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midwinterrose's US Immigration Timeline

  Petitioner's Name: R
Beneficiary's Name: L
VJ Member: midwinterrose
Country: Costa Rica

Last Updated: 2022-11-17
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Immigration Checklist for R & L:

USCIS I-129F Petition:      
Dept of State K1 Visa:    
USCIS I-485 Petition:  
USCIS I-765 Petition:      
USCIS I-131 Petition:      
USCIS I-751 Petition:  
USCIS N-400 Petition:  


K1 Visa
Event Date
Service Center : California Service Center
Transferred? No
Consulate : Costa Rica
I-129F Sent : 2018-01-26
I-129F NOA1 : 2018-01-29
I-129F RFE(s) : 2018-08-30
RFE Reply(s) : 2018-09-06
I-129F NOA2 : 2018-10-05
NVC Received : 2018-10-29
Date Case #, IIN, and BIN assigned : 2018-10-31
NVC Left : 2018-11-13
Consulate Received : 2018-11-29
Packet 3 Received : 2018-11-30
Packet 3 Sent :
Packet 4 Received :
Interview Date : 2018-12-17
Interview Result : Approved
Second Interview
(If Required):
Second Interview Result:
Visa Received : 2018-12-21
US Entry : 2019-01-10
Marriage : 2019-01-12
Comments : RFE was for Part 3, Question 4a, which I had overlooked and left unanswered.
Processing
Estimates/Stats :
Your I-129f was approved in 249 days from your NOA1 date.

Your interview took 322 days from your I-129F NOA1 date.


Port of Entry Review
Event Date
Port of Entry : Los Angeles
POE Date : 2019-01-10
Got EAD Stamp : No
Biometrics Taken : Yes
Harassment Level : 0
Comments : Super easy, we landed in what seemed to be one of the lesser-used terminals and there was like one person ahead of us in the visitors line. The IO seemed almost bored and asked for his passport and the sealed envelope. He took my fiance's photo and fingerprints and he opened the envelope and stamped a page from the packet. He then stamped the passport next to the visa and wrote the expiration date in the stamp. That was it! We were through immigration in less than ten minutes.


Adjustment of Status
Event Date
CIS Office : Cleveland OH
Date Filed : 2019-02-19
NOA Date : 2019-02-25
RFE(s) :
Bio. Appt. : 2019-03-20
AOS Transfer** :
Interview Date : 2019-05-17
Approval / Denial Date : 2019-05-17
Approved : Yes
Got I551 Stamp : No
Greencard Received: 2019-05-24
Comments : We didn't expedite our case, I think it just went through quickly because the Cleveland office isn't very backlogged at the moment.


Employment Authorization Document
Event Date
CIS Office : Chicago National Office
Filing Method : Mail
Filing Instance : First
Date Filed : 2019-02-19
NOA Date : 2019-02-25
RFE(s) :
Bio. Appt. : 2019-03-20
Approved Date : 2019-05-17
Date Card Received :
Comments : Never received EAD, green card was approved first.
Processing
Estimates/Stats :
Your EAD was approved in 87 days.


Advance Parole
Event Date
CIS Office : Chicago National Office
Filing Method :  
Filing Instance : First
Date Filed : 2019-02-19
NOA Date : 2019-02-25
RFE(s) :
Date Received :
Comments : Never received AP, green card was approved first.
Processing
Estimates/Stats :
Your AP was approved in 87 days.


Lifting Conditions
Event Date
CIS Office : Nebraska Service Center
Date Filed : 2021-03-12
NOA Date : 2021-04-05
RFE(s) :
Bio. Appt. :
Interview Date :
Approval / Denial Date : 2022-09-21
Approved : Yes
Got I551 Stamp :
Green Card Received : 2022-09-27
Comments : Package received by USCIS 12 March 2021, per package tracking. Sent via USPS.

Received approval in the mail, received card the next day. No notification via email. No RFE, no Biometrics, no interview.

