannot answer that and needs to review the file. 

Hey guys! How did it go?! Waiting on your good news! 😀

Just got update that we will be receiving a Request for Initial Evidence for the i-131 and i-765.
 
Any idea how long it will take them to adjudicate our case after they get the documents they need from us (no idea what they are yet, as we haven’t gotten the physical letters yet)?
 
We were definitely not expecting an RFE because our i-485 status is ready to schedule an interview. 
 
‘The wait continues.

Thank you so much!! I am currently putting the finishing touches on the binder for TOMORROW! We are certainly nervous, but we have a 1 year old daughter to bring with as evidence I will post a super detailed update and review after tomorrow.   

August 30 filer. Finally my interview was scheduled. 😊 Just waiting for the mail.

I will be having interview in DC field office too.
My case status has been ready to be scheduled for an interview since Nov 9th.  NOA1 is Aug 30th.
I noticed @John and Janay has his interview notice already, which means mine is on the way ( hopefully).
Can't wait !
 

The OP has received objective immigration advice and should seek marriage or other counseling in regard to the relationship issues.
 
Thread is now closed to further comment.  It's not to be restarted or referred to elsewhere.
 
VJ Moderation

I think you can submit an inquiry because it's outside normal processing  time now

Personally, I don't think a VO will ask about how the conference would help the company. The focus is more on the applicant.
 
Other possible questions I can think of off the top of my head...
How long have you been working for the company or in that position? Have you traveled to other countries before? If so, where? Do you know of anyone outside of the company that lives in the US? If so, who? Let us know how it goes.