hplusj

On 6/16/2025 at 10:48 AM, Edward and Jaycel said:

Well @hplusj... you weren't wrong  

 

 

Four days apart, incredible!  Congrats!

What's the interview date?

On 6/17/2025 at 9:41 AM, Edward and Jaycel said:

 It's set for July 23rd (1 day before yours @hplusj 

 Never mind, busy week and I'm playing catchup lolol

On 6/21/2025 at 2:41 PM, Matt S said:

Received the green card in the mail today. 11 days from interview. 

Wonderful news, thanks for sharing and congratulations!

On 4/8/2025 at 7:33 PM, GingerZebra said:

@hplusj could I hear a bit more about your wedding? I was also surprised when you said Vegas, but actually if it can be not 'Vegas-y' It's actually a really plausible thing for us to think about doing. You mentioned using a company ? 

Oh my gosh, so sorry I missed this!  

We actually explored a couple microwedding companies in Vegas, trying to remember their names (edit: Elopement Las Vegas and Cactus Collective, I looked them up).  They essentially work with popular venues including the strip hotels and fill in last minute time windows.  So if you're not strict on the day of the week or time, you can get a gorgeous albeit brief ceremony somewhere like Bellagio.  We wanted to livestream so the time was very important to us. 

Both companies were awesome and had a lot of great ideas, including these beautiful desert weddings.  They provide all the add-ons like a live musician, a little cake, and connections to veteran photographers and videographers in the area to fill out a package for you.  I would say on the more economical end you can probably get a package for around 1k, and that includes officiant/filing fees (though you have to get your own license downtown: Vegas charges $102 for that).  

Ultimately Jon and I were presented with a venue called GreenGale Farms by one of the companies.  They're a farm/animal sanctuary in north Vegas with an olive grove I just fell in love with.  Jon and I wanted to get married in nature so it seemed like kismet.  When the company who worked with GGF said they couldn't get the date or time we wanted so far in advance (remember we were shopping after our NOA2 received in March, and this was for an October wedding), we reached out to the coordinator at the farm; turned out that we could skip the middleman because they would be able to work with us directly.  This is why the companies are good for plans within 2-3 months.  Anything longer, reach out to the venue.

The major vendors we used were:

• GreenGale Farms, who provided the venue, coordinator, officiant (who was AMAZING even in meeting him moments before the wedding because he received notes from us through GGF), as well as photography as part of our package.  
• Taylor Made Photography (Heather Taylor), who actually knew GGF and worked out a deal to be our assigned photographer, and we hired her for another hour session later in the evening before our little reception dinner
• Atomic Style Lounge, for hairstyling (we opted out of makeup and did our own)
• LoveStream, who produced a three-camera livestream and chat for our family and friends who wanted to tune in; my maid of honor's plus one thankfully was there as a point of contact for setup and camera work so the wedding party could focus on the wedding. 
• Freed's Bakery, who made and delivered our cake direct to the restaurant where we had dinner
• Renta-Dress and Tux, where we picked up Jon's rental the day before the wedding because it was literally three blocks from the marriage license bureau. They also steamed my skirt for me and made it flawless

We stayed at Park MGM and our mothers were next door at NYNY.  My maid of honor was rather cheap and insisted on staying at Excalibur which is on the other side of NYNY, bless her heart.  

All expenses related to the wedding, including our airfare and hotel stay, came to just around 10k.  As mentioned before I probably would've skipped the LoveStream service if I knew that interest would be so low.  Even still, we're pretty proud of keeping the budget at about a third of the national average.  The wedding industry is insanely brutal on pocketbooks. 

Thank you again for asking!  Since someone mentioned wearing comfy shoes, I'm going to attach Jon's favorite pic from our big day.  I love those shoes lol!

(By the way, I edited all of our photos myself--not because our photographer didn't, but I've been an amateur photo editor for a while and have a certain aesthetic I enjoy so I did more )

Today's stats: June 19, 2025 11:37pm CDT

October 2024 Filed I-485 Stats 

• Approved: 17,439 (+340)

• Denied 1566 (+10)

• Fingerprint Scheduled: 75 (0)

• Interview Cancelled: 487 (-5)

• Interview Scheduled: 5964 (-244)

• Processing: 14,477 (-103)

• Received: 386 (-1)

• Rejected: 97 (0)

• RFE: 570 (0)

• Terminated: 203 (+1)

• Withdrawal: 80 (+3)

• Others: 7 (0)

Percentage of cases approved: 42%

Percentage of cases interview scheduled: 14%

Another crazy Tuesday at work but I'm back with a two day update:

Today's stats: June 18, 2025 12:35pm CDT

October 2024 Filed I-485 Stats 

• Approved: 17,099 (+222)

