ultrasoul

I am aware of that thank you. USCIS April adjustment of status increase now basically means from a financial perspective consulate processing route requires much lower financial cost. 
 
That until DoS increases the immigrant fee schedule (DoS increased non-immigrant fee schedule last year in 2023)

This is only regrading USCIS. It doesn’t affect the Department of state as that’s a different agency. 

Terminal fee is normally bundled in the ticket price.  Travel tax is required for immigrant visa holders.  Check the line items on the ticket -- if there is a charge for PhP 1620, then travel tax is already included in the ticket price.  If not, your relatives will need to pay the tax at NAIA.  If they are unsure whether it is already included or not, the airline check-in staff will advise them if they need to pay travel tax.
 

Wanted to circle back and provide an update. Earlier today on April 17 Monday, my brother got an update on his N400 confirming the quality checks were completed, N400 is fully approved, and the oath ceremony is scheduled for next month.
 
Interesting, there was still no status updates on his I-751 which still shows waiting to be scheduled a ROC interview but an L1 chat agent was able to confirm that the Field office touched his I-751 last Saturday when the officer was doing the quality checks on the N400 approval and scheduling the oath before so it definitely feels like the I-751 approval status change should happen any day now.
 
Many thanks everyone for allaying this concern cheers!
 
 

i wish i knew how USCIS work.....i'd be super rich by now. USCIS work in a mysterious way
on side note, better to have some movement than death silence

ur brother can try to send letter to the field office attention field office director to address the issue + attach the receipt letter
on the envelope type " do not open in mailroom"

Yes. 

call live center, request for tier 2 to call ur brother back. just said that tier 2 can help you  better in this case
utilize inbox message on myuscis account to reach out to tier 2
contact congressperson
 
Do local FO still waive I-751 interviews these days in 2023? 
sometimes.especially if he got the Conditional GC with interview - this is unrelated with N-400 interview

@vajaster Chancy is correct but you are misinterpreting his reply. He was responding to my original post about both are F2A cases which have a PD of July 2020 and therefore were not affected when F2A retrogressed from Current to Sept 2020
 
What is your F2A case priority date? If it is on or after 8 September 2020, your F2A case is basically now frozen and the US embassy post will no longer complete the case and will not issue any immigrant visa until your PD in Table A final action date becomes current again.
 
If you had seen the F2A retrogression back in mid-March when they published the April bulletin preview- you could have reached out to the embassy post multiple times to see if they can issue the IV before March 31 when it was current.
 
The May visa bulletin will being published in the coming days. If there is further retrogression and if your PD is too far away from the F2A Final Action Date in the May bulletin- the US embassy will likely return your passport if they have no reason to believe F2A will ever become current again this year.
 
 You can also see this YouTube video which explains this (your situation is explained in 5:50 of the video)- https://youtu.be/PmFG_g4Xjw8
 
Best of luck to you- as mentioned in the OP both our F2A’s with PD of July 2020 were sitting DQ’ed since Nov 2020 for the last 18 months at NVC unscheduled for any interviews even though F2A was current that whole time.

@linnguyen2016 don’t forget to also do a concurrent filing for I-765 EAD and I-131 advance parole in that same i-130/ I-485 package. There is no extra cost when filing at the EAD/AP combo card at the same time as when you file your I130/I485 combo card
 
You will need the EAD/ AP combo card to continue working in the US and to travel in and out of the US while you wait for your I-485 to adjudicate

That’s not correct.
 
 Table A Final action dates applicable for all applicants- outside via consular processing  or inside in the US via adjustment of status
 
 you aren’t any better privileged just because you are filing an AoS
 
However if you are in the US doing an AoS- you can benefit from table b allowing you to file your application earlier and get EAD/ AP benefits while you wait out the adjudication backlog time listed in the final action dates table A.
 
