ljujas2019

On 1/10/2022 at 12:34 AM, Godyouarelove said:

You should definitely try the walk in I missed my biometric called and they told me to wait 60 days and 4 months later still no reschedule. So I walked in on January 03 2022 and to God be the glory I got it done after a stressful 4 months. 

I wish this would be the case for me, but I have now tried walking in twice, without success. Due to COVID-19, they basically could not let someone in who does not have an appointment... It sucked. Today, during attempt #2, there was barely anyone in line outside of the ASC office. I am sure they could have made some exceptions but nope! I hope that I do not have to wait for 4 months for this appointment...

3 hours ago, aaron2020 said:

Create an account at my USCIS.   Any letter that is sent out will be available there as a PDF.  Check there when you have a pending case with USCIS.  Sure way not to miss any letters from USCIS.

I have a USCIS account actually, but I cannot find any files or letters connected to my recent case there? It just says that my application was received. Where can you find those PDF files/letters? In your Inbox?

1 hour ago, Timona said:

 

If you have time to burn tomorrow, try walk in BUT during slow traffic. Hang around your car and grab slow traffic  opportunity. Go with expired letter. 

 

I suggest you try this because people do early walk ins sometimes. 

I would love to do that, but walk-ins are not accepted now due to the pandemic.

3 hours ago, Loren Y said:

Usually the letter comes before Biometrics. Just did my wifes I-751, we even got a reminder letter reminding us to file it( couldn't believe that). the I797C you get has this important paragraph extending your green card. We get to try this out in a few weeks as we will be leaving and returning to the US.Receipt.pdf

Hmm... Well, for some reason, unfortunately, I do not have that box on my I-797C; there are no references to an extension on my letter.

2 minutes ago, SoCal2021 said:

When they sent you a text, you should have received your receipt number.  It starts with 3 letters and then bunch of numbers.  If you like in CA, it would start with WACXXXXXXX (other locations start with different 3 letters).  You will need to use that case number and then find the current status by visiting this web site:

https://egov.uscis.gov/casestatus/landing.do

I just did that, and it says my case was received and that a receipt notice was sent to me. However, I just have the I-797C, not I-797.

18 minutes ago, Rocio0010 said:

I think (don’t quote me on this one) you might be able to get a copy of your i797 if you do a service request online. Did you keep a copy of your mailing receipt? Do you know if your package was delivered or not? 

I only received a text from USCIS at the end of November saying that they received my application. The text read "Official Receipt Notice (Form I-797) to follow in mail". However, I only received the I-797C "Notice of Action" letter (biometrics appointment letter). 

When I log in to my USCIS account, I do not see any active application there at all. Can I still request services online?

3 minutes ago, Crazy Cat said:

The 24 month extension letter is what should have been sent first from USCIS.  It extends the expiration date of your Green Card for 24 months.  

What happens if I do not get this letter? Do I need it for my biometrics appointment, too? My green card expires in 20 days, but I filed the I-751 form properly and timely (on November 27, 2021). I unfortunately missed my biometrics appointment, but I am hoping to reschedule it. It looks like the USCIS skipped a step for me? I will ask them to send my receipt notice (extension letter?) as well, when I call tomorrow.

31 minutes ago, Rocio0010 said:

Then how were you able to come back? You need the i797 when you have a pending case…

I came back 20 days before my green card expired.

1 hour ago, Crazy Cat said:

Call USCIS and reschedule.  Did you receive the 24 month extension letter?

I will call first thing in the morning. Oh...No, I did not receive that. What is that and how do I get it? Thanks for letting me know.

Hi!

I just returned from a visit to Sweden, where I spent the holidays with my family. Right before I left, my spouse and I had filed the I-751 form to remove the conditions on my residence (CR-1). However, unfortunately, as I came home last night, I found the appointment letter from USCIS, saying I had a biometrics appointment 3 days ago. As you can understand, I missed my appointment. I was so nervous about this and could not sleep last night. It was definitely not a great way to start the new year. Not really the best news to come home to. Moving forward, what can I do in this case? In the letter, it says that the USCIS does not reschedule these appointments. Friends have recommended me to call the USCIS and request to speak to a tier 2 officer, to get support in rescheduling. If it was not for the pandemic, I would have gone directly to the ASC office, but it is now by appointment only. Finally, I never received a notice that my application was received? I just got the biometrics appointment letter. I am honestly surprised, because after reading about this quite extensively before my trip, I thought it would take at least 2 months to get the biometrics appointment. And the fact that my appointment was made around Christmas time - quite surprising I must say.

