What are the chances?

[katie!! 0]

Hi, I had a couple questions for some people who may be in my same boat. My name is Katie. My husband (from Honduras) was deported Oct. 3, 2007. Well, he was ordered deported but he just bought his own plane ticket and took off instead of going through federal holding and removal. We were married June 26, 2006, but at the time his application for asylum had been denied and was being appealed. His representative at the time told us there was nothing we could do but wait. Because of this, we didn't even start with the I-130 until right when he was leaving.

So we've been waiting since 10/07 for the response from his I-130, and I've been just accruing hardship evidence since then (I think we filed or will file the I-212).... I guess I'm just confused, I've been reading all your posts and I don't even understand all the abbreviations or anything. I'm going through an attorney to help me with this process, and I guess because of that I'm completely ignorant of all the petitions and waivers and forms since she just tells me to prove hardship and that's what I'm doing... I read in another post that you'll more likely be denied the hardship waiver if you use an attorney, is that true?

I don't know if everyone here is going through the extreme hardship waiver or if anyone has gone through it already... Do yall know how likely it is to get approved? Since leaving to go visit my husband for the first time last month, any emotional stability I've formed since he left was shattered when I had to leave him there, and I feel like my case is completely insufficient no matter how much proof of hardship I attain...

Anyway... Nice to meet yall.. Any advice or words of wisdom would be appreciated.

-Katie

[emt103c 10]

You're only more likely to be denied if you use a crappy attorney. . .it doesn't really matter whether you have an attorney or not as long as the waiver package is thorough and professional. If you want ideas on it check out www.immigrate2us.net.

Even though you have an attorney, you REALLY need to be familiar with the laws and procedures yourself. . .you will find that no one cares about your case more than you do and therefore you are your own best advocate. . .you can catch any errors your attorney might make.

There are VERY FEW attorneys that are experienced with the waiver process and so it is even more important to keep an eye on the case yourself. Your style of life depends on it.

[emt103c 10]

You've been waiting on a result from your I-130 since October, 2007??!! Have you checked status? The sevice centers are claiming a six-eight month processing time.

[katie!! 0]

You've been waiting on a result from your I-130 since October, 2007??!! Have you checked status? The sevice centers are claiming a six-eight month processing time.

That's what's making me even more uneasy... I've been reading especially on here that everyone has a reply within a few months, I've been trying to contact my attorney since I came back from Honduras but she convienently went on vacation two weeks ago and should be back Monday. On uscis.gov they're requesting the case number and I just have the application number; apparently that's not sufficient.

Man, this is horrible...

[beejay 123]

Have you tried

http://www.immigrate2us.net/

they have more experience with waivers and other issues

[Ta Ta 1]

Read all you can on the above given link and understand your case.

I have to file a waiver and took weeks to sift through and interview attorneys

for our case. I went through about 40 that I either emailed, read up on or had a consultation with.

I found one who is very knowledgeable and works well with me and replies immediately to my questions and concerns.

If you yourself do not understand your particular problems in your case, you are taking a chance with a lawyer who can mess you up.

I can not advise you as I do not know your unique circumstances and every case is different , therefore only a qualified attorney can estimate

what your chances are.

[Movin on New Life 3]

Read all you can on the above given link and understand your case.

I have to file a waiver and took weeks to sift through and interview attorneys

for our case. I went through about 40 that I either emailed, read up on or had a consultation with.

I found one who is very knowledgeable and works well with me and replies immediately to my questions and concerns.

If you yourself do not understand your particular problems in your case, you are taking a chance with a lawyer who can mess you up.

I can not advise you as I do not know your unique circumstances and every case is different , therefore only a qualified attorney can estimate

what your chances are.

I definitely agree, read up on Immigrate2us, they are very informative, have examples of hardship packages and I believe there was even some attorneys experienced with waivers they recommended. I spent months and hours of research to put together our hardship package. DO NOT take this task lightly or depend on your attorney to gather all important information! It is YOUR life and you must be assertive and take charge of it yourself! I too am concerned you have not heard from USCIS regarding your I130 it is wayyyyy too long. Have you tried to call their customer service number? 1-800-375-5283 I would most definitely call them and get some answers. remember from this day forward you must be aggressive and not just sit back and wait because no matter what anyone tells you, no one will do things for you.. only you. Don't be afraid to call more than once! Also speaking from experience.. please please always check and double check every call and everything you do. We have learned mis- information can and will be given which can lead to delays. (Even customer service is not always right so check here and on immigrate2us.

