July 2013 I-130 Filers

[Nobby7 30]

Thanks for all the info you guys are posting! Even if it's not always totally accurate, it provides for good information to research

I too have been obsessing, checking the forums everyday for just about anything that will help me prepare for each step of the way. There is so much information here that I feel I could become an immigration lawyer just from researching these forums! I don't post much but I read a lot and try to understand different parts to the process for different types of petitions which I'm sure will help me out in the long run. If you guys have the time and haven't been doing already, I would suggest reading threads that don't necessarily have anything to do with I-130s as well.

As far as the new facility in Overland Park, even if our petitions are just sitting there (both of mine are there), I have a good feeling that once they start operating we will start seeing a lot more approvals than what we have been lately and that we'll have a better chance of receiving our NOA2 in a "timely" fashion.

Good luck and positive vibes to everyone

[B & G 200]

Ours is in Kansas too. NOA1 on 08/20. I'm going to be keeping a close one on the May filers come October. As you said we are in uncharted waters.

What scienceworks said does worry me alil. I don't want Kansas to be a repeat of the summer 2012 fiasco.

[RjKatya 17]

Member Name.....Delivered.Center..NOA1......Days..RFE/AR......NOA2........(Days)

Terry J .......06/26/13..VSC.....07/02/13..4....................................

vegasbound......06/27/13..NBC.....07/01/13..2....................................

defyandmystify..06/29/13..NBC.....07/01/13..0....................................

scienceworks....07/01/13..NBC.....07/03/13..2....................................

onek(*,+).......07/01/13..NBC.....07/04/13..3.................08/19/13.....46....

RjKatya.........07/05/13..NBC.....07/10/13..5....................................

Nobby7..........07/08/13..NBC.....07/11/13..3....................................

Dwipal..........07/08/13..VSC.....07/11/13..3....................................

YulingZhu.......07/09/13..NBC.....07/11/13..2....................................

meehan..........07/09/13..NBC.....07/11/13..2....................................

THETIMEISNOW....07/10/13..NBC.....07/11/13..1....................................

mahmoud ismail..07/10/13..NBC.....07/17/13..5....................................

Tuts & Ye.......07/11/13..NBC.....07/12/13..1....................................

alaskafan.......07/11/13..NBC.....07/15/13..2....................................

Bxfemme.........07/15/13..NBC.....07/17/13..2....................................

dozer63.........07/16/13..NBC.....07/17/13..1....................................

cujodu..........07/17/13..NBC.....07/22/13..3....................................

kenneth&hazel...07/17/13..NBC.....07/25/13..6....................................

Me and Tico.....07/18/13..NBC.....07/20/13..1....................................

LoveExile(*)....07/18/13..NBC.....07/20/13..1....................................

SWebner.........07/22/13..NBC.....07/24/13..2....................................

mmaarreekk......07/22/13..NBC.....08/05/13..14...................................

Annie & Mark....07/23/13..NBC.....07/26/13..3....................................

xprecious32.....07/24/13..NBC.....07/26/13..2....................................

En-oh-eh-to(*)..07/29/13..NBC.....07/31/13..2....................................

chunky(*).......07/31/13..NBC.....08/01/13..1....................................

CaizLurol.......07/30/13..NBC.....08/02/13..2....................................

kashewmoo.......07/31/13..NBC.....08/05/13..5....................................

Delivered: Date when package was received by USCIS

NOA1: Date when NOA1 was issued (found on NOA1 hard copy or notice date)

*: USC filed from abroad

+: Expedited request

Days: Business Days

Don't know about you all, but I'm thinking about preparing for NOA2 to speed up the next stage through NVC. Haven't made a thorough review yet of all the tips and the docs to prepare, but expect to be working on this soon. If anyone wants to work on this together, whether chatroom workgroup, just message boards, whatever.... maybe we can help one another.

What I understand is that in most cases, the NVC will go almost as fast as we do, unlike the USCIS (we just sit on our hands and are waiting now), so it behooves us to to have everything ready that the NVC will want.

