Cata&Ben

Congratulations!! 
 
 

Good news for us today!! Wanted to share with our Boston buddies. I check the case status daily, and today it said it is current as of today, which surprised me because up to this point, it stated the submission date as the date since they were "actively processing the case." So I logged in to the account to see if any additional details were there, and voila! The interview is scheduled for February! We are so relieved and excited!!! Best of luck to everyone still waiting! There is hope!

After two years, I was finally approved for I751. However, the USCIS office in Boston declined to give me the N400 combo interview. Instead, they approved my I751 and informed me that they are still reviewing my case one year after submitting my application for N400. Grateful that I got my permanent residency, but still, there is this bittersweet feeling about how the officials in Boston and Vermont are treating us.

Great news! 

Thank you so much for all your help.
 
I submitted an online request for an appointment with USCIS on Wednesday. I received a reply from them today, stating that they have already sent my green card and provided me with a tracking number for US UPS. I decided to track the number and discovered that my card was already being delivered at that moment!
 
I feel so relieved now.
 
Thanks for providing advice.
 
Cata

No worries, usually it's very quick between the approval and receiving GC. Glad it's a happy end. Make sure to make digital and physical copies of GC as soon as you receive it. In case if you lose it, it would be easier to replace it.

Thank you so much for all your help.
 
I submitted an online request for an appointment with USCIS on Wednesday. I received a reply from them today, stating that they have already sent my green card and provided me with a tracking number for US UPS. I decided to track the number and discovered that my card was already being delivered at that moment!
 
I feel so relieved now.
 
Thanks for providing advice.
 
Cata

Zero risk.
The A# input into API will check out as will the the expiry date of of extension letter put as card expiry (standard practice), and the extension letter plus expired card is valid for boarding as per carrier information guide. 
Worst case would be a quick visit to secondary (my entry last week took under 3 minutes) to verify status, but with a card + letter combo that  probably won't even be required and should be done at the desk.
They are a LPR (2 yr with pending or 10 year, it makes zero difference you are stamped in as LPR regardless) and have valid proof of that status, so there isn't an issue here. 
 
Put it this way, if it wasn't acceptable to use the extension letter to return in such circumstances, then there would be effectively a blanket issue on anyone with an extension for a pending I-751 travelling out of the country, as it could be approved at any time while out of the country, effectively stranding them overseas with an approval but no new card in hand.  That makes zero sense (granted, much like lots of USCIS) and simply isn't the case. 

People have different tolerance to risk, but me, personally, with a valid extension letter, I see it as close to zero risk as possible [always the risk of meeting an untrained airline agent]. 
https://www.cbp.gov/sites/default/files/assets/documents/2023-Nov/Carrier Information Guide ENGLISH.pdf 
 
Page 10/92 [Arrival by air]
"B. U.S. RESIDENTS — must provide one of the following:
• Permanent Resident Card, Form I-551
• Expired Conditional Resident Card, Form I-551
accompanied by Original Form I-797, Notice of
Action indicating the card validity is extended"
 
If OP did not receive the approval letter, they would not even know that they should be expecting a new card shortly.   They are permanent resident, they currently have documents to show their status.  
 
@Cata&Ben, I am also in the Boston area and received my new cards really quickly (after entry, after ROC, and, more recently, after renewing my 10-year card). Make sure your name is on your mailbox (in case you get a new/overzealous mail person), register for informed delivery, but I received my cards in days, not months.  Wishing you the same quick delivery, so that all questions and worries are avoided!
 
 
 
 

Is your extension letter still valid (as in, within the stated time of validity beyond the expiry of your card)? If so, you can still use that in conjunction with your expired card. Thats if your new card doesn't arrive in time. 
 
If you do call USCIS to request a stamp, you will need escalating to a tier 2, and need to be stating the urgency of imminent and/or emergency/essential travel. If not urgent, they won't call you back within 30 days as it will just be a standard stamp request.
If it is is marked as urgent, then they will. You may or may not need to provide proof of this - some offices do require it, some don't. 
 
 

That's understandable.
 
In theory, you could try travelling on conditional green card and valid extension letter. But I cannot recommend it, as I don't know whether it's legal after 10 year GC approval. And the risk of getting stuck overseas is not fun.
 
Do you have USPS Informed Delivery set up? Sometimes you will get tracking for GC quicker than it's shown in USCIS case status.
 
Typically you'll see a mail from "USCIS- Lees Summit Production Facility" with tracking number.
 
Otherwise, if you don't receive GC soon you may need to change or cancel your family trip. I'd think you'll have GC in hand before January 2024.
 
You can try getting a stamp, but if you have GC approved, not sure they'll give you one. Call USCIS and ask for Infopass.
 
 
 

You'll get stuck overseas and you'll have to pay for expensive boarding foil at US embassy!

What makes you think it will take 2 months to receive your GC?
 
It took about 2-3 weeks for me to receive GC after I-751 been approved. 
 
Because of holidays, I'd think you'll get your GC in a month or 6 weeks max. Ia this before your trip?

We had decided on the spousal visa, it was a no brainer. Cheaper, work and travel authorization right away, the ability to drive right away there was absolutely 0 reason for us to opt for K-1.. Until covid hit. Borders closed and then we were unable to meet up again, thus unable to marry so we did K-1 instead of waiting an unknown amount of time for the border protocols to change. So, I wouldn't say I regret doing K-1 because it was our best choice given the circumstances, but I will say there really isn't much of a reason to opt for it nowadays.

