Any success in obtaining emergency AP?

[anxiouslywaiting 0]

Hi everyone! I received the unfortunate phone call last night from my mother advising me that my Great Aunt is not doing so well and they project that she is living her last days. Just a little background, my father's mother passed away when he was 12 and my Great Aunt raised him from then on so she is pretty much a grandmother to me. I called my lawyer this morning (I know I have a lawyer) and she advised me that I have to obtain a letter from my Great Aunt's doctor explaining her situation and take that letter along with all my other documentation (as my AP application is in process) and make an infopass appointment. My mother is in the process of obtaining the doctor's letter for me right now and I have booked an infopass appointment for tomorrow. I was just wondering if anyone has been successful in obtaining emergency AP? Any advice or tips would be great. Thanks

[cdn_in_wa 1]

Hi everyone! I received the unfortunate phone call last night from my mother advising me that my Great Aunt is not doing so well and they project that she is living her last days. Just a little background, my father's mother passed away when he was 12 and my Great Aunt raised him from then on so she is pretty much a grandmother to me. I called my lawyer this morning (I know I have a lawyer) and she advised me that I have to obtain a letter from my Great Aunt's doctor explaining her situation and take that letter along with all my other documentation (as my AP application is in process) and make an infopass appointment. My mother is in the process of obtaining the doctor's letter for me right now and I have booked an infopass appointment for tomorrow. I was just wondering if anyone has been successful in obtaining emergency AP? Any advice or tips would be great. Thanks

I did get emergency AP at the District Office.

I'd make an infopass now, if you think you can get the documentation you require in time for the appointment.

You might need to have some proof of relationship and (don't ask me how to provide this) proof that she is/was a surrogate grandmother to you. Under normal circumstances, they only provide emergency advance parole for IMMEDIATE family members. A great aunt is not generally considered immediate family.

I originally made the infopass to get AP to see my brother (who was in ICU) and my cousin (who was in the end stages of cancer). By the time I got to the appointment, my cousin had passed away. At the infopass, I mentioned - just to explain the situation - that I originally was wanting the AP because my cousin was very ill, but had subsequently died, and my brother was very ill in ICU as well. The IO interrupted me and said - a cousin is not close enough family. But, since I had my brother in ICU, and with a letter from his doctor, I was able to get immediate AP.

I had to fill out a new I-131 form (fortunately I had taken a copy of my original submission to copy from). Take 2 photos with you when you go to the infopass. I did not know to do this and they sent me out to get some.

Good Luck!

[anxiouslywaiting 0]

Hi everyone! I received the unfortunate phone call last night from my mother advising me that my Great Aunt is not doing so well and they project that she is living her last days. Just a little background, my father's mother passed away when he was 12 and my Great Aunt raised him from then on so she is pretty much a grandmother to me. I called my lawyer this morning (I know I have a lawyer) and she advised me that I have to obtain a letter from my Great Aunt's doctor explaining her situation and take that letter along with all my other documentation (as my AP application is in process) and make an infopass appointment. My mother is in the process of obtaining the doctor's letter for me right now and I have booked an infopass appointment for tomorrow. I was just wondering if anyone has been successful in obtaining emergency AP? Any advice or tips would be great. Thanks

I did get emergency AP at the District Office.

I'd make an infopass now, if you think you can get the documentation you require in time for the appointment.

You might need to have some proof of relationship and (don't ask me how to provide this) proof that she is/was a surrogate grandmother to you. Under normal circumstances, they only provide emergency advance parole for IMMEDIATE family members. A great aunt is not generally considered immediate family.

I originally made the infopass to get AP to see my brother (who was in ICU) and my cousin (who was in the end stages of cancer). By the time I got to the appointment, my cousin had passed away. At the infopass, I mentioned - just to explain the situation - that I originally was wanting the AP because my cousin was very ill, but had subsequently died, and my brother was very ill in ICU as well. The IO interrupted me and said - a cousin is not close enough family. But, since I had my brother in ICU, and with a letter from his doctor, I was able to get immediate AP.

I had to fill out a new I-131 form (fortunately I had taken a copy of my original submission to copy from). Take 2 photos with you when you go to the infopass. I did not know to do this and they sent me out to get some.

Good Luck!

Thank you for the information. I have already booked my appointment for tomorrow morning. My mother is also going to include a letter from her and my father explaining that she is a surrogate grandmother to me. I was planning on bringing my original with me and my lawyer did advise me to bring passport pictures (which I will get today). Did you have to pay the fee again? My lawyer wasn't sure if they are going to make me pay the fee again. Thanks again and sorry to hear about your cousin.