I've also heard from multiple sources - a good attorney, the US Embassy in my wife's country, others - that the rate of speed by which the file moves through the consulate or embassy, depends on the country. Some consulate workloads are heavier than others.

Yes, I am all for starting the process and already have the I-864 form prepared ready with my tax information... so absolutely ready to research more if needed.

[deleteme 34]

Great. I'll show you what I have found so far about the NVC process, once the NBC sends the NOA2 and sends the file to the NVC in New Hampshire.

I haven't yet compared these tips, or really have a solid grasp of the process and documents yet, but I do have links that give us the information. I'm not clear on what documents must be originals and what can be copies. I recall reading on one of these pages, that unlike the I-130 app, the NVC docs must be all originals, which seemed odd to me.

I recall that we are advised to have the foreign spouses who are abroad, immediately assign their USC spouses as their agents. That way, the USC spouses can more speedily act on their behalf.

On one of these web pages, I recall reading that if we act speedily, the NVC can approve and send the file abroad to the consulate within 2 weeks, but I haven't checked the latest processing times. It also says that the consulates can establish the interview with our spouses in 2 weeks. This seemed odd to me, since I've been told that the turnaround times at the consulates depend upon their respective workloads, which differ. When I was in the Czech Republic, my wife and I visited the US Embassy in Prague. They were very helpful and gave us a sheet of documents to prepare, and recommended that she gets the medical exam in advance. This would cut time, but they also said that their workload was relatively low, so they could schedule her appointment quickly if we had her papers and medical exam completed by the time they receive her file from the NVC in New Hampshire. If all goes well at the interview, they can issue a visa on the same day of the interview.

So, what I surmise is that if we line up everything, and take action immediately after USCIS approves the I-130, the NVC and consulates can move fast.

The real uncertainty is not with the NVC and not, at least in our case, the US consulate, but USCIS and the approval of the I-130. My wife, as perhaps, many of your spouses, is trying to time the sale of her home, and the end of her work, with the end of this process. Really, that means trying to estimate the end of USCIS's process which is now so bloody uncertain, due to the opening of the new Overland Park, Kansas 'division 8' center, and the post May 2013 NOA I-130 applications going nowhere while they prepare to open the facility.

But once we're past that, it seems that if we do everything that we can in advance, and take quick action, it is conceivable for our spouses to be able to travel in one month post I-130 approval.

Here are the links on the NVC + consulate process that I found:

http://www.visajourney.com/wiki/index.php/EZGuideSpouse

scroll down to "NVC steps"

http://***removed***/forum/showthread.php?t=48

these time-saving tips are a bit dated, c. 2006, but maybe still useful

http://www.visajourney.com/content/i130guide1

scroll down to "What Happens After You Mail the I-130 Out?"

http://www.visajourney.com/wiki/index.php/LingChe_NVC_ShortCut

more tips on how to speed the NVC process

http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/nvc/nvc_1335.html

US Dept of State's web page on NVC

http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/info/info_3195.html#police

docs required by NVC.... the police certificates appear to be something that we ought to work on getting from our spouses in advance, since they might take a little more time.

___________

Married: 6/20/2013

NOA1: 7/15/2013

[Hiwatari 9]

Filed for my wife Really early July. Got NOA1. Received Date July 1, 2013. Priority Date July 1, 2013.

I do have a question.... I have not received anything about it transferring to a local office..

[scienceworks 64]

Highly unlikely you will be transferred. Very Highly unlikely you will be informed about it.

[deleteme 34]

It seems that the National Benefit Center in Overland Park, KS has been accruing I-130 petitions since May NOA1's and doing nothing with them except for expedited cases. It also appears, based on the notes of conference between the AILA (http://www.aila.org/) and USCIS, that the Overland Park facility will not be operational until the end of September, if they hit their target.

This means that USCIS's National Benefit Center is creating a backlog of standalone I-131 petitions that is at least 5 months large. The median processing time (based on our Nov '12 - Feb '13 timelines), from NOA1 to NOA2 for standalone I-131 petitions had already been 91 days, before USCIS began creating this backlog that goes back to May.

