Concurrent I-130 and I-485. PD 1/22/2024.

A week ago got "we have taken action on your case" but nothing changed. Yesterday, same email again and this time I-130 went to "case is actively being reviewed" and there is an approval notice under the document's tab which is great. Status has not yet updated to approved. 

At the moment no change in I-485. I have seen a lot of people get approved for I-485 along with I-130. Why would the USCIS approve these two separately when the filing is concurrent?

13 hours ago, catnap said:

Wanted to start a thread to see who else is the same boat, and hopefully feel a little better about my case.

 

It has been 20 months for me... 🫣

Mine took 28 months and got approved with no RFE. There are some folks here who waited 4 years. Not much you can do about that. If you are eligible file N400 and that should move things.

1 minute ago, Boiler said:

I have, this Law firm does nothing but.

 

https://www.soundimmigration.com/i-864-enforcement/

 

We enforce rights under the Form I-864, Affidavit of Support.

We represent immigrants in cases under the Form I-864, Affidavit of Support. Attorney Greg McLawsen is the most recognized national authority on the Affidavit of Support and has represented more clients in enforcement lawsuits than any lawyer in the country.

 

Get a free I-864 case assessment

 

Schedule a free video consultation

 

Zero upfront cost

We represent clients on a contingency fee basis. There is no cost for us to begin work on your case, and we are paid only if we recover money for you.

 

The undisputed I-864 experts

We have represented more Affidavit of Support plaintiffs than any law firm in the country. No other firm even comes close.

 

Nationwide representation

We help clients across the United States recover damages under the Form I-864. From California to North Carolina, we have you covered.

 

Risk free I-864 case assessment

Get individualized legal advice about whether you have a claim under the Affidavit of Support. Consultations are free and you are under no obligation to work with our law firm.

About I-864 enforcement.

When someone obtains a green card through family-sponsored immigration, an Affidavit of Support is almost always signed. This document is a contract between the sponsor and U.S. government. By signing the document, the sponsor promises to provide financial support to the immigrant.

The immigrant’s right to support under the I-864 is legally enforceable. If a sponsor refuses to fulfill his responsibility, the immigrant may sue in court. We work with I-864 beneficiaries to ensure they receive the support to which they are entitled. We represent clients at zero upfront cost.

Our team.

Good to know. I'd be curious to see the actual lawsuit info and the outcome if there is any online.

16 hours ago, NoMansLand2020 said:

We've been married just two years and I'm filing for divorce. I can't stand my wife. I've fallen out of love and don't like the way she treats me. She's also been neglecting our baby. 

 

She has two kids of her own that I'm a step parent to, but never adopted. She's dead set on fighting the divorce and says she doesn't have to work and expects me to support her and her two kids for the next ten years because of the Affidavit of Support I filed on their behalf. 

 

She does have an education and she is working, so she has the ability to support herself. 

 

Am I expected to support her for ten years when she's capable of working? For her sake and the sake of her kids she should be working. As I am asking for sole custody of our baby, she would be required to pay child support. 

Sorry you are going through this. Lawyer up immediately, that is the best thing you can do now. That ensures you don't take steps that will cost you more in the divorce. 

You are expected to support her but I have not seen many cases where someone got sued for I-864. This should not even come up in the civil court alongside on asset distribution and alimony support in my opinion. I may very well be wrong but as far as I know lawsuits related to I-864 are rare and in a way unexplored for the most part.

21 hours ago, JeffAtl said:

I married my wife almost 3 years ago.  She has a conditional Green Card and I am divorcing her.  She is attempting to take my house from me and has lied in court.  I'm planning to write a letter to USCIS and was wondering if anyone else has been through this.  I want her investigated now that it has become clear that she was using me and didn't love me.  Just hoping someone can give me some good advice here.

I am sorry you are going through this. Get a good divorce lawyer and don't waste your time on immigration. You provided a LOT of proof to the government. She will be able to stay. It is in your best interest that she naturalizes as soon as possible so that your I-864 obligation ends.

Good luck.

Does anyone have any updates? Our I-130 was delivered on 1/22/2024 and no updates since.

Same with us. General maintenance. Happens all the time. 

12 hours ago, Hoggypi said:

I am unsure if I should just return to my home country and begin the K1 visa process or if we can get married while I’m here then I return home to start the spouse visa or apply for adjustment of status while married on an ESTA? I am from Australia.

Unless you came here with the intent to adjust status you should be fine to adjust now. Going home and doing spousal visa means long distance relationship for 1-2 yrs. Staying here means being out of work for a few months and not being able to travel for about a year or so until AP approval or GC. 

11 hours ago, Ontarkie said:

Ok so you have the option to marry now and adjust status as this was not your plan when you entered the US. But be prepared to be stuck in the US, no working not even remote jobs, no US driver's license until EAD is in hand or the GC and now you have to apply and pay extra for it, the extra fee for AP to allow travel out of the US if there are any emergencies.

If you marry now and go home yes you would apply for the spousal visa. It does take awhile up to two years, but much more freedom when you arrive. 

