gramercygreen

You could have this friend (that you're renting from) provide a notarized statement / affidavit regarding the current situation.

General recommendation, if at any point you find yourself wondering "Should I apply for the EAD and/or AP?", my suggestion would be to just go ahead and do it. The longer you delay, the longer it'll take to get them. Depending on how you are adjusting status, it might be free, in which case the major cost is the printing/copying/photographs/mailing.

So... you're telling them to actively mislead/lie to the USCIS on the forms they're submitting? That is YIKES.

(Not a B status.)

You’re still under the F1 status (unless you’ve violated its terms).

I’m not sure that’s how “in care of” works for mailing addresses. If you’re mailing it directly to your wife at her address, that line may be left blank (or N/A).

I didn’t see this in the guide, BUT DON’T FORGET THE I-944!!

There seems to be two questions here: what happens if OP doesn’t go to the interview (in title), and can OP go back to their home country (in post). (1) I assume that if you don’t go to your interview, the USCIS will deny your case. You will probably have to leave the country if your visa has already expired. That being said, I don’t think they’ll place a ban on you unless they found proof of some kind of foul play. (2) You should be able to go to your home country and return to the US on the AP, as long as your AOS case is pending.

I don’t completely agree with this statement. My partner and I sent only the IRS tax transcripts (nothing else), and did not receive an RFE. You may respond with more supporting documentation and an explanation, but I would also recommend obtaining a joint sponsor if that’s feasible.

I think the bigger issue is that the I-485 cannot be processed without an I-130. If the petitioning spouse doesn’t want to submit / wants to withdraw, the beneficiary cannot proceed. One solution may be to switch to VAWA, but it’s unclear if the beneficiary is a victim of abuse.

I think this is a grey area IMO. If you were volunteering to help keep patients company and assist family members with odds and ends, I might be more inclined to say it’s volunteering (humanitarian work). Office administrative work might more likely be seen as unpaid employment, and I’m leaning toward your partner’s argument to avoid it. Let’s assume the USCIS construes this as unauthorized employment (which is illegal). Does it affect your AOS? Depends. If you’re married to a US citizen, it will not bar you from adjusting. If you’re married to a permanent resident, you may be barred from adjusting.

Can you try directly contacting the Embassy in DC? This regards a citizen of the Philippines being essentially stranded in the US without any valid form of identification, and the SF consulate has not responded to your requests for help. I think it merits some escalation. Sorry, I think for these types of edge-case situations, it might be easier to aggressively pursue contact with the Embassy, since it's LITERALLY their job to protect their citizens abroad.

Ugh that sucks. Sorry. They should realize they're doing their citizen a disservice.

Do you think the calling the consulate to see if they know a work-around might be helpful? This seems like a pretty edge case.