Assuming a 5 month backlog, and that the newly operational Overland Park facility will meet the same processing times that the Lee's Summit, MO facility met, the median processing time is 8 months. Median means half of the petitions will wait less time, and the other half, longer. Half of all standalone I-131 filers from May 2013 forward, will wait longer than 8 months just to get your NOA2. That does not count the time for NVC processing or consular processing time. I am sorry to say, that we are probably looking at a nightmare.

Could the backlog stretch back earlier than May? could it be bigger? I don't know, and USCIS representatives don't want to discuss it at all.

I have called USCIS many times before, but today when I asked questions about this matter, they were very defensive and did not give up any information. I waited for one hour to speak to a supervisor, who repeatedly responded to my questions, with "This should not matter to you," and eventually hung up the phone on me while I was in mid-speech. I was polite and persistent in trying to just gain information.

It seems that they have made a management decision, that we seem to be the sacrificial lambs of that decision, and they don't want us to know about it.

I have written the AILA (http://www.aila.org/). I wonder what we all might do to stand up for ourselves. I believe that the USCIS at least owe us answers so that our families can plan for a much tougher road ahead, than we imagined, if that be the case. But we also ought to expect, that they are doing everything that they can to facilitate the adjudication of our petitions. I don't see why they cannot be aggressively farming out our petitions to field offices (my local field office does not seem too busy), or why the Lee's Summit, Missouri NBC facility can't continue to process petitions until the Overland Park, Kansas NBC facility is operational. Based on the feedback that I have read on these message boards, the USCIS is not pursuing either of these strategies.

The USCIS supervisor whom I spoke with today, did at least inadvertently concede that farming out the petitions to the field offices is a good solution. She claimed that the NBC was doing this, but I countered by telling her that members of our online community were not reporting this, and were instead stating that they have the NBC Overland Park address on their NOA1, and had not heard anything back from USCIS. She dismissed this as "rumor". Well, I look around on these boards and see serious people who have much at stake. And I see distinct patterns of self-reporting and questioning. I strongly felt that the USCIS representatives are concealing information deliberately.

Today I made an INFOPASS appointment with my local USCIS field office, for tomorrow. They have been great, when I've seen them before. I am going to ask their advice and to see if they can pull my petition from the gathering pile in Overland Park, Kansas, and adjudicate it themselves. It's probably a longshot, but I owe it to my wife and to me to at least try.

I wonder whether we should start an online petition of some sort, and perhaps email a cover letter with a link to it, to our elected federal representatives. We could also consider an online protest of sorts. It would be nice if the cohorts since at least May could rally together, and let our numbers put more pressure on the USCIS to do something about this.

Some of you might not be inclined to participate in anything like what I am suggesting, but we all might wish did, when 8 months from our NOA1 date, half of us still don't even have an NOA2.

Your thoughts are welcome. If I learn anything worthwhile tomorrow at my field office, I will post it.

--Alaskafan

Edited August 28, 2013 by alaskafan

[En-oh-eh-to now 147]

I am really glad that someone took the initiative to reach out to the AILA. I really hope the next meeting produces some concrete answers about I-130 petitions. It really seems that USCIS did not plan for the transition to the Overland Park facility very well. All they really did was dump petitions on field offices which are inadequately staffed to handle the workload. The only other hope - the K3 visa - is now just paired up with the I-130, rendering it inert, like some kind of cruel joke. Meanwhile, our only source of information is unreliable tier-1 call center employees and tier-2 supervisors, who really do not know any inside information, as they are not USCIS employees. They do not have access to reliable information. Since my receipt number begins with MSC, the tier-2 supervisor felt that my petition was in Lee's Summit, which contradicts my I-797.

As for online petitions, well, that has been done before. This one reached 500 signatures before running out of gas: http://www.change.org/petitions/president-obama-uscis-dhs-decrease-wait-time-for-i-130-petition-for-alien-relative

Of course, if we are truly ambitious, we could petition the White House: https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/ Meeting that 100,000 signatures-in-30-days threshold is no easy task. Yeah, I'm a total bummer. The good news is that the cause becomes searchable after just 150 signatures, if reached in 30 days. Surely our fellow VJers could achieve this threshold. Anyone out there feeling ambitious?