This may have been the case before but if you look at the EAD approval rate the chance are that the OP will have EAD in 1-2 months which will then allow OP to work, get DL and everything else. Of course there is a chance of EAD taking longer but at this point they do automatic approvals basically after biometrics. 

2 hours ago, Redro said:

Yep. Be aware USCIS isn’t about that FIFO life. So, some people get approved fairly quickly while other cases are left behind for a year or so… Hopefully most people get a quick approval. 

Yep. My personal opinion is that USCIS is indeed improving reviewing times of certain applications but all that is at the expense of leaving the old backlog the same and taking care of new ones first... My mother's I-765 for approved in 23 days and I-131 in about 75. I have a feeling that I-130 and I-485 won't take longer than 6-9 months at best based on IR-5 approvals that I have seen recently. IR-1s seem to be following suit as well.

On 4/9/2024 at 12:51 PM, Crazy Cat said:

They sent the I-130 and I-485 packages just about 3 weeks ago.  I am surprised it is being processed so fast.

I have been trying to monitor I-130s and I-485s in the recent months. Literally every day I see at least 5 cases that are within 50-100 days from submission get approved. It is crazy.. I see these approvals on different forums and platforms.

13 hours ago, road runner said:

Is it customary for USCIS to accept walk-ins for biometrics, at an earlier date than it was scheduled in the letter?
Is it advisable to just show up and ask to be taken in, just to shorten the overall waiting/ processing time?
Thanks

It is never guaranteed but you live nearby I don't see harm in trying.

5 minutes ago, Boiler said:

Seems most likely

Interesting. Everything I ever read about expedites have indicated email responses. I'd be very surprised to get mail about it. One can never rule out anything though.

1 minute ago, Boiler said:

Seems like they sent you a response today, it will be approve, request for more information or refused.

Response via mail? 

AOS from B2. There is I-131 pending where we requested expedited review. This is the status chage today however we got no communication.

Has anyone experienced this? What was the next update you got and when?

4 hours ago, Adrii said:

Looking for some advice / hoping to find people that have been in a similar situation & my apologies this is a long one.

 

Backstory: I immigrated from Australia on a K1 Visa at the end of 2018. 

Married in 2018, recieved my Greencard in 2019.

 

In August of 2020, my husband and I decided to take some time apart.

Incase people want the nitty gritty details / incase it matters - he was getting out of the Military and was wanting to go home to Green Bay, WI to spend some time with his family while he planned his next career move.

At the time we were living together in Arlington, VA (this was where he was stationed) I had built a great support network of friends and had a stable job with great income and it didn't make sense for me to quit my job and move to Green Bay and have no combined income.

 

So in summary he went to Green Bay, WI & I stayed in VA working and I signed a lease on an aparment on my own and he was staying with his family in Green Bay, (no lease) and he was not working.

 

In September 2021 it was time for me to file for the removal of conditions. At this time I was still living solo in Arlington and working and he was still at home in Green Bay staying with family and not working.

 

In this packet I included:

- a personal statement signed by both myself and my husband outlining our current situation - (the fact that he was now living in Green Bay and I was in Arlington and that although we were living apart we were still in regular contact and had planned to reunite once he decided on his next career path, ((at the time he was considering joining a different branch of the military))

- Jointly filed tax returns for 2019 & 2020

- Our original lease agreement from Arlington from 2018 - 2020

- Joint Car insurance

- Joint cell phone bill

- A travel itinerary for my spouse to visit me in Arlington

- Vet records for our two dogs showing joint ownership

- 2 affidavits from friends

- Photographs

 

Fast forward to present day. March 18 2024 - I got an RFE asking for additional evidence to show my spouse and I entered into our marriage in good faith and continue to share a life together.

 

Now here is where I need the adivce.

While my husband and I entered into this marriage in good faith with all intentions of this being forever we are no longer together.

We are however still legally married.

We are on good terms but are completely individually self sufficient.

 

Is USCIS wanting an update on where this situatuon is at?

I guess I'm confused on what documentation to provide as all of the suggested documentation on the RFE is to support - as quoted on the notice "establish shared family planning, share responsibility for a common residence, hold ourselves to the public as a married couple or continue to share a life together"

 

And again while we are still very much in each others lives it's in a different capacity and there are no suggestions of what evidence to provide if you are no longer together.

 

There are a couple of suggested documents that I could provide but I'm not trying to prove we are still in a comitted marriage but I can prove we are still legally married (there has been no divorce filed) and we are on good terms.

We still speak almost daily, have joint health insurance, life insurance, we've visited each other over the years, have photos - but again we're not romantically together anymore.

 

Has anyone been in this situation?

If so what should I send in?

 

My husband now resides in Charleston, SC and has a new career

I still reside in VA and have a successful business.

In case it matters we do not have shared financials and do file our taxes together however married filing separately.

 

Any advice or input is grealty appreciated

 

I know people have many different circumstance but for the USCIS there is only two 1) married 2) divorced

Your best bet is is likely:

1) File divorce asap

2) Amend your I-751 to a waiver case once you have the final divorce decree and respond to your RFE at the same time

If you cannot finalize your divorce before the RFE deadline you would have to respond and ask for more time and explain what happened. 

