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Upgrade or not upgrade to CR-1?

By Blackfield in IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures

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Blackfield Explorer

Blackfield   1

Posted
Filed: Citizen (apr) Timeline
Posted

Hi,

My wife's visa petition is currently at NVC. Our AOS, IV packages arrived at NVC yesterday and just submitted the DS-260 today.

My US citizen oath ceremony is on Dec 17th, a couple of weeks away.

I plan to upgrade my wife's F2A petition to CR-1 petition after I receive my naturalization certificate in two weeks time.

I understand that the benefit of upgrading the petition is that we then won't have to worry about the visa bulletin.

However, I wonder if upgrading the petition at this juncture would cause any issue (delay) to the existing petition since it is closed to completion.

We are leaning toward upgrading it but just want to get your inputs.

So, in our case, the question is should we upgrade the petition?

Would it cause issue with priority date, etc?

Thanks!

Became LPR:

10/28/2008

I-130

Filling I-130 spouse while still an LPR

02/13/2013 - Case arrived at USCIS

02/21/2013 - NOA1

08/15/2013 - NOA2

N-400:

07/31/2013 - sent N-400

08/13/2013 - NOA

08/26/2013 - Biometric

10/03/2013 - Received Interview Letter

11/07/2013 - Interview

12/17/2013 - Oath ceremony

NVC

11/01/2013 - Case arrived at NVC

11/20/2013 - Received case #, IIN, Beneficiary number, gave e-mail addresses

11/21/2013 - Submitted DS-261

11/22/2013 - AOS bill invoiced & paid

11/25/2013 - AOS Package sent

11/26/2013 - AOS bill appears as PAID

11/26/2013 - IV bill invoiced & paid

11/27/2013 - IV Package sent

12/02/2013 - AOS/I864 and IV packages received by NVC

12/03/2013 - IV bill appears as PAID

12/03/2013 - Submitted DS-260

12/17/2013 - Requested NVC to upgrade the petition from F2A to CR1 category

12/26/2013 - Got checklist for I864, sent the correction back

12/30/2013 - NVC received the I864 checklist package

01/06/2014 - NVC confirmed that our petition was upgraded to CR1 category

01/23/2014 - Case Complete

01/29/2014 - Received interview letter

03/26/2014 - Interview - APPROVED!!

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milimelo Veteran

milimelo   4,469

Posted
Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: Bosnia-Herzegovina
 Timeline
Posted

Her PD is current - I wouldn't do anything and just let it go as scheduled. She can mention you have the citizenship at the interview - have her bring a copy of it.

ROC 2009
Naturalization 2010

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Blackfield Explorer

Blackfield   1

Posted
Filed: Citizen (apr) Timeline
  • Author
Posted

Her PD is current - I wouldn't do anything and just let it go as scheduled. She can mention you have the citizenship at the interview - have her bring a copy of it.

The PD may change and also I notice it appears CR1 petition gets the interview faster (roughly 1 month?) than F2A petition (could be two months?).

What are the downsides that made you think that you would not upgrade?

I just want to understand better the ramifications before making the decision.

Became LPR:

10/28/2008

I-130

Filling I-130 spouse while still an LPR

02/13/2013 - Case arrived at USCIS

02/21/2013 - NOA1

08/15/2013 - NOA2

N-400:

07/31/2013 - sent N-400

08/13/2013 - NOA

08/26/2013 - Biometric

10/03/2013 - Received Interview Letter

11/07/2013 - Interview

12/17/2013 - Oath ceremony

NVC

11/01/2013 - Case arrived at NVC

11/20/2013 - Received case #, IIN, Beneficiary number, gave e-mail addresses

11/21/2013 - Submitted DS-261

11/22/2013 - AOS bill invoiced & paid

11/25/2013 - AOS Package sent

11/26/2013 - AOS bill appears as PAID

11/26/2013 - IV bill invoiced & paid

11/27/2013 - IV Package sent

12/02/2013 - AOS/I864 and IV packages received by NVC

12/03/2013 - IV bill appears as PAID

12/03/2013 - Submitted DS-260

12/17/2013 - Requested NVC to upgrade the petition from F2A to CR1 category

12/26/2013 - Got checklist for I864, sent the correction back

12/30/2013 - NVC received the I864 checklist package

01/06/2014 - NVC confirmed that our petition was upgraded to CR1 category

01/23/2014 - Case Complete

01/29/2014 - Received interview letter

03/26/2014 - Interview - APPROVED!!

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Blackfield Explorer

Blackfield   1

Posted
Filed: Citizen (apr) Timeline
  • Author
Posted

I would upgrade it so that her GC gets 'classed' correctly.

