I-751 January 2012 Filers

[Tygrys 143]

Yes, you definitely have mastered adding emoticons to your posts.

[graphitevj 0]

Dear friends -

I filed in Jan as well. I was just wondering if USCIS changes anything online to let you know that they sent you a RFE/notice of interview..

I ask because Im on a national road trip and my house is locked with noone to scan my mail.... Ive been away for a few months actually...

My thing just says "initial review" on the status page... any 1 got completed in Vermont Service Centre?

[menina 50]

Dear friends -

I filed in Jan as well. I was just wondering if USCIS changes anything online to let you know that they sent you a RFE/notice of interview..

I ask because Im on a national road trip and my house is locked with noone to scan my mail.... Ive been away for a few months actually...

My thing just says "initial review" on the status page... any 1 got completed in Vermont Service Centre?

The online status is not very reliable. It is supposed to show that you received an RFE if you do indeed get one, but it doesn't always. We received an interview notice with no changes online. Our status only changed 2 months after the interview when we were approved. Although VSC seems to be working very slowly, there is no guarantee that they haven't sent you an RFE or interview request. If you have been gone from your home for awhile, I strongly suggest you get someone that can go and review your mail. If you do receive some type of notice that requires a reply, and you do not reply, your case will be considered abandoned and you will be out of status.

[sciencenerd 56]

Dear friends -

I filed in Jan as well. I was just wondering if USCIS changes anything online to let you know that they sent you a RFE/notice of interview..

I ask because Im on a national road trip and my house is locked with noone to scan my mail.... Ive been away for a few months actually...

My thing just says "initial review" on the status page... any 1 got completed in Vermont Service Centre?

Don't expect the online status to change for a long time, if it even does - it is notoriously inaccurate. Also, the Vermont Service Center has just been making some progress on August applicants, so you probably won't hear anything until the fall, unfortunately.

[Donald-n-Analyn 6]

Is there really a 5 month time frame in which the USCIS must send an RFE or interview notice? I had not heard this anywhere before.

Just curious...

Hi. I agree with AlexandAstrid. I would not be too worried if I have not heard from immigration since your biometrics. My status online (NOA Jan.13) still shows "initial review". This is even after I've done my biometrics AND after being interviewed (in March) and receiving a letter requesting for Additional Evidence (in April). I called uscis a week ago just to inquire if anything has changed and (not surprisingly), they said my application is still being processed and to expect a reply by June 13, exactly 5 months from them receiving my application on Jan. 13. So about your case, I would probably call them if I haven't heard anything by June 20. If it is any consolation, I would actually be feeling better if I was in your position knowing I haven't heard from them as June 20 is getting closer and closer coz that means you've already gone past the dates when they can ask you for an interview or to submit additional documents. Good luck to you:-)

[zahrasalem 114]

Is there really a 5 month time frame in which the USCIS must send an RFE or interview notice? I had not heard this anywhere before.

Just curious...

I'm a Februaray filer, but that's a good question........I have never heard of that either. I have read on another thread that CSC is only now getting to October 2011 filers....

[danmarkx 5]

Pretty much 5 months in the waiting game....actually went faster than I thought. If all was well in USCIS we (Vermont filers ) would have been expecting to hear something next month (6 month)...but we know better. Cheers for another 3 months of waiting.

[Viking_in_Seattle 0]

Hi All,

Long time since I posted in this forum. My wife entered the US from Vietnam in July of 2009 on a K-1 fiancee visa. We were married in September 2009 and applied for the 2 year GC in October. In early January of 2010 we found out via online case status that a request for medical records had been sent in November -- we never got the request. I contacted USCIS by phone and they said the notice was sent to our attorney's office, but they would send us a duplicate notice -- which we received a week or so later. I called our attorney who claimed they had only just received the original request. More likely the attorney dropped the ball and forgot to notify us. The attorney said it would be more expedient to just redo the tests than to argue with USCIS. Anyway, we had to go to a Civil Surgeon's office and get new tests done for around $300 if I recall correctly. In the end it worked out, my wife had her interview in March of 2010 and the interviewing office said we were approved. About 10 days later she got her GC.

