AOS from K-1 Visa, questions about what to do now

[Zenda 0]

Hi everyone. I have a few questions about what to do now that the AOS has been filed.

First, some background. I'm the USC, my wife is Norwegian. She received her K-1 visa in early August 2010, entered the US in late August 2010. We married in September 2010 and filed for AOS in late October 2010. Both the marriage and the AOS filing were done within the 90 day period.

When we filed for AOS, we included the form asking for updates via text message and email. We received a text and email in mid-November stating that our petitions were received and being processed. A few days later, we received her biometrics appointment letter (I-797C) in our mailbox, set for December 8th. Sounds good so far.

Here's a snarl. I checked the USCIS website a few days ago, and it stated that they tried to mail something to us on the 23rd of November and it was returned as undeliverable, so I called the 800 number and changed my mailing address from my home to my parents home. This was actually half-expected; when I filed the I-129F earlier this year I didn't hear from USCIS for a while, so I called and found out that my address was entered incorrectly in their system. Forwarding the mail to my parents solved the problem, and they sent the I-129F NOA1 and NOA2 there.

Now for the questions.

1. This means that we do not, in fact, have a NOA1 in hand. I have the I-797C biometrics appointment letter, which has her A# and MSC receipt numbers on it for the I-485 and I-765 petitions. Would that, plus her Norwegian passport with the K-1 visa and a certified copy of our marriage certificate, be sufficient proof in the event that she is asked about her status?

2. We haven't applied for a Social Security number for her. I understand that K-1 visa entrants are permitted to apply for a Social Security number, but the I-94 "You Must Marry By" date has passed. Would it be simpler to wait until the EAD arrives before applying for a Social Security number? We opted for her to keep her maiden name until every single piece of paperwork is done if that makes a difference.

3. How are we doing? Since we've received the biometrics appointment letter, does that mean that our paperwork has been evaluated and checks out, or are they issuing the biometrics appointment while everything processes? I know this seems like a strange question, but reading through posts here leads me to believe that the I-485 processing stops and doesn't proceed to biometrics if an RFE is issued, and I don't know if that's correct.

4. This might be more rhetorical than anything, but... how the devil did we manage to successfully receive a biometrics appointment letter and yet have our address shown as undeliverable on our petitions? Believe me, I'm extremely happy that the biometrics appointment letter was delivered; I'd rather have that and need to wait for the NOA1 than have NOA1 in hand and never hear about our appointment... but it just seems strange.

Thanks for your time and responses.

[VanessaTony 3,567]

1. It should.. BUT sometimes ICE agents or whatever don't really know the difference between the different paperwork so you could also have issues. Hopefully this won't ever become an issue.

2. As the I-94 date has passed she wouldn't be able to get a SSN without an EAD or GC now anyway. So when she gets her EAD (or GC) then she can go and get her SSN.

3. Processing for everything stops if an RFE is issued yes. If this is pre-biometrics then biometrics wouldn't be sent until the RFE is replied to. If this is post-biometrics then you've already got your biometrics letter but the rest of the processing is paused. You can get RFE's even at the interview. Just because you have your biometrics letter doesn't mean you won't get an RFE

4. You said that your wife's name is still her maiden name.. is her AOS filed in her married or maiden name? The reason I ask, sometimes mail gets returned if the proper name isnt on the mailbox. We made sure that both my maiden and married name were on the mail for this reason. Sometimes the postie will send back mail that has the name of someone not on the mailbox, sometimes they miss it.

Edited December 2, 2010 by Vanessa&Tony