grinchus

What country is your husband from? Is he one of us, born in one of the Shudra associated countries, who are presumed guilty in the eyes of USCIS unless proven innocent?

Or is he a perfectly regular fellow (like someone born in Italy, with the name like Francesco), yet still having delays in case processing?

He's Italian (but his name is not Francesco), and I'm not trying to suggest he's having delays in processing. I was just surprised to see that some people are going from fingerprints to being in line for an interview in 2 days!

Wow! Some folks have interviews scheduled already! Congrats! Not even In Line yet for me - 30 days past Fprints

Just looking at the numbers above, it seems most people received In Line within 3-5 days after biometrics. I wonder what causes the extensive delays for most of us who havent receivd In Line yet. Not worried but just curious

My husband's case is also taking longer than a lot of people's here. He had biometrics on 10/19 and we haven't heard anything since. Here's hoping something will come in the mail soon!

Hi VJers,

My husband's case appears to be stuck in a Kafka-esque nightmare of USCIS craziness. We our ROC petition in August 2012. We did biometrics on September 25th 2012, received an RFE on March 12th, responded to the RFE in early April and received a letter of approval on April 29th, stating: "Congratulations! Your request for the removal of the conditional basis of your permanent resident status has been approved." Wow, thanks!

Our USCIS status update on the website said that card production was ordered June 10th 2013. Hooray! Well, we waited ALL SUMMER and no card. I have now talked to 4 ISO level 2s, and they said, be patient, oh, wait, card production was ordered but not completed. Now it's *really* going to happen - just hang on...

So today was the last straw. I called again and begged an ISO 2 to help resolve this, or at least get it moving. He put in an order for an expedited resolution and production. So I got an update! Yay!

But the update said our case was in Initial review. Way back at the beginning! I feel like I am playing Chutes and Ladders, where you get all the way to the end, and then slide back down to the first square.

What on earth is going on over there at the California Service Center?????!!!!!!!!

Sorry to hear it - cheer up, you are almost there.

Thank you!

Grrr, so aggravated! My husband's GC was approved on April 29th, and card production was ordered on June 10th.

We waited, waited, waited, and no card. After 30 days (July 11th) we called, and an ISO2 said we should have it by the end of the month (i.e. July 31st).

Waited, waited, waited, now it's August 15th and STILL NO CARD!!

We called today and spoke to an ISO2 (after being on hold for over an hour, being hung up on, calling back and holding for 2 hours), and the woman said that our file had been ordered back up from the archives on August 8th because, after card production was approved, the employee working on it forgot to actually hit "Print" to print the card. So our case has been stuck in limbo since JUNE 10th.

So, we have been advised to wait another 2 weeks, and if we STILL don't get it, to schedule an INFOPASS appointment.

If we get the card in 2 weeks, it will have been exactly a year since we mailed our ROC packet. We are August 2012 filers.

AAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHHH....

My husband is going to apply for citizenship at our earliest opportunity!

Hi, my husband and I lived with my parents (who are his inlaws; I am the USC) for two years after the AOS and before ROC -- so basically the whole period of his 2 year GC. Our permanent address is the home that I own, but we moved in w/ my parents for two years to help my dad out with caregiving for my mom (and rented out our house). We had absolutely no documentation showing that we were living with my parents.

What I did was append an explanatory letter describing our situation and the reason we were living at a different address for two years. We did end up getting an RFE, but it was more concerned with commingled finances than our address. I think the important thing is that they want to know that you live *together*, so I explained that, though we had lived at 2 different addresses during the conditional GC period, it was always together. I didn't end up needing a notarized letter from my dad, but he would have provided one had it been necessary.

Of course! It says so directly on I-797 letter they sent when you applied for your ROC. The paper is all you need to work and to travel in and out of the country. It says so directly on it. You can also look that up in many places. I showed that paper with no problem -- changed jobs, and I work at a very large company. I have also crossed the border with it twice.

See this:

http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/free-books/fiance-marriage-visa-book/chapter16-19.html

"The I-797 receipt notice is an important document. It extends your residency for a period designated by USCIS (normally 12 months). The notice will be your only proof of your legal status after you green card has expired. The notice is a bit awkward to show to employers, border patrol officers, and others, but it really is an official document. You must, however, also carry your expired green card with you at the same time. That's because your card, unlike the receipt, has your photo on it."

And, directly from USCIS:

"Currently, a conditional resident who files a Form I-751 receives a Form I-797, Notice of Action, extending his or her status as a conditional resident for a 1-year period. This Form I-797 also advises the conditional resident that travel and employment are authorized for that 1-year period. Thus, conditional residents with expired Forms I-551, Permanent Resident Cards, may present their expired Form I-551 and their Form I-797 as evidence of their status in the United States."

