CurbsideProphet

mil gracias a todos

many thanks...

Que onda chicos. Aluguien tiene una cartilla nacional de vacunacion de Mexico que me puede ayudar con la traduccion? Mi esposo nacio en el 1979 y su cartilla dice "sarampion" (measles), pero eso es igual que el MMR (sarampion, parperas, rubeola) que dan en los EUA?

Hi folks. Does anyone have a national vaccination record from Mexico that can help me understand whether the sarampion vaccine is the same as the US MMR vaccine? My husband will need a new one if it didn't include mumps and rubella...

Gracias!

I hope it's just only the unknown not the travel to Juarez

sorry had to let it out of my system

I HEAR YA

we had a good experience in cdj. our k-1 case was straightforward (we'd been together nearly 3 years, i was living in mexico, my husband had never overstayed a visa in the US and had never worked in the US, etc.). the lines and the waiting were ridiculous but all in all it wasn't a bad experience. you won't be permitted into the consulate or medical exam center. i basically spent the entire week at the starbucks across the street from the consulate. just be sure all your p's and q's are in order and you'll be totally fine. one thing we did forget to bring with us was my husband's cartilla nacional de vacunacion (national vaccination card) which means he has to do a little more vaccination-related work now that we're adjusting status. it's no big deal but it would have been helpful to have had that in cdj. wishing you all the best.

What many people do is get the shots they need at a health department or private doctor. Make sure it has some kind of "formal" documentation like name of clinic, address, phone number and signed. You should also have a DS3025 from the medical in Mexico showing any previous shots or history of disease. Then people send their immunization documentation to Dr. L.E. Arnold in Austin, TX who will fill out the I-693 immunization section for a $30-$35 fee and send the sealed document back to you by Priority Mail. You call the office and leave your number. They will get back to you to talk you through all you should send them. People choose Dr. Arnold because of all the problems you stated with civil surgeons.

I personally wouldn't worry about the TB test. It doesn't seem to be the "issue" that was rampant last fall. Many, many people have been approved without a TST. Your medical records from Mexico state that you do not have TB and that seems to satisfy USCIS. And TB skin tests are not immunization. They would be part of a full medical exam, just like a test for veneral disease or AIDS.

You can also choose to get the immunizations and forms done by a Civil Surgeon in one day. TST would mean a trip back to read the results, but I don't think you need it.

You can read all that is required by age, gender in this document straight from CDC who makes up the rules. There are very detailed bits of information in the footnotes that should answer any questions you have after looking at the chart on page 2.

http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/PDF/wk/mm5753-Immunization.pdf

Thanks so much; this is very helpful.

Hi Folks,

I've been swimming around in the I-693-related posts on here for the last 45 minutes (including the pinned FAQs) and am only ending up more confused. Help, please!

Here's the scoop:

We submitted our I-485 AOS packet a few months ago but did not have the vaccination stuff completed prior to the packet submission. (We did this on purpose at the advice of a lawyer, actually. Essentially we needed to be in process for the EAD/AP before we could get all of the appointments and such taken care of for the I-693.) Our EAD and AP were approved a handful of weeks ago and we just received the expected RFE for the I-693. Now we're trying to figure out how to respond to it.

My husband had his K-1 medical exam at the consulate in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, in March. He shouldn't need a medical exam, but it seems like all of the Chicago-area Civil Surgeons I talk to don't know much about what they're supposed doing. (Actually, a lot of the doctors listed on the CS Finder at uscis.gov are either no longer serving in that capacity or aren't even reachable by the listed telephone numbers. Ugh.)

A few questions for you all, then.

1. Does anybody have experience with a Chicago-area Civil Surgeon that you could recommend? We live just northwest of downtown but would go anywhere north of the city if someone is good.

2. My husband is missing a couple of the required vaccinations. Does he need to see a CS in order for the CS to tell him which vaccinations to get (or whether they're "medically inappropriate" for him)? If not, can my husband just go to a community health center with a list and say "Hey, give me these shots?"

3. Do Civil Surgeons give vaccinations and complete paperwork all in one visit or should we anticipate more than one?

4. Will he have to have a TB skin test even if he had a chest x-ray at the exam in Mexico? Since he was not given a copy of his exam results how will he prove to the CS that he's already had chest x-rays?

This all seems so silly by now. Let's just get the show on the road already!

Thanks for your help.

We filed without our vaccination information because the sheet they gave us at the consulate somehow didn't make it to the U.S. with us. We included a note that said something like, "I am unable to include my vaccination supplement here for xyz reason. Thank you very much. Sincerely..." We included the note so they would know we didn't simply forget it. We didn't get an RFE for the vaccinations but are expecting to have to get shots before final issuance of the green card. AP and EAD have already been approved.

The case status on USCIS's site isn't always up-to-date - is it safe to assume you responded to the RFE by following the exact instructions on the RFE notice? (i.e., correct address and original RFE notice included?)

Yup, that would definitely be safe to assume. Sent the notice with it and included all they asked for.

Hi Folks. Can anyone give me an idea as to how reliable the online case status information is on the uscis website? We received an RFE for our AOS in May, and someone at USCIS signed for our response to the RFE on May 26 (i.e. we have proof that they received the information they requested from us). However, our case status online has not changed since then...it still says "we sent you a request for initial evidence and your case is on hold until such time blah blah blah." A phone call to the customer service center is a completely exasperating experience...every question I asked received a response that involved the customer service guy reading me a ridiculous script from his computer.

