Tilly87

Congratulations on your GC and thank you for the update! It is great to hear that you have gotten 10 years card. It somehow motivates me to wait LOL

I received my permanent resident card today! So happy. It's the 8th anniversary of me entering the US (I came here to start school on 09/20/2011). The card also has 09/13/2019 printed as the day I became a PR--too perfect (Friday the 13th, love it). It's a 10 year card, as me and my husband have been married for 3 years now. 
 
Now for the juicy details: the card arrived by USPS Priority Mail. I checked my status daily, on September 17th it updated to Card Was Mailed, and on September 18th it updated with a USPS tracking number. I was able to track it and receive text/email alerts about it. It arrived in my mailbox today, no signature required. It was a plain priority mail envelope, it did not have USCIS's name visible through the window, just the address & then my address, so it's not super obvious that it's a green card (if any of you waiting are worried that it will get stolen en route). It came with a little paper protector envelope and a "Welcome to the United States" brochure. I also received two I-197's for the I-485 & I-130 being approved, both on heavyweight certificate paper. In total, it took 572 days from the receipt day of our AoS package to the day I received my greencard, 17 days from the date of the interview (08/28/2019) to when I received decision (09/13/2019),  and 24 days from the date of the interview (08/28/2019) to when I received greencard (09/20/2019). 

Hope some of my documentation of my experience has been helpful! Please let me know if anyone still waiting has questions about my experience, I'm happy to share. I'll go update my timeline now

My status updated today (around 2:30 pm) to: "New Card Is Being Produced - On September 13, 2019, we ordered your new card for Receipt Number _____________, and will mail it to the address you gave us. If you move, go to www.uscis.gov/addresschange to give us your new mailing address." I couldn't believe it! Still can't, not quite yet...it's just so big. Husband and I are going to celebrate tomorrow. Our interview was August 28, 2:30 pm, so exactly 11 business days for the decision (September 2nd was Labor Day so it doesn't count). I'll update again when I receive the letter/card. 

My status updated this morning (on egov.uscis.gov) to:
 
"My Interview Was Completed And My Case Must Be Reviewed
Your interview for your Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, Receipt Number _____________, was completed, and your case must be reviewed. We will mail you a notice if we make a decision or take further action. If you move, go to www.uscis.gov/addresschange to give us your new mailing address."
 
I googled this for a bit and it doesn't seem like anything to be alarmed about. We did give the officer some updated information - new I-693, 2018 taxes, new employment info, so I think it makes sense that it'll take a bit of time to go through. Still nerve wracking 😆 fingers crossed that everything goes okay. 

We had our interview today at the Seattle field office! Here's a breakdown of our experience.
 
Preparation:
Our lawyer had thankfully advised us to get a new I-693 (civil surgeon exam) completed beforehand, which was excellent advice as ours indeed turned out to be expired. If we hadn't had it on hand, we would've received a RFE. (I'd suggest to anyone applying to adjust status, check out the updated USCIS rules regarding the civil surgeon exam. I believe it is, if your I-693  was completed 60 or more days before you submitted your package to USCIS, then the I-693 is only good for 1 year; if the I-693 was completed 60 or less days before submission of package, it's good for 2 years. Unfortunately we had mine done in November 2017 and submitted February 2018, so it was outside the window & we needed to redo. But I'm glad we did!

We made the mistake of working the day before our exam, so we ended up staying up until 4 am copying documents and assembling them all into sets. We made 3 packets, each packet was a labelled manila envelope:
-Main (containing originals of all items requested on the interview letter)
-Updated information (containing originals of all items that had updated since we submitted the original package, such as finances, 2018 tax return, etc)
-Supporting information (containing originals of proof of cohabitation, proof of mail received at same address, and photos)
 
We then made copies of all this information, separating sets of documents with paperclips. Some documents felt related, e.g. we were using them to prove we lived together, or received mail at the same address; we called this a "tab" in our coversheets. I made a coversheet for each of the 3 packets, following this format for each item (in case it's helpful to anyone else--I copied our lawyer's format from the original package, and also saw a very helpful post on this forum about how they approached the coverletter, and combined the two) :
 
Tab 1.     Evidence of Cohabitation
 1. Lease agreement for (address) signed by both (my name) (Spouse Beneficiary) and (husband's name) (Petitioner) on (date)
2.  Lease agreement for (address 2) signed by both (my name) (Spouse Beneficiary) and (husband's name) (Petitioner) on (date)
 
Tab. 2  Evidence of Joint Accounts
1. Joint bank account statements (bank account name) for both (my name) (Spouse Beneficiary) and (husband's name) (Petitioner) for as far back as (earliest statement date)
2. Joint loan statements (bank account name) for both (my name) (Spouse Beneficiary) and (husband's name) (Petitioner) for as far back as (earliest statement date)
 
(Etc. for as many tabs as needed)
 
Then, we made a copy of each packet, and stored these separately from the originals.
 