BTW, the interviewing officer didn't have any explanation as to the issue with her medical records. Maybe the US Consulate in Vietnam didn't forward them to USCIS, maybe something wasn't acceptable (generally US Consulate in Vietnam is much harder to satisfy than USCIS), or maybe USCIS lost them.

Fast forward to 2012. On Jan 12th we overnighted a I-751 application to the California Service center with a check and lots of evidence. The package was signed for by M Guerrero on Jan 13th. My online checking shows that the check was cashed on Jan 18th.

In late January (I don't recall exact date) we received the I-797 ASC appointment notice for biometrics dated 1/20/2012. My wife and I went to the biometrics appointment on time on Feb 15th. No problems there, took about an hour.

My wife recently starting applying for new jobs and I started to get concerned because we had received nothing indicating her GC, which expired in March, had been extended. While I believe her status is OK, we have no evidence to present to a prospective employer. After sifting though posts on this thread, I realized we should have gotten another I-797 back in Jan that extended her GC by 1 year. Like most, her online case status just acknowledges receipt of the application on Jan 13th and says case is in "initial review"

We have an Infopass appointment early Monday morning (June 4th). I'm hoping they will put an I-551 stamp in her passport, or possibly print a duplicate letter. One concern I have with the stamp is that her Vietnam passport reflects her maiden name. I'm also not crazy about them cutting up her expired GC, but I suppose there's nothing I can do about that.

Can anyone tell me if USCIS includes the US legal name with the I-551 stamp? Any other advice or thoughts?

thanks!!

Edited June 2, 2012 by Viking_in_Seattle

[Gummibear 5]

Hi All,

Long time since I posted in this forum. My wife entered the US from Vietnam in July of 2009 on a K-1 fiancee visa. We were married in September 2009 and applied for the 2 year GC in October. In early January of 2010 we found out via online case status that a request for medical records had been sent in November -- we never got the request. I contacted USCIS by phone and they said the notice was sent to our attorney's office, but they would send us a duplicate notice -- which we received a week or so later. I called our attorney who claimed they had only just received the original request. More likely the attorney dropped the ball and forgot to notify us. The attorney said it would be more expedient to just redo the tests than to argue with USCIS. Anyway, we had to go to a Civil Surgeon's office and get new tests done for around $300 if I recall correctly. In the end it worked out, my wife had her interview in March of 2010 and the interviewing office said we were approved. About 10 days later she got her GC.

BTW, the interviewing officer didn't have any explanation as to the issue with her medical records. Maybe the US Consulate in Vietnam didn't forward them to USCIS, maybe something wasn't acceptable (generally US Consulate in Vietnam is much harder to satisfy than USCIS), or maybe USCIS lost them.

Fast forward to 2012. On Jan 12th we overnighted a I-751 application to the California Service center with a check and lots of evidence. The package was signed for by M Guerrero on Jan 13th. My online checking shows that the check was cashed on Jan 18th.

In late January (I don't recall exact date) we received the I-797 ASC appointment notice for biometrics dated 1/20/2012. My wife and I went to the biometrics appointment on time on Feb 15th. No problems there, took about an hour.

My wife recently starting applying for new jobs and I started to get concerned because we had received nothing indicating her GC, which expired in March, had been extended. While I believe her status is OK, we have no evidence to present to a prospective employer. After sifting though posts on this thread, I realized we should have gotten another I-797 back in Jan that extended her GC by 1 year. Like most, her online case status just acknowledges receipt of the application on Jan 13th and says case is in "initial review"

We have an Infopass appointment early Monday morning (June 4th). I'm hoping they will put an I-551 stamp in her passport, or possibly print a duplicate letter. One concern I have with the stamp is that her Vietnam passport reflects her maiden name. I'm also not crazy about them cutting up her expired GC, but I suppose there's nothing I can do about that.

Can anyone tell me if USCIS includes the US legal name with the I-551 stamp? Any other advice or thoughts?

thanks!!

USCIS must have sent you the NOA to extend your wife's green card but the mail was lost somehow. I think you can call USCIS to ask if they can resend it. About the legal name, if you wife put her maiden name in the form I-751 when you two applied together then I am sure your wife's 10 year green card still shows her maiden name. It only changes to your last name if she changed it in I-751. But she can apply for a new SSN card with your last name after she gets the new green card.

