Wait time after Stokes interview

[Kennylat 0]

I went for a Stokes interview with my wife on August 25 and we answered several qustions

We were separated.

We were first given sheets of paper to write, WIfes full names and DOB, Her parents full names and where they live, Her siblings full names and where they live, Our kids full names and DoB, My siblings full names and where they live.

We got all these correctly.

Next the officer now asked a series of question which were definitely over 50 e.g, What side of bed you both sleep, what you wear to bed, favourite restaurant, tattoos and birthmarks on both spouse, How do the kids get to school, describe your patio, cover parking, WHo wakes up first, What kind of alarms, dedicated parking or random, How many exit doors, How many windows what you ate last night, what you got each other for valentines and birthdays, Cable provider, How many TV's at home, How many desktops, Where you keep trash, Spouses best friends, favourite restaurant, Do you take baths together, Name of family doctor, when you went to doc last, ETC and I think we got like 5 wrong

The officer now invited us back in and told us we got some questions wrong that she still want to review our file to know why we were denied initially

My question is How long does it take before we receive a letter about the outcome of the interview.

Secondly, Can she outrightly deny us based on those 5 missed question, E.g How often does my wife call her parents, How many laptops we have at home, I said 3 included a damaged one, My wife said 2.

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

A Stokes interview is not a common thing. Very few here on VJ have ever been subjected to one. How long it takes to get an answer depends on your circumstances. If the only thing they needed before making a decision on your case was the Stokes interview then you can expect an answer within weeks. If they have additional investigations to conduct then it could take months. An unannounced home visit is even a possibility.

They can deny based on one missed answer. The whole purpose of a Stokes interview is to find a reason to deny you.

[VanessaTony 3,567]

I went for a Stokes interview with my wife on August 25 and we answered several qustions

We were separated.

We were first given sheets of paper to write, WIfes full names and DOB, Her parents full names and where they live, Her siblings full names and where they live, Our kids full names and DoB, My siblings full names and where they live.

We got all these correctly.

Next the officer now asked a series of question which were definitely over 50 e.g, What side of bed you both sleep, what you wear to bed, favourite restaurant, tattoos and birthmarks on both spouse, How do the kids get to school, describe your patio, cover parking, WHo wakes up first, What kind of alarms, dedicated parking or random, How many exit doors, How many windows what you ate last night, what you got each other for valentines and birthdays, Cable provider, How many TV's at home, How many desktops, Where you keep trash, Spouses best friends, favourite restaurant, Do you take baths together, Name of family doctor, when you went to doc last, ETC and I think we got like 5 wrong

The officer now invited us back in and told us we got some questions wrong that she still want to review our file to know why we were denied initially

My question is How long does it take before we receive a letter about the outcome of the interview.

Secondly, Can she outrightly deny us based on those 5 missed question, E.g How often does my wife call her parents, How many laptops we have at home, I said 3 included a damaged one, My wife said 2.

You said 5 wrong. What were the other ones you got wrong?

Tony couldn't tell you how often I call my mother, it's just not something he remembers and it's not at any specific time. Laptops is easily explained, I personally would have included the broken one as well but if it's been broken since before she came back she wouldn't think about it. Like I said those are easily explained, so what were the others?

Edited September 7, 2011 by Vanessa&Tony

[bigdog 377]

Stokes is used basically for a denial. Hope for the best, I have not seen many here in last year. Pretty tight on VJ.

[william_wallace 8]

Lord help me if me and Lara ever went to a Stokes Interview, she is terrible with questions.

I would be very confident in her getting 80% of the questions wrong

[Kennylat 0]

One was my wife had 5 tattoos but I was only able to describe 4 of them. I got the location but I cant you describe the last one perfectly. I cant remember the other 2 questions

To start from the beginning, We went for our AOS interview on July 2009 and we were not separated, went with our attorney, We got all questions right, The only point raised was why did my name get on the lease 5 months after our marriage and I told her That was when I was able to get a SSN, ID etc required by the apt leasing office. My wife was asked to bring the "long form" of her birth certificate which she sent in time. In February 2010 they sent a NOID, stating that they came to our apt and "one lady" said as far as she knows, My wife isnt married, The checked her records in the Health and Human services commission and they said She didnt indicate if she was married (Despite the fact that she goes by my last name in the Health and Human Services records), That I am not an emergency contact for my step sons school, We didnt have a reception, I didnt wear a Tuxedo on our wedding, our joint tax returns sent to them was not signed, We rebutted all the claims and sent our response on time but they still denied it claiming that it was not sufficient.

