PrestoMN

I hope your post is intended as a joke, because the difficulty of this process has nothing to do with the liklihood of a successful marriage. The government is not in the business of trying to guarantee a successful relationship (at leat not yet), but rather to try to keep people from using marriage as a means of immigration.

If everybody starts calling them at the drop of a hat they are just going to become useless....

OR ... maybe they will notice there is an unusually high number of calls from people and see that the USCIS is not adjudicating petitions within the timeframes and take some action. Most Congressional offices track the nature of the calls they receive from constituents and report them to the Representative. Silence on a particular issue is interpreted as "Everything is okay".

At a minimum, there is no harm in contacting your Representative. If your lucky, it helps get your case adjudicated. At best, the entire process is illuminated and the process is somehow improved.

The member was not asking to be lectured about Mailing and may have made a mistake I see.

Seems some members here have too much time on their hands! It's a confusing process, and there is a lot of outdated and incorrect information around - even on this site!

I would call and ask how they would handle it if it's sent to the wrong address. I would think it would simply be re-routed ... probably without so much as a single condescending word (sometimes the USCIS is more sensitive than members here)!

You can write whatever you want! I would suggest calling first to find the name of a specific person in the Representative's office that handles immigration issues. I received a reply in 2 days with the status of my case from the USCIS after sending this email:

Dear Mr. XXXXX:

Per our conversation yesterday, I have completed and attached the Privacy Release Form from the Congresswoman's website allowing you to make an inquiry to the USCIS regarding my case. I have also attached an electronic copy of the I129F Petition for Alien Fiance(e) and the I797C Notice of Actions notification of receipt of the petition.

To refresh your memory, my petition was sent in September and the original I179C is dated October 1, 2010. It is the stated goal of the USCIS to process these petitions within five months. My case was received by the USCIS on September 30th and has yet not been adjudicated, and therefore is outside of their "normal" processing times.

I am aware of a large number of cases that have been adjudicated at the California Service Center that were submitted in January and February of 2011. According to several of these individuals whom are members of VisaJourney.Com, they did not ask for expedition and were not entitled to any special handling. In fact, one individual apologized to the forum community for winning the "Petition Lottery" when others have been waiting patiently for an answer. While there may be circumstances that prevent every petition from being processed in exactly the order they are received, processing this far out of order is unacceptable.

My hope is that you can inquire as to the status of my petition, and request that they process it without further delay. I appreciate your attention to this matter and thank you in advance for your assistance. Please don't hesisate to call me at xxx-xxx-xxxx if there is any additional information I can provide that would be helpful.

Sincerely,

XXXXXXXX

Thanks perhaps I'll give it another shot tomorrow.

Start by asking them to repeat their name employee number so you can write it down - I think it gets their attention. Be persistent ... you are outside of normal processing time and have the right to a service request.

Also, if you haven't already, contact your Congressional Representative and ask them to initialize a service request. I got an answer back from mine in 2 days.

Good luck, and I hope you'll have your answer soon!!!

At this point in the game, I couldn't care less what the process costs and where my money is being used. I just wish I could get my petition approved and move on with my life!

Congrats on this thats great i files Jan 20th, i thought they did applications in order received?

I just called and spoke to a Tier 2. She said it is still in review and she said I should call back in 13 days. Before they said to call back in 15. Maybe I should keep calling back and they'll tell me sooner and sooner? hahaha

When I talked to Tier I they told me to call back after 15 days because I was within 5 months. I counted months with him from October 1st to March 1st, and asked where we get the extra 15 days. He said because they are processing September 16th now. I asked him to please quit reading his script, and put me through to someone that could talk about my case. The IOS looked up my account and said that I had an RFE mailed on 2/24. Wasn't the news I wanted to hear, but at least I know they have my case and I'll have something soon. Who would have believed that an RFE would be welcome news?!?!

With all the knowledge gained from reading VJ while you waited and looking over the complete copy of the petition that you made at least 2 copies of, can you see where you will be getting the RFE? You ought to be able to determine in advance....unless USCIS lost something and just needs another copy. (That can happen.).

There's nothing obvious to me. The only thing I didn't include that I've had second thoughts about was a copy of my passport (entry / exit stamps), but at the time I prepared the petition I thought receipts for plane tickets would be suitable primary evidence. One thing I HAVE learned while I've been here is that until I get their letter ANYTHING is possible.

I sent an email to CSC asking for clarification, and 15 minutes later got an email and text saying they sent an RFE on 3/1. The wait continues

I just got off the phone with the service center. After talking to the Tier I operator (who said September 30th to March 1st is not 5 months) I was passed to Immigration Officer. She says they sent and RFE on February 24th, but I have not received an email or SMS notification of it ... and nothing is in the mail. My online case status says it has not been touched since October 25th. So ... what should I believe? Will I be getting and RFE or not? I think I'm going to scream loud enough that they will hear me in California!

I remember last year when October followed September. If someone would have told me that FEBRUARY came next, I would have waited 4 months to file my petition

The stress of a long distance relationship is incredible. Communicating by phone, email and even skype (thank God for technology!) are not the same as being in the same room. We haven't received our NOA2 yet, but as we get closer it seems the anxiety gets higher too. I need to remind myself constantly that:

1) the stress she's feeling is much more than mine ... at the end of the day I get to add a wonderful woman I love to my life. She is trading in her life for something entirely new and unknown.