 Copying this from an immigration law website …
What Is the Difference Between “Final Action Dates” & “Dates for Filing”? 
The “Final Action Dates” indicate the dates an immigrant visa number will be available for a foreign national with a current priority date that month. This is an important date because once the immigrant visa number is available, the foreign national’s physical green card can be issued. A green card cannot be issued unless the applicant’s priority date is earlier that the Final Action Date listed on the visa bulletin. 
If USCIS determines there are more immigrant visas available for a fiscal year than there are known applicants for such visas, it will allow foreign nationals to use the “Dates for Filing” chart. The Dates for Filing are the earliest dates green card applicants may apply for a green card. These are the dates the National Visa Center (NVC) uses to notify green card applicants that they can start getting documentarily qualified. These dates are typically eight to 12 months prior to the expected Final Action Dates and allow applicants to submit their application for permanent residence and relevant documents before it is time for the government to approve it. This is beneficial because it can allow foreign nationals who are stuck in the backlog to apply for and obtain work authorization much sooner than if they had to wait for the priority date to be current under the relevant Final Action Date. 
 

@Darkchop Given that your MIL has 0 chance for getting a B1/B2 visitor visa- the only route left is an IR-5 immigrant visa assuming your spouse is a USC. Your MIL will have little or no issues being approved for an IR-5.
 
The IR-5 immigrant visa application and process is not complicated but costs a lot more money ($1,200 compared with a B1 tourist visa $160) and requires a decent amount of (manageable) effort not to mention processing time (at least 1 to 2 years from start to finish).
 
As others have said- the IR-5 immigrant visa is for immigrating. Once she enters the US on the IR-5 visa that one-time visa on her PHL passport is used up and is no longer good for future travel as she has become a LPR. She will need to wait to receive her 10 year US green card (roughly 1 month after entry into US) before she is able to leave the US.
 
As an a permanent resident, she cannot remain outside the US for more than a 6 month period or her LPR status will be in jeopardy. Her LPR status will allows her to fly in and out US easily as long as she is able to demonstrate ties to the US (i.e. she will need to get a US drivers license and file yearly US taxes etc).
 
If she does decide she needs to remain outside the US for more than 6 months without losing her LPR status, she can file for a re-entry permit valid for 2 years but that takes again at least 2 years of processing time due to USCIS processing backlogs and more money again ($575 currently before USCIS fees increase in a few months' time).
 
So conclusion- probably better for you and your spouse to fly to the Philippines instead to visit her  But your USC spouse is also always free to exercise her right to petition your MIL for an IR-5 immigrant visa which has no visa contraints wait time (but still subject to processing time)

The only DS260 change was a current address for FIL which he provided at the interview. The other Documents (NBI, aka NBI, and our tax transcripts were almost two years old so we just provided new one they hand carried to their interview)

Yes -- after a case is DQ-ed and transferred to the embassy, NVC doesn't care anymore.  In my case, I uploaded my updated documents the day before my interview and it turned out fine, though I don't recommend you wait that long to upload 😄
 

@Chancy - very good callout in doing a CEAC upload for the new passport and financial docs including a new AOS I-864 completed.
 
Yes - I’ve had them do updated CENOMAR and NBI clearances as the original 2020 DQ’ed ones are outdated. Will also upload this to CEAC.
 
I noticed that additional docs I uploaded in 2021 after DQ’ed don’t change from a “Submitted” to “ Approved” status - maybe NVC doesn’t care anymore after DQ but the embassy will look at them on day of interview as you said.
 
I’ll let it to you as a mod to see if it would be more beneficial to move this thread to the PHL forum instead as we are discussing USEM’s penchant for being sticklers

@Chancy @Ontarkie My wife's under 21 siblings who were petitioned by their LPR parents are having their F2A interiews at US Embassy Manila next week in April.
 
I was just looking at the April visa bulletin when I saw that F2A has retrogessed from Current to Sept 2020.
 
Is it correct that this retrogression does not affect the issuance of their IV visa next week April since their PD's are July 2020? 

Thanks a mil!
 
 

The applicants should bring the most recent tax transcripts.  Make sure they are also uploaded to CEAC prior to the interview.  I recommend updating and uploading the I-864 as well.
 
New passport should also be uploaded to CEAC.  The US embassy in Manila is very strict about having all required documents updated and uploaded to CEAC before the interview.
 
Are the applicants older than 16?  If so, they need recent NBI clearance.  If they are over 18, they also need PSA CENOMAR.  Again, upload to CEAC prior to interview.
 
As for the updates to the DS-260, request those from the document screener at USEM before the interview with the consul officer.
 

@Natepartlan Congrats on your interview letter from USEM! Can I confirm that you are saying both your unmarried children are still F2A even though they have aged out over 21 since their DQ April 2020 date? Are you saying that they will still be processed as F2A even though they are over 21 now because they were under 21 when they were DQ'ed  back in April 2020.
 
