Kowatti's US Immigration Timeline

Petitioner's Name: TM Beneficiary's Name: P VJ Member: Kowatti Country: Gambia Last Updated: 2020-02-23 Add Comment to Timeline Register or log in to follow this timeline

Immigration Checklist for TM & P:

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 : Senegal I-129F Sent : 2018-07-26 I-129F NOA1 : 2018-08-02 I-129F RFE(s) : None RFE Reply(s) : N/A I-129F NOA2 : 2019-01-10 NVC Received : 2019-02-01 Date Case #, IIN, and BIN assigned : 2019-02-01 NVC Left : 2019-02-05 Consulate Received : 2019-02-07 Packet 3 Received : 2019-02-08 Packet 3 Sent : 2019-02-13 Packet 4 Received : 2019-02-13 Interview Date : 2019-04-25 Interview Result : Approved Second Interview (If Required): Second Interview Result: Visa Received : 2019-04-30 US Entry : 2019-06-04 Marriage : 2019-08-07 Comments : My fiance left the Gambia on 6/3 for Brussels Belgium where he had a 5-hour layover. His immigration & customs processing was supposed to be in Raleigh/Durham, NC. From Belgium, he entered the US via NJ first, on 6/4 before going to RDU. Immigration in NJ decided they wanted to process him instead of RDU. He missed his flight because of the delay in processing, however, the officers in NJ were extremely helpful & assisted him to get on the next flight. From RDU he used Greyhound Bus to get to my area where I picked him up. The trip was a long one however, he had easy, smooth processing. His first time to the US was a positive one. I am very happy about it. Thanks to immigration officers who made his arrival here pleasant. Processing Estimates/Stats : Your I-129f was approved in 161 days from your NOA1 date. Your interview took 266 days from your I-129F NOA1 date.

Adjustment of Status Event Date CIS Office : Raleigh NC Date Filed : 2019-08-14 NOA Date : 2019-08-21 RFE(s) : Bio. Appt. : 2019-09-11 AOS Transfer** : Interview Date : 2020-01-30 Approval / Denial Date : 2020-02-13 Approved : Yes Got I551 Stamp : Greencard Received: 2020-02-22 Comments : Green card being produced. When we went for the interview, the female officer handling our case was not very welcoming & throughout the entire interview, my husband & I didn't feel comfortable. When she asked for specific dates, she wanted to know if we had rehearsed it & how could we remember dates? This was the tone for our entire interview. In the end, she said everything looked okay, but she had to wait for my husband's medical documents. We left not knowing if he would be approved for his conditional green card. It took 14 days to be approved. Now, we can take a break from USCIS for a couple of years while we continue with our lives. Received green card 9 days later.

Employment Authorization Document Event Date CIS Office : Chicago National Office Filing Method : Mail Filing Instance : First Date Filed : 2019-08-14 NOA Date : 2019-08-21 RFE(s) : Bio. Appt. : 2019-09-11 Approved Date : 2020-01-02 Date Card Received : 2020-01-09 Comments : Processing Estimates/Stats : Your EAD was approved in 141 days.

Advance Parole Event Date CIS Office : Chicago National Office Filing Method :   Filing Instance : First Date Filed : 2019-08-14 NOA Date : 2019-08-21 RFE(s) : Date Received : 2020-01-09 Comments : Processing Estimates/Stats : Your AP was approved in 141 days.

Member Reviews:

