clolita

I'm also a VWP adjuster. We had our interview in early March, and where approved after a few weeks. While I didn't directly encounter problems about my VW, I have to say that it still wasn't easy. Though I got the feeling that the IO was confused about my status upon entry. He asked me, and I said I was a visitor (my heart dropped at that moment, I was bracing myself to take out all the evidence that I had no intent). Then he asked whether I had a visa. I said no, I came with a VW. He asked if I used a B1 or B2, again I said no, I was a visitor on the VWP. Later he didn't seem pleased that my parents didn't attend our wedding: but how could they? As I came on a VW, it was a spontaneous wedding. I am still unsure of whether he understood the concept of me having an unplanned, VW based wedding.

I also was asked some Stokes questions (yes, my husband was in the room, but he wasn't allowed to speak).

Looking back I'm not sure if I would do it again, to be honest. I do have my GC now, and I am very happy of course. But all these nights of worry and doubt, and the panic when I learned about the consequences I could be facing - that was not easy. I was very depressed and often hopeless, even though I knew my husband and me hadn't done anything wrong. It's just... the fear gets to you.

I wish you all the best.

ok, thanks everyone for the advice. thing is, I don't even know yet if the college accepted me - I have to wait several more weeks. I just wanted to get the financial aid stuff done in time.

I will follow your advice, minya's wife, and go to my SS office and see what they can do. Maybe I'll also call up FAFSA today and tell therm about my situation.

Thanks again.

hello everyone,

I plan to go to college this fall semester and have already applied for that.

I did my FAFSA a few days ago, and yesterday got a response that there are "issues that have to be resolved". I checked the site and it said:

"The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) of the Department of Homeland Security did not have enough information to confirm that you are an eligible noncitizen in an immigration status associated with the requirements of eligibility for the financial assistance for which you have applied (Item 14). You must contact the financial aid office at your school to find out what information is needed. If you do not submit the required information within 30 days, or longer if your school allows, you may not be eligible for federal student aid."

I know that I have to be a eligible noncitizen, which I am. I received my green card a few days ago and it's dated March 20. I did my FAFSA after I received my green card. So why do I get this message? Is my permanent resident status not in their database for some reason? Anything I can do?

Thanks a lot for any help.

great, cassie and stacey! congratz

i also received my green card today. can't believe it's over... for about 2 years, that is . it feels weird... so much worrying and preparing, all those sleepless nights - and i got my happy end now.

i wanted to thank everyone here for the support! without you guys it would have been so much harder.

and i'm sure the rest of you will get your approvals very soon, especially all the people who got transfered to CSC don't give up hope!

KPC, sorry to hear it takes longer for you than for me. but i'm sure the waiting will have an end soon - you had a very positive interview, right? they're just being a bit lazy

thanks again, everyone.

I just got an email saying "card production ordered".

Can't really believe it! Does that really mean we got approved? or was it just a glitch in their database

i'm so excited. i started to lose hope after our interview..

that's great, KPC! i'm really happy for you and chris and i was thinking of you at 1:45. hopefully your GC arrives soon

i got the same 60 day notice. it cheers me up quite a bit that you got one too. maybe there's hope for me and hubby after all. and thanks again for all the support here - without the forum i'd probably be crying all day

I received my welcome letter today

yay! awesome!

This is really a tough question to answer and there is no one answer. I can see where volunteering information could be seen as overcompensation, but for my wife and I it might have been the difference between her getting approved or not. The IO was not convinced we lived together, and only barely hinted at it, but since I tend to be able to read people quite well, I offered her our lease to confirm our residency, and she said thank you and only then expressed to us that before, she was not convinced. She was a very passive IO, however, and if you get one that is more of a drill sergeant that might not be the best approach.

