foobaz123

Indeed.. Their oldest batch files may be from June 16, but their tracking is wrong-ish.

There are random approvals all over, but according to the bulk pulls I did the majority of the processing is happening in the July 5 - 7 range.

That's more or less how I feel they're doing it as well. The 16June date is probably either a batch tracking date or possibly even "all petitions in normal processing prior to 16June are complete" and so that's what they are 'processing'.

The other possibility is that date is completely meaningless, for the most part, and is calculated some how based on variables were don't know.

NOA2... yay after 164 days

Yay! Congratulations!

When was your last touch date?

Thanks! We asked for an expedite based on my husband having a job interview at the end of January for a job that would start at the beginning of June. I called USCIS on Monday morning to file the expedite request over the phone and received a request for more info from the field office via email a couple of hours later. I wrote a 1.5 pg letter explaining why we thought an expedite was necessary and why we thought we fell under the category of "severe financial loss to individual" even though it was only an interview (1. I listed a couple reasons why he had good odds of landing the job, and 2. explained that if we get the expedite after the formal offer, it would be too late). I included the email he received offering him an interview, plus website screen shots from the organization he would work for showing the salary, benefits, and start date. All of this was faxed directly to the officer listed in the email on Monday afternoon. I never heard anything else in response, but the person I had filed the request with over the phone said it should take about 5 days, and lo and behold, 5 days later: NOA2.

Interesting. Well, hopefully that isn't what it takes to shake the other 4August petitions loose.

148 days and we just got our NOA2 email!!!!! On a Saturday night, weirdly enough. We made an expedite request on Monday, and though we never were told if it was approved or denied, my guess is that it helped.

Congrats

What was your expedite request based on? Also, I notice that your last touch date was 4August. Excellent, good to know that they haven't lost all those they previously touched on that day.

NOA-2 today. Finally after 165 days. Im so elated today! Im filled with so much joy and jubilation! There's hope guys!

Yay! Congratulations! Hopefully this 160ish day pattern holds or improves.

I've been speaking to live agents by going through the automated system, entering my receipt number, listening to the recorded message about my case, waiting for it to tell me what to do if I need to change my address, if I want to check another case, blah blah, and eventually it asks you to press 1 to report a problem with your case. The first time I got a really competent agent (who was practically robotic, but effective) with whom I filed an expedite request. The second time (I was told to check on the expedite in 5 days), I got someone who 1. didn't seem to understand basic logic/linear time and 2. had an attitude. I guess it's really the luck of the draw.

The second guy also gave me a new definition of standard processing time: he claimed that 5 months is not actually the standard processing time, it's an estimate. Standard processing time means that my NOA1 date is not before the date they are currently processing. He claimed they are currently processing June 16, as we've all seen them saying all over this board, with idea being that I can't make a service request at 5 months, but I can if they're processing July 21st files and my July 20th file hasn't been approved. I was tempted to mention that they've been "processing June 16th" for weeks, but I didn't think it would be useful to get in an argument with him.

Sounds like the guy I talked to. I did however mention to him that they've been "processing 16July" for more than a month now and he just kept repeating that date.

Something that will be highly interesting is when any of the people who were touched on the 'deadly' 4August date are processed or at least touched again. So far that hasn't happened. A while back someone said they had a source on the inside and I'd love to know what that alleged source says now.

Thanks guys! I don't know what I would have done through all this without vj and I'm praying yours comes through soon.

As to complaining, well, I may never know if it had any effect on the outcome. Curious though that 15 days after I put in my apparently fake service request and one day after I called to complain about my apparently fake service request it arrived....

Coincidence... isn't

NOA2!!!!!!!!

Yay!! Congratulations!

Almost enough to make me think most of us will have to call and complain for some kind of action

Glad you finally got it. What a Christmas present, no?

I sure hope so. The tickets back and forth are bad enough without buying a surprise return...to say nothing of the trauma of getting your hopes up.

Sorry you guys aren't on the VWP. It's the worst around holidays.

