jiggy_jarjar

Hello, My wife just got her green card (K1 AOS) but has not yet received her SSN. We requested an SSN while submitting the AOS and EAD forms (we missed the timeframe for applying shortly after entry in the K1). She received the EAD combo card three weeks ago and the green card two weeks ago. We have not received anything from the SSA yet. We married in November 2020 and filed jointly last year. We applied for an ITIN and used my wife's maiden name on the ITIN and return (per the accountant's advice since my wife was still waiting on an updated passport with her new last name). We have not received the new SSN yet but I am assuming it's in the pipeline. I understand that once we receive it, we are to notify the IRS that she received an SSN and the IRS will cancel the ITIN. I am trying to work out a few things. First, I understand that we need to send a letter to the IRS requesting a merger of the ITIN tax records with the SSN. Since this will also include a name change, should this letter also explain that my wife's last name has changed and include a copy of the marriage certificate as evidence? Second, are we better off quickly filing taxes and an FBAR (we meet the requirements) under the ITIN since we haven't yet received the SSN and just deal with the name change and SSN/ITIN merger after the fact? If the last answer is "no," should we be working with the SSA to get the SSN issued ASAP? I am assuming the SSA and IRS will take some time to process the SSN, name change, and merger. Any insight would be very much appreciated ☺️

It was not in LA. Our local processing times on the USCIS website were ridiculous (upwards of 2 years) but that was not accurate for our case (and I doubt they are accurate at all). Send the response to the address that the RFE tells you to. Follow all instructions in the RFE exactly.

At the end of the RFE, it instructed us to send the response to a specific office address, which was our local field office. We sent our response there by Express mail.

I promised you an update and here it is! This morning, the day after our EAD combo card was approved, our green card was approved without an interview. We sent in the I-693 about a week and a half ago.

Quick update: We got notification of approval for our EAD and travel document today. We submitted the I-693 about 10 days ago. I'm not sure if the two are connected at all but this is a positive development nonetheless.

The letter asked for a I-693, so we did the whole thing. The Civil Surgeon copied over the vaccinations from our DS-3025 since that was sufficient proof for him that those vaxes were done (my understanding is that not all Civil Surgeons will do this and some may require independent documentation for vax). The main vaxes for stuff like MMR were still current. But, the flu vax was no longer current under the Civil Surgeon instructions (which makes sense since it's seasonal). We were told we couldn't use the antibody labs for TB and Syphilis we did for our K-1 (again, I think it's a Civil Surgeon instructions thing), so we did those again.

We just mailed the response to the RFE early last week. We needed a flu vax and updated blood labs, which delayed things a little. We ended up paying $220 for a new medical exam. I'll post when we get a response.

Thank you for the clarification and additional information. It is incredibly helpful. Sounds like we definitely need a new IME. We'll schedule it ASAP. Agreed. Thanks!

Hello, first off, a huge thank you to this site as it has provided my wife and me with a wealth of information and support through what is a convoluted, opaque, and often frustrating process. Today, we received an RFE for a form I-693. My wife submitted her i-485 in February 2022. She entered the country in October 2021 on a K-1 Visa and her medical exam was completed in June 2021. We were married in November 2021. I am confused by the RFE for a few reasons. First, my wife already did an IME for the K-1 visa, since it was less than a year old when we submitted the I-485, we should not have needed a new IME. Second, we submitted a form DS-3025 with the I-485. That DS-3025 clearly states that "K Visa applicant voluntarily completed vaccination requirements." She does not have a Class A medical condition. Third, I understood that she would bring her sealed I-693 to her interview. Finally, I understand that several people are obtaining green cards without an interview and this may be USCIS's way of obtaining the I-693 without my wife going to an interview and handing it to someone. However, the RFE letter is ambiguous as to whether USCIS is asking us to submit the I-693 that we already have or a new I-693. Some specifics from the letter for background: The letter is clearly a "Request for Evidence" as it is titled as such. The letter advises us to: We are leaning towards just getting a new IME as some of the language of this letter seems to suggest that a new IME is required. Specifically, the letter states that an original I-693 must be submitted and that a photocopy will not be accepted. We do have our I-693 sealed white envelope from the IME in June 2021. I don't know what's in it but when I hold it up to the light, it looks like it's just a CD. Thus, no "original" I-693 form (I'm guessing this was in the packet that was submitted at POE but may have been lost(?) by USCIS). In addition, the letter pretty clearly states that "the civil surgeon administering your immigration medical examination must complete and sign the 07/19/2022 edition of the Form I-693," which suggests to me that a new form needs to be completed. However, can someone give us a sanity check? Are we overreacting and we just need to submit our sealed envelope or do we need to do a whole new IME? Should we call USCIS?