[cdn_in_wa 1]

Hi everyone! I received the unfortunate phone call last night from my mother advising me that my Great Aunt is not doing so well and they project that she is living her last days. Just a little background, my father's mother passed away when he was 12 and my Great Aunt raised him from then on so she is pretty much a grandmother to me. I called my lawyer this morning (I know I have a lawyer) and she advised me that I have to obtain a letter from my Great Aunt's doctor explaining her situation and take that letter along with all my other documentation (as my AP application is in process) and make an infopass appointment. My mother is in the process of obtaining the doctor's letter for me right now and I have booked an infopass appointment for tomorrow. I was just wondering if anyone has been successful in obtaining emergency AP? Any advice or tips would be great. Thanks

I did get emergency AP at the District Office.

I'd make an infopass now, if you think you can get the documentation you require in time for the appointment.

You might need to have some proof of relationship and (don't ask me how to provide this) proof that she is/was a surrogate grandmother to you. Under normal circumstances, they only provide emergency advance parole for IMMEDIATE family members. A great aunt is not generally considered immediate family.

I originally made the infopass to get AP to see my brother (who was in ICU) and my cousin (who was in the end stages of cancer). By the time I got to the appointment, my cousin had passed away. At the infopass, I mentioned - just to explain the situation - that I originally was wanting the AP because my cousin was very ill, but had subsequently died, and my brother was very ill in ICU as well. The IO interrupted me and said - a cousin is not close enough family. But, since I had my brother in ICU, and with a letter from his doctor, I was able to get immediate AP.

I had to fill out a new I-131 form (fortunately I had taken a copy of my original submission to copy from). Take 2 photos with you when you go to the infopass. I did not know to do this and they sent me out to get some.

Good Luck!

Thank you for the information. I have already booked my appointment for tomorrow morning. My mother is also going to include a letter from her and my father explaining that she is a surrogate grandmother to me. I was planning on bringing my original with me and my lawyer did advise me to bring passport pictures (which I will get today). Did you have to pay the fee again? My lawyer wasn't sure if they are going to make me pay the fee again. Thanks again and sorry to hear about your cousin.

You shouldn't have to pay the fee for AP unless you applied for AOS before July 2007 (or thereabouts - can't recall when the fees changed to AOS fees now including AP and EAD). Take your NOAs for your AOS - they are proof of your application for AOS.

I have read a post by someone on here and they were charged a fee and also had to wait for the AP to be express couriered to them. I think the fee they paid may have been for the express courier, though.

[lyn_khaw 0]

I am in a similar situation but I approached it differently. I don't have an attorney but read through many, many blogs to get people's opinions and experiences before I filed for an expedited AP. Here's my situation: I have tickets to return to my home country in December as I have a sick nephew with leukemia and we will be hosting our wedding ceremony back home. We want him to be a part of our ceremony before his chemotherapy affects his health too much. On 11/3/08, I called the 1-800 customer support number (listed at the bottom of the notice they mail you) and spoke to two extremely nice customer support agents. I had to call twice because the first time, the computers were down and the first agent couldn't process my request. Regardless, they were both extremely nice folks. The second agent told me that I'd have to meet at least one of the following criteria in order to qualify for an expedited AP: 1) a great financial loss to myself or a business (in my case, my tickets were non-refundable and cost over $2500), 2) a family emergency, 3) a life or death illness and 4) something else (I can't recall what the 4th criteria is, sorry). I gave him all of my information, he typed up a brief summary and sent off the request online. He said that it would take 5-10 business days for the USCIS to get back to me about my request, either via e-mail or mail. He said that the expedited AP request is not guaranteed though he thought I had a pretty strong case. I do check my case status online and so I saw that my AP was approved on 11/7/08 (4 business days after I submitted my request). I'm still waiting for the official letter to arrive, so I will post an update when I receive the letter.

Given the nature of your situation, I really don't know why they would not give you an emergency AP. But like other posters in other blogs have mentioned, it really depends on the USCIS agent you talk to and how friendly they are to you. I seriously think I got extremely lucky. My wishes go to you and your family and I sincerely hope you will be able to go home and see this very important person in your life. Feel free to send me a message if you have any questions.

Edited November 10, 2008 by lyn_khaw