Stokes Interview Experience, Feedback needed?

[AustinS 0]

Stokes Interview Experience in San Francisco, December 2010

My wife (USC) and I have had our second AOS interview in San Francisco USCIS office. I wanted to write the details of the

interview before forgetting anything. I am sorry for the typos... I am writing really quickly and note I am not a native speaker.

I am aware that the stokes interview experiences are extremely important for those who are waiting for them.

Background:

We met and got married pretty quickly although we lived in different states. We could have moved in together approximately

after 3 months in CA. My EAD and advance parole document came from the mail pretty fast after my initial application. We didn't hire a lawyer as I had many friends who went the process without an attorney and finished it successfully. We had been scheduled for a first interview in San Francisco in September 2010. The interview went bad due the lack of preparation and partially, the IO (Immigration Officer) was not a friendly person (No offense).

First Interview versus Second Interview:

I would like to share my experience briefly from the first interview before detailing the stokes interview (the second one). At the first interview, we waited for a while in the waiting room in San Francisco building. We saw several different couples waiting with their lawyers. During the waiting time, we saw different IOs coming in and out into the waiting room to pick the couples up. There was one precise IO that I really didn't want to have for the interview. Actually, we got her ) At this very moment, I knew this interview will end bad and it did. In 2-3 minutes to the interview, she decided that we have to come back another time. I couldn't accuse her really as we had been newly moved in together back that time and even my wife didn't have a driver license from CA yet. She gave us back the documents and told us to wait a notice from the mail in a couple of months. This was actually the notice for the stokes interview. We had the stokes interview notice within one month and it was scheduled for a month later in December. Not surprisingly, we had been very tense during the waiting period.

Stokes Interview:

For the second interview, we were prepared a little bit better. We had additional documents and pictures. We went into the building

quite early around 7.30AM. The notice was for 7.55AM. We went to the same waiting room. While we were waiting, I saw the same IO again. I prayed we don't have her again. I am not a religious person but It worked. We had a very pleasant and professional IO. She was Asian origin and very young. She took us into a room with a videotaping setting ready. Before starting the interview, she pressed RECORD and gave a description of the process. She didn't ask why we don't have a lawyer and or make any expressions. She made my wife to read the penalty of a fake marriage etc. She took me into a waiting room and she said she will be interviewing my wife alone first. We were expecting a similar setting. I waited in a small room approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes with another guy having a similar stokes interview with a lawyer. Scared of being videotaped, we did not talk to each other. It was really funny. Actually, it would have helped a lot both of us if we spoke a little bit.

After the waiting time, I saw my wife coming into the waiting room with IO. She had a very big smile on her face. At this point, I was not nervous anymore. The IO took me into the same room and said she is going to ask me a bunch of questions. She started to ask me around 100-150 questions as usual. You would only know them if you really lived together as a couple. So, some of them were really detail oriented. For example, "where was your wife when you woke up on Saturday morning?" After the initial questions about the location where we live and our parents etc. I recall some specific questions like "when did you have sex last time?", "Birth control methods you use?",

"Plans about having a family?". She was also looking for details that you would explain and she could double check from your wife.

During Saturday, we went to some remote place with a friend together. Although I remember the timeline in general, I don't remember many details such as:

"Who woke up first on Saturday?"

"Where was your spouse when you woke up?"

"What was she doing when you woke up?"

We have a 1 bedroom apartment and everything is very close to each other ) so, I explained I can see her pretty much from anywhere in the apartment and I don't remember those details. She told me to explain what we did over the week-end beginning on Saturday. As I mentioned above, we went to shop with a friend. I suspect people track really what their spouse was doing precisely when they wake up. Personally, before getting a shower and a coffee, I am a zombie on the mornings. So, no chance for me to know these questions.

I have the impression this part of the interview went good as it was obvious that we went somewhere together on Saturday. After the interview, I discussed the questions/answers with my wife about the trip on Saturday. For example, she couldn't remember the details of the first shop we went into and I couldn't remember the place we ate together. I would advise you to try to remember everything about what you do in the previous days before the interview. She asked us if we bought anything. We did not buy anything, but our friend did. So, we could remember some specific details although there were mismatches. I don't think she expected us to remember every single detail.

