AJCM

Thanks @Silmaril
From my time observing and researching this, there definitely has been a speed-up, but as everyone here knows SF and a few other metro areas are still suffering from a big disparity in processing times vs other USCIS districts.
 
The last year or so, my best guess was a gradual speed-up due to (in no particular order):
1. Fewer people applying in general, and to SF Bay Area offices
2. Diversion of cases (by address/zip?) to nearby offices
3. Easing the (12/2018?) requirement to interview RoC/751 cases by default
4. Increasing usage of outright rejection notices due to "frivolous" filings (justification given by USCIS)

The biggest beneficiaries are probably cases that are diverted to SJ/SAC, but even the SF filers have seen processing times reduce by 4-6 weeks from the peak. Hope this trend continues.
 

AJCM: congratulations on the end of a long journey! Best of luck to all of the rest of us still waiting.
 
There are signs that USCIS is moving faster, both for SF and SJ applicants. Two September 2019 filers from SF have, I believe, received interview notices! I wonder if the speedup is solely due to offloading cases to Sac/Fresno/SJ, or if there have been other efficiency improvements.

Hi peeps,
 
Quick update that we are fresh from our interview, and status has been updated to card in production.
 
Just a plug that VJ is a source of knowledge only because of the participation of its members. I therefore encourage everyone to add your respective timelines to your signatures and keep them updated! You never know who you'll help, even if it's only for settling some nerves.

Hi peeps,
 
Quick update that we are fresh from our interview, and status has been updated to card in production.
 
Just a plug that VJ is a source of knowledge only because of the participation of its members. I therefore encourage everyone to add your respective timelines to your signatures and keep them updated! You never know who you'll help, even if it's only for settling some nerves.

Hi SFers old and new,
 
I got a bit impatient recently and decided to do some research as far as what other SF AOS filers have been seeing in terms of timeframes. Mostly, I knew that we were (hopefully) getting close to the interview notice, and getting a head start on prepping for that. In any case, I sniffed around the various forums and dug up some helpful information (attached) on how late 2017 through 2018 filers have been faring, as they would be the most recent batch of applicants who have actually been called up for interviews.
 
As expected, and in line with my prior research, some were diverted to Sacramento and San Jose offices for their interviews... seemingly pretty early (in the 300s days into the process), suggesting that they do this on a batch basis fairly early on. Assuming transportation is not an issue, they are the lucky ones.
 
As a whole, you'll also see that compared to the 2nd half of 2017 filers, 2018 filers are indeed seeing faster processing times. On the other hand, we are now past the 2018 average, and have yet to be scheduled, so expect some additional variance. I just joke with my wife that we likely have a hard deadline of next August (our 2nd anniversary) as I'm sure that USCIS won't get in the business of giving out non-conditional GCs.

Hi all,
 
After some more digging and datapoint-gathering, I've determined that there's a clear divergence between those who are filing at SF and getting sent to a nearby FO for interview, vs. those who are assigned to SF.

Here, you can see that the first indication of re-assignment of field office (FO) roughly matches the announcements made by USCIS in the middle of this year. The exact criteria for assignment to a nearby FO is not clear, but one poster assigned to Sacramento (SAC) had speculated that it was due to living in the East Bay and thus presumably closer to the Sacramento office. If so, it would suggest that those in the southern periphery of SF's jurisdiction would be eligible for assignment to the San Jose (SJ) office.

Prior to mid-2019, all interviews under the SF FO are presumed to have taken place in SF. A few observations:
- 2018 filers are indeed moving along significantly faster than 2017 filers, to the order of 3 months faster overall.
- The speed is even faster for those who are assigned to SJ/SAC for their interviews, with most getting interviewed at around or prior to the 1 year mark.
- Among 2018 SF filers who remain in SF for interviews, they're getting called up around 4 weeks earlier than the average 2017 SF filer.

A bit of news to share as well: as I was in the middle of compiling these numbers, I actually got an email alert stating that we had been scheduled (no precise information as of yet — waiting for the USPS copy). So for us, we got scheduled ourselves at the 469 day mark, which is again a bit faster than what this data suggests.

From what I can tell, this is now the most complete collection of recent AOS timeline information relating to SF filers. (I guess we're not that much of a talkative bunch, anymore, despite being tied to one of the largest offices in the country). If you think this is helpful, please do your part as well by remembering to update your own timelines when your own turn comes! 

Hi all,
 
After some more digging and datapoint-gathering, I've determined that there's a clear divergence between those who are filing at SF and getting sent to a nearby FO for interview, vs. those who are assigned to SF.

Here, you can see that the first indication of re-assignment of field office (FO) roughly matches the announcements made by USCIS in the middle of this year. The exact criteria for assignment to a nearby FO is not clear, but one poster assigned to Sacramento (SAC) had speculated that it was due to living in the East Bay and thus presumably closer to the Sacramento office. If so, it would suggest that those in the southern periphery of SF's jurisdiction would be eligible for assignment to the San Jose (SJ) office.

Prior to mid-2019, all interviews under the SF FO are presumed to have taken place in SF. A few observations:
- 2018 filers are indeed moving along significantly faster than 2017 filers, to the order of 3 months faster overall.
- The speed is even faster for those who are assigned to SJ/SAC for their interviews, with most getting interviewed at around or prior to the 1 year mark.
- Among 2018 SF filers who remain in SF for interviews, they're getting called up around 4 weeks earlier than the average 2017 SF filer.

A bit of news to share as well: as I was in the middle of compiling these numbers, I actually got an email alert stating that we had been scheduled (no precise information as of yet — waiting for the USPS copy). So for us, we got scheduled ourselves at the 469 day mark, which is again a bit faster than what this data suggests.