Hmm, I did not know there is such a thing.

So F2A beneficiary receives different GC compare to IR1/CR1 beneficiary?

If so, what are the differences between the two beside the 'class'?

Became LPR:

10/28/2008

I-130

Filling I-130 spouse while still an LPR

02/13/2013 - Case arrived at USCIS

02/21/2013 - NOA1

08/15/2013 - NOA2

N-400:

07/31/2013 - sent N-400

08/13/2013 - NOA

08/26/2013 - Biometric

10/03/2013 - Received Interview Letter

11/07/2013 - Interview

12/17/2013 - Oath ceremony

NVC

11/01/2013 - Case arrived at NVC

11/20/2013 - Received case #, IIN, Beneficiary number, gave e-mail addresses

11/21/2013 - Submitted DS-261

11/22/2013 - AOS bill invoiced & paid

11/25/2013 - AOS Package sent

11/26/2013 - AOS bill appears as PAID

11/26/2013 - IV bill invoiced & paid

11/27/2013 - IV Package sent

12/02/2013 - AOS/I864 and IV packages received by NVC

12/03/2013 - IV bill appears as PAID

12/03/2013 - Submitted DS-260

12/17/2013 - Requested NVC to upgrade the petition from F2A to CR1 category

12/26/2013 - Got checklist for I864, sent the correction back

12/30/2013 - NVC received the I864 checklist package

01/06/2014 - NVC confirmed that our petition was upgraded to CR1 category

01/23/2014 - Case Complete

01/29/2014 - Received interview letter

03/26/2014 - Interview - APPROVED!!

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iamwhatiam80 Proficient

iamwhatiam80   92

Posted
Filed: IR-5 Country: India
 Timeline
Posted

Hmm, I did not know there is such a thing.

So F2A beneficiary receives different GC compare to IR1/CR1 beneficiary?

If so, what are the differences between the two beside the 'class'?

No difference. Green cards are all same. But they have different categories.

http://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/ilink/docView/AFM/HTML/AFM/0-0-0-1/0-0-0-26573/0-0-0-32054.html

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  • 3 weeks later...
pob260 Enthusiast

pob260   23

Posted
Filed: Citizen (pnd) Country: Nepal
 Timeline
Posted

Hi,

My wife's visa petition is currently at NVC. Our AOS, IV packages arrived at NVC yesterday and just submitted the DS-260 today.

My US citizen oath ceremony is on Dec 17th, a couple of weeks away.

I plan to upgrade my wife's F2A petition to CR-1 petition after I receive my naturalization certificate in two weeks time.

I understand that the benefit of upgrading the petition is that we then won't have to worry about the visa bulletin.

However, I wonder if upgrading the petition at this juncture would cause any issue (delay) to the existing petition since it is closed to completion.

We are leaning toward upgrading it but just want to get your inputs.

So, in our case, the question is should we upgrade the petition?

Would it cause issue with priority date, etc?

Thanks!

Did you file for an upgrade?

I-130 (California Service Center) / Category: F2A / Priority Date: Sep 6rd, 2013

I-130
2013-09-01 : I-130 Sent

  • 2013-09-03: I-130 Received
  • 2013-09-06: NOA-1
  • 2013-10-01: NOA2 approved (SMS and email from USCIS

2013-10-06: NOA2 (Hardcopy)

NVC
2013-10-15: NVC received the case

2013-10-21: Case Number , Invoice Number and BIN received

  • 2013-10-24: Choice of Agent (DS 261) filled. (AOS, IV fee not available yet)
  • 2013-10-25: Email to pay AOS fee
  • 2013-10-28: AOS payment available and paid
  • 2013-10-30: AOS Shows as "Paid"
  • 2013-11-01: Mailed i864 docs
  • 2013-11-01: IV fee available and paid
  • 2013-11-01: AOS Docs received at NVC ( Based on USPS tracking )
  • 2013-11-04 IV Supporting Docs mailed ( IV payment still shows as IN PROCESS...but moneys already withdrawn from account)
  • 2013-11-06 IV Supporting Docs received ( Based on USPS tracking )
  • 2013-11-07: IV Shows as "PAID"

2013-11-07: Received/Entered both AOS and IV in the system for review.

  • 2013-11-08: DS 260 completes and submitted.

2013-12-05: Received checklist for AOS

In Part 4. Information on the Sponsor, please correct the following...

[x] Item 12. As the petitioner sponsoring your spouse or child, you must indicate whether or not you are currently on active duty in the U.S. armed services.

In Part 6. Sponsor's Income and Employment, please correct the following...

[x] Item 10. The current annual household income must equal the sum of items 5, 6.c., 7.c., 8.c., and 9.c.

