CR1 Visa Re-Affirmed by USCIS after 13Months!

[Mrs O. 29]

Thanks for the info Mrs. O!!!

I have been keeping that in mind...and our return date back to the states will be July 30th. I didn't know that I could mention it to the officer at the POE. Can they change the visa at this point or is it something I have to follow-up with USCIS after our return?

Thanking you in advance for your help.

Lizz&Mohamed

Mention it at the POE, thats before the officers send the paper work off, else the CR1 sticks...thats what I've heard. Good luck!

[tru_loves_journey 117]

Congratulations and May God Bless you with many years of happiness

[And_Sam 44]

Congratulations Lizz!! Perseverance pays off!!! I can't believe it has taken this long!!!! I am soo happy for you!

Insha'Allah, get ready for the next step in your life!!! Has your husband traveled out of Egypt before? Only reason why I ask, is because alot of times there is extreme culture shock once they come here!!

Just remember patience and how hard you both have worked to be together and you all will be fine!!!

[wendy&tamer 10]

FINALLY Congratulations for both of you...I know you are screaming for joy. I hope you get to bring him as fast as possible. Best wishes.

[romnick 15]

Congrats....In a related development,Have a copy of your marriage certificate handy before arriving at your port of entry,Point it out to the border control officer that you have been married for over 2 years.You really dont have to do this but its saver to be proactive than to later say sorry cos the officer should be able to notice that during the sorting out of the Mystery Envelop and some will even ask you of your wedding anniversary but some may also forget.So it is good you point that out and I can assure u that U will exit with IR1, I went through the same process.I was issued CRI at the consulate but Exited with IR1.So make sure you do your home work very well.You should be IR1 wired after all the stress LOL so that all u will have left to deal with after 3 years will be citizenship which is optional.All the best.

[jkelly07 120]

congratulations, i know it was tough for you, i wish you all the best,

[menina 50]

Wow! Congratulations! Your persistence really paid off. Best wishes for a wonderful life together!

[luisarsema 0]

congratulations!!!

[Casprd 167]

Congrats. Long tough journey for you two, but close to being over now.

[Andy and Pui 16]

WOW! Congratulations! I remember in the past reading about when you were interviewed at work by the two homeland security guys. You both will together soon!

[Darnell 8,478]

Congrats....In a related development,Have a copy of your marriage certificate handy before arriving at your port of entry,Point it out to the border control officer that you have been married for over 2 years.You really dont have to do this but its saver to be proactive than to later say sorry cos the officer should be able to notice that during the sorting out of the Mystery Envelop and some will even ask you of your wedding anniversary but some may also forget.So it is good you point that out and I can assure u that U will exit with IR1, I went through the same process.I was issued CRI at the consulate but Exited with IR1.So make sure you do your home work very well.You should be IR1 wired after all the stress LOL so that all u will have left to deal with after 3 years will be citizenship which is optional.All the best.

IMO, must do it, instead of 'really dont have to do this' as most CBP goons won't take notice of this. It's such a big issue, I even suggest suggesting to them to go into secondary inspection just to get this ONE THING sorted out.

[OBX 51]

Congratulations and best wishes for a wonderful future together.

[charlize56 4]

congratulations to you! i adore people who have courage,notgiving up and fight for their rights! especially to woman like you! i wish i will be strong and patience just like you re...

[Deep2009 18]

Congrats on your visa journey....believe it or not, you will feel it is worth it.

Best of luck for your life together... and Good luck.

Again, congratulations...

[Lizz&Mohamed 2]

To ALL my VJ family members -

Thank you sooo much for your wonderful comments and well wishes. I truly appreciate them. I know that your well wishes/comments are honest because you know my struggle, having endured the long journey yourselves. Through this long process, I found myself to the point of giving up because of the 13 months USCIS took to re-affirm our petition. But then, there were those moments where I would stop and think about how as an American, a U.S. Cititzen, I had the right to immigrate my husband, the man I love and that as long as everything was in order with his paperwork, they could not stop me from exercising that right!!! This is what gave me the strength and determination to see this to thee very end. I have read cases where other couples gave in to the pressure, due to the long wait and/or delays and simply gave up with the process, thus giving up on their marriage, on themselves and I could not and would not give anyone the satisfaction of a defeat! So, I fought hard, got my Congresswoman involved and was so thankful her office, her Congressional Aide, was sympathetic to our family dilemma, and made every effort to remain as actively involved as possible with USCIS, until it finally paid off! I don't know if I mentioned this or not in a previous thread but when the Homeland Security Agents interviewed me they made a reference to seeing documentation in my file from my Congresswoman's office and asked me why I involved her...I answered honestly and told them it was due to USCIS sitting on my case for a full year with no action, that I had grown tired of always calling them for an update and receiving the same answer time and time again: "give us 6 more months for processing, before calling back again. that there was no true time limit on returned cases for "further review". I also told them that as an American Citizen, I knew what my rights were and decided to exercise them. What I also wanted to add to this response was how my endless persistence with my Congresswoman worked because here they were! But I didn't because my main objective was to get them to push my case forward and avoid any further delays. At this point, one of the Agents apologized for the delay from USCIS and informed me that their office had just been given my case 2 days prior, that they were to here to interview me and that as soon as the interview concluded, their intent was to get my file off their desk by typing up the report as soon as they got back to their office. Now, I see that the delay was truly with USCIS because the Agents turned their report over to USCIS in a few days as promised and shortly after that, USCIS re-affirmed our petition and now here we are.

Thank you again for your support and kind words / well wishes. It is my hope that all of you "Keep Hope Alive and Do Not Give Up!!! Exercise your rights as U.S. Citizens, so that you can be reunited with your loved one.

Sincerely,

Lizz&Mohamed