Filed for N400 with ROC pending. N400 interview was scheduled for Sep 6, 2022, but the interview was cancelled, due to the A-file not having arrived at the local office in time for the interview. We were informed that when they re-scheduled the N400 interview, we would have a combo interview at that time.

The N400 interview was then re-scheduled for Oct 21, 2022. We received the ROC approval out of the blue on Sep 21, 2022. Not sure if the impending N400 interview instigated the approval of the ROC, but it was a welcome surprise after 18 months.


Citizenship
Event Date
Service Center : Online
CIS Office : Cleveland OH
Date Filed : 2022-06-16
NOA Date : 2022-06-16
Bio. Appt. :
Interview Date : 2022-10-21
Approved : Yes
Oath Ceremony : 2022-11-16
Comments : Biometrics waived same day as online filing.

Filed for N400 with ROC pending. N400 interview was scheduled for Sep 6, 2022, but the interview was cancelled, due to the A-file not having arrived at the local office in time for the interview. We were informed that when they re-scheduled the N400 interview, we would have a combo interview at that time.

The N400 interview was then re-scheduled for Oct 21, 2022. We received the ROC approval out of the blue on Sep 21, 2022. Not sure if the impending N400 interview instigated the approval of the ROC, but it was a welcome surprise after 18 months.

Member Reviews:

Consulate Review: Costa Rica
Review Topic: K1 Visa
Event Description
Review Date : February 6, 2019
Embassy Review : My fiance (CR Citizen) and I (USC) both attended the K1 interview. We arrived super early and spent about an hour and a half across the street at the little shopping center. We went over to the embassy about 15 minutes before our appointment time. We waited in the line marked 'Visitors', where there was already a man waiting. The procedure was unclear, so we rang the buzzer and told them we had an appointment for 1:30, and they said someone would be out shortly. A young lady came out and asked what time our appointment was for. I answered, "1:30," and she looked confused for a second, then looked at her sheet, and then asked, "Oh, he is the beneficiary and you're the petitioner?" to which I replied, yes. She then asked if we had any electronics and we told her we had cell phones, and she told us we couldn't enter with our cell phones.

Years ago you used to be able to go into the little front security office and leave your cell phone in a locked zipper bag and then collect it upon your exit. This is no longer the case. They WILL NOT LET YOU THROUGH THE FRONT DOOR with your cell phone or other electronic device. We didn't have any friends to leave them with, so we returned across the street to the shopping center and rented a locker at a locale called something like "Global Visa", or something similar, on the side of the shopping center that faces the embassy. They have a bunch of signs advertising help with visas, translations, passport photos, etc. They rent the lockers for 2000 colones, and you have to put your phone on silent before leaving it in the locker.

Devoid of our phones, we returned to the embassy and someone came out shortly and let us into the security office where we had to empty our pockets and go through the metal detector. They took the X-ray CD, put it into one of those aforementioned locked zipper bags, gave my fiance the key, and reminded us not to forget to collect it on our way out. We then proceeded through the door into the courtyard, and there was a desk to our left and someone there looking expectantly at us, so we walked up and gave her my fiance's passport, and I don't remember exactly, but I think she may have asked for our appointment confirmation. She then told us which button to press to get a number out of the number machine to our right, and to proceed on into the lobby. We headed straight, then took a right up the steps and through the doors.