feel free to email me with any questions and unfortunately be prepared for even more waiting. Once your I130 is approved and you are allowed to submit your waiver (by the way you will need to sumit the I601; waiver for relief and the I212; waiver for reentry to US) these waivers can and have taken up to a year to be approved. We submitted ours to Vermont October 2007, 4weeks later received receipt and notice of processing, April 2008 received RFE (request for evidence, had 90 days to provide or case would be closed, they received July23, was told decison or update in writing to us in 60 days, well now 90 days and we had to send written request for status update and now here we are waiting and praying)

Good luck to you, patience, perseverance, hardwork, take charge and prayers will take you there. Thanks Felicia

[Movin on New Life 3]

Read all you can on the above given link and understand your case.

I have to file a waiver and took weeks to sift through and interview attorneys

for our case. I went through about 40 that I either emailed, read up on or had a consultation with.

I found one who is very knowledgeable and works well with me and replies immediately to my questions and concerns.

If you yourself do not understand your particular problems in your case, you are taking a chance with a lawyer who can mess you up.

I can not advise you as I do not know your unique circumstances and every case is different , therefore only a qualified attorney can estimate

what your chances are.

I definitely agree, read up on Immigrate2us, they are very informative, have examples of hardship packages and I believe there was even some attorneys experienced with waivers they recommended. I spent months and hours of research to put together our hardship package. DO NOT take this task lightly or depend on your attorney to gather all important information! It is YOUR life and you must be assertive and take charge of it yourself! I too am concerned you have not heard from USCIS regarding your I130 it is wayyyyy too long. Have you tried to call their customer service number? 1-800-375-5283 I would most definitely call them and get some answers. remember from this day forward you must be aggressive and not just sit back and wait because no matter what anyone tells you, no one will do things for you.. only you. Don't be afraid to call more than once! Also speaking from experience.. please please always check and double check every call and everything you do. We have learned mis- information can and will be given which can lead to delays. (Even customer service is not always right so check here and on immigrate2us.

feel free to email me with any questions and unfortunately be prepared for even more waiting. Once your I130 is approved and you are allowed to submit your waiver (by the way you will need to sumit the I601; waiver for relief and the I212; waiver for reentry to US) these waivers can and have taken up to a year to be approved. We submitted ours to Vermont October 2007, 4weeks later received receipt and notice of processing, April 2008 received RFE (request for evidence, had 90 days to provide or case would be closed, they received July23, was told decison or update in writing to us in 60 days, well now 90 days and we had to send written request for status update and now here we are waiting and praying)

Good luck to you, patience, perseverance, hardwork, take charge and prayers will take you there. Thanks Felicia

also, I would check and MAKE sure you are receiving all and any documentation from USCIS not just your attorney, they can be notorious for filing things and not sending you a copy. Don't get me wrong although you may attain a good attorney, do not rely on them to get you things in a timely manner... remember take charge you are FIRST and attorney second! I am very concerned you should have received your case number a LONG time ago, are you sure your attorney doesnt have it? why not ask your attorney for a copy of your file? Once you have your case number you can go online and sign up for online status email notification and you can view your case status everyday to see if your file has been "touched" Have yourself a strong cup of coffee and go get em girl!

[katie!! 0]

In the past few days, I've read a lot on I2U. Actually I found out that the "formula for hardship" that my lawyer gave me a year ago was printed right off of their website. And yeah, I've got a whoooole lot to speak with her about on Monday. I'm sure if I had spent more time looking, I could have found the perfect lawyer (call it a stupid 20-year-old's decision), but I think that by luck I did end up with a good one, with over 20 years being specialized in immigration and nationality law. The thing is he handed me over to his associate attorney, and I know she's not as experienced as he is.. I guess I just thought that they could for sure help me without doubting it too much.

Do the 601 and the 212 always have to be sent together? In some cases do you only send one?