Edited August 28, 2013 by En-oh-eh-to now

[Steven.Plant 11]

It seems that the National Benefit Center in Overland Park, KS has been accruing I-130 petitions since May NOA1's and doing nothing with them except for expedited cases. It also appears, based on the notes of conference between the AILA (http://www.aila.org/) and USCIS, that the Overland Park facility will not be operational until the end of September, if they hit their target.

This means that USCIS's National Benefit Center is creating a backlog of standalone I-131 petitions that is at least 5 months large. The median processing time (based on our Nov '12 - Feb '13 timelines), from NOA1 to NOA2 for standalone I-131 petitions had already been 91 days, before USCIS began creating this backlog that goes back to May.

Assuming a 5 month backlog, and that the newly operational Overland Park facility will meet the same processing times that the Lee's Summit, MO facility met, the median processing time is 8 months. Median means half of the petitions will wait less time, and the other half, longer. Half of all standalone I-131 filers from May 2013 forward, will wait longer than 8 months just to get your NOA2. That does not count the time for NVC processing or consular processing time. I am sorry to say, that we are probably looking at a nightmare.

Could the backlog stretch back earlier than May? could it be bigger? I don't know, and USCIS representatives don't want to discuss it at all.

I have called USCIS many times before, but today when I asked questions about this matter, they were very defensive and did not give up any information. I waited for one hour to speak to a supervisor, who repeatedly responded to my questions, with "This should not matter to you," and eventually hung up the phone on me while I was in mid-speech. I was polite and persistent in trying to just gain information.

It seems that they have made a management decision, that we seem to be the sacrificial lambs of that decision, and they don't want us to know about it.

I have written the AILA (http://www.aila.org/). I wonder what we all might do to stand up for ourselves. I believe that the USCIS at least owe us answers so that our families can plan for a much tougher road ahead, than we imagined, if that be the case. But we also ought to expect, that they are doing everything that they can to facilitate the adjudication of our petitions. I don't see why they cannot be aggressively farming out our petitions to field offices (my local field office does not seem too busy), or why the Lee's Summit, Missouri NBC facility can't continue to process petitions until the Overland Park, Kansas NBC facility is operational. Based on the feedback that I have read on these message boards, the USCIS is not pursuing either of these strategies.

The USCIS supervisor whom I spoke with today, did at least inadvertently concede that farming out the petitions to the field offices is a good solution. She claimed that the NBC was doing this, but I countered by telling her that members of our online community were not reporting this, and were instead stating that they have the NBC Overland Park address on their NOA1, and had not heard anything back from USCIS. She dismissed this as "rumor". Well, I look around on these boards and see serious people who have much at stake. And I see distinct patterns of self-reporting and questioning. I strongly felt that the USCIS representatives are concealing information deliberately.

Today I made an INFOPASS appointment with my local USCIS field office, for tomorrow. They have been great, when I've seen them before. I am going to ask their advice and to see if they can pull my petition from the gathering pile in Overland Park, Kansas, and adjudicate it themselves. It's probably a longshot, but I owe it to my wife and to me to at least try.

I wonder whether we should start an online petition of some sort, and perhaps email a cover letter with a link to it, to our elected federal representatives. We could also consider an online protest of sorts. It would be nice if the cohorts since at least May could rally together, and let our numbers put more pressure on the USCIS to do something about this.

Some of you might not be inclined to participate in anything like what I am suggesting, but we all might wish did, when 8 months from our NOA1 date, half of us still don't even have an NOA2.

Your thoughts are welcome. If I learn anything worthwhile tomorrow at my field office, I will post it.

