Hardship612

Working on that. I just checked with a USCIS representative via Emma chat tool and she confirmed that she could not see any updates applied to my case from the DOS. Do you or anyone in the group know the most effective way to connect to DOS to ask them to re-send the FR notice?

I understand. My frustration is that since April 2022 the DOS issued a favorable recommendation on my case, but USCIS has yet to approve the waiver, which is very weird given typical processing times where, after a FR, you are supposed to receive the final approval letter 2-4 weeks later, but 11 months and counting. I have tried multiple times to contact USCIS, via online inquiries, Ombudsman's office, and nothing. The only answer I get is that my case is still pending.

Thank you! yes that's an option. I'm wondering if I lived for one year in one country (outside US) and then another year in my home country, would this somehow qualify as meeting the two-year requirement? or if the 2-year sanction applies only to the home country and having lived in another country doesn't count?

Hi All, Since the waivers are taking so long, has anyone had to leave and does the J1 two year home penalty applies for just two years outside of the US or it has to actually be your home country ( the country that issues the statement of need) in my case I have been one year in a third country, and now almost one more year in my home country? Anyone has had similar cases or any input. At the end it will be two years out of the US. Thanks.

Thank you. Has anyone had the experience taking this route? I’ll explore this with my lawyer, but I have to say without much knowledge/experience in suing a US government agency, I can already see myself worried about future retaliation/impact on the rest of my immigration journey.

Thank you. I'll try to see how many inquiries can be made on the same case, since I understand that my lawyer submitted a query to the ombudsman office (in December).

Yes. I have been working with them since the beginning and the course of action at this point is to wait for the final letter, but I have no idea how much longer we'll have to wait for a letter that was supposed to arrive two weeks after DOS FR.

Thank you. As I understand it, to file I485 I need to be on US soil with a visa other than the B1/B2. So H1 visa is my option, but I can't get the H1 without the final letter 😕

Hi All. I wish the best for your families and especially with your cases, which surely has an impact on your beloved ones. I got a FR from DOS on April 28th, 2022 (8+ months ago) but I’m still waiting for the final letter from USCIS (stating "Case Approved" instead of "Case on Hold"). I submitted an inquiry back in September 2022 and their answer was quite generic, simply stating that the case was pending adjudication; my lawyer submitted another request on December 6th and the answer was pretty much the same. In December my lawyer also contacted the Ombudsman office but this is the date nothing has happened yet. As you can see in my timeline below, I have spent 29+ months in this entire process, have quit my job, moved back to my country, and continue to wait for this final letter from USCIS. I tried a couple of times last week to connect with a USCIS agent via Emma tool, but the answer was pretty much the same… the case is “within the normal process” and that they couldn’t see any other update to share. I really don’t know what else I can do at this point. Any suggestions/advice?

Thank you! I'm glad you received the letter. I submitted an inquiry (on Sept 28th) to USCIS to understand the status of the final approval, but they responded saying that they couldn't provide any specific completion date and that my case was pending adjudication; so with that being said, I'm still waiting, not sure what else I can do at this point.

Hello Pillowchis, congrats on your Favorable Recommendation! Have you received your approval letter from USCIS yet? in my case, I got the FR on April 28th 2022, but I'm still waiting for USCIS final letter.

I do, but nothing clear from their side; i.e. they just said that USCIS should issue the approval at any time, but they haven't proposed anything different other than waiting. Do you know any more specific actions we can take? at least to brainstorm with the lawyers or even start doing it on my own?

Hello and Congrats! Have you received the USCIS final approval? how long it took between DOS FR and USCIS final notice (if any). DOS sent a FR on my case 5 months ago and still waiting for USCIS final approval. Any suggestions?

Hi All, Does anyone know how long it takes for USCIS to issue the approval notice after receiving the Favorable Recommendation? DOS sent FR on April 28th 2022 (5+ months ago), but I’m still waiting for USCIS notice. Any tips, advice, suggestions? Case status at USCIS still shows “On Hold; On August 25, 2021, we requested another non-USCIS advisory opinion for your Form I-612, Application for Waiver of the Foreign Residence Requirement (under Section 212(e) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as Amended), Receipt Number xxxxxxxxxx. Processing of your case will resume when we receive the response.” I submitted a query to USCIS about 1 week ago (https://egov.uscis.gov/e-request/Intro.do) regarding timeline expectations for this final notice, but their answer was pretty generic; “Our records show that your case is currently pending adjudication. We regret that we are unable to provide you with a completion date at this time. We apologize for the delay”. We have invested 25+ months in the whole process 😕 Thanks in advance for your time!