Approved!

[nu7015 0]

After waiting 3 weeks since our interview and hearing nothing and no updates online, we decided to go to another infopass yesterday. At the interview, the officer told us he had to show our file to his supervisor the following Monday and then we would get a greencard or denial in the mail within 2 weeks. He said that the National Visa Center had our file locked so he would have to send a request to them to have the unlock it so he could update our file.

We get to the infopass and wait and wait and wait. Then we had to participate in a tornado fire drill that took about 15 minutes. When we got back to the room, they called people who were there after us. I had no patience and said something and they said 'oh sorry, we put your appointment in the wrong pile'. After waiting over an hour, the officer tells us that our application is still pending.

After going through the whole history of the past few months with her (timeline below), she said well let me see where your file is. She comes back and says that nothing been done with the file since the interview and it never left the officer's office that interviewed us. She said if you can wait, I will give the file to a supervisor and see if they can't approve it today.

After about an hour, she calls us and says that the supervisor did approve us. She said that we should receive something in the mail in about 7-10 days. I asked about the 'lock' on our file from NVC and she said she'd go double check on that and make sure that our correct address was in their computer.

She comes back and says that no one sent the request to NVC to ask them to unlock the file on the computer so they were going to send that request out that day and they should hear back from them within about 24 hours. She said to be on the safe side, we should then have something in the mail in 7-10 days from this coming Monday (I verified that 'something in the mail' meant greencard). I asked so what happens if we don't have something in the mail in 7-10 days from Monday? She said then you can come back here (mind you a 2 1/2 hour drive and time off from work AGAIN) and we can put an I-551 stamp in my husband's passport. I asked why they couldn't do that now and she said it's because it's a computer generated approval (aren't they all????).

I know people get I-551 stamps in their passports once they are approved, but why the h@ll she wouldn't give us one I don't understand. I'm trying to think positive but what if they still never got around to 'unlocking' our file or someone forgot to push the button to order the greencard and we still don't have it in the next 2 weeks? Will we be able to get the I-551 if the approval never got 'computer generated'?

Tell me this is going to end at some point...

[hamburgapples 0]

What a cluster f*#$. It seems to me that there is no recourse for the USCIS. That can be very frustrating for us too.

Our origional appointment was scheduled in febuary but that was canceled due to the name check. We went anyway and the the officer we spoke with said that because of the new rules that we should have a new interview within 6 months. He said that at that point they can do some sort of enternal audit on our case and..... They said they'd check our file every Monday to see if the background check went through.

My feeling is that they probably won't check it every week and even if they did I'm guessing that our file is sitting somewhere and it won't be touched until we schedule an infopass appointment in August to inquire about it. And I'll be at that point it will take another 6 months(which is what I believe they give themselves once this "internal audit" is opened.)

Point is.... it is very frusterating to have no control over this part of our lives... especialy when dealing with a system that is admittedly broken.

Hoping for the best but expecting the worst...

On the positive side (and there seems to be a very possitive one here), you SHOULD have your GC in a week or two!!!!

[Cécy 44]

Keep in mind that they mean 7-10 business days. SO a good 2 weeks.

Not every office and IO give the stamp. You should be happy when you get it but not expect it.

Good luck.

If nothing get done, get your senators and congressmen involved.

[nu7015 0]

What a cluster f*#$. It seems to me that there is no recourse for the USCIS. That can be very frustrating for us too.

Our origional appointment was scheduled in febuary but that was canceled due to the name check. We went anyway and the the officer we spoke with said that because of the new rules that we should have a new interview within 6 months. He said that at that point they can do some sort of enternal audit on our case and..... They said they'd check our file every Monday to see if the background check went through.

My feeling is that they probably won't check it every week and even if they did I'm guessing that our file is sitting somewhere and it won't be touched until we schedule an infopass appointment in August to inquire about it. And I'll be at that point it will take another 6 months(which is what I believe they give themselves once this "internal audit" is opened.)

Point is.... it is very frusterating to have no control over this part of our lives... especialy when dealing with a system that is admittedly broken.

Hoping for the best but expecting the worst...

On the positive side (and there seems to be a very possitive one here), you SHOULD have your GC in a week or two!!!!

Keep in mind that they mean 7-10 business days. SO a good 2 weeks.

Not every office and IO give the stamp. You should be happy when you get it but not expect it.

Good luck.

If nothing get done, get your senators and congressmen involved.

hamburgapples - I feel for you. Wouldn't it be nice at our jobs if we could have six months or so to get our work done??????!!!! I wish you the best in getting an interview soon. I recommend checking up on them with infopass appts. Sometimes they help and sometimes they don't but they are worth trying. I don't know how long we would have waited if we hadn't made the infopass last week. Heck, we still may be waiting regardless. At least it did give us some hope.

Cecy - I was very happy when they asked if my husband had his passport with him because I assumed that meant they would give him the I-551 stamp. But then they said they couldn't give it to him afterall unless it's been 7-10 days from Monday (well aware that 7-10 days means business days). I didn't even think this local office had that stamp as some offices don't. But after they said they could give it to him after waiting for the next couple of weeks it didn't make sense to me why they couldn't just give it to him NOW. The stamp seems to be given after the approval at the interview for the interim of the ordering of and receiving of the GC. What's up with making us wait 2 weeks except to find out AGAIN that they screwed up and didn't order the card and now we have to take off work AGAIN, drive 2 1/2 hours AGAIN (spending about $25 in gas AGAIN)??? Our congressman has been closely involved for the past year and their hands seem to be tied with this mess.

I have worked in places where we were regulated by the government and we had to answer for every move that we made and write reports for every mistake that was made. Mistakes were practically unforgiveable. There were written protocols that HAD to be followed to a 'T'. The thought of not following through on a project or a job just wasn't acceptable or allowed. But who regulates the government???? Who do they have to answer to??? Congress? The people? It doesn't seem that they have to answer to anyone.