RileyM

For anyone curious, took almost 2 months. Finally said Response received on July 14th. No updates since then

Hi y'all, Question: For anyone who had to mail the medical exam, how long did it take them to say it was received? We applied April 19, 2022, Expedite request got my husband his work and travel permit by the end of July 22 and we next heard from them on May 10, 2023 when they approved the I-130 and sent and RFE to request us to mail the medical exam to the field office. We did on May 25, and USPS says it was delivered on May 28. Our status is still at "RFE sent."

We expedited through Emma chat. During hours when agents are available, you type "live chat," then it give you a list of options. Select "Case Status," then you'll get in a queue to talk to an agent. They will ask what you want, say expedite your EAD, then they will ask you reason which has to be from a list. The most common is "severe financial loss". Then you plead your case and hope it's approved! Some people get immediate approval, some immediate denial, some get asked for evidence and some none. Unfortunately no way to know, but you can put in multiple requests if one gets denied! We never even were told that ours was approved, just an e-mail saying they received the request and then they approved the EAD the next day.

Joining in here: San Francisco Field Office. Processed through NBC. For my husband (adjusting from F1 OPT, I'm USC) 4/19/22 -Submitted I-130 online, printed out receipt and mailed I-485, I-765, and I-131 4/21/22 -Priority date on receipt notices 4/29/22 - Biometrics Scheduled for 5/23 4/29/22 - RFE received for I-864 (said I didn't include a tax return and W2s for sponsorship even though I sent a tax transcript instead). Responded next day online. 5/11/22 - Deficiency notice for no I-693 5/23/22 - Biometrics at Oakland ASC 5/23/22 - I-765 and I-485 being actively reviewed 7/5/22 - Expedite Request Submitted via Emma chat for financial loss (His OPT EAD expired 6/30) 7/21/22 - E-mail saying Expedite request was received and we'd be contacted if more info was needed 7/22/22 - Notice in online account saying EAD was approved! Notice says the EAD will have an I-512 endorsement for advanced parole, though our I-131 application still is stuck at "Case Received"