  • 2013-12-05: Sent checklist response for AOS
  • 2013-12-07: Received "false checklist": IV Docs reviewed and accepted

2013-12-11: Entered checklist for AOS into system

2014-01-06: Case Complete per call to NVC.

2014-01-29: Interview Date assigned

2014-02-03: CEAC site updated to "In Transit"

2014-03-04: Interview Date

2014-03-04: VISA APPROVED. pickup on 2013-03-06

Thanks to all
GLTA

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Blackfield Explorer

Blackfield   1

Posted
Filed: Citizen (apr) Timeline
  • Author
Posted

Did you file for an upgrade?

We did last week, I got an email yesterday that they are reviewing it now.

I talked to NVC folks about it beforehand and they told me that we do not have a choice but to upgrade since a IV petition requires us to provide update to NVC if our status has changed. So, it makes sense for us to upgrade.

They also told me that the upgrade process should run in parallel with the our petition and it should not impact the petition. I do not know if this is true or not, though.

Became LPR:

10/28/2008

I-130

Filling I-130 spouse while still an LPR

02/13/2013 - Case arrived at USCIS

02/21/2013 - NOA1

08/15/2013 - NOA2

N-400:

07/31/2013 - sent N-400

08/13/2013 - NOA

08/26/2013 - Biometric

10/03/2013 - Received Interview Letter

11/07/2013 - Interview

12/17/2013 - Oath ceremony

NVC

11/01/2013 - Case arrived at NVC

11/20/2013 - Received case #, IIN, Beneficiary number, gave e-mail addresses

11/21/2013 - Submitted DS-261

11/22/2013 - AOS bill invoiced & paid

11/25/2013 - AOS Package sent

11/26/2013 - AOS bill appears as PAID

11/26/2013 - IV bill invoiced & paid

11/27/2013 - IV Package sent

12/02/2013 - AOS/I864 and IV packages received by NVC

12/03/2013 - IV bill appears as PAID

12/03/2013 - Submitted DS-260

12/17/2013 - Requested NVC to upgrade the petition from F2A to CR1 category

12/26/2013 - Got checklist for I864, sent the correction back

12/30/2013 - NVC received the I864 checklist package

01/06/2014 - NVC confirmed that our petition was upgraded to CR1 category

01/23/2014 - Case Complete

01/29/2014 - Received interview letter

03/26/2014 - Interview - APPROVED!!

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  • 2 weeks later...
pob260 Enthusiast

pob260   23

Posted
Filed: Citizen (pnd) Country: Nepal
 Timeline
Posted

We did last week, I got an email yesterday that they are reviewing it now.

I talked to NVC folks about it beforehand and they told me that we do not have a choice but to upgrade since a IV petition requires us to provide update to NVC if our status has changed. So, it makes sense for us to upgrade.

They also told me that the upgrade process should run in parallel with the our petition and it should not impact the petition. I do not know if this is true or not, though.

Any news on your upgrade so far?

I-130 (California Service Center) / Category: F2A / Priority Date: Sep 6rd, 2013

I-130
2013-09-01 : I-130 Sent

  • 2013-09-03: I-130 Received
  • 2013-09-06: NOA-1
  • 2013-10-01: NOA2 approved (SMS and email from USCIS

2013-10-06: NOA2 (Hardcopy)

NVC
2013-10-15: NVC received the case

2013-10-21: Case Number , Invoice Number and BIN received

  • 2013-10-24: Choice of Agent (DS 261) filled. (AOS, IV fee not available yet)
  • 2013-10-25: Email to pay AOS fee
  • 2013-10-28: AOS payment available and paid
  • 2013-10-30: AOS Shows as "Paid"
  • 2013-11-01: Mailed i864 docs
  • 2013-11-01: IV fee available and paid
  • 2013-11-01: AOS Docs received at NVC ( Based on USPS tracking )
  • 2013-11-04 IV Supporting Docs mailed ( IV payment still shows as IN PROCESS...but moneys already withdrawn from account)
  • 2013-11-06 IV Supporting Docs received ( Based on USPS tracking )
  • 2013-11-07: IV Shows as "PAID"

2013-11-07: Received/Entered both AOS and IV in the system for review.

  • 2013-11-08: DS 260 completes and submitted.

2013-12-05: Received checklist for AOS

In Part 4. Information on the Sponsor, please correct the following...

[x] Item 12. As the petitioner sponsoring your spouse or child, you must indicate whether or not you are currently on active duty in the U.S. armed services.

In Part 6. Sponsor's Income and Employment, please correct the following...