Consulate Review: Senegal Review Topic: K1 Visa Event Description Review Date : April 26, 2019 Embassy Review : Hello everyone. My fiance was approved on Thursday 4/25. His interview was scheduled for the Dakar, Senegal embassy. Here is some information he provided me & I thought it might benefit someone who will be going to the Dakar embassy: My fiance went for his medical appointment on Wednesday 4/17. His appointment was with Dr. Robert Rahmi. He got to the medical office prior to its opening, at 6:45 am. The door was opened at 7:45 am. After waiting for 1 hour, Dr. Rahmi gave him a referral for X-ray which is located in a different building, but within walking distance. He was asked to undress down to his briefs. He had the X-ray done & didn't have to wait long for the results to take back to Dr. Rahmi. He walked back to give Dr. Rahmi the results. Dr. Rahmi then gave him another referral slip to go get some blood work performed in a different building & also within walking distance. He didn't have to wait long before being called. The technician informed him that he would have to return the next day or he would contact him when the results are ready. My fiance was staying at a friend's house 2 hours away from Dakar, in a small town. He left for the 2-hour drive back to where he was staying. If you start early, all 3 can be done the same day. On 4/18 my fiance was contacted to come back for the blood results, however because of the distance & because he was called so late in the afternoon, he decided to wait until the next day. The traffic in Dakar is very heavy. When he called Dr. Rahmi to make sure he would be in on Friday 4/19, he found out that the doctor was ill & he would not report to work that day. He returned on Monday 4/22 to pick up results of the blood work. He left early for the 2-hour drive, went to the clinic to pick up blood results, & went to Dr. Rahmi's office to give him the results. Dr. Rahmi then gave him a medical checkup after he asked him questions about his previous medical history. My fiance had one shot given to him because he didn't have a record of having taken any vaccinations. He then had to wait 2 1/2 hours & the doctor provided him with his complete medical report. He also gave him a copy of some of the results to bring to the US in case we need it for AOS. The doctor said he was in perfect health & he left. On Thursday 4/25, the friend he was staying with took a ride with him on the local bus system to Dakar embassy. He got there at approximately 6:15 am. His appointment was scheduled for 8:00 am. There were many people already waiting who had been scheduled for earlier appointments. When he went to the gate, he was first asked for his appointment letter, his DS-160 confirmation page, & passport. After the officer looked at it, he gave it back to him. He proceeded to go inside & was asked to sit down. Another person asked for his I-134 & financial documents showing my proof of income, passport, police report, & medical envelope from the doctor. He was given a #112 but was the 2nd person to be called for interview from his group. From what I understand, there were 2 different groups, but I am not sure how they categorized everyone. There were 10 people who he got a chance to listen to while they were being interviewed. For one reason or another, none were approved. After waiting for a while, his name was called for his interview. My fiance thanked the consulate for seeing him & the consulate said you are welcome with a smile. At that moment my fiance felt more comfortable. Here are the questions he was asked: 1. How do you know the petitioner? 2. Are you aware that she is older than you? 3. Do you have any children & what is your child's name? 4. Where is your child? 5. Why didn't you marry his mother? 7. Do you want any more children? 8. Will your son join you in the US? 9. When did you & the petitioner first meet? 10. How did the relationship start? 11. Was your fiance married before? 12. Tell me about your fiance. Consular was smiling while listening to my fiance's story. That helped him build more confidence. 13. Do both of you practice the same faith? 14. Does she go to church like you? 15. What do you have in common with her? The people who were interviewed before him were not asked that many questions. He said most were only asked about 3-4 simple questions. He could feel others looking at him & wondering when his interview would end? I feel that because we have a big red flag, me the petitioner being the older one, we could have been denied if he wasn't prepared. He felt at ease because the consular was smiling at him pretty much with all the questions he was responding to. In the end, my fiance offered him a letter of recommendation that was given to him by the pastor & directors of his church. He is the security manager for his church & a very active member as well. The consular took it, read it, & gave it back to him with a smile. The consular said you are approved. He kept his passport & gave him a green piece of paper with a date to pick up his passport. His interview was on Thursday & the consular wanted him to return just 5 days from that date, on Tuesday 4/30. He decided to go back home to rest in his own bed. I believe he will go back on Thursday instead of Tuesday. He had a long trip & wants to take a few days to relax. That is his experience with Dakar embassy. We had much against us because he is from a high fraud country & we have an age gap between us, but he prepared well & was able to prove to the consular that this is a bona fide relationship. I hope that this information will help a few who will be attending an interview at the Dakar embassy. I want to mention that you must leave your cell phone & any other personal belongings at home, let a friend go with you to hold your things, or rent a locker at a local internet cafe close to the embassy. My fiance also said to let everyone know that you should present yourself in a neat way, show confidence, but not cocky, & look at the consular's eyes while you are talking to him. Just a little hint from him. This was a great surprise because I am aware of how difficult Dakar embassy can be. Thank God, he was there for us as always. Much success to everyone. I can get a little relief until the next phase, AOS. Rating : Very Good

Timeline Comments: 2



*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

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