TSC K1 Backlog - what can we do? (For TSC non-expedites only)

[dsldesch 27]

I've written a couple letters to my representatives, but I keep deleting them because I don't simply want them to call up TSC, say "Do this petition," and then come back saying it's all good to go. That won't fix the problem and it's unfair to the people who've been waiting longer than me. Finally I decided to simply say that--I don't want them to expedite my petition, I want them to investigate the backlog and tell me what they're going to do to fix it. And it'll also let them know about my case, so if in a few more months nothing changes, they'll have past letters from me knowing I've contacted them about it before. I'm not sure what it might bring about, but I'm hopeful it'll get more people on board with correcting things at TSC. I don't want to cut in line. I just want the line to move faster for all of us.

Anyways, I'm going to send it off today, so I'll let you all know if I get anything back (which I probably will, in a few weeks or so).

[desi123 21]

Thanks for doing that.More the merrier. I've contacting my senators and so far i've got canned email responses.."thank you for contacting..." blah. No action.

Does anyone on this forum have media contacts that can get the TSC story out? I think we should send flowers and chocolates to TSC collectively..like folks did few years ago. Something to rattle those cages.

[dsldesch 27]

Thanks for doing that.More the merrier. I've contacting my senators and so far i've got canned email responses.."thank you for contacting..." blah. No action.

Does anyone on this forum have media contacts that can get the TSC story out? I think we should send flowers and chocolates to TSC collectively..like folks did few years ago. Something to rattle those cages.

I expect a positive response from each of my representatives--they're all Republicans, and I'm in a same-sex relationship, so clearly they each stand to gain a voter (and all my friends, through word of mouth) if they make things happen. I wrote to them before filing, asking what sort of services they could provide in assistance, and it was a good way to feel them out--and their reactions clearly came across party lines: the one Democrat (whose since been ousted, though I wish that weren't the case) had by far the weakest response of the three because she stood to gain the least from any expenditure of effort on my behalf.

So, as I said, we'll see what happens. Perhaps it's because I've got a degree in political science, but any sort of collective action or policy work I do feels like an engaging game of chess--each move is a commitment to strategy, and only if I move my pieces the right way, can I win the game.

If nothing else, it makes the waiting more amusing.

As far as media contacts, it'd be great to know if there were other TSC filers from North Carolina. We've got a local news station here in the Piedmont that often does "investigative journalism" around issues such as this, and if there were a handful of us, we could petition our plight as a potential story.

[martako 8]

Hey guys! Is it me or they really speeded up? I don't know if I'm being delusional at this point lol, but it seems like they really did.

[Paul_Shannon 5]

I feel they are speeding up too!!! :-)))) makes me a happy gir!

I feel they are speeding up too!!! :-)))) makes me a happy girl!

[swji89 41]

I hope so!

Edited June 12, 2015 by swji89

[alexandflash 7]

Why do you guys say that? I'm on my phone and can't read timeline data, are they processing that many more per day?

[Paul_Shannon 5]

Why do you guys say that? I'm on my phone and can't read timeline data, are they processing that many more per day?

Because my timeline keeps shaving off days. :-) it looks like based on Igors list that they are processing November 8th, 2014.

[swji89 41]

Mine's gone up three days again since earlier in the week...

[Squamish 10]

I totally understand your frustration and all I can say is to hang in there because you are in the same place as many of us. USICS is totally not fair and I also have seen cases that have filed ahead of me already approved. Don't get me started about the CSC where those that have recently filed have already been approved. It is 179 days and we are still waiting and growing older by the minute. You are not alone.

[BrianTroy 0]

Our NOA1 notice date is March 11, 2015. We have heard yet. What angers me is that i have seen cases that were filed after ours and are at TSC and they have already been approved. I even have case number of one. USCIS says they service on a first come, first served ibasis. I debated that with a USCIS rep many times. My fiance is from the Philippines and i have heard whispers that Filipinos get quicker turn arounds. I am here to tell you that is not our experience. In an effort to get more information from USCIS, i asked if our seemingly long "nothing" period is due to us being same sex. She said no. VJ folks, in no way am i claiming discrimination atall. It was a thought provoking question i wanted to catch a customer rep off guard with. We have had no RFE's either. We interviewed and selected an agency in PI that does visas. I brought all i needed when i was there on vacation in Feb-March 2015. My partner had everything he needed prior to my arrival as well.

In closing i have come to believe that the customer service reps at USCIS are useless. We cannot do anything until we are past normal "processing times" whatever the heck that means. This is the most overwhelming experience i have ever dealt with in my life- on every level....it does take it's toll. My partner and i have agreed to essentially believe that he will not be arriving in Massachusetts until February of 2016. If the US government can make systems so tens of millions of citizens can track their tax returns with the press of a button, why can't USCIS have a system where the LEAST they can do is tell us where our case is and the status thus far.

I will continue to hurry up and wait!!

[Squamish 10]

Brian: There is another same sex couple on here that filed after me and got approved already so trust me there is no discrimination on anyone's part there. I see unfairness

all around here but there is nothing else to do other than contact your congressman which I recently have done. I am now at the six month mark and have heard nothing. My fiancé from Holland came to spend a month here with me in May and we even thought we would hear something during the time he was here. Nada. So hang around the Visa Journey forum and meet some of us but I will warn you try not to get too upset when you see those that have filed after us already approved. Hey, you may even get approved before me! I'll try not to be upset with you though.