My in-laws have their daughters F2A's that has been DQ'ed since Nov 2020 & waiting for an interview scheduling from USEM- it will soon be a full 2 years now having being DQ'ed and being current. I'm thinking about sending an expedite request within 60 days before she turns 21 and "ages out"
 
@Bochog As shared in my other post- USEM website in October now states that they are processing F2A's that were DQ'ed in Feb 2020 "Most current family preference cases being scheduled are approved expedite cases and cases that were documentarily complete at National Visa Center in February 2020."
 
Here is the month by month F2A issuance statistics issued by USEM this year in 2022 (yellow highlight) https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal/visa-law0/visa-statistics/immigrant-visa-statistics/monthly-immigrant-visa-issuances.html
 

 
 

Given this topic is a sticky, I thought to share a recent 2020 I-90 filing experience for a USPS lost delivery of a green card.
 
Because I-90 application to replace a LPR card can now be filed online, there is an option to select "Missing card never received" as the reason for filing which will waive the I-90 fee.
 
Just be sure to include a detailed PDF written note explanation on the non-delivery as well as a  PDF copy of the USPS missing mail case investigation in the "Additional Documents" section of the online filing (see @greencardsuccess's original post on what documents you can include).
 
At least there's no more need to pay the I-90 replacement fee or worry if the USCIS would accept a fee waiver from a paper I-90 filing.

The child's CSPA age is locked in at under 21 because his PD is current and he has filed an DS-260 seeking an immigrant benefit.

The F2a category is current, even if a final PD date is established in the Visa Bulletin and his PD is no longer current, it doesn't matter.  Once his CSPA age is locked, it's locked forever for the purpose of that petition.  

@SimonB86 If you are referring to the I-130 process, being in either of those 3 countries has no impact on the I-130 approval timeline. What does have an impact is which USCIS service center your case is assigned to adjudicate the I-130 petition. 

After I-130 approval by the USCIS  and after getting DQ'ed from the NVC process, yes there is an impact on the timelines of the specific embassy. For that you can take a look at the country specific forums to understand datapoints on how quickly each of those 3 posts have been prioritizing/ working IR-1 IV and whether they still have an large backlog to work through. Another metric- DOS also publishes statistics on how many IV's each post has approved by visa category.

@SimonB86 If you are referring to the I-130 process, being in either of those 3 countries has no impact on the I-130 approval timeline. What does have an impact is which USCIS service center your case is assigned to adjudicate the I-130 petition. 

After I-130 approval by the USCIS  and after getting DQ'ed from the NVC process, yes there is an impact on the timelines of the specific embassy. For that you can take a look at the country specific forums to understand datapoints on how quickly each of those 3 posts have been prioritizing/ working IR-1 IV and whether they still have an large backlog to work through. Another metric- DOS also publishes statistics on how many IV's each post has approved by visa category.

I've been in your shoes so here's a few important information for you to know from my own in depth research & personal experience of securing PHL dual citizenship for our children:
 
