mam521

If you were handed a DS-5535 in March, it would be REALLY surprising to see it come through the system that quickly. All DS-5535's go through a central adjudication center and aren't handled locally, as I understand it. Not to be a negative Nelly, but rather to be realistic, if you look at the spreadsheet, I don't think anyone has gone less than 3 months for a decision in essentially forever. It's more like 6mo+. There will be other factors for consideration too. Things like what is your educational background (TAL or not)? Where have you traveled to in the past and what was your purpose there? What is your family heritage? Do you have a common name? Fingers crossed it goes quickly for you.

At least citizenship is easy, relatively speaking!

Were you actually issued and submitted a DS-5535 or are you in regular AP?

Our greencards took over 170 days. I did send an inquiry because it was ridiculous. Then, one of them was statused incorrectly. The online account isn't useless...it does let you see if the card has been printed and mailed. It serves for sending traceable inquiries. It also serves as the place to file future petitions. It's definitely useless when it comes to estimating timelines. It is handy, though, if you have access, especially in cases like this where someone has no idea if their card has even been printed. It's unfortunate that they weren't granted an access code.

I think I've filled all the USCIS forms, of which there have been many, the same way @Edward and Jaycel did. Multiple petitions, no issues. If you're really worried, convert it all into inches.

@CinderSoul & @Coco8, please do the community a favor and fill out your timelines. I don't know if you're Apple users and if the fees are any less? Hubs used to send money to me that way - Apple Pay. Wise is another low fee way and it's pretty easy to use. Hubs and only have one shared credit card. The rest of our finances are separate. We are, however, listed as beneficiaries on pension and retirement accounts, life insurance and other accounts that aren't so easy to change a beneficiary on. We had shared vehicle insurance and house insurance. We had no issues with USCIS or DoS. Due to your awareness, I suspect you'll find ways that will be sufficient proof once you're together. Until then, don't stress!

In the article, it states it won't mail them to "newly naturalized citizens"...uh, I dunno about anyone else here, but I had to make an appointment and march my happy behind into a SSA office to show them my Certificate of Naturalization, proving I was now a citizen. I've never heard of them sending new SSN's to newly naturalized citizens. Anyone else get a new SSN upon naturalization previously? I'm curious now!

My husband refers to those types of workers as "jobsworth types". Lovely, eh? One issue is that many of the jobsworth types don't even understand the instructions, which say you can apply as long as you have an endorsed, machine readable I-551, which is what you'll have in your passport. I dealt with that with getting my kids' SSN's. In the meantime, you can still get a job, etc with that endorsed I-551. Just familiarize yourself with the I-9 rules because many HR people don't appear to be. They think you require it when the instructions clearly state you do not require to start work. Hopefully, this won't end up being a super painful, drawn out thing. Hard to judge in the current climate!

The covid vaccine is no longer a requirement: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/News/visas-news/cdc-removes-covid-19-vaccination-requirement-for-immigrant-visa-applicants.html#:~:text=CDC Removes COVID-19 Vaccination Requirement for Immigrant Visa Applicants,-Last Updated%3A March&text=Effective March 11%2C 2025%2C CDC,receive the COVID-19 vaccination.

I'm chuckling...DPS in Texas is not a fun time and I wouldn't go there 🤣 But, you're right...going through this step equals obtaining this document. Anyway, @Good4U, any time your case moves, those notices come up. It could be the stack of cases for the interviewing officer was being prepared. You can think of those action alerts kind of like a package from UPS or FedEx where it gets scanned every time it moves. Your file is on the move until you and the interviewing officer meet face to face. Nothing to panic about . Good luck in your interview🍀

But do they set them on fire before they fling em? 🤔

Nah...dog. Dog's eat their vomit. And the cat's, too. Ok now, back to regular scheduled programming...😸

@Neonred she's cute!

I realize the satire here but Danica Patrick ruins any F1 race she attempts to commentate or interview at. AWFUL. Mute the television bad. Rachel Brookes, Natalie Pinkham, Bernie Collins - all do a great job. Danica - hard pass.

🤬 I agree that there should be a day that the street gets done. It's really annoying when the lawn dudes come for this neighbor one day and the next crew the next day. We're maybe a little bit lucky because my elderly neighbors, my lazy neighbors and the business owner neighbor all use the same lawn guys so they do them all at once. Impressive! We need a Costco trip but it will be $$$...ugh.

The NOA's have been taking a lot longer lately. I wouldn't panic yet.

Please fill out your timeline. You may find this thread helpful:

The additional travel history can be shared at the interview. Bring the new W2 and if you have proof of filing, that too, in addition to the previous year's transcripts, as uploaded previously. The fact that the tax deadline isn't until April 15th is here nor there when trying to provide verifiable proof of income for sponsorship. When all tax documents show up, the return should be filed ASAP. Good luck!

It's not going to matter. The tax transcripts are going to list the wife's information anyway. Follow pushbrk's instruction and fill out the I-864a.

I assume it's everyone who isn't a PR or citizen. "Applying for a visa to enter the US"

Forgive my ignorance if this has been posted, but is there actually a list of the visa types aside from "visitors to the US staying more than 30 days" that have to register with USCIS? Is it a blanket requirement? Are dual intent visa holders required to register? I ask because I mentioned to my friend with a TN visa that I believe he needs to register because it's a non-immigrant visa stay in excess of 30 days. He was going to verify with his corporate lawyers because he assumed that as an employment visa, he was exempt. Simply curious.

That's annoying!

By doing Consular, he enters with greencard in hand, no adjustment, potentially no removal of conditions, just keep calm, carry on and as long as your marriage is strong, he can apply for citizenship after 3 years. If you're married 2 years plus a day or longer when he crosses the border, he will get a 10 year greencard. Consular has a certain level of "cleanliness" associated with it when it comes to packing up, moving and starting life. Adjusting means he can't travel back and forth to Canada unless he has advanced parole, which is a real crapshoot much of the time, but is really questionable with this administration. He can't work until he has work authorization. The process will ultimately cost a lot more because of all of the steps and if you spend any time on here, many people are stuck in removal of conditions proceedings for forever. Many apply for citizenship and request a combo interview because it takes so long. Canada is hardly overseas and has a different agreement with the US when it comes to visas. Canadians are some of the most notorious bunches for overstaying because it's visa on arrival, here's your B1 stamp, ttyl. CBP typically don't check; it's left up to the person. Unless, of course, CBP start to see a pattern. There are rules to retain provincial social benefits in Canada, as I'd mentioned, residency and presence being part of that. The Canadian federal government deems you a non-resident if you don't have significant residential ties and you spend more than 183 days away. So, while CBP may stamp a 6mo entry into the passport, it doesn't mean there aren't consequences "back home" to deal with.

Just keep in mind as soon as you have the temporary I-551 endorsed, you become subject to US taxes. For example, if you sell a property in the UK, you will be taxed on the proceeds. This is something people often overlook. If you didn't tick the box on the DS-260, you will need an appointment with the SSA; there are no more walk ins. These can be hard to come by, just as a heads up.

It's definitely easier to have the access because any future renewals or petitions can typically be filed through it, in addition to the tracking. If you haven't already, sign up for USPS Informed Delivery. I knew from Informed Delivery that our greencards had been mailed before the notification was issued that they had been sent.