We had a similar experience, with a passive IO. I think that if you notice that there is not enough feedback about documents or responses - to elaborate upon them and be more conversational. Otherwise, the IO may lack enough evidence because neither of you were actively communicating. This is my regret with my interview. I wouldn't let the "don't volunteer information" get to your head - you are still conducting an interview, not an interrogation.

hey zola, how are you? below, i will post my interview experience. hope you are doing well!

our appt was at 1:45 pm, we got there around 1:15. went through (unfriendly) security and then with lots of people upstairs to the 8th floor. the waiting room was already quite full. we went to the window, gave our interview letter to a friendly lady, and where told to be patient and wait. lunchtime for the officers! great. as time went by, more and more couples arrived, i'd say there were about 50 in the end, of which about 80 % had lawyers. this made me even more nervous. anyways, after almost 2 hours we were finally called in.

our officer was a man. he led us to his small office. he swore us in. at first, he seemed very friendly and relaxed and made jokes with my husband about fake passports. i thought, ok, he is nice and won't give us too much trouble. but as soon as he started the "real" interview, his behavior did change. he started with asking my husband basic information like address, name, DOB. then he made me repeat our address and my biometric information. then he asked me about how we met (online, i tried to explain the concept of last.fm and livejournal). i stressed how fast me and my husband started to write very long letters and how much time we spent together, on skype and AIM. he asked me about when we first saw each other, when my husband first came, how long he stayed. then he wanted to know how often i came ot the us, and i said this was my first time, and then we got married (i'm VWP). he asked me about my status when i came, and i said i was a visitor. this confused him.. i explained that germany is part of the VWP and that i don't need a "real" visa, like a B2. he nodded, took my I-94 out of my passport and handwrote that i had an AOS interview, today's date, code CR-6, and that my status is pending. i thought.. great.

then the interview suddenly changed to something that reminded me of a stoke's interview. he told my husband not to speak, and that he wanted answers strictly from me. he made me repeat our address and asked "what kind of streets surround your street? what are the street names?" i started to panic a little, as our street is very long and only some small, minor streets are nearby which i don't know the name of. i only knew the street directly in front of our house, as we walk there a lot. so i said that. he wrote my answer down on a sticky note. then he asked "is there a bus stop nearby?" i said, no, not in front of the house. i was very, very insecure. i didn't know, because i never took the bus. the next question was "so, what's the train station nearby called?" this, i knew. i told him the name, but he wasn't satisfied. he wanted to know why the name isn't the same like our town's name. i said that i didn't know. he wrote my answer on the sticky note.

at this point, i was getting really nervous and scared. he asked my sisters in law's names, which of course i knew. next he wanted to see some bills with our names. i explained that we live in a house with mu husband and his parents, so we don't have a lease or any utility bills. i offered him medical bills which my husband paid for me. he took them and started to ask my husband questions about my medical condition, my doctor's name, etc. he turned back to me and asked if i have a job, i said no, not yet. he made a weird face and asked why not? i said, because i just got my EAD at the end of january and i wasn't able to find a part-time job yet, and that i plan on going back to college in fall. he asked my husband what kind of school i had attended in germany, my husband luckily knew the answer to that.

we gave him our family cellphone plan with our name on it and he seemed please with the bill that showed how often we called each other. he then asked for pictures. we gave him our album. he skipped through, without really looking at it. he didn't seem satisfied. he wanted a specific photo, a photo of me and my husband "being together in our house, looking comfortable." quite frankly, we didn't have a picture like that. we had plenty of photos of us doing things, like zoos, going on walks, many with out family, etc, but he wasn't interested in that at all. this really upset me. so we gave him a wedding picture with family and one of hubby and me in a restaurant. then he leaned forward and wanted to know whether i wear a wedding ring. i showed him. he was very displeased that i wore my wedding ring on my left middle finger, not my ring finger. he kept asking why, with this weird face. i said, because i like it! i like wearing rings on my middle finger. and its too loose on my ring finger. he acted very suspicious, like me and mu husband committed a crime just because we didn't wear our rings on the finger that is "social norm" i felt like crying at this point.

