Card ordered after (almost) 6 months at CSC

[ferdiee 0]

All,

I'm not a very active member of this forum, but I have gotten great information from the discussions, thus I'd like to make a small contribution to share my experience with my I-751 process (I do update my timelines religiously btw).

My card has been ordered today (Feb 29th '08) after a almost a 6-month wait. It may not seem that long for some of you, but in CSC's jurisdiction, decisions are normally made a lot faster.

Application sent - 09/07/07

NOA Date - 09/25/07

Biometrics - 10/31/07

Touched - 11/01/07

I-130 and Advanced parole touched - 12/22/07

Card ordered - 2/29/08

I think my case is a little interesting in that my name may have caused "a hit" in the name check (proof 1: Southwest airlines told me so; proof 2: took US embassy 5 weeks to do a background check prior to issuing my work visa 4 years ago; proof 3: took USCIS secondary inspection 2.5 hours to do additional background check when I returned from a trip abroad in Jan '08 - and he did mention that there's a very bad guy w/ the same first name initial and last name as me).

And prayer does work! This morning I quit my job. On my way to work, I had prayed God for specific, visible signs whether I should really turn in the resignation letter since I don't have a new one yet. One of my concerns was without the real, valid greencard on hand (only with expired GC + NOA + SS card that has work restriction that I haven't removed yet), new potential employers may turn me down. However, God (well, through USCIS) emailed me with the good news! The prayer and the email was only minutes apart. So keep praying - it does make a difference!

Solely based on my experience (and I'm not an immigration attorney), here's a short list of FAQ's:

1. Can I travel with expired greencard and NOA?

- Yes, but they will send you to secondary inspection at the airport when you return. Not a big deal, though, don't worry too much. Just make sure you carry both the expired greencard and the NOA. This experience was at SFO, and I was on a foreign trip twice during the I-751 process.

2. Do I need to send affidavit letter for I-751?

- To be safe yes, but I didn't include one.

3. Do I need to send photos of trips we take together for I-751?

- same answer as #2

4. Do I need to send official tax transcript for I-751?

- same answer as #2 (I sent the printed returns from TurboTax)

5. Do I need to send joint account statements for the whole 2 years' period?

- To be safe yes, but I only included the last 2 months' prior to sending the application in.

6. Do they do FBI name check for I-751?

- I don't know - some sites claim that they only do fingerprint check, but I feel that the name check is the only explanation why my case took 3 months longer than everybody else at my service center.

7. Do you have a lot of joint accounts?

- Since both of us work and we had established our credit stuff prior to the marriage, the our joint accounts were limited to bank account, life insurance beneficiaries, car insurance, car titles, apt lease (no joint credit card, utilities, cell phones, junk mails, card from friends, etc).

8. Can I apply for SS/remove SS restrictions with expired greencard and NOA?

- No, the SS officer told me that the only acceptable proofs are either an unexpired greencard or a stamp in the passport. NOA (I-797) is not listed in one of the documents they could take to process SS inquiries, despite what the NOA states.

Regards,

FH.

Edited February 29, 2008 by ferdiee

[MaryandMian 1]

Congratulations on getting your greencard ordered and hope that it is in hand shortly. I would also like to say thank you for sharing your experience and sure it should help others in the future and lastly good luck on finding a new job.

Mary

[Spiderette 0]

And prayer does work!

First of all, congratulations to you!!!

And secondly, thanks for a very inspiring post about your beliefs and giving thanks to God for your GC approval. I too pray often, I thank the Lord that I am in the position I am today in the US and that I have the opportunity to apply for this application. (many others would love to be where we are today and so I am very Thankful!)

Best wishes to you and your spouse for your future, your career plans and your life in the USA!!

Edited February 29, 2008 by Spiderette

[Scalpel 14]

Inspirational! Congrats!!

[Hilarious Clinton 452]

sweet!

[den_y2005 0]

congratulations.

you gave good answer to common questios

[Jasman0717 9]

Congratulations