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| Chicago IL |  Review on March 11, 2005: |
Illinois
Rating:  | Review Topic: General Review
We had the interview in Chicago Thursday afternoon. The weather could have been nicer (or worse given this is Chicago in March). It snowed all the way up there (mostly light), and city streets were slushy. But the interview itself went very nicely. As some of you might know, although we tied the knot only last year, we have known each other for over a decade. So we were a little curious if we would be quizzed on that. Not a single question :D Although our interview was pretty blah, I will post here and cross-post in the Chicago forum since there are a few couples going through Chicago.
Our interview was at 1:50 p.m. We got to town about 1:00 p.m. and had to drive around to find parking. If you are with Chicago, and plan on driving, count on some of the parking garages being full, and allow time to go looking on the many one-way roads around the Federal Building. Actual security check at entrance was pretty fast. Gave the letter to the receptionist on 2nd floor at 1:43. Large waiting room, with some people already there. We were asked if a lawyer would join us. No, thank you, we do not have the funds to spare :lol:
We dug out our reading material thinking we will be there for a while. They called our name around 2:00, and we were told to go up to the 23rd floor. Once there, gave the letter to the receptionist. There was another lady behind the glass window, looking at a list of names. This was a small room, with several people already waiting. So we dig out our reading once more to settle down. In two minutes or so, the second lady who was behind the window comes out and calls my name. Fast service indeed!! She got my first name perfectly (I think she may have seen it with Indian applicants, although I am not Indian.) Turns out she was our adjudicating officer. Nicely professional officer. We all walked into her office. She swore us in before we all sat down.
Here’s what she wanted to know:
1. Both our birthdates, our address & my country of birth confirmed verbally. Also that hubby was USC by birth. No documents asked for.
2. Our professions
3. Our picture IDs (gave her our DLs) and my passports.
4. When was the last entry, and in what visa status? Have I left the country since then? Had a bit of overstay prior to filing – so I have not traveled. She did not have any questions about the overstay.
5. Was this the first marriage for both? Yes, ma’am :luv: Do we have kids? No, ma’am, not yet :blush: Wanted to know what kind of wedding we had. A (hubby) answered it was a civil ceremony at the courthouse. She wanted to know if anyone else attended. So he listed everyone there. At this point, I was thinking, she has to look at SOMETHING, if only cos we lugged it all up! So I pitched in and said we brought pictures if she is interested :devil: She was, and went through the whole album.
6. Then she went over a few of questions from I-485 – have I been a member of any terrorist organizations, any communist party, been deported or arrested, used fraudulent documents to get a visa, voted in the US(!). All answered with a No. She had both of us sign on the back of that page. She was making notes in the folder the whole time.
7. Wanted to know if we filed taxes for 2004. We had, and gave her a copy, which was the ONLY thing she actually kept. (We now have a ton of photocopies to shred and some extra pictures to share with friends & family!)
8. A’s dad was a joint sponsor since there was one year of inadequate income at time of filing. She asked who the joint sponsor was – I think she just wanted to know if it was his father, a brother or other relative. But with the 2004 filing, she said she does not want affidavit from joint sponsor. Come to think of it now, she did not even take the new affidavit from A.
9. Asked if we have any proof of joint legal documents. So out came the usual – bank statements, leases, life & auto insurance. She only browsed. Did not want copies. We did not take copies of most of these, since we can always get a copy if we needed one. But the officer said “you would probably want to keep these, so let me give them back to you”. Wasn’t she nice? :yes:
Here’s what was NOT asked for, but which we had ready:
Originals of birth & marriage certificates, with translations as needed
Employers’ letters and pay stubs.
Vaccination supplement (it was incomplete at original filing.)
New affidavit from spouse and joint sponsor.
Nothing about knowing each other’s family members etc. etc.
Then she printed out a letter and asked us to read and sign in two places. That was the famous “how to remove conditions” letter. Take a deep breath here, although from the way the interview was going, we already had a good feeling. She asked for my EAD, and removed the I-94 from passport. Told me I would not need either of them anymore. Did not do anything to the old student visa. Then she stamped the passport valid for one year, gave us another letter which said the application has been approved, explained about checking back with the DO if the card does not arrive before the stamp expires. Wished us a good day and saw us out into the waiting area. We were out of the federal bldg by 2:25 or so, grabbed a cup of cappuccino and a snack at the coffee shop across the street, and headed over to A’s parents’ place. They were very much with us during this whole (or)deal, and were very glad to hear we are paperwork-free for the next 18 months at least, and that I can now travel if we want to. We had dinner with them and headed back home.
And another pleasant surprise when we arrived home – 2 identical messages from USCIS (at 5 pm) in the e-mail saying I-485 was approved, and that a new card had been ordered :dance: :dance: I am impressed by this efficiency! Took a look at the online status, and it reflects the same. We hope this means the actual card will arrive much earlier than the 6 months the officer mentioned. All in all, our experience at the Chicago DO today was very positive. From the receipt date of applications, to approval today took 2 days short of 8 months.
Last, but not least, we really do want to thank all you nice VJ members who answered our questions, or simply provided information by posting your own experiences. VJ enabled us to go through this process without having to hire a lawyer. Special thanks to Reinhard for the sound advice you gave us, and Haoyue and Russiangirl for sharing your experiences as non-K1/K3 applicants.
That’s all folks – I hope you were not too bored
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Consulate / USCIS Member Review #148