We took a seat to wait our turn, and we were called up fairly quickly to review our documents. All of our interactions were in Spanish, as I am quite fluent, and my fiance doesn't speak much English yet. She asked for originals of his civil documents with translations (I translated them myself), medical results, the I-134, and "tax papers". I gave her my 1040 and W2s for 2017 and said, "I also have a letter from my employer and recent pay stubs," to which she didn't respond, so I slipped those under the glass as well, to prove my current salary. My 2017 tax return showed income below the minimum threshold due to taking a 4-month leave of absence to spend time in CR with my fiance, and I was nervous that she might accept only that as evidence. She picked up the employer letter and pay stubs and looked at those as well and didn't say anything, but added them to our file. She asked us for evidence of our relationship, for which I furnished about three months of phone records over the past 3 years, emails from the past 10 years, samples of WhatsApp chats over the past year, and more photos of us together (about 20), including photos of us with each other's families. None of the photos were labeled or dated, but it's pretty clear whose family is whose. She opened the medical paperwork and gave us our copy of the DS-3025 vaccination report (I was not expecting this and had no idea what it was for, but it's needed for AOS, so hold on to it!). She gave my fiance a copy of the domestic violence brochure and told him he had to read it before his interview at the next window. He had already read it online beforehand, but he went over it again. She had him sign a paper stating that he was aware that the K1 visa is intended for marrying in the U.S. and that marrying before entering the U.S. would void the visa. She then told us to have a seat and we would be called shortly. The doc review took about 15 minutes. I was prepared with an identical packet of photocopies of everything, but she didn't ask for them, she only asked for the originals.

After maybe a half hour, we were called up to another window. The interviewer began by returning the relationship evidence we had provided at the document review. She then asked my fiance where we met (I hadn't written anything in the original I-129F application about how we first met) and he gave the hyper-specific answer, "On a farm, where she was at that time."  The interviewer kind of looked at me a little confused, and I explained that I used to live in CR, and that we had been neighbors.  She then asked my fiance if he had been to the U.S. before, and for how long, which he answered accordingly.  She also asked if he had been to Italy, and for how long (I had included copies of passport stamps with the I-129F), and then she asked me, "And you were in Italy...?," and I told her that I had been living and studying there and he had come to visit me.  She then asked how long we have known each other, and we both sort of looked at each other and both answered, "Twelve years".  "How long have you been dating?"  "Ten years."  "How long have you been engaged?" "Five years," to which she incredulously replied, "What took you so long?!"  I responded that I had been in college and wanted to finish my studies and get a job and all that good stuff first, and she nodded.  Then she said, "Well everything seems to be in order, you will receive your passport back with the visa in about 10 days."  My fiance asked if that meant we were approved and she replied, "Yes, congratulations, I wish you all the best," and my fiance grabbed me and gave me a big hug and kiss.  I was sort of expecting to get some sort of paper or something back from her, but there wasn't anything, so we tried to gather up our remaining papers and quickly make our way out before they changed their minds.

I've tried to be thorough here, but if you have any questions, send me a message, I'm happy to help in any way I can! Also, check out the forum thread for CR filers to get the most up-to-date info! https://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/684405-%E2%80%8B🇨🇷%E2%80%8Bpura-vida%E2%80%8B🇨🇷%E2%80%8B-costa-rica-filers/
Rating : Very Good


POE Review: Los Angeles
Event Description
Entry Date : 2019-01-10
Embassy Review : Super easy, we landed in what seemed to be one of the lesser-used terminals and there was like one person ahead of us in the visitors line. The IO seemed almost bored and asked for my fiance's passport and the sealed envelope. He took my fiance's photo and fingerprints and he opened the envelope and stamped a page from the packet. He then stamped the passport next to the visa and wrote the expiration date in the stamp. That was it! We were through immigration in less than ten minutes.
Harassment Level : Low


Local US CIS Office Review: Cleveland OH
Review Topic: cis_topic
Event Description
Review Date : May 19, 2019
Embassy Review : We had our appointment at 9:45 am. We were waiting for our interpreter on the first floor, and she pushed it till the last minute, so we went up to the fifth floor and checked in at about 9:40am. They took our appointment letter and told us to have a seat and that they would call us by name. There were about 6-8 other people sitting in the waiting area. After about 15 minutes a young lady opened the door and called my husband's last names. We proceeded to the back with her along with our interpreter.

The interviewer was nice and friendly. She asked for our IDs and filled out a page for my husband and the interpreter to sign. She then had us both stand and raise our right hands and swear to tell the truth. Then she went over the information from the I-485 that we had submitted, such as our address, his parents' names, whether he had belonged to any clubs, etc. Then she went through that long list of questions from the I-485, but she didn't go through each one individually, she sort of picked one question from each section that sort of summarized the section of questions. We had gone over them in detail together the day before, and that definitely helped him to feel confident when answering these questions.