Hi, what is an "expired Forms I-551" - is that the green card itself? or is it some sort of form?

Hi VJers,

My husband is an August filer. We were approved for ROC on April 29th and our status update in USCIS said that card production was ordered on June 10th. We called today because it is July 11th, meaning we have allowed 30 days for the card to arrive - and it has not.

The nice lady at UCSIS took a service request and gave us a referral number. Does someone actually call you back when you put in a service request? or do they just get on the ball and mail you your card already? I would appreciate hearing from others who have put in service requests.

Thanks!

P.S. We can't get an InfoPass appt or anything because he is currently in his home country visiting his family. He had a ticket to leave before the GC came (we thought we had allowed for plenty of time - ha!). He is traveling on his exp GC and his initial NOA extending his GC one year (through October 2013). He also has his original approval letter with him from April 29th. Is it possible his card isn't coming because they know he left the country in May? I'm not sure how coordinated everything is. Anyway, if deemed necessary he will go to the US consulate in Naples to get an I-551 stamp, but it would be much easier if he didn't have to.

We got an e-mail that said our petition for ROC was approved and the card was in production on June 21st. Then an e-mail that the card is being mailed on June 25th with no tracking information. Than an e-mail on teh 25th that the USPS has picked up the card and the tracking number was viewable on the USCIS website only. Than an e-mail that the card was delivered on the 27th. We received the GC yesterday and a letter in the mail from USCIS that the petition was approved. I would be a bit concerned and call them the moment the 30 days are up if you do not receive the card by then as things are going pretty quickly right now. I never received any text updates, only e-mails. Have you checked the on-line status lately?

Good luck,

Dave

Hi Dave,

Yes, I have been obsessively checking the online status and all I get is the June 10th card production notice. I also called the USCIS number, but in my receipt #, and got the same info. I've signed up for emails and nexts, with no updates. If it doesn't come today or tomorrow, I think I'm going to call Monday, even though it's not 30 days. Everyone else's is moving pretty fast. I have no idea why ours is seeminlgy hung up like this. It's driving me nuts, actually.

The tracking number would be in the online update....unless they did an other update.

Usually USCIS send 3 emails updates:

1. We order production of your new card.

2. The USPS reported that they picked up mail from USCIS containing your new card on XX-XX-XXXX - At this stage your online update that will show the tracking number.

3. On XX-XX-XXXX, we mailed the new card directly to the address we have on file - if USCIS update your online status at this stage then the tracking number may no longer show.

Don't worry, you should get your new card withing a few days. If they ship it priority mail (ours was) it will take 2-3 mailing business days - depending on where you live.

I posted about this in another thread today. My online status says that the card production was ordered on June 10th. I have had no updates since then at all. I know they say it takes 30 days, but compared to what others have been posting about how long the card takes to come, this seems like an awfully long time btwn card production and mailing. Today is June 28th!!

I got the card production status 6/26 and then mailed status 6/28.. Never saw a tracking # though. Just anxiously awaiting its arrival

You have had more info than us. We just got a production status update (June 10), and then no mailed status one after that

Hi all,

I was finally able to access my husband's status online and saw this notice: "On June 10, 2013, we ordered production of your new card. Please allow 30 days for your card to be mailed to you..." (10 yr GC was approved April 29).

Today is June 28th and still no card. I know it hasn't been 30 days yet since the card production ordered, but - what the heck? Is anyone else waiting this long for their card to arrive?

Is the Card Production notice the only one we will get, or do you also get an update when the card is actually mailed? I have now signed us up for email and text updates.

Just wondering when would be the appropriate time to FREAK OUT...

Many thanks!

Ok, so the same rules would apply for a K1 visa for a same-sex couple, right? The beneficiary's country must also allow same-sex marriage, right? Basically, free to marry in both places, right?

And going back to the huge debate about SSM, get over it. Raise your kids how you want with religion or whatever beaten into them, but do not try to deny people basic rights that we take for granted. Rights like health insurance for spouses or the ability to jointly file tax returns. These people love each other and they deserve these rights, just as much as we do.

And don't worry about your church, temple or mosque. They will forbid SSM, your halls will remain untainted and pure. Take it easy.

I don't think the laws of the beneficiary's country of origin matter. Partners from different nationalities can get married in a U.S. state that recognizes same sex marriage, and that will be recognized by the feds. It wouldn't matter for U.S. law whether the non USC spouse's country recognizes their marriage.