in any case, it felt like he wanted to finish up with us, and before he could i offered him our bank account, which he never asked before. he said, oh, okay, sure. so i gave him that, and also copies of 3 greeting cards addressed to both of us.

he thanked us and gave us a form, tellling us that we would hear from them within 60 days. my husband asked if everything was okay. the interviewer sort of nodded and said yeah, i guess it's okay. you'll get the final decision soon.

then we left. and now i really have a bad feeling. he was such a weird, slow, person. i can't believe how he kept picking at such little details, like our wedding ring, or why we don't have any utility bills. we are both just 21, mind you, and we are trying our best. my husband is still a full-time student with a part time job. he didn't take our age into consideration at all.

thanks everyone for the support. i guess there is nothing i can do anymore. i just feel really guilty because it's my fault that our interview went like that.

congrats to everyone who received their greencard, that's great! and i hope KPC will return with a big fat APPROVED stamp.

hey there! i've had my interview too, today, at NYC. we weren't approved either, but the officer took our I-94. we had a somewhat hard interview. we were told we will get a decision within 60 days. sorry im not much of a help, just dropping by to wish you good luck.

hey guys,

no happy dance for me. i just got back from a long and somewhat painful interview in NYC. i will just write my report, feel free to skip. maybe this helps you, KPC.

our appt was at 1:45 pm, we got there around 1:15. went through (unfriendly) security and then with lots of people upstairs to the 8th floor. the waiting room was already quite full. we went to the window, gave our interview letter to a friendly lady, and where told to be patient and wait. lunchtime for the officers! great. as time went by, more and more couples arrived, i'd say there were about 50 in the end, of which about 80 % had lawyers. this made me even more nervous. anyways, after almost 2 hours we were finally called in.

our officer was an older man. he led us to his small office. he swore us in. at first, he seemed very friendly and relaxed and made jokes with my husband about fake passports. i thought, ok, he is nice and won't give us too much trouble. but as soon as he started the "real" interview, his behavior did change. he started with asking my husband basic information like address, name, DOB. then he made me repeat our address and my biometric information. then he asked me about how we met (online, i tried to explain the concept of last.fm and livejournal). i stressed how fast me and my husband started to write very long letters and how much time we spent together, on skype and AIM. he asked me about when we first saw each other, when my husband first came, how long he stayed. then he wanted to know how often i came ot the us, and i said this was my first time, and then we got married (i'm VWP). he asked me about my status when i came, and i said i was a visitor. this confused him.. i explained that germany is part of the VWP and that i don't need a "real" visa, like a B2. he nodded, took my I-94 out of my passport and handwrote that i had an AOS interview, today's date, code CR-6, and that my status is pending. i thought.. great.

then the interview suddenly changed to something that reminded me of a stoke's interview. he told my husband not to speak, and that he wanted answers strictly from me. he made me repeat our address and asked "what kind of streets surround your street? what are the street names?" i started to panic a little, as our street is very long and only some small, minor streets are nearby which i don't know the name of. i only knew the street directly in front of our house, as we walk there a lot. so i said that. he wrote my answer down on a sticky note. then he asked "is there a bus stop nearby?" i said, no, not in front of the house. i was very, very insecure. i didn't know, because i never took the bus. the next question was "so, what's the train station nearby called?" this, i knew. i told him the name, but he wasn't satisfied. he wanted to know why the name isn't the same like our town's name. i said that i didn't know. he wrote my answer on the sticky note.

at this point, i was getting really nervous and scared. he asked my sisters in law's names, which of course i knew. next he wanted to see some bills with our names. i explained that we live in a house with mu husband and his parents, so we don't have a lease or any utility bills. i offered him medical bills which my husband paid for me. he took them and started to ask my husband questions about my medical condition, my doctor's name, etc. he turned back to me and asked if i have a job, i said no, not yet. he made a weird face and asked why not? i said, because i just got my EAD at the end of january and i wasn't able to find a part-time job yet, and that i plan on going back to college in fall. he asked my husband what kind of school i had attended in germany, my husband luckily knew the answer to that.