--Alaskafan

I'm a April filer for the I-130 and I filed for the K3 in June. Just after I filed the I-129f I ran across this JV site. That set me back reading that the I-129f just gets attached to your I-130 and then they both get delayed at the USCIS. People on this site will tell you that the K3 is dead. If you read the government sites the K3 is still listed. I would think that the I-130 gets attached to the I-129f not the other way around. Or they are independent of each other. Yet people here say that it is dead and a mistake but they dont tell us how they know this. Is it just a guess based on historical data that may not still apply?

I read a 2011 filer (who got the K3 early) and was pretty upset with JV saying that even then the older members had told her not to go the K3 route as it was a dead end then. But there are still some that have gotten thru or VJ just does not post this information for us to see. So if they are attached then how could any I-129f get to NVC before the I-130. Maybe its just that lose and the I-130 gets lost for awhile some times?

So I would like to know how do the older members know for a fact that Filing for a K3 takes longer when the whole reason that it exsits is to speed this up.

[mmaarreekk 45]

Little update I forgot something.

Member Name.....Delivered.Center..NOA1......Days..RFE/AR......NOA2........(Days)

Terry J .......06/26/13..VSC.....07/02/13..4....................................
vegasbound......06/27/13..NBC.....07/01/13..2....................................
defyandmystify..06/29/13..NBC.....07/01/13..0....................................
scienceworks....07/01/13..NBC.....07/03/13..2....................................
onek(*,+).......07/01/13..NBC.....07/04/13..3.................08/19/13.....46....
RjKatya.........07/05/13..NBC.....07/10/13..5....................................
Nobby7..........07/08/13..NBC.....07/11/13..3....................................
Dwipal..........07/08/13..VSC.....07/11/13..3....................................
YulingZhu.......07/09/13..NBC.....07/11/13..2....................................
meehan..........07/09/13..NBC.....07/11/13..2....................................
THETIMEISNOW....07/10/13..NBC.....07/11/13..1....................................
mahmoud ismail..07/10/13..NBC.....07/17/13..5....................................
Tuts & Ye.......07/11/13..NBC.....07/12/13..1....................................

alaskafan.......07/11/13..NBC.....07/15/13..2....................................
Bxfemme.........07/15/13..NBC.....07/17/13..2....................................
dozer63.........07/16/13..NBC.....07/17/13..1....................................
cujodu..........07/17/13..NBC.....07/22/13..3....................................
kenneth&hazel...07/17/13..NBC.....07/25/13..6....................................
Me and Tico.....07/18/13..NBC.....07/20/13..1....................................
LoveExile(*)....07/18/13..NBC.....07/20/13..1....................................

SWebner.........07/22/13..NBC.....07/24/13..2....................................

mmaarreekk(*)...07/22/13..NBC.....08/05/13..10...................................
Annie & Mark....07/23/13..NBC.....07/26/13..3....................................

xprecious32.....07/24/13..NBC.....07/26/13..2....................................
En-oh-eh-to(*)..07/29/13..NBC.....07/31/13..2....................................
chunky(*).......07/31/13..NBC.....08/01/13..1....................................
CaizLurol.......07/30/13..NBC.....08/02/13..2....................................
kashewmoo.......07/31/13..NBC.....08/05/13..5....................................

Delivered: Date when package was received by USCIS
NOA1: Date when NOA1 was issued (found on NOA1 hard copy or notice date)
*: USC filed from abroad
+: Expedited request

Days: Business Days

[vegasbound 83]

I'm a April filer for the I-130 and I filed for the K3 in June. Just after I filed the I-129f I ran across this JV site. That set me back reading that the I-129f just gets attached to your I-130 and then they both get delayed at the USCIS. People on this site will tell you that the K3 is dead. If you read the government sites the K3 is still listed. I would think that the I-130 gets attached to the I-129f not the other way around. Or they are independent of each other. Yet people here say that it is dead and a mistake but they dont tell us how they know this. Is it just a guess based on historical data that may not still apply?

I read a 2011 filer (who got the K3 early) and was pretty upset with JV saying that even then the older members had told her not to go the K3 route as it was a dead end then. But there are still some that have gotten thru or VJ just does not post this information for us to see. So if they are attached then how could any I-129f get to NVC before the I-130. Maybe its just that lose and the I-130 gets lost for awhile some times?