Wrong. It is not "so-called" legal in 13 states. It IS legal in 13 states, the District of Columbia, and 12 other countries. There is no "'so-called' legal" about it.

Oh, snap! Great reply!

Just FYI, there is also an organization called ImmigrationEquality (if you don't already know about it): http://immigrationequality.org/) whose mission is to fight for immigration equality for the LGBT community. You don't have to use their services or anything, but they would be a useful go-to place for breaking news and changing policies.

do most use an attorney to do this or is it really pretty simple?

Do you mean the K-1 process in general? I don't actually know what the most common way of doing this is. I would assume it depended on how complicated an individual case was, or people's comfort levels about going it alone vs having legal assistance.

My (now) husband and I did it ourselves. He entered on a K-1 (fiance) visa and we married here w/in 90 days of his entry and followed all of the steps.

This website is sooooooooooooo helpful, including the Forums and the Guides. We also bough the Nolo Press book on Fiance and Marriage Visas:

http://www.amazon.com/Fiance-Marriage-Visas-Couples-Immigration/dp/1413317375

We just, literally, followed the instructions step by step, and it worked out. It's not hard, but it is time consuming to gather all the docs, cross all the t's and dot all the i's.

Just one more thing to slow down the system.

Yeah, don't you just hate it when people have rights?

Hi, I wanted to share this news story with you about a deportation process being stopped because of the DOMA ruling yesterday: http://tv.msnbc.com/2013/06/26/judge-stops-deportation-hearing-minutes-after-court-strikes-down-doma/

So the fact that the feds recognize SSM is having an immediate effect. I don't know how this impacts K-1 (fiancee') filings. The DOMA ruling appears not to have declared that SSM is universally constitutional in the U.S., just that those marriages performed in states where it is legal are now considered legal on a federal level (however states that don't want SSM are still allowed to vote that way).

You and your partner could make your way to a state where you can legally marry (if you are not in one already), get married, and then apply as a married couple. At least you know, based on that news story at least, that he can't be deported. I'm not an immigration lawyer, though. This is all just my opinion.

Your partner's willingness to give up a gov't job in Italy is an indication of true love!! My husband is Italian, so I know how coveted those positions are!

The best of luck to both of you!! In bocca al lupo!

Have you gone onto the USCIS website and checked your case status to see if they have mailed it and use the tracking number to check with the USPS? I received an e-mail update that the ROC was approved. The an e-mail about the card production. Then an e-mail about the card being mailed. Then an e-mail about the USPS picking up the card. The e-mail had incorrect tracking information, but teh USCIS website had the correct tracking information. My wife's card is in KY and SHOULD be delivered tomorrow--fingers crossed. I would see if checking your case status gives any information and if the USPS has claimed to have delivered the card based on the tracking information, I would go to them and ask where it is.

Some possibilities are that the card is still waiting to be produced, the card was lost in the mail, or the card was delivered to someone else. The actual production to receiving the card is fairly fast. The first e-mail was received last Friday and we are scheduled to receive the card tomorrow, so less than a week. This is the CSC too. Our e-mail said it should take 30 days to receive the card and you are well outside that. It is time for you to start calling and see where the card is, but first see if it has been lost by the USPS.

Good luck,

Dave

P.S. I just reread the approval letter and it says to only call if you don't receive the card w/in 60 days. So I guess I'm back to Monday. Hopefully it will come this week. If not, we'll call on Monday. Thanks again for replying to my post!

Have you gone onto the USCIS website and checked your case status to see if they have mailed it and use the tracking number to check with the USPS? I received an e-mail update that the ROC was approved. The an e-mail about the card production. Then an e-mail about the card being mailed. Then an e-mail about the USPS picking up the card. The e-mail had incorrect tracking information, but teh USCIS website had the correct tracking information. My wife's card is in KY and SHOULD be delivered tomorrow--fingers crossed. I would see if checking your case status gives any information and if the USPS has claimed to have delivered the card based on the tracking information, I would go to them and ask where it is.

Some possibilities are that the card is still waiting to be produced, the card was lost in the mail, or the card was delivered to someone else. The actual production to receiving the card is fairly fast. The first e-mail was received last Friday and we are scheduled to receive the card tomorrow, so less than a week. This is the CSC too. Our e-mail said it should take 30 days to receive the card and you are well outside that. It is time for you to start calling and see where the card is, but first see if it has been lost by the USPS.

Good luck,

Dave

Hi Dave,

My husband's case isn't even on their website. I have tried putting in our receipt number but it says no record of our case can be found. However, we have gone through the whole system and been approved and everything. So sometimes it just isn't in the online system somehow. I've heard this from others too. Anyway, we did receive approval, just not the card. Still waiting... I will call this week. And thanks!