2) when I start reading her mind I'm in dangerous territory. My perception of what a particular mood means is is just that, my perception. I must rely on the overwhelming fact that she will give up all she knows to be with me, and this is an amazing gesture of love.

I don't think this is about what happened on Valentine's day - that was just the catalyst to express some pent up emotions. If you really love her, don't just throw everything away. Regardless of whether you want to try to revive the relationship, a sincere apology for your behavior is the right thing to do ... not an explanation for your actions, but an acknowledgement that they were wrong. If you plan do it with the expectation that it will make everything wonderful again, don't bother.

In most relationships there will be conflicts, it's normal. In good relationships both parties try to see the other persons position. Be respectful of all that she is/was willing to sacrifice for you, and remember how your anxiety pales in comparison to hers.

Maybe there is hope for the relationship, maybe not. The ONLY thing that you can control at this point is your reaction to the situation. You can't control what she will do moving forward, and it would appear from her reaction that the more you try the more she'll pull away.

Good luck to you.

I have to get used with this idea of government shutdown.

Watching the progress of the USCIS processing petitions, I thought the goverment was already shuut down!

I keep my cell phone on me at all times and I check my email and the USCIS site constantly, I must be going crazy!

Last night I got an SMS from a 5 digit number and got so excited ... only to find it was T-Mobile advertising some new data plan I really can't believe the way this process works. Just imagine when these same people are in charge of our health care! The kid with the stubbed toe that walked into the ER 5 minutes ago will in the exam room while the guy with heart attack sits in the waiting room for 12 hours. You're not going crazy, you're just watching insanity in action!

that would be a crazy way of doing it!

I have figured out one thing about the USCIS: there is nothing rational or sane about the way they adjudicate these petitions. A simple "first in, first out" system would be kind of cool ... and fair even! If it was in Ukraine you would know someone just handed them cash. Here it would seem to be simple incompetence!

Hello everyone. October filer here, just stopped by to see what it's like in a group where there are actually some approvals! Maybe I need to withdraw my petition and file again since they seem to have forgotten the last 3 months of last year Anyway, to those of you that have avoided the incredibly painful process of sitting for months hoping for an approval, congratulations.

Guess having an NOA1 in October is bad news, as the CSC decided to overlook the last 3 months of 2010 and is now approving January and February 2011. I love the way the government works! Congratulations to people that are winning the USCIS lottery!

Seeing these end of September approvals is wonderful. We have an NOA1 of 10/1, so it feels like it's so close! Makes me crazy that Monday is holiday! I NEED to see activity right now! Hope we all have our approvals soon.

I have some questions regarding the DS156 that I'm hoping someone can help with:

1. "Passport Number" Is this the passport book number or the same number as appears on the national ID?

2. "Place of issuance" Should this be Kiev or the local office in Dnepropetovsk?

32. "Do you intend to work in the U.S.?" Eventually, yes - but should this be yes or no?

33. "Do you intend to study in the U.S.?" Eventually, yes - but should this be yes or no?

40. "Application Prepared By?" Do I (USC) put my name if I prepare it with my fiancee, or better to leave blank?

Thanks in advance for your help!

Depending how much you plan to use it, you may find it's less expensive to just buy something there. You can probably just buy a SIM card and then buy service a month at a time for about $40.

Congrats to people in Vermont, where apparently they woke up from their hibernation. My fiancee is going to go crazy when she wakes up tomorrow and sees that VSC is turning out approvals like crazy, and CSC has gone silent for the past few days. I sure wish USCIS would just work at a steady pace and approve petitions in a timely, consistent manner. This roller coaster ride of nothing getting approved, then 15 a day, then again nothing is making us crazy. Even if we could get a clue about their current volume of work it would be nice, but unlike the real world where after 30 seconds the information is transfered from a database to the website it takes them 2-1/2 months! I know that beating my head against the wall and screaming doesn't help ... but I needed to vent! Please, USCIS, let me be with my fiancee before this waiting game kills me!!!!!

I was just looking at airline prices from Kiev to the US. Round trip tickets from Delta are about 1/3 the price of a one-way. Also not much difference in price now for a ticket from 3 days out to 2 weeks out.

If you haven't already, go to the Kiev embassy website http://ukraine.usembassy.gov/visa-forms.html. They have a list of documents that are included in the Fiance(e) packet, including a checklist of what you need. They have the same information available in Ukrainian on the site if it's helpful. If called the call center their before as well, and while it's a little expensive to talk to them, they were very helpful.

I have one question about the DS-156 form maybe someone can help with ... when they ask for the passport number do they want the passport book number or the actual passport number? I believe in Ukraine the actual passport number is the same as the National ID number, which is asked for seperately. Does anyone know what they want here?

We plan to schedule the interview one day after the medical exam. My understanding is it's pretty easy to schedule the interview appointments in Kiev, so hopefully there won't be any problem making that happen.

Good luck with all!