While the green card is obviously the ultimate goal, we filed our EAD and AP concurrently with the AOS. We received the AP last week but are primarily concerned about the EAD at this point. So...how reliable is the online case status information, and to whom should I make noise if nothing is moving?

Thanks!

Time for more acronym-soup...

The RFE for your AOS does (according to USCIS) put your EAD on 'hold' until such time that you respond to the RFE. Once you've responded (and with what they wanted), processing resumes both on the AOS and EAD. (EAD processing does not 'start over' but merely is released to continue processing - from what ever stage it was in.)

In most cases (ours too) the delay was hardly even noticeable since we responded to the RFE very quickly (coincidently, our RFE was for translated BC just like you).

Fabulous news all around. Thanks much.

Friends. What is the impact of an AOS request for evidence on the approval timeline for the EAD? We received our AOS NOA1 on May 1 and an RFE for birth certificate translation on May 16. We responded to the RFE and someone in DHS signed for our response on May 26, so we have proof that they received it.

Today we received our AP in the mail (hooray!), but I'm wondering if the RFE is going to delay processing of our EAD. (Good Lord, how many acronyms can one post have?!)

I asked a similar question about a month ago but the responses had to do with how long it took to resume normal processing (evidently it took about 2 weeks). But does the processing timeline for the EAD start again from zero after an RFE? That is, can we expect to have it within 90 days of May 1, our original NOA date, or will it take 90 days from May 26, the date that DHS signed for our response to the RFE?

Thanks so much for your help.

Thanks, ya'll. It's so helpful to hear from people going through the same nerve-wracking process! Patience may be a virtue, but it's not my best one. :-)

Hi Folks. My husband and I submitted his AOS along with EAD and AP documents. We got our NOA1 dated May 1 and a few weeks later received an RFE because we had not included a translation of his Mexican birth certificate. The RFE stated that my husband's EAD may be delayed and that a decision may not happen until 90 days after the receipt of the requested document translation.

We took care of the translation and sent it via overnight mail, which we could track. Someone at the USCIS signed for that mail on May 26. In the meantime, my husband has also had his biometrics appointment (May 28). I checked his case status online, however, and it says they're still awaiting information from the RFE they sent. The phone service, of course, says the same thing. Does anyone have an experience similar to this? Is there a way to figure out what they're doing with our case at this point? We have proof that someone signed for our document, but apparently it hasn't been entered into their system yet? The EAD receipt date is of particular concern, as my husband has a potential job pending... How do we get information about this case?

Thanks for your help.

The cost of hiring an immigration attorney is nothing compared to the cost of being deported. Your marriage to a US Citizen does not exempt you from being deported. When my husband and I were processing his visa in Mexico we met dozens and dozens of Mexican citizens who overstayed tourist visas and worked illegally in the US and then got married. The best case scenario we encountered was a guy who had been married for 7 years to his US citizen wife. Their lawyer (wisely) advised him to be honest about his situation. The lawyer was also honest with him that he would have to remain outside the US while his appeal was processing. He'll be in Mexico for 6 months to a year while his case gets straightened out. This is a WAY better situation than that of another family we met. They tried to lie their way through and the husband who had been working without papers was banned from stepping foot into the US for 20 years. Yes. Twenty years.

Consult with an attorney. We used Eric Dean: http://www.deank1k3visas.com/. He was reasonable and good, but our case was straightforward.

Hi All. Paranoia is getting the best of me. USCIS received our AOS petition (plus EAD and AD applications) last Monday, April 27. The check still hasn't been cashed, which obviously means we haven't received an NOA1 either. When is it time to worry? Is there some way to check on this? Thanks.

Howdy. Getting ready to file AOS, EAD, and advance parole. Is my husband's Alien Registration Number the number that begins with "A" on our I-129 approval notice? Would that number be noted anywhere else? Must we include this on his 485 or is his full name/birthdate sufficient? Thanks.

Hi Folks. Getting ready to submit our AOS papers and just had a question about what to do with the I-94, as the grammar on the I-485 Instructions is confusing. Do we need to submit the ACUTAL I-94 form, or just a copy of it, or both? Thanks.

Has anyone been to the new consulate in Ciudad Juarez! Would like to know as much details of this new location, like for example are the 2 medical clinics close to the embassy, what hotels are recommended, etc.... all the information that you can provided would be very much appreciated by everyone.

C.

Alguien a ido al nuevo consulado en Juarez? Quisiera saber todo la informacion del nuevo consulado. por ejamplo las dos clinicas estan sercas del nuevo local, que hoteles recomiendan, etc.....todo infarmacion seria bien recibida para todos.

There's a Holiday Inn Express as well, less than 1 blk from the Consulate. One of the clinics moved near the consluate (we did our K-1 medical there), the other stayed near the old consulate. We had a great experience with the folks at Holiday Inn Express.

Just wondering if anyone has received their Packet 3 from the Juarez Consulate yet. They received our petition from NVC on December 24th, but we haven't heard anything since. So, if anyone has received packet 3 recently, please please let me know when they received your petition and when they sent the packet (or when you received it). Thanks!

The consulate in Ciudad Juarez received our petition from the NVC on Jan 1 and on Jan 31 our lawyer received the letter inviting us to being consular processing. Everything that's in the packet is also on the consulate's website. I hate that you're waiting!

The consulate in Ciudad Juarez received our approved 1-129 petition from the NVC on January 1 and we received our letter of invitation to interview on January 31. I don't know if that was abnormally fast, but you should be getting something soon. Good luck!