So I would like to know how do the older members know for a fact that Filing for a K3 takes longer when the whole reason that it exsits is to speed this up.

The K-3 visa is not officially 'dead' as some have suggested on the forum but it is rarely issued anymore.

The reason is because the I-130 processing time has decreased significantly when compared to 5 - 10 years ago. If you searched on any immigration tracking site, you'll notice that the I-130s used to take on average 1.5 - 2 years to be processed. Therefore, the K-3 was a preferred path to bring foreign-born spouses to the US while the I-130 is in the process since the K-3 would take on average 6 months to be processed.

Now that I-130s are processed within 6 - 8 months on average, it makes the K-3 moot.

Based on the experiences of other VJ members who have pursued the K-3 visas, almost all of their I-129Fs are administratively closed at different stages in the process, most commonly at the NVC stage. However, some VJ members have also suggested that the K-3 path should still be considered if the I-130 petition is transferred to a field office to be processed because some field offices have tremendous backlogs and a longer than usual processing time. So, filing the I-129F (after NOA1 for the I-130) might be worthwhile in those cases.

I think it's important to remind everyone that any advice or information provided by other members on this site (or any other non-official sites) should be treated as opinions based on individual experiences. It's stated and emphasized on the site's TOS. You should always make the final decisions that you believe are the best for you. If you have doubts about anything pertaining to your immigration situation, you should always consult an immigration attorney. Do not rely solely on information you received from a public forum to make your decisions.

[Steven.Plant 11]

The K-3 visa is not officially 'dead' as some have suggested on the forum but it is rarely issued anymore.

The reason is because the I-130 processing time has decreased significantly when compared to 5 - 10 years ago. If you searched on any immigration tracking site, you'll notice that the I-130s used to take on average 1.5 - 2 years to be processed. Therefore, the K-3 was a preferred path to bring foreign-born spouses to the US while the I-130 is in the process since the K-3 would take on average 6 months to be processed.

Now that I-130s are processed within 6 - 8 months on average, it makes the K-3 moot.

Based on the experiences of other VJ members who have pursued the K-3 visas, almost all of their I-129Fs are administratively closed at different stages in the process, most commonly at the NVC stage. However, some VJ members have also suggested that the K-3 path should still be considered if the I-130 petition is transferred to a field office to be processed because some field offices have tremendous backlogs and a longer than usual processing time. So, filing the I-129F (after NOA1 for the I-130) might be worthwhile in those cases.

I think it's important to remind everyone that any advice or information provided by other members on this site (or any other non-official sites) should be treated as opinions based on individual experiences. It's stated and emphasized on the site's TOS. You should always make the final decisions that you believe are the best for you. If you have doubts about anything pertaining to your immigration situation, you should always consult an immigration attorney. Do not rely solely on information you received from a public forum to make your decisions.

Thank you for the answer.

I had already found out most of what you wrote. Still my question is how does anyone know that the I-129f is joined with the I-130 and they are both returned to the begining. Reading the Febuary filers posts it looks like there are letters comming out from the USCIS stating that the I-130 process is (for them) 12 months now. So would my I-129f filed after the I-130 make me a K filer? Are K3's moving as fast as the K1's (less than 5 months)?

Are the I-129f for either the K1 or K3 proccesed at different places or in a different production line from the I-130?

I have noticed that on the VJ time lines the I-129f (K3) filers do get both at about the same time and for the most part alot faster. So maybe that tells the USCIS that "yes we are in a hurry"? One would asume that they already understand that by filing the I-130, but then again they have created the option.

[Lottry 14]

June 13 priorty date!!! NBC!!!hope things will move little faster!!!

[geniams 6]

Sent: 07/15/2013

Delivered: 07/17/2013

NOA1: 07/17/2013

NBC

Edited August 30, 2013 by geniams

[Lottry 14]

VJ are good Helpppp!!!

Edited August 30, 2013 by Lottry