Hi VJers,

We are now on day 57 since my husband was approved for ROC. We are August filers, had an RFE, and received the approval letter, dated April 29th. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Here is our current situation: My husband's GC hadn't arrived by the time he left to travel home on May 14th. He traveled on his expired GC and his extension letter, extending his 2 year GC through October 2013. He will be home in August. I have posted about that situation in other threads and have had great feedback regarding whether or not he should go get an I-551 stamp from the American Embassy in Italy. That is not my question here.

My question here is: is his GC maybe not coming because the USCIS knows he left the country to go home for the summer? Or are we just within (but almost beyond) the 60 day window for receiving the 10 year GC? Are things just going REALLY slowly at the California Service Center?

If it doesn't come by Friday I will try doing a conference call w/ my husband and the 800 number at the USCIS on Monday (they won't talk to me without his permission) and ask them what's going on.

I'm just wondering whether there is any possibility that there is a connection between the fact that his GC isn't coming, and the fact that he went home to visit his family before it arrived (but after it was approved).

Thanks!

Hi August filers,

Just wondering: is it 60 days or 60 *business* days (i.e. not including weekends) that is the window they give you for receiving your GC? My husband was approved on April 29th, so next Friday brings us to 60 calendar days since we received that news. I've seen from the postings in this thread that others have also been waiting this long, but some are getting their 10 yr GCs much faster.

What's up with this long wait??!! Grrrr.... Anyway, I just wanted to know when I should call the USCIS if it's still not here: Monday July 1?

Thanks!

Hi everyone,

I am the OP and I wanted to chime in and thank everyone again for your contributions to this topic. I will summarize here what I understand to be true, and what I am planning to do.

I agree with the majority assessment that my husband is not out of status. It is not ideal that he doesn't have the 10 year GC in hand, but it simply wasn't ready by the time he had to travel. What he does have - his expired GC and the extension letter that states very clearly that he has been renewed until October 2013, and that he can travel outside of the US - is, I believe, sufficient documentation to allow him to come back without any problems, even without an I-551.

I will tell him about what I have learned from this thread, and also that some people have recommended he get the I-551 anyway. I will let him choose whether to make the trip to the consulate in Naples. He is the one, after all, who will have to make the trek there. I will share with him my opinion that he is probably fine w/o it, but it certainly couldn't hurt to get it for additional peace of mind.

I will also meet him at the airport when he returns w/ his 10 year GC. When they swipe his expired card they will see he is approved for 10 year, and he can explain (if he has to) the situation (i.e. that he traveled w/ his extension letter, but that his 10 year came in the mail while he was gone), and also tell them that his wife is standing just on the other side of that wall w/ his card.

So that is how I will proceed. I wish everyone the best of luck in your visa journeys!

I respectfully disagree. My wife's extension letter states, and I quote:

"Your contitional resident status is extended for a period of one year. During the one-year extension you are authorized employment and travel. (This extension and authorization for employment and travel does not apply to you if your contitional resident status has been terminated.)"

I do not see the approval of the 10 year GC as terminating the conditional resident status, but rather a change in status. IMHO terminating the status makes you deportable whereas becoming a non-conditional permenant resident has all the same rights and responsibilities as a conditional permenant resident. The only ones that are going to know during this trip are those that have access to his complete immigration file. There are those that have told of problems of being allowed to board even with the I-551 stamp. The issue will being able to get on the plane back to the US and not at the CBP POE.

It is up to the OP as to how best to proceed, but I would not say that getting the I-551 stamp somehow magically makes this easier, but that is MHO.

Dave

I truly appreciate everyone's responses to my question, and am interested in the debate back and forth as to the wording of the extension letter. In reading the quote supplied by Dave, I tend to agree with him that it all comes down to the word "terminated." In the case of conditions being removed and the issuance of a 10 year GC, I believe that would fall under a definition of "changed" status and not "terminated" status, so I do think he should be OK traveling with the extension letter.

He also has a copy of the approval letter, but maybe I will recommend that he begin by showing just the extension letter and the exp. 2 yr GC, and not confuse matters by presenting the approval letter. That he can present at the PoE in California, where, if there are any questions, I will be waiting in the arrival lobby w/ the 10 yr GC.

The recommendation to get the I-551 stamp is certainly not a bad one, but if he can avoid going to the consulate in Naples, I'm sure he would rather do so. We just need to hope that Luftnansa, and the agents in Italy and Germany (where he'll be flying through) know what they are doing.