We also reviewed our entire application twice, once a few days before, and then again on the drive up to the field office. I think this was helpful later!
 
The Interview: (sounds like a movie title!)
Everyone was very nice to us (the person who checked us in for the interview even made a joke asking why I would want to leave Canada, the land of free health insurance 😆). We had just gotten upstairs to our waiting area when our number was called, which was amazing since we had heard Seattle can often run a bit behind schedule. Our officer was really nice too, we felt comfortable answering questions and making a little small talk. Here's the "timeline":
First part - swearing in
Second part - reviewing the submitted information, asking us the questions on the form & verifying our responses, then going over the portion of the I-485 that asks if the beneficiary has been involved in illegal activities (just reading the questions and asking for a yes-or-no response); also he asked us the same information at different points (ex: asking my husband when my birthday was [he fudged up at first and said the wrong day at first, we all laughed at him], asking me where husband was born, etc). That's where I felt reviewing our packet first was helpful; of course we knew all the information in it, but it helped to know what to expect.
Third part - asking us some questions about how we met, who was at our wedding, etc. All questions felt very reasonable and allowed us to kind of tell our story, felt like telling a coworker (or someone) about how you met your partner, with a few more little specific questions thrown in, as he was typing out notes. 
 Third part- allowing us to present our updated & supporting information. He took what he needed and left us with some of the copies. (He paused at one moment to ask my husband to identify some people in photos; not me though, which was a little surprising)
 
All in all, our interview was about 50 minutes long. Our lawyer advised us that a typical interview is 25-30 minutes, and if longer, it means trouble. However, we think we ended up making our interview go overtime by having so much supporting info--my husband was so excited to get rid of the box of copies we worked so hard on, he jokingly asked the officer to "please take it, we worked so hard on it" (he told the officer how late we stayed up copying it, so we all laughed) 😄 We agreed that around a half hour, the interview felt done, and the extra time was just us going over the additional information. I felt bad if we caused someone else's interview to run late (sorry if you were scheduled for 3 PM at Seattle and had to wait!) but I feel we firmly established our relationship with all the work.
 
At the end of the interview, the officer said he'd have to review everything and we could check the status online, so no decision was given then -- probably because of the updated information. Our lawyer said it should be within 3 weeks. That's it for now, I'll update again once I know more. Hope this write-up helps others, I wanted to make sure to contribute as I read a lot of helpful posts on this forum that I think helped us. 
 
Good luck to everyone still waiting for the interview letter!
 

My status updated today (around 2:30 pm) to: "New Card Is Being Produced - On September 13, 2019, we ordered your new card for Receipt Number _____________, and will mail it to the address you gave us. If you move, go to www.uscis.gov/addresschange to give us your new mailing address." I couldn't believe it! Still can't, not quite yet...it's just so big. Husband and I are going to celebrate tomorrow. Our interview was August 28, 2:30 pm, so exactly 11 business days for the decision (September 2nd was Labor Day so it doesn't count). I'll update again when I receive the letter/card. 

My status updated this morning (on egov.uscis.gov) to:
 
"My Interview Was Completed And My Case Must Be Reviewed
Your interview for your Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, Receipt Number _____________, was completed, and your case must be reviewed. We will mail you a notice if we make a decision or take further action. If you move, go to www.uscis.gov/addresschange to give us your new mailing address."
 
I googled this for a bit and it doesn't seem like anything to be alarmed about. We did give the officer some updated information - new I-693, 2018 taxes, new employment info, so I think it makes sense that it'll take a bit of time to go through. Still nerve wracking 😆 fingers crossed that everything goes okay. 

