jamster0105

Sorry for the delay, but I just wanted to let everyone know that we had our biometric on Aug 21 and got our "in line" notification on Aug 27. I hope someone could help me update this. Thanks!

Received 797 letter of acceptance today, 7/25!

Submitted our N-400 via US Mail on 7/17/14.

Was received and signed for at Phoenix lockbox on 7/21/14.

Text notification of receipt 7/23/14.

1. Yes

2. Yes

3. You need to put in approximate dates, if you don't know the exact dates. But they expect you to add all unemployed periods as well. If you need to add an extra piece of paper with the extra information, don't forget to put your name, A#, date and signature.

Thank you very much for the info. We mailed our application this afternoon. Since we already live in Phoenix, we sent regular mail with signature request. Post office says the lock box will receive it by 3pm tomorrow as it is only traveling to another post office 5 miles away. Hoping for an oath ceremony before Christmas, it would be a great way to cap off the year!

Good luck to you in your journey and thanks again!

Good Evening,

Just three quick questions.

1) In the area where it asks for current address, I put my move in date (i.e: 01/01/2014) until Current. Is it ok to write "current" in this field since I do not know when I will be moving?

2) Same as question 1, I put "current" on my employer end date, since I am still employed. Are these acceptable answers or will I get an RFE and have to re-answer these questions with actual dates?

3) My wife has held 3 jobs in the past 5 years, with the exception of some small gaps in between jobs. Are they expecting us to document the actual dates of unemployment?

Any information would be helpful.

Thanks!

Thanks for the tips, everyone. I got on the IRS website this afternoon and was able to print out my tax return transcripts from the past three years!

Good morning all,

My wife is getting ready to submit her application for Naturalization, but we confused by the language of some of the questions in the document checklist on the USCIS website.

First, when they ask for copies of our childrens birth certificates, it states:

You, being a Filipino, probably would understand that there is a certain amount of "pride" towards returning after a failed relationship abroad. I've been happily married to my Filipina wife for over 6 years now. We have two beautiful little boys and are both working towards a positive future. However, according to my wife, she understands completely the "pride" thing.

Not to judge you, but my wife says it is VERY common in the Philippines for family and friends to gossip and be nosey about the person who traveled abroad. It's all too common for someone like my wife's friend here to go home to the Philippines to not only struggle at getting her life back, but having to deal with the criticism of others. Yes, we Americans are not perfect. We tend to be nosey with the people around us as well, but for the most part, we keep our personal feelings to ourselves or between close friends or loved ones. It is, however, common for other Filipinos to confront one another and belittle someone who "failed" in an American marriage, or any other foreign country for that matter. It's almost not worth going home to the Philippines to have to deal with the "BS" of gossip on a failed relationship along with the other struggles she'd have to deal with. To each their own, I guess.

For the people who keep asking why, ask yourself the same question? If you gave up almost everything, as our friend did, would it be easy for you to piece things back together? Remember, put yourselves in her shoes..... It may be easy for one person to hop a plane and pretend their experience didn't happen, but it's not so easy for others. Why not try to make it work here, since she is already here? Maybe she can't get a teaching job here in the US, but being an educated person from the Philippines who speaks nearly fluent Englsih, I think it's an exaggeration to say she'd be working in a dead end job making minimum wage. Just my opinion though. All I know is if this happened to any other close friend or family member of mine, I'm going to do everything I can to help that person while they are still here legally.

Sorry to hear about your friend's misfortune, jamster! It is very saddening indeed that she left her happy life in Philippines just to live a life with somebody she <apparently> doesn't know too much on the personal level. It's not uncommon, especially for K1 visa holders, such a yours truly. But that was her decision, same as most of the immigrants here. As you have indicated, she was a mature & educated woman, so she could have probably saw certain probabilities, such as arguments on the daily basis and even relationships not working out. <I hope.> I mean, it could happen to anybody.

I was a teacher too for 5 years in the Philippines, part-time only and had another full-time job. My point is I can always go back either to teach again or do another job, should my marriage doesn't work out. She still has a family and friends back home as support. Anyway, if your friend had 15 years of teaching experience, I don't see any problem why she can't go back again as well and teach, since she only missed, what? less than a semester / term. Why does she still want to stay if the very reason why she's here is for this man?