I welcome any insights or advice! Thank you for all your support.

Best,

Hi everyone!

I hope you are all doing well.

Is anyone else here filing to remove the conditions from their conditional green card (I-751) this month? We are planning to send all documents by the end of this month; however, I am a bit confused about what it means to 'not send original documents'. Are we supposed to make a photocopy of the signed, completed I-751 form and not send the "original" form? Or do we send the form that we filled out directly, use it for our application package and just make a photocopy for ourselves, for our own reference?

Also, it seems alarming to me that some of you have experiences where the USCIS is following up with notices saying that the I-751 form is outdated, while literally using the form available on the USCIS website. That form lists 2019, so which other form would be used? Finally, we have accidentally locked ourselves out of our USCIS account and do not have access to our USCIS Online Account Number. Is it absolutely necessary to include this number on the I-751 form?

Good luck to all of you and thank you for all of your support!

Best,

J

On 10/3/2021 at 1:48 AM, Greencard-22 said:

Hey Everyone, 

 

Thought I would start this thread for all my fellow October filers. Hope we can all share our progress along the way while also helping each other out, if any of us have any questions. 
 

We sent out our I-751 package yesterday. Was pricey to send it express mail but my husband was fed up with me only fiddling with it and making changes, so he was relieved to get it out of the house lol. 
 

Our package consisted of:

Cover Letter

Personal Check for 680

G-1145

Form I-751

Conditional GC - mine 

US Passport - hubby

Marriage Certificate 

Bank Cards for Joint Acc

Bank statements for checking account from the last two years 

Bank statements for savings account from the time it was open to present 

2020 & 2019 tax returns with W-2

2020 & 2019 tax transcript

Hubby’s drivers permit along with his previous ID showing current address

My ID showing current address

Renters Insurance for the Year 2020

Letter from landlord explaining our rental agreement 

Cable and phone bill for the last two years 

Credit cards for our Joint Acc

Credit card statements for the last two years showing our activities 

Insurance cards for two years and also info  on our current plan

Two affidavit letters (only thing we sent that was original)

20 pictures 

 

That’s pretty much it.  It’s a pretty big package with all the statements. We debated back and forth on what to send and after reading from people’s experiences here, we decided to be safe and send everything. Our package should get there by end of day Monday. Hopefully we’ll receive a notification by Tuesday at least. Will post any updates as this process goes along. Hope everyone else will as well. 
 

Best of luck to all of you! 
 

 

Hi!

Thanks for giving us this overview of how you prepared your application and what you included. However, I have a question - do our US citizen spouses really need to include a copy of their passport? I thought only a copy of the green card (back and forth) was sufficient for the Permanent Resident.

Best,

Hi everyone! 

Due to the difficulties of immigrating (CR-1 status, green card holder) to the US right before the pandemic broke out this year, I had to go back to my home country temporarily, to take care of my family and because of heightened stress levels. I needed to go back home to feel okay again. Now, I'm back in the US, after 5,5-6 months. I have basically been unemployed since January and haven't been able to accomplish any of the goals I set for myself at the beginning of the year, which is very disappointing.

My spouse and I are considering travelling together to my home country, for 2 weeks-1 month, if I am unable to get a job and start working in the US soon. My partner is very supportive and knows how hard the pandemic has been for me as an immigrant and how all my plans have been delayed. Given this background, I wanted to ask for your advice. Can I travel outside of the US for, let's say, a month, in February 2021, even though I was travelling outside of the US between May 11-October 31, 2020? How does the 6 month residence/travelling rule work? Do I have to wait 6 more months to travel again? How are days counted toward residence? Will I lose my green card if I travel again soon? Some people say that you can travel out of the country for one year with a green card and without any special re-entry permits; others claim that one can only travel for 6 months per year. What is accurate here? 