I read that too, but our interview letter arrived today and it's for Seattle! Aug 28th (so about a month out from when it was scheduled). We are happy that we won't need to travel farther than that, it's already an hour and a half drive down to there. Also, it'll feel a little less scary to go somewhere we've been before, as that is where I had my biometrics done. 🙂

I applied for my renewal EAD/AP back at the end of April, and only received the receipts recently (about a week ago), so I'd recommend renewing as soon as you're at the 180-day mark. I don't think it hurts anything if you get approved for the GC first. Better to have that in the works just in case your interview takes longer to schedule still. The renewal receipt letter gives you an automatic 180 day extension to your EAD (not AP). Good thing I did mine early, my current EAD expires 08/09/2019 so I would have had to leave my job then if I hadn't filed early enough. Phew! 

Good luck in getting your letter soon too! Fingers crossed for you.

So excited, today my status changed to "My interview was scheduled" !!! I don't know when the interview is for yet, but I'm at the Seattle field office and that has a really long wait--even though we filed in Feb 2018, we estimated it could take as long as November for me to get an interview scheduled--so even knowing it has been scheduled is amazing. There is light at the end of the tunnel now! 😊 Annnnd now begins the process of preparing our interview evidence package. I've been saving things like mail and tickets and photos, so we should be okay in that department; we've known each other since 2008 and lived together since 2011, as I did my degree here in the states, which means we have a fair amount of evidence. Just need to go through it all! (I think it'll actually be kind of fun, we can do a lot of reminiscing. Our 3rd wedding ann will be on August 20, so this feels kind of perfect 😄).
 
Good luck to everyone still waiting! I'll be sure to update with my interview date & the experience, as I know it can be very helpful to other people still waiting to help estimate wait times/what to expect.
 
 

No Correct. You can work for any employer doing any sort of (legal) employment. No

Good news on my EAD (I-765). No changes on my.uscis.gov, but .egov updated to: "My New Card Is Being Produced. On August 10, 2018, we ordered your new card for Receipt Number ###########, and will mail it to the address you gave us." I was in shock when I saw the screen. I had been thinking it would be the end of August due to our month-long RFE hold. I know it will still be a few weeks for the card to get here/SSN to arrive (we checked the option for a new SSN), but this is still amazing. Time to party! 😃 For reference to anyone else waiting:
 
-February 26: NOA1 priority date (filed I-485, I-130, I-765, and I-131, all concurrently)
-March 26: RFE for I-864 (they missed already included evidence)
-March 28: Biometrics
-April 24: RFE response was processed & case taken off hold
-May 30: On .egov my case moved to "Ready to schedule for interview" (this update has not appeared on myUSCIS)
-June 26: The "Last action taken on your case" date updated to June 26 on my automatic "No updates" emails (even though the last real change I had seen was the May 30th .egov update). We theorized that June 26 was the date they transferred my case to the field office. 
-August 10: My new card is being produced

I echo the advice given in this thread, your wife should NOT leave the country. I was also an F-1 student  (completed a post grad OPT), and I went through a scary period while waiting for our Notice of Action receipts (I-797C's): my F-1 had finished, and I was on the 60-day grace period before having to leave the country (because I hadn't had any unemployed time during my OPT). So technically I wasn't overstaying, but if someone had asked me to present documents during that period, I had nothing that officially explained the grace period. I was white knuckling it till those receipts arrived, so I fully understand how nerve wracking it is! And in our case, the check was cashed, then a week later I received my biometrics appointment letter, our receipts actually took longer to come (I want to say it was two weeks?). But as our lawyer explained to me when we were going through this stage, the check being cashed provides confirmation that USCIS has accepted your case and the wheels are in motion. That is what I held onto during that time, the knowledge that I was doing everything legally correctly, and that if asked for papers I had at least some sort of paper trail with my expired visa & the bank record of the checks being cashed. This of course is not a guarantee that you won't get a request for evidence (RFE) down the line (we did), but it does mean that your partner is legally present in the US while the case is being worked on. If your partner leaves before receiving advanced parole (I-131 if you filed for it), the case would be considered abandoned and you would lose any fees paid. You can file for something called a CR-1 (I think) for spouse to immigrate to US from outside country, but that means you'll be living apart for the whole process, and would pay fees all over again. Since your partner is in the states already, adjusting seems like the most logical path to proceed. Also note, things at USCIS seem to be moving very slowly as of late, so don't panic if things like receipts take longer to arrive than is the norm, just keep that in mind and make inquiries. Best of luck to you both!