Hello everyone,

My wife and I have a friend who was brought to the US on a K-1 Fiance Visa. After she arrived, the two got married, applied for adjustment of status and she is currently waiting biometrics. After a short amount of time, the American husband started to change. He began to become verbally abusive to the point where our Filipina friend started to stand her ground and not cave in to his demands. He started to threaten that he would make her leave and cancel the process. Unfortunately, our friend lives on the other side of the country and she doesn't know anyone else in the U.S. besides us. Just recently, he FORCED her to leave the house because she refused to be a "slave" to him. Since she was scared, she decided to come stay with us and she is very confused on her next move. Her husband won't let her come back, he refuses to file for divorce and he refuses to take care of her. She is still awaiting biometrics and wants to stay in the country. Should she change her address to ours so she could take her biometrics here in our state? Should she consult with an attorney? Hopefully someone out there can help steer her in the right direction. Thanks.

i just want to inform that my wife just passed her I- 485 interview a while ago. we went to castle barbeque at western ave to celebrate.hehe!!! the interview was 10- 15 mins long only.

Congrats and enjoy the celebration!

Hi, my husband has applied for both I485 (AOS) and I765 (EAD).Here is what happened

We filed for I485 and I765 on January 18th, 2011.

The first RFE came on January 23rd -The check was for the wrong amount, corrected it and sent it back the same day.

After this the NOA1 came the following week.

ASC Appointment Notice was dated March 8th, 2011 and the biometrics appointment was for April 5th.

Suddenly on March 28th I checked both cases on the USCIS website and for both of them it said:

On March 28, 2011, the post office returned the notice we last sent you on this case I765 APPLICATION FOR EMPLOYMENT AUTHORIZATION as undeliverable. This may have serious effects on processing this case. Please call 1-800-375-5283 to update your mailing address for this notice to be re-sent.

I called immediately and told them we had Not moved and our address was the same. They said it was a RFE, they would mail it again and we would receive it within 30days.

Well the next day we received it (turns out there was a mistake in our building's mail..)

The letter was indeed a "Request for Initial Evidence (I-485)" It asked to send a "complete Federal Income Tax return within 87 days" Also it stated- "The Service will process your Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization (if submitted) within 90 days of the receipt of your missing initial evidence."

Right away I called USCIS to make sure that I was sending the right evidence and the man whom I spoke to told me that this RFE was for the I-485 and ONLY for the I-485, he also said that it WOULD NOT delay the processing of the I-765. I asked multiple times, not believing him, but he kept reassuring me!! Also I asked weather they should cancel the request that I made the previous day about Not receiving the letter they sent me- he said that would not be necessary.

So I took my time and responded to the RFE with my Tax Return and sent it on April 17th...

The status since then changed for the I485, it said they received my evidence. It changed again today, April 26th and it says that:

On April 26, 2011, we transferred this case I485 APPLICATION TO REGISTER PERMANENT RESIDENCE OR TO ADJUST STATUS to our CALIFORNIA SERVICE CENTER location for processing and sent you a notice explaining this action.

However, my other case the I765 has still NOT changed and it still reads:

On March 28, 2011, the post office returned the notice we last sent you on this case I765 APPLICATION FOR EMPLOYMENT AUTHORIZATION as undeliverable. This may have serious effects on processing this case. Please call 1-800-375-5283 to update your mailing address for this notice to be re-sent.

It has been almost a full month since any activity there.

My husband already did the biometrics (on april 5th). And they said the EAD is usually approved within a week!

I think that both cases were Stopped due to the RFE,- but there is still NO change for the I765 and they already received my reply to the RFE.

I have spoken to about 4 different USCIS representatives and they keep telling me that these are TWO SEPARATE cases and that the I485 is in California and that they have No information about the I765.

I keep asking then- if they are NOt related How come the I765 has been stalled! It has been well over the 90 days normal processing time..

I have no idea who to contact or what is going on with my I765.

Any ideas? Any body with any similar situations???

Please Anything would help..