As long as your wife is still a PHL citizen, any children you have together while she is still a PHL citizen automatically qualifies for PHL dual citizenship.
  Because your children's mother was a PHL citizen during their birth, they are allowed to legally maintain PHL citizenship in addition to their US citizenship without the need for any renunciation to their PHL citizenship at any age. This is unique to PHL and some countries.
  Since your daughter was born in the US and her mother was still a PHL citizen at time of child's birth, all that's needed is to fill out the registry of birth (ROB form), notarize some forms, make photocopies of required docs, include a money order and return USPS label, and mail it off to your closest PHL consulate (they used to require in person interview pre-COVID; COVID made this easier sans in person interview). All info is on the PHL consulate website- clear and straightforward (emailing/ calling consulates on inquiries is a breeze as well). This took me a couple of hours super easy that there's really no point why you would not want to secure dual citizenship for your kids.
  Before you can register your daughter's ROB, you need to have a PHL marriage certificate. If you were not married in the PHL, you need to register your marriage (ROM) with the consulate as well. You can prepare both the ROM and ROB documents and send them in one package to the PHL consulate nearest you. 
  After consulate completes the registry of birth (ROB), they will mail you back a certified copy which serves as proof of their PHL citizenship. The consulate will then transmit this recording to PSA Manila over the course of the next 2 - 4 months. Once PSA has the transmitted info, you can then order a PSA birth certificate on official security paper from the PSA website ($5 for local PHL address delivery or more for overseas delivery)
  Without a PHL passport, your kids can still enter PHL with their US passports. As  I said the certified registry of birth issued by the consulate, or the ordered PSA birth certificate on official security paper, serves as proof of their PHL citizenship (needed at time of PHL passport application)
  You do not need to apply for your children's PHL passports at the US consulates. In fact, it is better to apply for their PHL passport when they return to PHL as you will save money. If your family will be in PHL for a period > 3 weeks, you can pick up their PHL passports or have it delivered to a local PHL address. If you do not get their PHL passports on time, you can it delivered to your wife's trusted family in PHL for safekeeping
  US does not care about multiple citizenships- you can have 2 or 3 or 5 citizenships in addition to US citizenship. If you are a US dual/ triple/ quadruple citizen, US CPB only requires you present only your US passport upon entry back to US.
  When you kids eventually get their PHL passport, when entering PHL you need to present both their US and PHL passports together. They can also use their PHL passports in countries where US passports are at a disadvantage (like Bali where US passports have to pay Visa on arrival fee but PHL passports do not, or like Brazil before Bolsonaro required US passports to pay hefty visa fee whereas PHL passports had 90 day visa-free entry)
  When your kids turn 18, any PHL passports issued to them is valid for 10 years. This was a change in law in 2018 which makes things so much easier. Believe it or not, the US 10 year passport validity for adults is not a common thing with most countries. 
  When your wife naturalizes to become a US citizen, she technically loses her PHL citizenship which she can legally reacquire during an in-person interview at a PHL consulate. However, your children's PHL citizenship status IS NOT AFFECTED by your wife's US naturalization because their acquisition of PHL citizenship was at the time of their birth and cannot be taken away unless they voluntarily renounce their PHL citizenship.

I've been in your shoes so here's a few important information for you to know from my own in depth research & personal experience of securing PHL dual citizenship for our children:
 
As long as your wife is still a PHL citizen, any children you have together while she is still a PHL citizen automatically qualifies for PHL dual citizenship.
  Because your children's mother was a PHL citizen during their birth, they are allowed to legally maintain PHL citizenship in addition to their US citizenship without the need for any renunciation to their PHL citizenship at any age. This is unique to PHL and some countries.
  Since your daughter was born in the US and her mother was still a PHL citizen at time of child's birth, all that's needed is to fill out the registry of birth (ROB form), notarize some forms, make photocopies of required docs, include a money order and return USPS label, and mail it off to your closest PHL consulate (they used to require in person interview pre-COVID; COVID made this easier sans in person interview). All info is on the PHL consulate website- clear and straightforward (emailing/ calling consulates on inquiries is a breeze as well). This took me a couple of hours super easy that there's really no point why you would not want to secure dual citizenship for your kids.
  Before you can register your daughter's ROB, you need to have a PHL marriage certificate. If you were not married in the PHL, you need to register your marriage (ROM) with the consulate as well. You can prepare both the ROM and ROB documents and send them in one package to the PHL consulate nearest you. 
  After consulate completes the registry of birth (ROB), they will mail you back a certified copy which serves as proof of their PHL citizenship. The consulate will then transmit this recording to PSA Manila over the course of the next 2 - 4 months. Once PSA has the transmitted info, you can then order a PSA birth certificate on official security paper from the PSA website ($5 for local PHL address delivery or more for overseas delivery)
  Without a PHL passport, your kids can still enter PHL with their US passports. As  I said the certified registry of birth issued by the consulate, or the ordered PSA birth certificate on official security paper, serves as proof of their PHL citizenship (needed at time of PHL passport application)
  You do not need to apply for your children's PHL passports at the US consulates. In fact, it is better to apply for their PHL passport when they return to PHL as you will save money. If your family will be in PHL for a period > 3 weeks, you can pick up their PHL passports or have it delivered to a local PHL address. If you do not get their PHL passports on time, you can it delivered to your wife's trusted family in PHL for safekeeping
  US does not care about multiple citizenships- you can have 2 or 3 or 5 citizenships in addition to US citizenship. If you are a US dual/ triple/ quadruple citizen, US CPB only requires you present only your US passport upon entry back to US.
  When you kids eventually get their PHL passport, when entering PHL you need to present both their US and PHL passports together. They can also use their PHL passports in countries where US passports are at a disadvantage (like Bali where US passports have to pay Visa on arrival fee but PHL passports do not, or like Brazil before Bolsonaro required US passports to pay hefty visa fee whereas PHL passports had 90 day visa-free entry)
  When your kids turn 18, any PHL passports issued to them is valid for 10 years. This was a change in law in 2018 which makes things so much easier. Believe it or not, the US 10 year passport validity for adults is not a common thing with most countries. 
  When your wife naturalizes to become a US citizen, she technically loses her PHL citizenship which she can legally reacquire during an in-person interview at a PHL consulate. However, your children's PHL citizenship status IS NOT AFFECTED by your wife's US naturalization because their acquisition of PHL citizenship was at the time of their birth and cannot be taken away unless they voluntarily renounce their PHL citizenship.