we gave him our family cellphone plan with our name on it and he seemed please with the bill that showed how often we called each other. he then asked for pictures. we gave him our album. he skipped through, without really looking at it. he didn't seem satisfied. he wanted a specific photo, a photo of me and my husband "being together in our house, looking comfortable." quite frankly, we didn't have a picture like that. we had plenty of photos of us doing things, like zoos, going on walks, many with out family, etc, but he wasn't interested in that at all. this really upset me. so we gave him a wedding picture with family and one of hubby and me in a restaurant. then he leaned forward and wanted to know whether i wear a wedding ring. i showed him. he was very displeased that i wore my wedding ring on my left middle finger, not my ring finger. he kept asking why, with this weird face. i said, because i like it! i like wearing rings on my middle finger. and its too loose on my ring finger. he acted very suspicious, like me and mu husband committed a crime just because we didn't wear our rings on the finger that is "social norm" i felt like crying at this point.

in any case, it felt like he wanted to finish up with us, and before he could i offered him our bank account, which he never asked before. he said, oh, okay, sure. so i gave him that, and also copies of 3 greeting cards addressed to both of us.

he thanked us and gave us a form, tellling us that we would hear from them within 60 days. my husband asked if everything was okay. the interviewer sort of nodded and said yeah, i guess it's okay. you'll get the final decision soon.

then we left. and now i really have a bad feeling. he was such a weird, slow, person. i can't believe how he kept picking at such little details, like our wedding ring, or why we don't have any utility bills. we are both just 21, mind you, and we are trying our best. my husband is still a full-time student with a part time job. he didn't take our age into consideration at all.

anyways... sorry this is long. good luck to you, KPC.

hey guys! i'm so nervous! my interview is tomorrow at 1:45 pm. i'm a mess! i'm trying my best to organize my things and prepare, but the more time i spend with our papers, the more scared i get.

i also have a question for the people who already had their interview: did the interviewer keep the original of your marriage certificate? because we only own one original now, and i wonder whether they want to keep it or just look at it.

also: i have a financial sponsor, will they ask me again for the documents? i didn't make copies of everything when i sent it.. it was so much stuff. we will only bring some paychecks and bank balances from the past 2 months, will this be enough?

thanks a lot... i'm trying not to freak out so much.

thanks zola! that's very nice of you. i will keep you updated about how it went for me. currently i'm organizing my things, making copies, and translating my german documents into english. i'm really nervous, though. good luck to you too!

Yep, ours is also at Federal Plaza..funny thing is we walk by it every day on our way to work and it makes me (not Chris so much!) more and more anxious!! Good luck to you on Tuesday!

good luck to you too! too bad we're not there on the same day. maybe i can tell you about our interviewer, in case you'll get the same person.

Wow..congrats! It's very exciting to get home after a long day of work and see everyone's green cards coming in! Our interview is a week from tomorrow and we're so ready..fingers crossed!

hey, i saw you are from NY. we have our interview on march 10 in NYC, federal plaza. where will you go?

i'm so nervous i can hardly think straight. i just want it to be over... can't take it anymore. i'm turning into a banshee because i feel so bad and anxious and scared. my poor husband.

congratulations! great to hear. makes me feel better, too. now you can relax and "enjoy" your job

Hello Colita,

I have seen that we have alsmot the same situation. Are you ready to go by now! would please update me on your preparation.

I have this documents for myself.

lease

bank account

internet receipt

photo

postcards

do you think this ok!

talk to you soon!

hey zola,

your list looks fine too me! you even have a lease, which we don't have. I don't know when your interview is, but if there is enough time, you might try to get a credit card with you as an authorized user. that's what we did. it would add another thing that connects you to your wife financially.

i'm very nervous myself, my interview is coming up on march 10.

my list looks like this:

- joint bank account

- credit card

- family cellphone plan

- medical bills my husband paid for me

- cards, letters addressed to both of us

- about 40 photos of us and family members

keep me updated, and good luck!