Congrats!!! I just got a text and email confirmation about the approval of combo cards today too!!! This is official! Day 153 
 
Finally the process is moving for most of us.

Hi guys i just got a notification online!!! My case status changed to New card is being produced!!! I am sooo exciteedd!!!

I know one person who traveled with AP waiting for AOS and having an overstay history prior. I did not recommended her to travel at that time because, you know, “what ifs”, but she went on a trip and entered back with no problems. 
Yes they do say that entry is not granted to anyone but UCS, but what exactly that means? In my understanding that phrase means you won’t be admitted if you break the law that would make you inadmissible. Like, returning LPR convicted of inadmissible crime won’t be admitted - that’s the law and it’s abailable for all to exam your situation before travelling. But it does not mean that you still might be denied entry if have not committed anything that makes you inadmissible, just because the officer had a bad day. I believe that’s where all the paranoia and panic starts because it does sounds pretty scary that you always have a chance not to come back - and it’s impprtant to understand that this “chance” is not like gambling, but immigration laws which available for anyone and can be calculated based on your personal factors in immigration journey. 
Right? 

I know this is an old post, but replying because we just went through this with my husband. We were married a few years ago and he applied to have the conditions removed from his green card. We received a letter stating he was okay to be in the country for the next year and then a letter stating he was approved and we'd receive the card within 60 days.
Long story short the card did not arrive, but showed as 'Delivered' by USPS, USCIS told us we'd have to re-pay the fee because of that, even though it was never actually delivered.
Through tons of research (and no lawyers) we were able to both: travel internationally/re-enter the U.S. without the green card, and get a new green card without paying the $450 fee again. Here are those steps...
Know when your green card was supposed to arrive, get tracking from USCIS, you can call their number to request this once it has shipped. If the tracking shows it should have been delivered and it has not - file a lost mail claim with USPS. You can do this online: https://www.usps.com/help/claims.htm Keep a copy of this claim#. USPS should contact you back with an update on the claim - chances are they won't, continue to check back in on status of the claim, they will conduct an internal investigation and you should have an answer in 2-4 weeks. Pester them until they have finalized the investigation on the claim. Each time you speak with someone over the phone, make sure they make notes in the system about your discussion. You'll need those later. At this point we also got a cryptic call from our local USPS office which was useless. They also said they stopped by and our name wasn't posted on our mailbox, which is a lie, it has always been there. When you do get a response on the final status of the claim, you can move onto the next step. Chances are USPS will say 'it was delivered, the post person said they delivered it' which makes you feel like steps 2 and 3 were a total waste of time, but they're necessary. Next you need to call the Postal Inspection Service (877-876-2455) and file another claim with them, for mail theft. You'll get another claim#, keep a copy of that. At this point there may be further investigation needed, if so follow up with them until you get an answer (that answer will likely be, 'we couldn't find it, case closed'). Make sure they note all the detail about the investigation in the claim, including the final findings that it wasn't found. When your secondary claim is also closed, call the USPS Consumer Affairs office, you can find the contact info for your local office here: https://ribbs.usps.gov/locators/find-cam.cfm (You may be on hold for about an hour.) Tell them both of your claim numbers and that you need a copy of your claim mailed to you. They may tell you they can't, or that you have to call another department or your local post office, they can, and will, talk to a supervisor if you have to. Now re-file your paperwork with USCIS, including all the necessary forms and a copy of the claim from USPS (also keep a copy for your own records). However check the box stating the the green card was lost or never delivered. Include a cover letter explaining the situation, and highlight key points, including the USPS confirming it wasn't delivered. They should waive the fee, if they do not, you can contact your local senator's office, but in my experience it takes about 2-3 months for a response. The only thing this step helped us with is through them we got written confirmation from USCIS that if we could submit paperwork from USPS confirming it wasn't delivered (the 2 claims), then they would waive the fee. This is why ensuring notes are made in your claim is so important throughout the process. At any point, if you need to travel abroad, if you have a letter stating you have legal status through whatever date (assuming it's at least 3-6 months int he future), this along with ID suffices to get back into the country. But call USCIS in advance of travel to confirm for your specific case. I also recommend bringing all key paperwork when traveling to be safe upon re-entry.
Also, you can re-file paperwork at any point in time with USCIS (knowing it will get denied until you have completed the steps above), but as long as your case shows 'open' you can then go to your local USCIS office and they will stamp your passport for free. In general they may do this for only 30-60 days in the future, but my husband was able to get his stamped for 5 months in the future due to pending travel.
Good luck!!