From what I can tell, this is now the most complete collection of recent AOS timeline information relating to SF filers. (I guess we're not that much of a talkative bunch, anymore, despite being tied to one of the largest offices in the country). If you think this is helpful, please do your part as well by remembering to update your own timelines when your own turn comes! 

Hi SFers old and new,
 
I got a bit impatient recently and decided to do some research as far as what other SF AOS filers have been seeing in terms of timeframes. Mostly, I knew that we were (hopefully) getting close to the interview notice, and getting a head start on prepping for that. In any case, I sniffed around the various forums and dug up some helpful information (attached) on how late 2017 through 2018 filers have been faring, as they would be the most recent batch of applicants who have actually been called up for interviews.
 
As expected, and in line with my prior research, some were diverted to Sacramento and San Jose offices for their interviews... seemingly pretty early (in the 300s days into the process), suggesting that they do this on a batch basis fairly early on. Assuming transportation is not an issue, they are the lucky ones.
 
As a whole, you'll also see that compared to the 2nd half of 2017 filers, 2018 filers are indeed seeing faster processing times. On the other hand, we are now past the 2018 average, and have yet to be scheduled, so expect some additional variance. I just joke with my wife that we likely have a hard deadline of next August (our 2nd anniversary) as I'm sure that USCIS won't get in the business of giving out non-conditional GCs.

The additional vetting associated with employment-sponsored GC applications has been punishing for the Bay Area. We're at the intersection of being one of the most diverse regions in the country, as well as some of the most heavily employer-sponsored populations, as well. Pair that with some mission reprioritization by the current administration + the demoralization of government employees, and voila. If it helps, know that SJ has rarely been as backlogged as SF in the past.
 
Btw (for anyone else reading too) I ended up posting my itemized findings for SF here: 
 

Hi SFers old and new,
 
I got a bit impatient recently and decided to do some research as far as what other SF AOS filers have been seeing in terms of timeframes. Mostly, I knew that we were (hopefully) getting close to the interview notice, and getting a head start on prepping for that. In any case, I sniffed around the various forums and dug up some helpful information (attached) on how late 2017 through 2018 filers have been faring, as they would be the most recent batch of applicants who have actually been called up for interviews.
 
As expected, and in line with my prior research, some were diverted to Sacramento and San Jose offices for their interviews... seemingly pretty early (in the 300s days into the process), suggesting that they do this on a batch basis fairly early on. Assuming transportation is not an issue, they are the lucky ones.
 
As a whole, you'll also see that compared to the 2nd half of 2017 filers, 2018 filers are indeed seeing faster processing times. On the other hand, we are now past the 2018 average, and have yet to be scheduled, so expect some additional variance. I just joke with my wife that we likely have a hard deadline of next August (our 2nd anniversary) as I'm sure that USCIS won't get in the business of giving out non-conditional GCs.

Finally, my interview is scheduled. 16 months since application date o_O

Hi folks, just wanted to chime in that we got the EAD "card ordered for production" e-notice last night. Early Sept (timeline in profile) - filed together with AP/131, but will need to wait and see if it's indeed a combo card or not.

Hi folks, just wanted to chime in that we got the EAD "card ordered for production" e-notice last night. Early Sept (timeline in profile) - filed together with AP/131, but will need to wait and see if it's indeed a combo card or not.

Hi folks, just wanted to chime in that we got the EAD "card ordered for production" e-notice last night. Early Sept (timeline in profile) - filed together with AP/131, but will need to wait and see if it's indeed a combo card or not.

Hi folks, just wanted to chime in that we got the EAD "card ordered for production" e-notice last night. Early Sept (timeline in profile) - filed together with AP/131, but will need to wait and see if it's indeed a combo card or not.

Hi folks, just wanted to chime in that we got the EAD "card ordered for production" e-notice last night. Early Sept (timeline in profile) - filed together with AP/131, but will need to wait and see if it's indeed a combo card or not.

Hi folks, just wanted to chime in that we got the EAD "card ordered for production" e-notice last night. Early Sept (timeline in profile) - filed together with AP/131, but will need to wait and see if it's indeed a combo card or not.

Agree. I manage HR for my company and have encountered a few cases where F1 or H1 was replaced with AOS EAD. Since the F1 EAD was going to expire soon anyway, and the AOS is technically the most recent status, he should just go ahead and have his HR update with the AOS EAD. As long as there is some kind of valid employment authorization, HR usually doesn't care. In fact, in cases where you suspect he's getting paid a lower wage because his employment auth was tied to his status (i.e. in case of OPT) this is a way to gain freedom of employer (and sometimes a market "adjustment" of wages).

Congrats and happy holidays!

Thanks! I am not super worried, since we have been living together for over three years at this point, and have tons of evidence. I am really just surprised of how fast this has been. Based on this website, the average time from filing to interview at our local office  is like 5 months!

Yes not a lot of people in here, i guess being in one of the least populated states helps for the process. I hope i get my interview notice in the mail soon. 

I didn't get a notification in the mail twice, but the online system (when I checked from September 2017 up till mid July) said "Case is ready to be scheduled as of September 27, 2017". And suddenly in July when I checked it now said "Case is ready to be scheduled as of March 18, 2018."
 
I called to check on this and no information was given. The person on the line seemed to suggest this "ready to be scheduled" date is not as important as the NOA date in terms of measuring time elapsed (i.e. when they say 11-25 months as the normal time period for processing, they measure this from your NOA date.)

Hiya @twomuchcandy
 
We're in almost the same boat here in terms of timeline, except that we're in San Francisco. Just got the e-notice for "ready to be scheduled" as well. Given all the increasing processing times, my take is that this is when the waiting game truly begins. The one good thing is that we can take a sigh of relief that the possibility of RFEs has been mostly eliminated.