Like I said, I've been completely ignorant to the process so far, so maybe we have recieved the response from the I-130, because I know we sent off the hardship waiver already a few months ago... But it seems like there was just one, not both. You can't send off the hardship waiver until you recieve result from the 130, right? But I haven't been to any interviews yet, she said my first one will be around March or April of next year in Honduras. She said at that point they can tell me yes or no that he's coming back and if they deny it I can appeal it, and so on and so forth... I know my ignorance sounds horrible, I do have some idea of what's happening, I just have a lot to talk to her about on Monday, so that I can keep closer track of the case myself. I feel like I know nothing of where I'm at in my case. ARRRGH.

[katie!! 0]

What is the NOA 1 and 2? And the interview after it?

I'm so confused as to why I haven't had an interview yet.. It seems like everyone has an interview within a year of filing the I130..

Is there always an interview after the I-130 then another for the I601 or I212?

[spookyturtle 9,465]

Many lawyers have years of immigrtaion law experience. The important qualification is, how much experience do they have with foreign filed waivers, and specifically, from Honduras? What is their sucess rate?

You cannot submit a waiver until the visa is denied at the interview. The consulate will give you a paper with the reason for denial and cite the appropriate section of the law. The will tell you if you are eligible for a waiver or not. Some consulates will let you submit the waiver the same day, others require another appointment to submit the waiver.

[emt103c 10]

What is the NOA 1 and 2? And the interview after it?

I'm so confused as to why I haven't had an interview yet.. It seems like everyone has an interview within a year of filing the I130..

Is there always an interview after the I-130 then another for the I601 or I212?

NOA 1 is the receipt of the payment and application. This document gives you the receipt number you would need to research the case on www.uscis.gov. NOA 2 is the decision on the case. It would seem that you should have gotten both by now. Your case goes from USCIS where you file it to the National Visa Center (NVC) At the NVC your attorney or you will be sent more paperwork asking for more money. . .an affidavit of support fee/ and Affidavit of Support and then a Visa Application with Visa fee. This would have been hundreds more dollars and you would have known about it. . .the attorney cannot do it without you. After all of that paperwork is done (few months time) your case will be assigned an interview date in Honduras. At that interview he would be found ineligible for visa but--based on the information provided here--eligible for the waivers.

Remember that you have probably paid the attorney in stages . . .is he already preparing the waiver or do you have time to question him more thoroughly before sticking with a decision?

Edited October 25, 2008 by emt103c

[Amor1 0]

Hello, Katie. My husband is from El Salvador, and I've been there five times since we been separated. It's so expensive and difficult, as you know. I feel the same way every time we get to our last day together. I try not to cry so much, but I do. Separation is draining, but I'm trying to be strong. Anyway, I wrote this letter to the US Senators who sit on the Judicial Committee that oversees USCIS. I've encouraged everyone at vj to send it off after adding their receipt numbers. I think this will help all of us b/c Congress doesn't know about these long waiting times for a Notice of Action 2 (approval) that all of us are waiting for right now. I know that you've hired a lawyer, but this is something we can do on our own. We're just asking them to look into our cases. It is not a harsh or overly critical letter. Read it, and if you want, add your info, print it, and mail. All the best to you & hang in there--Amor1

***********

Hello, everyone! I finally finished this letter, and I think it's appropriate in tone and specific in our request for a Congressional Inquiry. It would not allow me to upload, so I pasted it below. Perhaps it will help all of us who are still waiting after inhumane periods of time as well as those who are just getting started. If you want, you can copy and add your home address, receipt numbers and anything else like email address and contact numbers. However, the body of the letter should stay the same because the Judiciary Committee needs to see that many of us are affected in this similar way--waiting, waiting, and waiting for our NOA2 indefinitely. We should get a response from the Senators themselves or the Subcommittee. It's only polite and respectful for them to respond.

Guidelines:

Print out a copy of this letter after you add your information. **Remember to add you House of Rep Member/Senator for your state. Again, this is protocol.

You can address your envelope to the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Refugees, & Border Security or each individual member who sits on this committee as well as your State's Senator. Personally, I will be forwarding a total of 11 letters (all members, the Subcommittee, and my State's Senator). It's up to you.

I believe including hard copies of the spreadsheets is necessary, but many will send these, so you don't have to do this. My letters will go off tomorrow, and as soon as I get responses, I'll add a new message here at visajourneys.com.