Sorry for all the overwhelming questions! 

On 6/28/2020 at 1:01 PM, ljujas2019 said:

Hi everyone! I wanted to update you on this matter. The case status on USCIS now reads "Card is being produced", so for those of you who also waited since January - this is good news for you too! It has now been about 1,5-2 weeks with this status, but the card has not been sent out/ received yet, but I am just happy it is finally being produced haha! Have a great day all of you!

New update! I just got an e-mail from USCIS that my green card has been mailed and should arrive at my address very shortly. In case I do not receive it before July 22, I have to contact USCIS, the e-mail reads.

Good luck to everyone!

On 6/29/2020 at 12:32 AM, SusieQQQ said:

It’s 12 months, not 6 months, that is the maximum time allowed out without a re-entry permit. The relevance of the 6-month period is continuous residence for naturalization. 

Oh, I see, but if I want to maintain my continuous residence for naturalization, travelling outside of the US for 6-month periods or less, how does this work in my case? I mean, if I have been abroad for 6 months and return by October 2020 (having immigrated to the US in January 2020), will I be able to travel abroad again by early Spring 2021 and spend 3-6 months outside of the US again? I don't know how this "counting" works. I do want to maintain continuous residence for naturalization. 

Maybe this timeline helps:

January 2020 - Immigrated to the US

May 2020 - Travelled abroad

October 2020 - Expected to be back in the US

----

When, in 2021, can I travel again, for a (up to) 6 month period, but also maintaining my continuous residence (for naturalization), given the time I have spent abroad in 2020? What do you think?

On 4/23/2020 at 8:38 PM, ljujas2019 said:

Hi everyone! 

 

I paid my immigrant visa fee on January 24 and still have not received my green card. On my status, it just says that my payment was received, not that my card is being produced or anything, like some of you have posted about. Can I expect to get my green card next month, within the 120 days period, or is the pandemic delaying these procedures even further? What do you think? I really hope to get my green card by mail next month at the latest. 

 

Thank you and good luck to all of you! 

Hi everyone! I wanted to update you on this matter. The case status on USCIS now reads "Card is being produced", so for those of you who also waited since January - this is good news for you too! It has now been about 1,5-2 weeks with this status, but the card has not been sent out/ received yet, but I am just happy it is finally being produced haha! Have a great day all of you!

Hi everyone!

I hope you are all healthy and doing well during these difficult, confusing and uncertain times, and I am glad that we can support each other here on VisaJourney. 

I have a question in regard to travelling and spending periods of time outside of the US with a CR-1 status. Basically, I immigrated to the US from Sweden in January, to reunite with my American spouse, and then the pandemic broke out and we ended up being in quarantine at home, only a month after my port of entry. My plans to contribute to our family financially, starting up my life there etc., were delayed, as for many of us, and I started missing my family in Sweden and growing increasingly concerned for them in the context of the pandemic. To support my family (many members of whom had lost their jobs and were struggling, concerns about my elderly grandmother's health and care taking, etc.), I went to Sweden temporarily, in May, and I am still here, planning to go back to the US toward the end of the summer/early fall, within the 6 month period green card holders are allowed to travel outside the US. However, my point with all of this is to ask, when or how does the 6-month travelling guidelines for green card holders apply? How does it work? Let's say I decide to visit Sweden for three months next year, in February 2021, for example, to visit my family again, does this time add to my 6-month period outside of the US from this year, 2020? When does the counting start and end? Are we only allowed to be outside of the US for 6 months per 12 months, starting the day I immigrated to the US (January 22, 2020)? Or does the counting start from the end of my trip - let's say I go back to the US in September, will I only be able to travel for a longer period (less than 6 months though) in September 2021, after a year? Does the system reset in this way or how does the "counting system" work? 

I gratefully welcome any piece of information or advice. Also, I am sorry for the messy question and post, but thank you everyone and good luck to you all!

On 4/23/2020 at 2:58 PM, Lucky Cat said:

Your passport and stamp are your green card until the plastic one arrives.........you should no issues regarding the use of it to re-enter the US.