Just called USCIS. Apparently when I called before they couldn't put in a request because I wasn't outside the normal processing time after 5 months, since that apparently is made up, but the agent just got intimidated and made some sh*t up to placate me and put in a duplicate receipt request. Talked to a manager and a Tier 2 who told me an agent had been assigned my case and call back in 2-3 weeks if I hadn't heard.

They're still singing the June 16 song, even when I remind them they're lying. The government is employing three layers of people whose job it is to know nothing, and have access to no information. The mind boggles.

Yeah, and unfortunately to get even a visitor visa the wife would have to go to an interview and would immediately be denied as soon as she was asked about people she knows in the States. At least at a POE there is the extra benefit of already being here. I can't imagine they turn people away lightly knowing what it means.

Still saying 16June? Who the hell do they think they're kidding? They'll be saying that until we're all approved. Sheesh. That is pretty much the same thing they told me last week and in most the same way.

Is it a good thing, or a bad thing if you're case has been touched?

Probably more good than bad. It at least shows some kind of action. However, it could be as simple as moving your file from one side of the room to the other.

What is a service request?

A formal request for them to look into your case. Call USCIS tomorrow and ask them what's going on and ask them to put in a service request if they give any answer but "we're approving you tomorrow"

Same here.. 137 Days.. no touches and no words.. rapidly closing in on 150 days

6 months 7 days and nothing for me

Do you have a service request in?

5 months today and nothing >

Most have been running 5 months + 10 - 20 days. Do you have a service request in?

If what some of the folks above have said about USCIS taking 7-8 months instead of 5-6 is true, most of us will be waiting about 10 months total. Maybe we're close to another tipping point... Not that it will do us any good, but I'll be the first to sign the petition for reform when next year's applicants decide a year on average is too much

Planning to bring my husband over for Christmas and terrified that a minimum wage job and living with his parents won't constitute 'strong ties' at the POE.

I'm glad you have the option... Sue and are unfortunately screwed and will be spending Christmas and New Years alone.

What I would suggest is that he not mention the pending I-130 unless the border person does first. If it is mentioned, in addition to the above information just mention that you two wanted to be together for Christmas while waiting for the application. I'd wager they'll let him through.

Heh, I know I know- it could always be much worse.

It's really frustrating that there's not a way of demanding fair treatment, especially when we're being deprived of our families. I'm curious: does anyone know what brought the need for a K-3 to the attention of legislators? Surely it wasn't just them diligently looking for ways to solve problems in their spare time.

It's a good question. You're probably right about the last bit. The only thing I know is that the delays on IR1 type visas was measured in years and they were presumably under pressure to do something about it. I was not able to find definitive information, however I wouldn't be surprised that the K3 visa type was added prior to the enlargement of the VWP beyond the UK and possibly even prior to the VWP in the first place.

Either way, it seems exceedingly silly to have created a new visa type instead of just fixing the problem with the processing of the proper type. Like a band-aid on a sucking chest wound.

Amusingly, the wikipedia article on this subject mentions the fact that the beneficiary can visit the US on a B-2 Visa while waiting for processing. Right... if you're not in a VWP country good luck with that!

I'm still having a really hard time grasping why they can't just GO IN ORDER (minus legitimate expedites), and why they can't be held accountable for not going in order.

What is truly scary is that as far as I know they have no statutory time frame at all. Don't forget that processing of IR1/CR1 visas used to be so slow, on the order of years, that Congress created the K-3 visa just so we could be together while they process the "real" visa.

If they are processing VWP countries first, they need to hurry the up with ours! Our NOA1 date is June 16th.

People that get done that fast are either extremely lucky, or they're exaggerating things. If it's luck, then yes, I'm bitter as hell.

I can understand that. What's most annoying to me is watching people, lucky though they may be, from VSC already with Visas in hand and we're all still waiting just to get out of CSC. About the only good news is that all our time should be coming soon. At least that is what we're hoping.

I just got my daughter's NOA 2 email just now.That exactly a week after my wife was approved..PRAISE GOD

Yay!