• Denied 1556 (+8)

• Fingerprint Scheduled: 75 (0)

• Interview Cancelled: 492 (+18)

• Interview Scheduled: 6208 (-185)

• Processing: 14,580 (-49)

• Received: 387 (-4)

• Rejected: 97 (0)

• RFE: 570 (-8)

• Terminated: 202 (-1)

• Withdrawal: 77 (0)

• Others: 7 (-1)

Percentage of cases approved: 41%

Percentage of cases interview scheduled: 15%

Today's stats: June 16, 2025 10:04pm CDT

October 2024 Filed I-485 Stats 

• Approved: 16,877 (+195)

• Denied 1548 (+6)

• Fingerprint Scheduled: 75 (-1)

• Interview Cancelled: 474 (+9)

• Interview Scheduled: 6393 (-150)

• Processing: 14,629 (-62)

• Received: 391 (-2)

• Rejected: 97 (0)

• RFE: 578 (-1)

• Terminated: 203 (+3)

• Withdrawal: 77 (+1)

• Others: 8 (0)

Percentage of cases approved: 41%

Percentage of cases interview scheduled: 15%

15 hours ago, EatBulaga said:

 

USCIS can medical RFE for anything, even not trusting the overseas doctors.

Some have reported RFE for I-693 just to have a US civil surgeon transcribe the DS-3025, which most will still charge for a full medical.

Well fingers crossed to avoid that! Even still, it's a relief to have my initial fear of an expired medical assuaged.  We will handle whatever else comes our way.

Today's stats: June 15, 2025 10:27pm CDT

October 2024 Filed I-485 Stats 

• Approved: 16,682 (+220)

• Denied 1542 (+9)

• Fingerprint Scheduled: 76 (+1)

• Interview Cancelled: 465 (+4)

• Interview Scheduled: 6543 (-167)

• Processing: 14,691 (-63)

• Received: 393 (-2)

• Rejected: 97 (0)

• RFE: 579 (-5)

• Terminated: 200 (+1)

• Withdrawal: 76 (+3)

• Others: 8 (0)

Percentage of cases approved: 40%

Percentage of cases interview scheduled: 16%

The numbers look very similar to the turning we had for October... that only means Jaycel's time is fast approaching!

3 hours ago, EatBulaga said:

 

The overseas medical DS-3025 is valid for one year to be submitted with the I-485.

That does not mean USCIS may not request a medical RFE.

USCIS still reserves the right to request a medical RFE.

I'm not sure what they would miss at the interview to put us into RFE.  His DS-3025 looks complete, every category addressed and the second box checked.  As long as the worksheet remains valid at the time of the interview...

But it sounds like it was valid at the time of submission, which should be enough.  

I will focus my energies on ensuring my husband remembers our anniversary date instead of his completed vaccinations   Thanks all.

I might be psyching myself out here but would rather not leave any stone unturned:

The date of the medical my husband had overseas before arriving here is exactly one year and one day before his AOS interview.  ..that doesn't matter, right?  For some reason I have the notion in my head that the medical is only valid for a year.  Am I mistaken, or should we be looking for a civil surgeon right now...

Busy day at work yesterday but I'm back for a two-day update:

Today's stats: June 14, 2025 10:52pm CDT

October 2024 Filed I-485 Stats 

• Approved: 16,462 (+576)

• Denied 1533 (+32)

• Fingerprint Scheduled: 75 (0)

• Interview Cancelled: 461 (+6)

• Interview Scheduled: 6710 (-455)

• Processing: 14,754 (-159)

• Received: 395 (-2)

• Rejected: 97 (0)

• RFE: 584 (-2)

• Terminated: 199 (+1)

• Withdrawal: 73 (+4)

• Others: 8 (0)

Percentage of cases approved: 40%

Percentage of cases interview scheduled: 16%

@OldUser Is the I-693 to be completed partially if OP's fiancee did a medical in Vietnam and has a completed DS-3025?

1 hour ago, Hopefull25 said:

Hello, I have a big question and not sure it can even be answered here? I have a filipina girlfriend for 2 years now and have been there for month long visits 3 times now... the last trip we decided to get married... I came back to the u.s. and started to gather the documents needed... I had all but forgotten my criminal history... I got my FBI file and my state history.. I looked through it and realized I was in trouble with the process...I had a bad spell in my life 25 years ago... 3 dui.... no felony and a domestic and simple assault... I know it sounds bad but I didn't hurt anyone.. but yes under the letter of the law I was guilty... I slapped a guy in my early 20s and during an argument I grabbed my wife.. 

 My question is... do I have any hope of approval for the k-1 to bring my fiance from the Philippines to the u.s.?

 I am not the same person I once was and have had a good productive life since... 20 years at the same job.. I own a home... it's the only issue I have.... my past.