[x] Item 10. The current annual household income must equal the sum of items 5, 6.c., 7.c., 8.c., and 9.c.

  • 2013-12-05: Sent checklist response for AOS
  • 2013-12-07: Received "false checklist": IV Docs reviewed and accepted

2013-12-11: Entered checklist for AOS into system

2014-01-06: Case Complete per call to NVC.

2014-01-29: Interview Date assigned

2014-02-03: CEAC site updated to "In Transit"

2014-03-04: Interview Date

2014-03-04: VISA APPROVED. pickup on 2013-03-06

Thanks to all
GLTA

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Blackfield Explorer

Blackfield   1

Posted
Filed: Citizen (apr) Timeline
  • Author
Posted

Any news on your upgrade so far?

I was told over the phone yesterday by NVC that our petition had been upgraded to USC.

We are still waiting for case completion.

Became LPR:

10/28/2008

I-130

Filling I-130 spouse while still an LPR

02/13/2013 - Case arrived at USCIS

02/21/2013 - NOA1

08/15/2013 - NOA2

N-400:

07/31/2013 - sent N-400

08/13/2013 - NOA

08/26/2013 - Biometric

10/03/2013 - Received Interview Letter

11/07/2013 - Interview

12/17/2013 - Oath ceremony

NVC

11/01/2013 - Case arrived at NVC

11/20/2013 - Received case #, IIN, Beneficiary number, gave e-mail addresses

11/21/2013 - Submitted DS-261

11/22/2013 - AOS bill invoiced & paid

11/25/2013 - AOS Package sent

11/26/2013 - AOS bill appears as PAID

11/26/2013 - IV bill invoiced & paid

11/27/2013 - IV Package sent

12/02/2013 - AOS/I864 and IV packages received by NVC

12/03/2013 - IV bill appears as PAID

12/03/2013 - Submitted DS-260

12/17/2013 - Requested NVC to upgrade the petition from F2A to CR1 category

12/26/2013 - Got checklist for I864, sent the correction back

12/30/2013 - NVC received the I864 checklist package

01/06/2014 - NVC confirmed that our petition was upgraded to CR1 category

01/23/2014 - Case Complete

01/29/2014 - Received interview letter

03/26/2014 - Interview - APPROVED!!

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NLZZLN Enthusiast

NLZZLN   6

Posted
Filed: IR-1/CR-1 Visa Country: United Arab Emirates
 Timeline
Posted

Upgrading to USC shouldn't delay anything. It should process faster. My brother who is green card holder, took his wife 3 years to come to the USA where for USC it takes about a year n half or less.

Ur at the stage of NVC, so you won't have to wait till a visa becomes available for ur wife.

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Blackfield Explorer

Blackfield   1

Posted
Filed: Citizen (apr) Timeline
  • Author
Posted

Upgrading to USC shouldn't delay anything. It should process faster. My brother who is green card holder, took his wife 3 years to come to the USA where for USC it takes about a year n half or less.

Ur at the stage of NVC, so you won't have to wait till a visa becomes available for ur wife.

Correct.

I just received a letter from NVC today to confirm about the upgrade.

One thing to note, the priority date remains the same, it does NOT change after the upgrade.

Also, I just sent email and attach my naturalization cert. There is no need to mail it.

Hopefully, the above information will help someone in the future.

Became LPR:

10/28/2008

I-130

Filling I-130 spouse while still an LPR

02/13/2013 - Case arrived at USCIS

02/21/2013 - NOA1

08/15/2013 - NOA2

N-400:

07/31/2013 - sent N-400

08/13/2013 - NOA

08/26/2013 - Biometric

10/03/2013 - Received Interview Letter

11/07/2013 - Interview

12/17/2013 - Oath ceremony

NVC

11/01/2013 - Case arrived at NVC

11/20/2013 - Received case #, IIN, Beneficiary number, gave e-mail addresses

11/21/2013 - Submitted DS-261

11/22/2013 - AOS bill invoiced & paid

11/25/2013 - AOS Package sent

11/26/2013 - AOS bill appears as PAID

11/26/2013 - IV bill invoiced & paid

11/27/2013 - IV Package sent

12/02/2013 - AOS/I864 and IV packages received by NVC

12/03/2013 - IV bill appears as PAID

12/03/2013 - Submitted DS-260

12/17/2013 - Requested NVC to upgrade the petition from F2A to CR1 category

12/26/2013 - Got checklist for I864, sent the correction back

12/30/2013 - NVC received the I864 checklist package

01/06/2014 - NVC confirmed that our petition was upgraded to CR1 category

01/23/2014 - Case Complete

01/29/2014 - Received interview letter

03/26/2014 - Interview - APPROVED!!

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