Day 133 Since NOA1... Day 130 since last touch...

Movement out of CSC according to Igor's list is still very slow but it looks like most June filers are approved. However, it also looks like work hasn't even properly begun on July with nearly all applications still outstanding.

Not sure if the 160ish day pattern is still holding or not. Time is still ticking by....

Supposed to wait until the 15th....

So, did you call them again?

I just noticed the timeline adjudication has changed again for a 2nd time! I'm still trying to wrap my head around how someone who isn't military, doesn't live in the same country as spouse,didn't expedite, and applied a month after me already has their visa APPROVED! They also went through CSC.

A) Luck

B) Their person comes from a VWP country and ours don't

C) It seems for a long time CSC wasn't processing any non-VWP petitions with rare exceptions.

This is all conjecture and I totally understand being extremely frustrated by that. Read a post the other day from someone who, I have a hard time taking the tone of the post any other way, was practically bragging that they got through the entire process in less than 90 days. That's mailed I-130 to Visa in less than 90 days. The reason it was so fast is that for some very strange reason their application got out of USCIS in a single week. Awesome for them. Extremely crappy for everyone else.

I'm not sure if I care if I sound bitter at this point or not. I'm somewhat reminded of some people complaining a while back at that DCF petitions were taking longer than 3 months. While allowing that their situation may call for some haste I had a hard time drumming up even the slightest sympathy for someone who was complaining that their already extremely short and practically failsafe process was taking a bit longer. Doubly so since they had no separation during the process and were just waiting for paper work to clear.

The only good thing I can add is that there has been a pattern recently of approvals in around 160 days. I don't want to give false hope but the pattern has held for a bit and the keyword is "around".

Also, the response the OP got is worse than useless as it is about the same thing people have been told when they call. They've said they're working "16June" now for nearly a month and we all know that isn't possible.

The funny/sad thing is that just today I was asked how much she, the wife cost...

Then the person in question said that they've always wanted to order a bride from China..

Grrrr...

i hope you get approved soon too! We are also waiting for approval. Our priority date is Jun 28, 2011 and still have not heard anything. I hope we hear soon too as we are planning a big wedding May 5th, 2012. Does anyone know if my Canadian husband will be allowed to enter the US while the I-130 is in process?, worse case senario?

You're extremely fortunate in that we share a land boarder with Canada and they can't just prevent him from getting on a plane. Also, being Canada instead of the many far less fortunate countries, they'll likely let him come across whenever you like.

In short, you can likely see each other whenever time and money allows.

A more serious answer from me may be to just show them a picture. Looks aren't everything, but my baby is made of Weapons Grade Cutetonium

The ~160 pattern is getting stronger with more data coming in. 160 - 165, with the end day landing on weekends/holidays, seems to be a good estimation at this point.

I'm not sure anyone else mentioned this particular brand of comment...

Being married to an Asian woman, doubly her being from China, has lead some people to say:

"So, you just wanted a nice submissive woman who would do what you say, huh?"

And occasionally the ever popular:

"So, American girls can't good enough for you?" with sometimes a bonus of "Can't handle independent American girls, huh?"

Thankfully, I've only had that sort of reaction from a small number of people. One in particular standing out.

Those I bother to respond to usually just shut up when I ask "You've never really meant someone from over there, have you?"

The biggest thing that people here just don't understand at all is why she isn't here yet. Almost everyone thinks that as soon as you get married she can just hop on a jet and come on over. The idea that we have to go through all of this and still have a non-trivial chance of being denied and her not get the visa in the end just blows their mind.

Supposed to wait until the 15th....

And they were supposed to have the application approved a week ago at least... and now we know what "supposed to" is worth

Oh, oddly: I got an email from USCIS that 'my service request for a duplicate receipt' had been processed and they would be sending me a duplicate receipt within 30 days. Um, I'm pretty sure I asked them to process our frickin application, not give us a duplicate receipt. This happen to anyone else who put in a service request?

How nice of them to do something entirely unrelated, no?

Did you call them yet?