We had a similar situation. USCIS requested a copy of the tax return (which was already submitted), so we decided to get a tax transcript, 6 months of pay stubs and an employer letter. We Received the RFE on 4/11 and just mailed it in on 4/25. Well, about two hours ago today (4/27), we got the email that our RFE was received and is being processed by the National Benefits Center. Nothing has changed on the EAD, other than the last touch on 3/11. We are right there with you and praying this will all be over soon and we can move on with a normal life!

i would send it to the address RFE po box in lees summit mo .if thats where they want it sent to, i would send it express mail ,with delivery conformation,

So, We sent the RFE to the PO BOX via express mail and there was no one there to sign for it! Has this happened to anyone else and will someone sign for it? According to tracking, it was attempted to be delivered by the USPS to the Lee's Summit PO Box, and a notice was left. If no one signs and picks it up after 5 days, it will be sent back to me. Please help us so that this does not get delayed any longer. Thanks.

We are getting ready to submit our RFE response on our I-485 on monday morning; however, is it ok to send to a PO Box? I remember they had a different address in Chicago specifically for our original application, but now they want us to mail the RFE to a PO Bix in Lee's Summit, MO. Has anyone here had a problem sending their RFE's via express mail? Or should we just send regular mail. All advice will be welcomed, and thanks in advance.

After days of harassing immediate supervisors, my husband finally made a call to his corporate headquarters and was able to reach someone in payroll who was willing to type up an employment letter for us. We received conformation that it was put in the mail yesterday afternoon, so we are hoping it should be here before the end of the week. Keeping our fingers crossed that USCIS will respond to our RFE right away so we can get on with this process and get it over with! Thanks for the input everyone!

On April 11, 2011, USCIS issued an RFE on the basis that I did not provide sufficient evidence for the sponsers income for 2010. At the time we applied, we submitted about 10 weeks worth of paystubs along with the 2010 income tax return. They indicated in the RFE that our income does not meet the requirement to equal or exceed the poverty limits, however, I feel that we did. Here's why I think they want more info:

My husband earns an hourly income, plus a monthly commission incentive on his salary. If they are basing it on the hourly, then yes, we fall just below the poverty line and would need a co-sponser. However, he earned enough commission over the past 12 months to exceed the poverty limits by a lot, which we are able to prove.

Now, they are asking us for the last 6 months of pay stubs (which prove that we exceed the poverty level over a 1 year time period) and they want a letter from his employer, indicating first day of employment, wages, job title, hours worked per week and whether the job is temp or permanent. The problem my husband is having now is that his employer uses a system called "The Work Number", which assists in verifying employment and income, but nothing else. He is having a hard time getting a letter from a direct supervisor. Has anyone else been in this situation before, and if so, how did you answer these questions? We have all of the evidence for the RFE, accept for the letter of employment, which his employer is giving him a hard time about.....any advice please???

Hi everyone,

I'm back in this forum after being quiet for sometime. I'm here in the US now for about 4months with a non-immigrant visa. Early next year we will be living in Korea since my husband got a teaching job there. I have been reading the immigration rules on applying for a green card within or outside of the US and it says there that l can apply for an immigrant visa through consular processing if i'm not in the US. So here are my questions to those who have gone through the same process or have enough knowledge on how this procedure would work.

Does this mean that I should be in the Philippines to apply for this since I am a Filipino or can l apply in Korea since I will be living there temporarily during this application?

what are the things that i should submit once l started this application?

How long will a Consul call me for an interview from the time I submitted the documents needed?

How long does it take for them to approve my application for an immigrant visa?

What could be the cases in which a consul will deny an application?

Suppose a consul won't grant me an immigrant visa thru consular processing, can l go to the US and do the adjustment of status there again?

How much does it cost if u apply for an immigrant visa thru consular processing?

Thank you very much for your input in all my querries....