Personally, I would focus on marrying your fiancee and working towards a spousal visa.  There are many reasons other than your record to do this currently.  

5 minutes ago, Edward and Jaycel said:

@hplusj what time did you get the notification?

I didn't even think to check my email today until I was at work.  The email that notified us of "changes to your account" was received at 10:23am.

I will also add that I had just submitted more evidence yesterday in the form of my third paycheck from my new position.  Granted I had not changed jobs at the time of filing, perhaps someone in USCIS had noticed when I submitted as evidence the first paycheck on 9 May under category I-864 and they wanted to see three of them.

Who knows lol

Today's stats: June 12, 2025 8:55pm CDT

October 2024 Filed I-485 Stats 

• Approved: 15,886 (+603)

• Denied 1501 (+13)

• Fingerprint Scheduled: 75 (-1)

• Interview Cancelled: 455 (+12)

• Interview Scheduled: 7165 (-300)

• Processing: 14,913 (-102)

• Received: 397 (-2)

• Rejected: 97 (0)

• RFE: 586 (+12)

• Terminated: 198 (0)

• Withdrawal: 69 (0)

• Others: 8 (0)

Percentage of cases approved: 38%

Percentage of cases interview scheduled: 17%

9 hours ago, alliejourney said:

I'm sure some people get lucky and get stuck on the top of the pile in even slow field offices and some don't. 

I feel this.  Sometimes I wonder if we should've created a minor typo in the form so we could RFE since they often get fast tracked after the RFER.

Probably not worth the risk.

Thank you for sharing @Simsimba! May I request that you add San Jose to your timeline as the CIS office where you interviewed? As someone still waiting for more information on the wait times for their field office, I am certain people assigned to San Jose will be grateful for the additional data.

Congratulations!

Today's stats: June 11, 2025 10:29am CDT

October 2024 Filed I-485 Stats 

• Approved: 15,283 (+235)

• Denied 1488 (+10)

• Fingerprint Scheduled: 76 (0)

• Interview Cancelled: 443 (+11)

• Interview Scheduled: 7465 (-183)

• Processing: 15,015 (-72)

• Received: 399 (-3)

• Rejected: 97 (0)

• RFE: 574 (+0)

• Terminated: 198 (+2)

• Withdrawal: 69 (0)

• Others: 8 (0)

Percentage of cases approved: 37%

Percentage of cases interview scheduled: 18%

1 hour ago, alliejourney said:

...I suspect it has a lot to do with the individual field offices. 

It does, I've been tracking the cases just for my filing date and I watch them update from approved to card produced at a pretty erratic rate.  Field offices aren't disclosed in the public records so it's hard to say which ones move more efficiently.

Today's stats: June 10, 2025 12:29pm CDT

October 2024 Filed I-485 Stats 

• Approved: 15,283 (+217)

• Denied 1478 (+9)

• Fingerprint Scheduled: 76 (0)

• Interview Cancelled: 432 (+5)

• Interview Scheduled: 7648 (-150)

• Processing: 15,087 (-95)

• Received: 402 (-2)

• Rejected: 97 (0)

• RFE: 574 (+12)

• Terminated: 196 (+1)

• Withdrawal: 669 (+3)

• Others: 8 (0)

Percentage of cases approved: 37%

Percentage of cases interview scheduled: 18%

Today's stats: June 9, 2025 4:01pm CDT

October 2024 Filed I-485 Stats 

• Approved: 15,066 (+384)

• Denied 1469 (+10)

• Fingerprint Scheduled: 76 (+1)

• Interview Cancelled: 427 (0)

• Interview Scheduled: 7798 (-306)

• Processing: 15,182 (-81)

• Received: 404 (-2)

• Rejected: 97 (0)

• RFE: 562 (-7)

• Terminated: 195 (0)

• Withdrawal: 66 (+1)

• Others: 8 (0)

Percentage of cases approved: 36%

Percentage of cases interview scheduled: 19%

Today's stats: June 8, 2025 3:46pm CDT

October 2024 Filed I-485 Stats 

• Approved: 14,682 (+384)

• Denied 1459 (+7)

• Fingerprint Scheduled: 75 (-3)

• Interview Cancelled: 427 (-11)

• Interview Scheduled: 8,104 (-294)

• Processing: 15,263 (-100)

• Received: 406 (0)

• Rejected: 97 (0)

• RFE: 569 (+14)

• Terminated: 195 (+1)

• Withdrawal: 65 (+1)

• Others: 8 (0)

Percentage of cases approved: 36%

Percentage of cases interview scheduled: 20%

"Massachusetts high school student"

Are they really trying this again?  Semantics is the heart of the culture war, I swear.