2 minutes ago, Crazy Cat said:

Immediate Relatives of US citizens (IR-5, for example) cannot have derivatives.  

That makes the decision easy I guess. Thanks for this info!

Hi all,

a distant relative is a naturalized USC. His father who in not in the US has just now become a legal guardian of a 12 year old. Father is thinking of immigrating to the US via IR-5. Is it possible to take this child with him when he gets petitioned by his USC son? I think may not be a DIY but would love to hear if anyone has had similar experience and can share some details on this matter.

Thanks!

7 hours ago, Siberia said:

Hi everyone

 

Feb 26 we sent i-485, i-131, i-765 and g-1145 to Elgin lockbox.  Feb 28 it was delivered and received by Mendoza. Still didn't hear back anything. Check was not cashed. Yesterday i called USCIS, they say they don't have my application in the system. 

My k1 visa expires on 15 march.

 

I tried to google if person with name Mendoza works with USCIS and found that many people don't hear anything back if it received by Mendoza.

I checked address and it shows Chase bank building.

I checked all forms again and found that for all forms i sent only 2 photos.

then i found that USCIS recommended not to use staple and i used staples for each form.

and i wanted to change my last name but in all forms i wrote my maiden name because i thought it needs to match my name in my passport

 

I am afraid that my package got lost and soon ill be out of status. Is there anything I can do?  If it didn't get lost and I send new package with changed last name can i cancel first?

 

 

 

If you sent a personal check for payment then cancel the check and resend the entire package. USCIS will most certainly reject the entire package (the original one) if the payment does not go through.

57 minutes ago, madmanmike said:

I have seen posts here from those that did that successfully. But when I did a Google maps search for the location, it specifically said they do not accept walkins. I don’t know if that’s generic for all the sites, but it would suck to drive all the way there just to be turned away. 

It does but they let us in anyway. Granted our situation was different since we went earlier than the scheduled date.

53 minutes ago, Nitsua0895 said:

I received the letter with my biometrics appointment in the mail today(and I have checked every single day). The only problem is the appointment was set for February 28th, 2024 and now it sounds like our visa could be denied for abandonment? This is complete insanity. The automated system is saying that it might not even be able to be rescheduled since the appointment date has already passed. Any tips?

You can try just showing up at the center where they take biometrics and explain what happened. They may let you in and get it done.

5 minutes ago, Verrou said:

its unrelated with the case number. 

it really like roll the dice and got pick up by the officer or not. 

 

i helped 5 people filing AOS between september 23 - Jan 2024

1. filed Sep 2023, got EAD in 30 days, approved GC in 70 days - Nov 23. B2 overstayed for 5 years

2. filed Oct 2023, crickets ( no EAD) adjust from EB-2

3. filed Oct 2023, crickets(no EAD) adjust from b2-asylum-removal proceeding terminated

4. filed Nov 2023, biometric Feb 2024 ( dont know why appointment it's late), 2 weeks later, Feb 2024 EAD produced - adjust from J1 overstayed for 4 years.

5. filed Jan 2024, crickets, no EAD even after biometric. adjust from B2 overstay 5 years

 

obviously the number is just an ongoing number, unrelated with approval. 

but i noticed, the people ( that i helped) that adjust from B2 overstay, got their EAD/GC faster compare to people that has "past" immigration history. i.e : asylum, EB2 etc

 

Strange. Thanks for sharing this info! Great insight.

9 hours ago, OldUser said:

Fantastic, congratulations!

 

Any chance you could share your case number with for I-485, excluding the last 5 digits? This would give an idea of what USCIS is processing now without comproming your privacy.

8 hours ago, strawberry111 said:

I don't think it depends on the case number though. Every case and location are different

I'd also be curious about the case number.

Update: My mother whom I added as an authorized user on 3 of my CCs got her SSN a week or two ago. I called CC companies and added her SSN to her profiles. Her FICO score shows 770 now and she got approved for the highest CC tier the next day with high CL. I figured I'd share this if it helps someone else down the road.

On 2/23/2024 at 8:51 AM, jaysaldi said:

In my experience, it's faster and easier to get a US replacement passport at an embassy abroad. Takes about ten days.

My wife has her N400 interview coming up in a few days. If she passes and gets sworn in as a citizen next month and has a naturalization certificate, can she fly out of the USA on her foreign passport and then apply for a US passport at a US Embassy abroad, rather than trying to get  the US passport here in the USA?

 

Is there any downside to doing this?

 

Thanks

 

 

Use the expedited service. After exactly one week from the delivery of her documents reach out to your senator and fill out the constituent form. I have done a lot of research on this and works like a charm. I had my passport and the naturalization certificate delivered to me via UPS on day 9. You must pay for fastest service and delivery possible.

I was in a bind after I naturalized to get the passport and read a lot on this. Many others reported luck with senator's help.

I would avoid going the route which you described.