Thank you for your response! I am just concerned... on my visa, it says "IV expires" in June... but at the same time (and on the same page), it says: "upon endorsement serves as a temporary I-551 evidencing permanent residence for 1 year". Is it possible for my temporary green card to expire in June, or does IV only concern my first port of entry, when I came here in January? 

Hi!

What are your ideas and concerns about travelling abroad during this pandemic and 60 day immigration ban, if you only have access to your I-551 stamp in your passport and still waiting for your green card to be mailed to you? Would I, for example, have issues coming back into the country, after my trip, without my green card, or am I still fine with my passport and stamp? I have been waiting for my green card since I paid the fee and arrived here at the end of January. 

Thank you for all your support and advice!

Hi everyone! 

I paid my immigrant visa fee on January 24 and still have not received my green card. On my status, it just says that my payment was received, not that my card is being produced or anything, like some of you have posted about. Can I expect to get my green card next month, within the 120 days period, or is the pandemic delaying these procedures even further? What do you think? I really hope to get my green card by mail next month at the latest. 

Thank you and good luck to all of you! 

Just now, Boiler said:

Probably 12th June was the 6 month expiry of your medical? By when you had to enter?

Oh, yeah, that would makes sense. I had my interview on December 18th of last year and was approved in the first week of January, and then came here on January 22. 

20 minutes ago, Boiler said:

Well you can of course wait, only you can decide how important this is to you, legally the stamp and the card are equivalent.

Thank you for your support. I think I will wait for a little while longer, and hopefully, I'll get my green card within a month or so. In case I do not and I decide to travel next month, I was wondering what the IV validity period means, because on my visa stamp, it says my IV expires on June 12 of this year, but underneath, there is a small text saying: "upon endorsement serves as a temporary I-551 evidencing permanent residence for 1 year". 

1 hour ago, Boiler said:

I 551 stamp is good for a year. 

I have plans of travelling to Europe, Sweden to be with and support my family during this pandemic, and given the current travel ban from Europe, I am concerned that my I-551 stamp will not be sufficient to prove permanent residency (when I return to the US), as this is the condition under which people can travel from Europe to the US right now. It seems that this restriction does not apply to spouses, but I am just concerned that I will have issues due to not having my physical green card.

1 minute ago, Boiler said:

You have your Passport and the I 551 stamp, what are you having issues with?

I would like to travel to my homecountry (Sweden), stay with and take care of my family for a couple of months.

Hi!

Does anyone know if USCIS services and processing times are being affected by the coronavirus right now? I have been waiting for my green card since I paid the fee and arrived here at the end of January.

I came here on my CR-1 visa, after having gone through the long process of waiting for spousal visa approval abroad, in my homecountry. My spouse and I were apart from each other for a bit more than a year, so we were so happy to be reunited this year in January. However, my new life here is not what I expected, with limitations from not having the actual physical green card in my hand and now, the pandemic.

Does anyone have any idea or clue how long I could have to wait? I have been waiting for almost 2 months now, since paying my green card fee. As most of you probably know, it says on the USCIS website that it should not take longer than 120 days to receive your green card upon arrival/payment of green card fee, but I guess that this statement is accurate only under normal circumstances or conditions. 

Thank you for all your support and advice!

Hi everyone!

I immigrated here to reunite with my wife on a CR-1 visa on January 24, so I have been here for almost two months now. My question today is related to international travelling while on conditional (CR-1) status. I have not yet received my green card by mail, but hoping to get it very shortly, because I did notice some limitations to not having it (DMV gave me a hard time, employers hesitate etc.). Anyway, my question is this - can I travel to my home country anytime soon, and if so, how long is reasonable? Some people have told me that you cannot leave the United States during your first year as an immigrant/ green card holder, especially on my status, given that I will have to remove conditions in two years or so. 

The reason why I am asking this question is because my grandma is sick, and I would like to spend a couple of months (maximum 5 months) with her, to take care of her, because I am afraid that she might not have much more time. Do you think this is possible? Would I, with my particular status, have problems getting back to the US when returning? And would working temporarily in my home country to support myself those months be a problem that would complicate this case?

Sorry for overwhelming you with questions - best of luck to all of you!