People here often post questions about flying domestically when they're at various beginning stages of the immigration process. Answers vary from "carry your complete current documentation with you" to "you will have no problems."
 
Customs & Border Protection agents sometimes hang out at the TSA airport checkpoints. In August 2015, I flew out of a border-area airport in south Texas and took the opportunity to query the CBP agents at the TSA checkpoint.
 
T-B.: When you hang out at the TSA checkpoints, are you checking that
foreign travelers are in status?
CBP: Exactly.
T-B.: For example, what if a K-1 entrant's I-94 is expired?
CBP: We have all kinds of ways of checking their status.
T-B.: Would it help if they have their marriage certificate with them?
CBP: Absolutely.
T-B.: If they've applied for AOS and have their I-797 or at least a copy of their
cover-letter for their I-485, does it help?
CBP: Absolutely anything that they can provide will help a lot, and will speed things up.
T-B.: Why are you at some airports and not others?
CBP: We're at border airports and others that are ports of entry. We're not at all of them.
T-B.: But it still makes sense for legal immigrants to carry their current documentation?
CBP: Absolutely. It helps them and it helps us. It speeds things up a lot.
T-B.: I'll pass this along. Thank you.
 
This confirms that it makes sense to carry your most recent documentation with you until you have your green card.
 
I first had Mrs. T-B. carry her marriage certificate (MC) and passport with valid I-94.
Then, she carried her MC, passport, and copy of her cover-letter for AOS/EAD/AP.
Then, she carried her MC, passport, and her NOA1 (I-797) for AOS.
Then, she carried her MC, passport, and AP.
Then, she carried her first green card (= the law).
Then, she carried that green card and her cover-letter for ROC.
Then, she carried that green card and her NOA1 for ROC.
Then, she carried her 10-year green card until she became a naturalized citizen (= the law).
 
These documents came in handy at various stages, including at a Texas/Mexico land-crossing POE, a couple of airports, and especially inland CBP checkpoints while driving. At these last, the CBP agents are typically in poor humor and are looking to nail someone. For example, if you're not carrying your green card, they'll detain you for as long as it takes to verify that you're who you say you are.
 
The above is presented in hopes that it will help others.

~~As this thread has become nothing more then personal attacks it is now locked to further discussion. As it is also in the wrong forum it will be moved. Once the OP has an update from her complaint she is free to start a new thread to update everyone.~~
~~Moved to Working and Traveling, from AOS from Work, Student, and Tourist Visas.~~

Exactly. I'm shocked how many people here are OK with a company breaking the law and discriminating illegally! And how many people are ready to give up their rights (this is a right) in order to not potentially piss off a company. I thought the American dream was about everyone getting an equal chance to succeed? Isn't illegal discrimination (that's what this is) completely contrary to that? 

Geez, the lack of empathy and blatant disregard for the law from some posters in this thread is frankly a bit appalling.  If you care about the law, then read the post by Hypnos.
 
We all know how long it's taking to get a green card these days.  Imagine if you or your spouse or other family member went one year applying for jobs with a valid EAD and countinuously getting turned down because you don't have a green card yet.  You'd be pissed!  And this is her dream job!  And as far as I can tell, nothing the OP has stated implies that the job requires the person to be a US citizen.

Yes, that's what I meant, sorry for the confusion. In our case, our lawyer prepared the actual sponsorship forms, so while I knew it is possible to have a joint sponsor include income from their household as we had to ask his parents/make sure they met requirements, I was missing the I-864A part. Thank you for correcting and clarifying! 

Tell me about it..the suspense is driving us a bit nuts, lol.  We did call yesterday but no info either. So we have no other options but the patiently wait....God willing is something good.....

Major congrats, and good luck with the rest! 

Just got home after a 12 hour day in 111 Degree heat, and was messing around on the internet. I usually check every Monday morning on the new USCIS website for my case status, but for some reason I decided I would check today, figured I would finish off the day with some more bad news as the day couldn't get any worse. Logged into the new Site and got this message in my case status.
 