I will say after moving on a K-1 it felt like I got stripped of all of my freedoms that I had back in my home country. I'm also in a rural area so no driving = forced isolation. 

There was also an issue when we tried to file taxes, where the state requires you to have a STATE ID if you want to file online. So you can file by mail, but it will take a really long time to hear back about that. Thankfully my EAD was approved in such a short amount of time that I was able to rush out and get a state ID, but it was frustrating. I also had issues at the bank who kept persisting they didn't have an option for someone in limbo, and they kept trying to put me in their system as a citizen which was infuriating. 

The experience directly after the move is another important talking point. You move so far, and now you have 90 days to marry. Have fun adjusting to a new home when you have marriage, the AOS packet, getting a SSN, signing up for a bank account, all hanging over your head. It was the busiest 90 days, we were busy doing something new each week! (Doesn't help I was processed as b2 when I entered and not K-1 and I had to get that fixed too..)
So when you move and you want to be settling in, adjusting to your new life, I was instead swamped with work and stress from everything I had to do. Because of that it took me substantially longer than it should've to adjust to the move. 

Then the fact that travel out of country isnt permitted without AP or the GC, is rough. Life is crazy, you never know when someone you hold dear might not be around anymore and i've seen a lot of cases where people missed funerals, weddings, and other important events because neither had processed in time. Ive seen cases where people couldn't even see their parents in their final days, the expedite that SHOULD'VE worked, USCIS took way too long on and thus it was too late. So then, I don't know how others handled it but I was constantly stressed about my older family members and what I would do if something happened. Would I give up everything we spent and worked towards so far to be there for them in their final days, or would I stay and carry that burden forever? I'm thankful every single day that I have my greencard now and that nothing bad happened when I didnt. 

And, marriage on a k-1 didnt feel like a marriage. I see that as a common talking point, but I hate to say it, for a lot of people the excitement of marriage and engagement are stripped away by the process. Hurdle after hurdle, and then being swamped with more work it doesnt make for an exciting happy time. I remember when I went wedding dress shopping and felt nothing, the workers there said I was the calmest bride they'd seen but after all the stress the process had (Covid closures probably contributed too), the excitement was gone. We got legally married and it felt nothing more than an average day, our bigger wedding was months later and honestly it was a pretty awful day. (Though I do find it funny, I was in one room (the bridal get ready room) sobbing about my parents leaving the next day and my husband was in the next room getting sick from heat exhaustion. It's a bit silly, but the fact those two events happened at the same time makes me feel like another sign of how connected and in love we are) I've got another in Canada next summer and I hope I will have a better experience with that, but the process makes everything forced, it isnt fun. If you opt for spousal, you can marry on your terms, before the stress of the process gets to you. You might not get the celebration of your dreams, but you could do something that makes you both really happy and excited. 

I think what's most important, is focusing on your partner's happiness after entry. Sacrifices are required when being with someone internationally, but they should not be made at the expense of someone happiness. 

After two years, I was finally approved for I751. However, the USCIS office in Boston declined to give me the N400 combo interview. Instead, they approved my I751 and informed me that they are still reviewing my case one year after submitting my application for N400. Grateful that I got my permanent residency, but still, there is this bittersweet feeling about how the officials in Boston and Vermont are treating us.

Congratulations! Boston office is so frustrating! I am glad that you are halfway there!

After two years, I was finally approved for I751. However, the USCIS office in Boston declined to give me the N400 combo interview. Instead, they approved my I751 and informed me that they are still reviewing my case one year after submitting my application for N400. Grateful that I got my permanent residency, but still, there is this bittersweet feeling about how the officials in Boston and Vermont are treating us.

What @Mike E said. 
 
Download the Mobile Passport app.  That line at the airport is usually shorter than the regular line.  Any line is annoying when you have had the luxury of TT though!  
 
The major airports also have "appointment on arrival" for the trusted traveler programs, so you can hypothetically come in through regular immi and go straight to the appointment line and update your TT account.  I did it that way in May.  

After two years, I was finally approved for I751. However, the USCIS office in Boston declined to give me the N400 combo interview. Instead, they approved my I751 and informed me that they are still reviewing my case one year after submitting my application for N400. Grateful that I got my permanent residency, but still, there is this bittersweet feeling about how the officials in Boston and Vermont are treating us.

As of today, November 1, 2023, we are:
 
374 days for N400 (Naturalization)
 
737 days for I751 (10-year green card)
 
People have been leapfrogging us across the country and it is NOT appreciated.  We are tired of the excuses.
 
Attorneys, Senator office... nobody is of any help whatsoever.

They should though, might learn a few things.

I'm also still waiting.  344 for n400 and 645 for i751. Ridiculous 

It is 10/19/2023, and nothing, nada, niente. There is no movement in the N400 or the permanent green card application: 338 days and 659 days of madness.
Cata

🥳🥳🥳 UPDATE: received my interview date today for Sept 13, San Francisco. Good luck to all who still await. 

Hi!. There is not movement in Boston. Many of us are still waiting. My guess is that we will see some movement in October for the N400.
Cata