AOS Approved! My take on the I-693 and other little tips I thought of...

[dodgyJim73 6]

Hi all.

I had my interview and was approved on Tuesday. Green card will arrive in about 2 weeks...yippee! So glad to be done with this paperwork for the next 2 years...

A couple of things I thought of during this latest process that may be obvious to some but could also help another.

1. The dreaded I-693 form question. I never sent this in with my AOS. I had my vaccinations covered on the DS-3025 form, everything was ticked off on that form and I took a punt with just sending that in and expecting a RFE...the RFE never came and I was never asked for it in the interview. I saw a lot of discrepancies about the I-693 form on this site when I was putting together my AOS package so was concerned about that.

2. The I-551 passport stamp. Didn't get it and according to the officer, don't need it. My green card will arrive in about 2 weeks, that is all I need. Not sure if anyone else got the stamp or not. I would have liked another stamp for my passport but it wasn't to be

3. I took every single thing I had to the interview...photo evidence, my chest x-ray (they never asked for it and the original form said I didn't need to bring it but I took it anyway!) etc. Of course they have your original application there so already have your photos etc. Our application had a ton of proof but if your application is lacking in this area or you've had a very short relationship before you got hitched then take some new photos since the beneficiary has been living in the USA and make sure there's some photos with other people in there as well. Our officer checked in detail to make sure we had photos from both countries he asked us the dates and stories behind about 7-8 photos so it's a good idea to freshen up your memory on your photos that you previously sent in. Again, if your relationship is short make sure you are both on a lease agreement or on a utility bill or something like that. We don't have anything like that as my wife had already moved before I got here and we are moving in two months so didn't see the point in changing anything. They REALLY want to see some kind of evidence to prove you are doing stuff together. We had some joint bank account statements but we also had our wedding ceremony invoices from our venue and caterer that had both of our names on it. It's really important to get stuff like this. The officer said that when you have to send in the packet to lift your green card conditions they want to see as much of this 'joint' documentation as possible, if they aren't satisfied then they will call you in for a very detailed interview where they do separate you, otherwise if they are happy with the evidence they just lift the conditions, send you your full unconditional green card in the mail and you are done!

We got married at city hall when I first arrived but our official wedding ceremony is taking place in September. The officer didn't care about that too much, just asked why we did it that way and I explained so friends and family had time to plan their trip etc...common sense stuff.

He asked how we met. How many times each of us flew to the other persons country. Basic stuff. All in all the interview was pretty easy and only took about 15 minutes. The wife came with me, we sat together, I answered some questions she answered others, we answered some together.

Don't be nervous, it's pretty easy. No more stuff for 2 years but make sure you keep collecting 'joint' evidence for that last package! We should have a baby by then so I'll just sent the kid to them, that should be plenty of evidence and will give us a few weeks break

This is simple stuff but I hope it helps someone.

P.S. I passed my driving test on Thursday...it's been a good week. I'll never complain about Australian services again...the DMV is a disgrace

[Shelbym 2]

The DMV is the woooorst. My husband and I just moved from CA-WA, and I was able to get my new license within 20 minutes with barely any wait. He got his permit in about the same amount of time.

Bring on the rain, I never want to leave this beautiful licensing set up ever again.

[Pitaya 2,577]

~Moved from Family-based AOS to Family-based AOS Progress Forum~

(organizer hat off)

Congrats !!

Enjoy your twenty-one month 'vacation' from dealing with USCIS.