[Viking_in_Seattle 0]

USCIS must have sent you the NOA to extend your wife's green card but the mail was lost somehow. I think you can call USCIS to ask if they can resend it. About the legal name, if you wife put her maiden name in the form I-751 when you two applied together then I am sure your wife's 10 year green card still shows her maiden name. It only changes to your last name if she changed it in I-751. But she can apply for a new SSN card with your last name after she gets the new green card.

No, her expired green card carries her married name -- same goes for her Driver License and SS card. Vietnam doesn't do name changes for marriage, so her Vietnam passport still carries her maiden name. Of course our I-751 application also lists her married name.

I thought about calling USCIS to request that another letter be sent, but I figured going to the Seattle USCIS office (10 minutes away) would be more expedient. Plus I can ask them detailed questions about our case status. Like others in this thread, I'm always a little worried they may have sent a request for evidence or an interview appointment letter that also got "lost." In my one experience with calling USCIS, they wouldn't say much at all about our case citing privacy issues. They did send a duplicate letter though (request for medical records for 1st GC).

It's possible they won't cut up her expired green card. Others reporting that experience had 2 year GCs that hadn't yet expired. So USCIS isn't going to allow someone to have 2 different I-551s that are both valid for a period of time. In our case, the card is already expired, so the only reason to cut it up is in case our letter finally arrives.

We don't plan to leave the country anytime soon, so my only concern is that an employer might question an I-551 stamp in her passport because it has a different last name than the DL or SS card. Now if the I-551 stamp includes her US legal name, even if handwritten, we're probably fine. Of course if the 10 year GC shows up in the next few weeks all of this is moot!

[Viking_in_Seattle 0]

No, her expired green card carries her married name -- same goes for her Driver License and SS card. Vietnam doesn't do name changes for marriage, so her Vietnam passport still carries her maiden name. Of course our I-751 application also lists her married name.

I thought about calling USCIS to request that another letter be sent, but I figured going to the Seattle USCIS office (10 minutes away) would be more expedient. Plus I can ask them detailed questions about our case status. Like others in this thread, I'm always a little worried they may have sent a request for evidence or an interview appointment letter that also got "lost." In my one experience with calling USCIS, they wouldn't say much at all about our case citing privacy issues. They did send a duplicate letter though (request for medical records for 1st GC).

It's possible they won't cut up her expired green card. Others reporting that experience had 2 year GCs that hadn't yet expired. So USCIS isn't going to allow someone to have 2 different I-551s that are both valid for a period of time. In our case, the card is already expired, so the only reason to cut it up is in case our letter finally arrives.

We don't plan to leave the country anytime soon, so my only concern is that an employer might question an I-551 stamp in her passport because it has a different last name than the DL or SS card. Now if the I-551 stamp includes her US legal name, even if handwritten, we're probably fine. Of course if the 10 year GC shows up in the next few weeks all of this is moot!

Well, my wife got an I-551 stamped in her passport, expires 6/4/2013. The officer said we might still get our missing I-797. He also said he couldn't tell us anything about our case in regard to what letters had been sent out -- the LA office still has the file. I might try the 800 number to see if I can get the duplicate letter, but I guess it's not a big deal. My wife used her DL for ID; they never asked to see her expired green card.

[ding dong 0]

Move January Filers!!!!!! Why we are stuck here?

[graphitevj 0]

Friends -

Thank you for your replies and I should be worried then ...

BTW this is straight from the horse's mouth - "IT COULD TAKE UPTO 1 FULL YEAR" before vermont mails you the final card. This is something Ive heard from a fairly trustworthy source - imho.

[danmarkx 5]

December filers from CSC are at 61%. Hence, I am guessing that any day from now (or next week), we should be seeing approvals for CSC filers for January.

[Gummibear 5]

Friends -

Thank you for your replies and I should be worried then ...

BTW this is straight from the horse's mouth - "IT COULD TAKE UPTO 1 FULL YEAR" before vermont mails you the final card. This is something Ive heard from a fairly trustworthy source - imho.

Yeah Vermont processing time is usually 6 months -10 months, if something's missing, it may take upto 1 year so if you get your green card before 6 months, good for you, if not, don't worry, you have about 4 more months to wait