More than two hours into the interview, the IO told me to go back to the waiting room and she restarted with my wife. I guess they went over the mismatches. After the interview, my wife said that the IO indicated that minor mismatches were not important such as the name of the burger place we went. After that she came back and asked me some additional questions. She also took the new pictures and other documents. The IO was not happy with the fact that we don't have too much things common property. She asked why I didn't transfer all of my money to the joint account and I still keep a separate account. The IO said something like, we didn't have too much really in the file and she wanted to support the case. I am not sure I understood her correctly at this point, but it was obvious that she was running out of time to wrap up the interview.

After few minutes, she did bring my wife back with my passport and driver licenses and she said we are done here and we can leave. Of course, I wanted to know the decision. I asked her "is it good or bad?" and "what is going to happen now?" She said she has to check with her supervisor and they will mail me the decision within two months. She was smiling when I insisted. I don't know what this means. I also noticed she left the I-94 in my passport. I am not sure it is a good or bad sign as the previous postings about this are pretty much inconsistent for keeping or taking the I-94.

To sum up, I don't believe an attorney would help in this or similar stokes interview cases. When we are getting back and forth into the waiting room, we met with another stokes interview couple with an attorney. I don't think their interview was better than ours as they didn't do anything over the weekend and they have a lot of mismatches about the details. I could hear them answering the questions but their attorney was not speaking at all. We were concerned a lot if they would ask any details about the financial status etc. but they didn't get into details. They were interested in understanding if we really lived together. After the interview, we learned some unknown number called my wife's mom but she missed the call. Probably, the IO wanted to double check if she knew we were married. The parents of my wife were not present in the ceremony. I would advise also to go over the details of your meeting, decision for the marriage, and the timeline in general. As it is sometime ago before the interview, it is not easy to remember it.

Now, I would like to know what you guys think about our experience? Am I adjusting my status or the case is still open?

All the best,

[ATPEACE 43]

Thumbs down.... Something doesn't smell right. Remember you asked what do we think.

[HeatDeath 430]

My understanding of the Stokes process is that it is designed to be as clinically unambiguous as possible, in case it is challenged in court. So the way they decide if you two passed is very straightforward: they count the matching answers, and if it's over some percentage, you passed. From accounts I've read here, if you failed, they usually tell you right away. If the IO was smiling, and not generally treating you two like obvious liars who just got caught, then it sounds like you passed.

Edited December 14, 2010 by HeatDeath

[Maxximus1074 14]

Hmmmmm I can't say "yay" or " oh nooo" ....not sure, since generally they seem to have a neutral face after the interviews. I read that they take people's I-94 out at the end of interviews even "decision is still to be made" - also read alot here that people don't get the answer right at the interview but couple of hours or days later see the online case status as approved - so that maybe an option for you to see what's going on.

Of course I do hope you guys passed it - I don't know if the un-announced visits to homes are still happening these days, but if so, that surely would be your friend then as they will clearly see you living together.

Thank you for sharing this experience - I'm up for my first interview in San Francisco sometime in the future, too.

Good luck !!! Am crossing my fingers!!!

M.

[AustinS 0]

Hmmmmm I can't say "yay" or " oh nooo" ....not sure, since generally they seem to have a neutral face after the interviews. I read that they take people's I-94 out at the end of interviews even "decision is still to be made" - also read alot here that people don't get the answer right at the interview but couple of hours or days later see the online case status as approved - so that maybe an option for you to see what's going on.

Of course I do hope you guys passed it - I don't know if the un-announced visits to homes are still happening these days, but if so, that surely would be your friend then as they will clearly see you living together.

Thank you for sharing this experience - I'm up for my first interview in San Francisco sometime in the future, too.

Good luck !!! Am crossing my fingers!!!

M.

Hi M.

Thanks for the good wishes, I also hope you pass smoothly yours. I checked the status on the site, but haven't gotten anything yet. The IO told that we will definitely hear from them within 2 months max.

Cheers,

A

[SuperDuper! 230]

wow, a stokes interview. what are the chances anything good can come from it? if they have reason to put you in that process, what makes your relationship so different from 98% of all the other foreign spouse couples that are not required to do this? yikes!

Edited December 15, 2010 by Boing!

[GreenTrain 1]

Hi M.

Thanks for the good wishes, I also hope you pass smoothly yours. I checked the status on the site, but haven't gotten anything yet. The IO told that we will definitely hear from them within 2 months max.

Cheers,

A

So, what happened finally? Were you able to adjust?

[bigdog 376]

Your story will be a lesson to others in a similar situation, be prepared. Good Luck and hoping for the best.

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

This thread is 2 years old.

[TBoneTX 45,329]

This thread is 2 years old.

Si, man, and the OP hasn't logged on to VJ since March 2011.