She then asked us questions about how long we had known each other, when we decided to get married, when was my birthday, etc. She kind of directed the questions at both of us, but it was a little awkward knowing whether I should answer or not, especially having to wait for the interpreter to translate, so I let him answer for the most part and jumped in with extra information when I felt it was needed. She asked us if we had a big wedding or a courthouse wedding.

Next she asked if we had any proof of residing together. Let me tell you, I had a heavy folder full to the brim with papers–originals and copies of everything I could imagine they might ask for. I pulled out the folder which contained originals of the most recent statement for our joint bank account, electric bill, water bill, car insurance, all in both our names, and paperwork showing him as an authorized user on two of my credit cards. I had tabs with labels along the sides of the pages, so she tabbed through and glanced at the first page of each, then handed the whole thing back to me. She then asked me why we got married in CA instead of Ohio and I answered that all my family lives in CA, that I don't have family in Ohio. She then asked what brought me to Ohio if I don't have family here, and she seemed satisfied with my answer. That was all the evidence she asked for, she didn't even ask to see wedding photos!

Then she said she had to input some things into the system still, but that she would put our approval through by the end of the day and we could expect the card in the mail within a month. She also told us it will be a conditional card and we will have to remove conditions before it expires, and that in three years if we are still married he can apply for citizenship. The interview took probably 20 minutes.

(updated on May 20, 2019)
Harassment Level : Very Good


Timeline Comments: 7

Sokim520 on 2019-04-01 said:
I am in Cleveland as well. we have the same timeline. i submitted all forms on 2/25. I just got my interview scheduled on 4/29. still nothing on ead and ap.
Midwinterrose on 2019-04-15 said:
We just got our appointment letter today, ours is May 17th. Good luck on your interview!
blank avatar DM87 on 2019-06-07 said:
Hi congratulations on green card. I had my interview yesterday, I was told pretty much the same about needing to put some info in at the end of the day. How fast did your online status change ainterview?
Midwinterrose on 2019-06-08 said:
Hi DM87, I think I checked it that evening or the next morning, and it said the card was in production on the old site (egov.uscis.gov). The new site (my.uscis.gov) took another day or two to update. The old site also updated in a few days to reflect that the card had been mailed, and even included a tracking number. We received the actual card in the mail like 7 days after the interview.
Midwinterrose on 2019-06-08 said:
Hi DM87, I think I checked it that evening or the next morning, and it said the card was in production on the old site (egov.uscis.gov). The new site (my.uscis.gov) took another day or two to update. The old site also updated in a few days to reflect that the card had been mailed, and even included a tracking number. We received the actual card in the mail like 7 days after the interview.
Ggc on 2022-09-08 said:
Any update on the n400 interview?
Midwinterrose on 2022-09-08 said:
My husband's interview was actually postponed, because apparently his file hasn't arrived at the Cleveland office yet. The officer called me on the phone to let me know the interview couldn't take place without the file, and he said they were expecting it on Friday, but it didn't show up. So now we have no idea when his file will be forwarded to the Cleveland office so they can schedule the interview. But I did ask him if it would be a joint interview for the I-751 and the N400, and he said that yes, it would. So if you have a pending I-751 I think you can be reasonably sure that you can expect a joint interview, and your spouse should go with you. I'll update whenever we do actually have the interview. Sorry I don't have any more info!
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*Notice about estimates: The estimates are based off averages of other members recent experiences
(documented in their timelines) for the same benefit/petition/application at the same filing location.
Individual results may vary as every case is not always 'average'. Past performance does not necessarily
predict future results. The 'as early as date' may change over time based on current reported processing
times from members. There have historically been cases where a benefit/petition/application processing
briefly slows down or stops and this can not be predicted. Use these dates as reference only and do not
rely on them for planning. As always you should check the USCIS processing times to see if your application
is past due.

** Not all cases are transfered

vjTimeline ver 5.0




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