God bless to all of us,

Sterling

Hi Everyone,

I'm back here Thanks God that at last my petition was done and I'm here with my husband and our son now in the U.S. for almost two months. I'm here with a non-immigrant visa good for 2 years. Being here now not working and earning sometimes bothers me. I really wanna work but my husband or other people said I can't work with a non-immigrant visa. That I should have a green card first before i can start working. As of now I haven't applied for a green card yet (hopefully in a couple of months). My question to those who have known people with my case or those who knows the laws much better with regards to working in the US is that, Do I have a chance to work even if i haven't applied for my adjustment of status yet/green card? Can i get something like work permit here even if i'm only a non-immigrant visa holder here as of now? I think i've read it somewhere that i can get a work permit but I'm not sure if I read it right or I just mis-interpreted it. I really wanna work even if it's part time jobs only just to keep myself busy and earn on my own as well.

I hope someone can give me true answers to my question and advice me on what should I do and where should I apply for a work permit in case I'm allowed.

Thank you very much and God bless everyone.

Hi to all, i just wanna know if the first time US passport and crba holder, still need to get an exit permit at the immigration. How long? How much?

Hello,

I would like to ask if a first time US passport and crba holder needs to secure an exit permit from the Bureau of Immigration?

If yes, how long does it take to get the exit permit? Can they release it on the same day it was filed? And how much is the filing fees, etc. ?

I would appreciate your response on these inquiries.

Thank you.

Hello everyone,

My wife will be traveling here on tuesday night, and her POE will be Guam. For those people who have already traveled to the US, what are some of the things my wife should expect upon first time POE into the US? What kind of questions will they ask her? How long does it normally take? I'm concerned because she only has a 90 minute layover, then she needs to depart for her connecting flight. I want her to be prepared so that she can go through quickly. Also, if she is traveling with our US citizen son, can she get into the US citizen line at the POE or should she go through non US citizens line? I hope my questions can be answered. Thanks everyone!

Hello everyone,

After a long, dragged out 55 week visajourney, one that hit many speedbumps along the way (due to our sons birth, which was actually a blessing), my wife and son are finally coming home. They will depart Manila this coming tuesday night and I will get to greet them at 3:15 wednesday afternoon at the airport. Thanks to all who have offered me any advice along the way. As for all the newbies here, never give up hope! If anyone ever has any questions about my experiences, especially in regards to the CRBA for your child born overseas, I'd be more than happy to answer any questions for you. Thanks again everyone and good luck and God bless us all!

Hello everyone,

Well, after a 55 week visajourney which brought our beautiful son into the world along the way, the journey is finally coming to an end. My wife and son will be flying out of Manila on this coming tuesday night! Thank you to everyone who has been very helpful to us along the way, especially Mike and Karen and happywifeymom. Your advice has helped make this transition smooth for us and we can't thank you enough. For those of you who are just begining, never give up! I will still be checking in with this site from time to time, so please feel free to ask any questions, especially those who are applying for a CRBA. May God bless us all and good luck to everyone else out there.

Hello everyone,

I am getting ready to purchase my wife's ticket for Continental Airlines. I'm curious if anyone had their first time POE in Guam and if there are any problems going through here. Any feedback would be great, thanks!

Hello,

In regards to CFO seminar, does my wife have to make an appointment for this service, or can she just show up? My wife is expecting her visa via AIR21 delivery this wednesday and I am trying to get her on a flight friday night. Basically, if she can be in Manila by thursday, will we have time to take care of this? Also, what forms will she need to bring with her?

Please, if anyone can help me with this, it would be greatly appreciated

CFO Website has this to say about scheduling your Seminar in Manila. I haven't been through it yet so I dont know if it is enforced:

Important Reminder:

Beginning January 2008, all emigrants attending the Pre-Departure Orientation Seminar (PDOS) and Peer Counseling must reserve a slot in the session, five (5) working days prior to the intended date of attendance. Reservation for the orientation / counseling sessions can be made through the telephone by calling the PDOS reservation line at (02) 563-1965 or 561-8321 local 103, or via e-mail at pdosreserve@cfo.gov.ph, or online by clicking on the following link:

Better to call them and ask. Also here is link to thier website in manila

http://www.cfo.gov.ph/emig_manila.htm

Thanks again everyone for your good advice. My wife called the CFO office in Manila this morning and they told her she can go to the Good Sheperd Convent to complete this. Has anyone heard of this place??? I tried finding it online, but I didn't get very far. Also, they told her she doesn't need an appointment, that she can just show up the morning of her seminar and to allow at least two days before the flight to complete it. I hope this helps!