Hello,

First off, I am sorry for another interview thread. Yes, I did use the search function. But my case is a tiny bit different from the "regular" ones that I found, so I will give it a try and hope someone has advice for me and my husband.

You can see my signature for details, in case anyone needs them. Anyways, the hubby and I are both quite young (around 21) and this makes is somewhat hard for us to get to all the interview evidences that older couples have access to. Mu husband is a full-time college student getting his Bachelor soon, and he works part-time. I was a student in my home country too and am currently looking for a job.

This situation requires that we still live at his parent's house since it is impossible for us right now to afford our own place. So, we do not have any lease with both our names on.

Here is a list of what we currently do have:

- Joint Credit Card account

- Joint bank account (that is, next week HSBC kept messing it up)

- Family Cellphone plan with both our names on it

- Cards and letters addressed to both of us

- Photos

yeah.. when I look at this list I sort of want to cry because it is so small. But we have been trying our best to get as many things as possible. Is here any other young couple? What does the immigration officer expect of people around 21? We simply can't afford our own place, or health and life insurance. Our marriage is based on love. It makes me insecure that financial proof has to show if we have a true relationship or not. I would be so, so thankful for any tips about what else we cab get. We have until March 10th. Thanks very much...

yay! that's great phoenixwine! I was thinking of your interview all day. You must be so relieved now!

good luck to you, phoenixwine22! can't wait to hear more about your interview tomorrow.

ohh man that suxx

well i hope that u find something better soon...

I was going to ask you how long u waited for your ssn to get mailed out to you?

:)

thanks! it took 8 or 9 days before it arrived.

How is everyone doing?

I got my SSN in the mail last week and now I'm looking for part-time jobs.. not really succesfully. I applied for 4 different places, no respone yet whatsoever. I wonder if anyone even wants a stupid college girl from germany My hubby prevented be from applying for a CVS cashier job because he said they treat the workers like ######... but if i don't get any response from the other jobs, I'll do that. Can't be picky I guess, when you're an immigrant..

Anyone else found a job? How are the people with the upcoming interview feeling? I have to say that I wake up at night sometimes because I dream of deportation and things, but yeah.. what can you do.

well, if you file for your AOS, you can apply for an Advance Parole at the same time. This document will allow to leave the US while waiting for your greencard. It takes abouy 60-90 days to get approved. However, do NOT leave the country after sending your AOS documents if you don't have your Advance Parole yet. Leaving will lead to cancelation of your application, and you won't be allowed to re-enter.

As you did not have an intend to stay here and marry when you entered the US, you can file for AOS. I would do that ASAP, before your Tourist Visa expires.

got my EAD in the mail today. the picture on it doesn't look as bad as i thought it would. good luck to everyone!

well, im basically in the same boat. my hubby is a student and works only part time. that means, we still live at his parents house (we're both around 21). i understand how you feel, because i feel the same. what we have is a joint bank account, a family cellphone plan with our names on it, and a joint credit card account (he got a student credit card a few days ago, and we just called up and put me on his account, they will send me my own card soon.) like you, we have greeting cards and letters addresses to both of us, and photos.

what i'm trying to tell myself is.. that the immigration offices will certainly see that we are both still very young, and they can't expect us to have our own house, car, life and health insurance by the age of 21. they want to see that your marriage is true. make your best effort and try to get things that are reasonable.. like a bank account, a credit card, small things like that. we are having my hubbys best friend write a letter that says that he knows us, has been to places with us, and that he knows that we have a true marriage based on love.

try not to freak out - although i know it's hard, because i freak out almost every day myself. so i'm always open for advice too.