I've been in your shoes so here's a few important information for you to know from my own in depth research & personal experience of securing PHL dual citizenship for our children:
 
As long as your wife is still a PHL citizen, any children you have together while she is still a PHL citizen automatically qualifies for PHL dual citizenship.
  Because your children's mother was a PHL citizen during their birth, they are allowed to legally maintain PHL citizenship in addition to their US citizenship without the need for any renunciation to their PHL citizenship at any age. This is unique to PHL and some countries.
  Since your daughter was born in the US and her mother was still a PHL citizen at time of child's birth, all that's needed is to fill out the registry of birth (ROB form), notarize some forms, make photocopies of required docs, include a money order and return USPS label, and mail it off to your closest PHL consulate (they used to require in person interview pre-COVID; COVID made this easier sans in person interview). All info is on the PHL consulate website- clear and straightforward (emailing/ calling consulates on inquiries is a breeze as well). This took me a couple of hours super easy that there's really no point why you would not want to secure dual citizenship for your kids.
  Before you can register your daughter's ROB, you need to have a PHL marriage certificate. If you were not married in the PHL, you need to register your marriage (ROM) with the consulate as well. You can prepare both the ROM and ROB documents and send them in one package to the PHL consulate nearest you. 
  After consulate completes the registry of birth (ROB), they will mail you back a certified copy which serves as proof of their PHL citizenship. The consulate will then transmit this recording to PSA Manila over the course of the next 2 - 4 months. Once PSA has the transmitted info, you can then order a PSA birth certificate on official security paper from the PSA website ($5 for local PHL address delivery or more for overseas delivery)
  Without a PHL passport, your kids can still enter PHL with their US passports. As  I said the certified registry of birth issued by the consulate, or the ordered PSA birth certificate on official security paper, serves as proof of their PHL citizenship (needed at time of PHL passport application)
  You do not need to apply for your children's PHL passports at the US consulates. In fact, it is better to apply for their PHL passport when they return to PHL as you will save money. If your family will be in PHL for a period > 3 weeks, you can pick up their PHL passports or have it delivered to a local PHL address. If you do not get their PHL passports on time, you can it delivered to your wife's trusted family in PHL for safekeeping
  US does not care about multiple citizenships- you can have 2 or 3 or 5 citizenships in addition to US citizenship. If you are a US dual/ triple/ quadruple citizen, US CPB only requires you present only your US passport upon entry back to US.
  When you kids eventually get their PHL passport, when entering PHL you need to present both their US and PHL passports together. They can also use their PHL passports in countries where US passports are at a disadvantage (like Bali where US passports have to pay Visa on arrival fee but PHL passports do not, or like Brazil before Bolsonaro required US passports to pay hefty visa fee whereas PHL passports had 90 day visa-free entry)
  When your kids turn 18, any PHL passports issued to them is valid for 10 years. This was a change in law in 2018 which makes things so much easier. Believe it or not, the US 10 year passport validity for adults is not a common thing with most countries. 
  When your wife naturalizes to become a US citizen, she technically loses her PHL citizenship which she can legally reacquire during an in-person interview at a PHL consulate. However, your children's PHL citizenship status IS NOT AFFECTED by your wife's US naturalization because their acquisition of PHL citizenship was at the time of their birth and cannot be taken away unless they voluntarily renounce their PHL citizenship.