July 3, 2018
We approved your case
Read the notice we mailed you for more information
If you do not receive your notice by August 02, 2018, send us a case inquiry and select that you did not receive your notice by mail.
If your mailing address changes, update your address with us.
Current as of today at 5:15 p.m.  
Does this mean I have my NOA2 on the way to my house. I just want to verify before I crack open this Ice cold beer ( Special Import I have been saving for this moment). Nothing has changed on the old website but this has got me about ready to do back flips. Now, If this news is as good as I believe, do I use this date above to update my timeline, or do I wait til I actually receive the NOA2 in the mail. I filed just before Christmas 12/20/2017, so this is good news, looks like they might be processing a little faster. I didn't expect it til the end of July. Thanks for everyone on here that is going thru the same torture. But, this is still the beginning, but now I am feeling better. It's funny that just last night my fiancee was really down in the dumps wondering if it ever is going to happen. She will be waking up soon, so I am hoping I can tell her the good news. The number of man hours I spent putting this packet together is probably in the Hundreds, and the guides on here are 95% responsible for this approval. Thanks VJ!!!! and all the other VJ'ers!!!!!!!

Hi all!
 
Late joiner of this thread, but here is my timeline:
I filed for: I-485 AOS from F-1 visa with postgrad OPT to Permanent Resident and concurrent I-130 (filed by husband, who is a US citizen); also applied for I-1765 and I-131. Lawyer shipped package  to Chicago lock box on February 20. USCIS cashed checks about a week later, and official receipt date on NOA1's is February 26, 2018 (myUSCIS says March 8).  Biometrics scheduled for March 28. Received that letter in early March, I want to say March 8 or so. Received NOA1's after this, lawyer noted that was kind of bonkers (receiving biometrics letter before the NOA1's) Request For Evidence/RFE issued on March 26 (myUSCIS alerted me, knew it was coming but not what it was). Freaked out, but went to biometrics at Seattle WA field office in meantime. Note that I don't believe https://egov.uscis.gov/casestatus/ ever updated to reflect the RFE. https://egov.uscis.gov/casestatus/ updated to state for I-765 they completed review of my fingerprints April 7 and are processing my application at the National Benefits Center. myUSCIS says they completed my biometrics on March 30. So somewhere in that date range they finished reviewing biometrics. My RFE arrived between 1.5-2 weeks after the alert, was a request for financial evidence. They wanted additional  documents from my sponsor (husband)such as paystubs, letters of employment, etc, seeming to not have noticed that we were filing using a cosponsor and had provided all forms/documentation for that, as prepared by our lawyer who has experience with such cases.  We gathered all requested documents, and lawyer drafted a clear letter stating that although we were happy to comply with request, we wished to reaffirm that we were relying on our cosponsor to meet the income requirement as my husband's employment fluctuates greatly according to market (commission based, not salary). Response was mailed on April 19. myUSCIS updated on April 24 to state that they had received our response to the RFE, and my case is no longer on hold. https://egov.uscis.gov/casestatus/ updated to state for I-485 that as of May 30, my case is ready to be scheduled for interview and they will schedule my interview and send me a notice. This did not update on myUSCIS.  A complete picture, in case it is helpful for others who filed at a similar time & location: case was filed at Chicago Lock Box, and I know at least my I-765 is at the National Benefits Center in MO. My local field office is in Seattle WA. As of today, I am 131 days in (almost 4.5 months), and I have completed biometrics, successfully answered  an RFE, and made it to the "scheduling an interview" stage. No EAD/AP yet  (I had my wisdom teeth extracted a week ago, figured I would get that out of the way in the meantime!) so I am now considering an expedite request as I was previously employed on OPT and employer would like to hire me back. At the same time I might be getting the "card issued" mail soonish, so I am still on the fence about it. 

Also note: I've found it valuable to check both https://egov.uscis.gov/casestatus/ and myUSCIS (https://my.uscis.gov/), as at times one is updated and the other is not. For myUSCIS, you need to register for an account, then add your NOA1 receipt numbers in (each receipt number that you have), and you need to login to check. For egov you need to enter just your receipt numbers. I also recommend signing up for USPS Informed Delivery (http://usps.com under Track & Manage) so you can see what is arriving in your mailbox for the day. However, closely tracking your case like I do can be bad for your nerves, as when the RFE was issued, I had no idea what it was about and blindly/nonconstructively panicked until the letter arrived, probably worried my husband's ear off 
 
Crossing my fingers that my EAD/AP comes soon! I will update here next time something happens.  Good luck everyone else, and congrats to those who have already received EAD/AP or the PR!