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

One was my wife had 5 tattoos but I was only able to describe 4 of them. I got the location but I cant you describe the last one perfectly. I cant remember the other 2 questions

To start from the beginning, We went for our AOS interview on July 2009 and we were not separated, went with our attorney, We got all questions right, The only point raised was why did my name get on the lease 5 months after our marriage and I told her That was when I was able to get a SSN, ID etc required by the apt leasing office. My wife was asked to bring the "long form" of her birth certificate which she sent in time. In February 2010 they sent a NOID, stating that they came to our apt and "one lady" said as far as she knows, My wife isnt married, The checked her records in the Health and Human services commission and they said She didnt indicate if she was married (Despite the fact that she goes by my last name in the Health and Human Services records), That I am not an emergency contact for my step sons school, We didnt have a reception, I didnt wear a Tuxedo on our wedding, our joint tax returns sent to them was not signed, We rebutted all the claims and sent our response on time but they still denied it claiming that it was not sufficient.

It would have been useful to have mentioned this stuff before. As previously stated, the purpose of a Stokes interview is to find a reason to deny. Sounds like they'd already done a substantial amount of investigating, and had already notified you that they intended to deny before the Stokes interview. Did your attorney prepare you for the Stokes interview?

If they deny you then it won't be because of the five missed questions. It will be because they suspected from the beginning that your marriage was a sham for the purpose of evading immigration law, and their investigations turned up substantial evidence to back up their suspicion. The Stokes interview will only be the icing on the cake. A single missed question is enough to conclude that the couple failed the interview.

If your lawyer hasn't already done so, I'm advising you to expect an unannounced home visit from ICE. A visit from them won't be pleasant - it's comparable to a search by law enforcement. They're going to dig through your personal belongings for evidence that you actually live with each other as husband and wife. I'm also guessing that your case will probably take several months or more to resolve. I could be wrong about either of these.

You should also be discussing your appeals options with your attorney, since there's a pretty good chance you'll be denied.

[VanessaTony 3,567]

One was my wife had 5 tattoos but I was only able to describe 4 of them. I got the location but I cant you describe the last one perfectly. I cant remember the other 2 questions

To start from the beginning, We went for our AOS interview on July 2009 and we were not separated, went with our attorney, We got all questions right, The only point raised was why did my name get on the lease 5 months after our marriage and I told her That was when I was able to get a SSN, ID etc required by the apt leasing office. My wife was asked to bring the "long form" of her birth certificate which she sent in time. In February 2010 they sent a NOID, stating that they came to our apt and "one lady" said as far as she knows, My wife isnt married, The checked her records in the Health and Human services commission and they said She didnt indicate if she was married (Despite the fact that she goes by my last name in the Health and Human Services records), That I am not an emergency contact for my step sons school, We didnt have a reception, I didnt wear a Tuxedo on our wedding, our joint tax returns sent to them was not signed, We rebutted all the claims and sent our response on time but they still denied it claiming that it was not sufficient.

Oh. Well I'm sorry but it DOES look like they're looking for any chance to deny.

The issue with your wife not indicating if she's married IS a big deal. Ask anyone at my work, even the people I don't speak to on a daily basis and they'll tell you I'm married. It's one of those boxes I ticked. I wear a wedding ring. I talk about my husband and I go by "Mrs"... so people not know.. that is a pretty big negative... and I'm the immigrant. From your post YOU are the immigrant so change to that scenario and I also guarantee that everyone knew I was coming and that Tony was getting married. They could tell you my name and where I was coming from. They could also probably tell you what visa I was coming on and when our wedding date was.. my point being he was proud of me and talked about me. Changing her last name to yours doesn't really mean anything... that's why changing it, or not, doesn't matter to USCIS.

Not being an emergency contact for your sons school is pretty interesting as well. It COULD mean that the emergency contacts are limited, could be that it's an agreement with your ex that no-one else is involved.. but to USCIS it means she doesn't trust you with her child's welfare or to know what to say or do if the school calls. It could mean that the child doesn't like you. It could mean that you don't know how to get in contact with HER if the school calls you. That's a pretty huge negative, especially if she has custody.

Unsigned joint tax RETURNS could mean you just did those on Turbotax to satisfy the requirements but that those weren't actually the ones you submitted to the IRS.

Then the tattoos.. Tony has 3. I could DRAW those tattoos. They might not be 100% spot on but they'd be pretty damn close! Not knowing all the tatts means you aren't intimate often. Means you don't see them often. Yeah.. doesn't look good I'm sorry.

I would start planning your appeal or plans to move back to your home country with your wife.

[sachinky 465]

What country is the beneficiary from? What visa are you attempting to AOS off?