I wish all of you the best and hope that we see positive results from our proactive measures !--Amor1

*************************LETTER*************************************************

Your Street Address (here)

City, State and zip code (here)

October 20, 2008

United States Senate Judiciary Subcommittee

on Immigration, Refugees, & Border Security

224 Dirksen Senate Office Building

Washington, DC 20510

To the Honorable Members of this Subcommittee:

As a law-abiding US citizen, I, along with my fellow members of visajourney.com, request your assistance with our USCIS petitions. At present, the time frame for reviewing cases is nine months or longer. Despite published announcements to the contrary, many of us have been separated from our spouses and children (on whose behalf we filed I-130 and I-129F petitions) for a painful amount of time, time which cannot be recovered. After following the guidelines posted on the USCIS website and paying all applicable fees, we are waiting in suspense for an approval (the Notice of Action 2 – NOA2), and this is the source of our dilemma—an inordinate amount of waiting time and no clear explanations for delays. Hence, we ask you, Honorable Members of the US Senate, to investigate these seemingly negligent periods of inaction.

The first step for our family members is to submit the petitions to establish the existence of a relationship. Then, once approved, our petitions and all documents submitted are forwarded to the National Visa Center for further processing. As you are aware, the next phase is the embassy approval with required medical examination and interviews. Unfortunately, many of us have not moved past the first step because there have been no updates sent to us. In particular, many of us are still waiting for NOA2 from the Vermont Service Center (VSC). Please see attached spreadsheets. While the California Service Center seems to be processing petitions at an increasingly rapid rate, VSC is months behind. Why is there such a major difference between these two processing centers? Are there more adjudicators at CSC? Moreover, some petitions that are received months after others are processed faster. When questioned about this inequity, telephone operators at the USCIS give a standard response: “It depends on the case; each case is adjudicated differently.” Then when we ask about our individual petitions on behalf of our qualifying relatives, we receive the generic, “We’re within our processing time.”

For many of us, the entire process thus far has proven to be quite discouraging. We cannot get accurate, specific responses to our inquiries, nor do we receive the “first in, first out” treatment we were promised. Hence, we need and request your assistance. Perhaps an inquiry from your committee will garner more substantive, more accurate responses. Perhaps there is a way to change the process, so national security is not comprised, and families are not unnecessarily separated from their loved ones indefinitely. Attached, please find a copy of NOA 1 for our petitions (I-130 and I-129F). Below, see our receipt numbers given by USCIS. It is with great respect for your charge on this committee that I, along with many others, request your inquiry into this matter. Hopefully, all of us will receive the NOA2 and continue positively on the path of reunification with our family members. Equally, we hope that others will benefit from our proactive measures and their processing time will be much shorter and more humane.

Respectfully yours,

Name (full)

Receipt Number for Petition __________

_________________________________

Receipt Number for Petition __________

_________________________________

cc: Members of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Refugees, and Border Security

The Honorable Senator Ted Kennedy

The Honorable Joe Biden

The Honorable Diane Feinstein

The Honorable Chuck Schumer

The Honorable Jeff Sessions

The Honorable Jon Kyl

The Honorable Chuck Grassley

The Honorable John Cornyn

The Honorable ####### Durbin

(Your State Senator/US House of Representatives Member – here)

Hi, I had a couple questions for some people who may be in my same boat. My name is Katie. My husband (from Honduras) was deported Oct. 3, 2007. Well, he was ordered deported but he just bought his own plane ticket and took off instead of going through federal holding and removal. We were married June 26, 2006, but at the time his application for asylum had been denied and was being appealed. His representative at the time told us there was nothing we could do but wait. Because of this, we didn't even start with the I-130 until right when he was leaving.

So we've been waiting since 10/07 for the response from his I-130, and I've been just accruing hardship evidence since then (I think we filed or will file the I-212).... I guess I'm just confused, I've been reading all your posts and I don't even understand all the abbreviations or anything. I'm going through an attorney to help me with this process, and I guess because of that I'm completely ignorant of all the petitions and waivers and forms since she just tells me to prove hardship and that's what I'm doing... I read in another post that you'll more likely be denied the hardship waiver if you use an attorney, is that true?

I don't know if everyone here is going through the extreme hardship waiver or if anyone has gone through it already... Do yall know how likely it is to get approved? Since leaving to go visit my husband for the first time last month, any emotional stability I've formed since he left was shattered when I had to leave him there, and I feel like my case is completely insufficient no matter how much proof of hardship I attain...

Anyway... Nice to meet yall.. Any advice or words of wisdom would be appreciated.

-Katie