[yuna628 9,689]

Our NOA1 notice date is March 11, 2015. We have heard yet. What angers me is that i have seen cases that were filed after ours and are at TSC and they have already been approved. I even have case number of one. USCIS says they service on a first come, first served ibasis. I debated that with a USCIS rep many times. My fiance is from the Philippines and i have heard whispers that Filipinos get quicker turn arounds. I am here to tell you that is not our experience. In an effort to get more information from USCIS, i asked if our seemingly long "nothing" period is due to us being same sex. She said no. VJ folks, in no way am i claiming discrimination atall. It was a thought provoking question i wanted to catch a customer rep off guard with. We have had no RFE's either. We interviewed and selected an agency in PI that does visas. I brought all i needed when i was there on vacation in Feb-March 2015. My partner had everything he needed prior to my arrival as well.

In closing i have come to believe that the customer service reps at USCIS are useless. We cannot do anything until we are past normal "processing times" whatever the heck that means. This is the most overwhelming experience i have ever dealt with in my life- on every level....it does take it's toll. My partner and i have agreed to essentially believe that he will not be arriving in Massachusetts until February of 2016. If the US government can make systems so tens of millions of citizens can track their tax returns with the press of a button, why can't USCIS have a system where the LEAST they can do is tell us where our case is and the status thus far.

I will continue to hurry up and wait!!

Brian: It is highly likely that the persons being approved after you and ''claiming'' to be at TSC, are not actually at TSC, but CSC or were expedited in some manner. Ultimately, the USCIS is not a taxpayer funded agency.. they don't have any real watchdog goading them to change policies and procedures, and largely do as they please. The only person with full power to change the process is the President. He's aware of what's going on, believe me.

And yes, the USCIS customer service hotline is something akin to having a root canal with no needles. Stay away until you actually have got some recourse to go for a tier 2 agent, otherwise they will keep smiling, nodding, and being obnoxious. In lieu of that, your elected representative will be your next best hope, with no guarantee.

[Pennycat 880]

Our NOA1 notice date is March 11, 2015. We have heard yet. What angers me is that i have seen cases that were filed after ours and are at TSC and they have already been approved. I even have case number of one. USCIS says they service on a first come, first served ibasis. I debated that with a USCIS rep many times. My fiance is from the Philippines and i have heard whispers that Filipinos get quicker turn arounds. I am here to tell you that is not our experience. In an effort to get more information from USCIS, i asked if our seemingly long "nothing" period is due to us being same sex. She said no. VJ folks, in no way am i claiming discrimination atall. It was a thought provoking question i wanted to catch a customer rep off guard with. We have had no RFE's either. We interviewed and selected an agency in PI that does visas. I brought all i needed when i was there on vacation in Feb-March 2015. My partner had everything he needed prior to my arrival as well.

In closing i have come to believe that the customer service reps at USCIS are useless. We cannot do anything until we are past normal "processing times" whatever the heck that means. This is the most overwhelming experience i have ever dealt with in my life- on every level....it does take it's toll. My partner and i have agreed to essentially believe that he will not be arriving in Massachusetts until February of 2016. If the US government can make systems so tens of millions of citizens can track their tax returns with the press of a button, why can't USCIS have a system where the LEAST they can do is tell us where our case is and the status thus far.

I will continue to hurry up and wait!!

None of those people are not at TSC, seriously. If you don't believe us, choose a few of them, PM them, ask them what the letters in their recipt number are. SRC is Texas, WAC is California. You will be hard-pressed to find a single Texas March filer who has been approved. We can go through one-by-one if you like.

Those people just confused because they sent their petition to a Lockbox in Texas, and so they think that they're at the Texas Service Center. They're not. Some of them live in the states covered by CSC and what's more... if they applied after March 27, literally 100% of them are at CSC. Do you understand the difference? Everyone sends the file to Dallas Lockbox. Lockbox sends it to either TSC or CSC for processing.

Up until March 27, this decision was made based on the state of the petitioner. TSC has a 7 month-long backlog, CSC has no backlog. After months and months and months of a lot of people here and elsewhere working really hard to call attention to this issue, USCIS "fixed" it by having the lockbox route all new applications to CSC starting March 27. That did literally nothing to help the rest of us already in line at TSC (they didn't transfer anyone to the faster line). So our advocacy didn't help us, but it helped all of them, and now they're the ones creating all this confusion with the VJ data. I try to not think about it too much.

There are almost 0 March TSC filers who have been approved. And there are literally 0 April, May, June or July TSC filers approved because there are literally 0 April, May, June or July TSC filers. Anyone claiming otherwise on here is either confused or the unluckiest person in the K1 process right now.

[dsldesch 27]

I mentioned previously sending letters to my representatives in Congress asking for their help determining the causes of the backlog at TSC and what's being done to fix it. I figure it's about time I followed up on that.

First, Representative Renee Ellmers, whose office was very responsive to me during her election campaign when I initially asked if they would be able to help during the filing process (but had been very adamant that me and my fiance, as a same-sex couple, could not get married in North Carolina), has not made any response at all. It's now been two months. Given that same-sex marriage is legal in NC now (and everywhere else) and that she's not currently campaigning for votes, I presume she simply doesn't care about me as a constituent anymore. Even with any constiuent services, I would not end up supporting her, so I'm politically worthless. So, therefore, so is she, because she has one job (to represent her constituents) and clearly she isn't doing that.

Next, I had also previously contact Senator Richard Burr. He wrote back misunderstanding my situation (with the assumption I had already filed), but he personalized the letter with my fiance's name so I had higher hopes for my second contact. His office responded with the privacy release, I filled it out, and some three or four weeks later I got a generic chain message about TSC's processing times. They did not offer any further support, and they completely ignored talking about the backlog and/or what's being done to resolve it.

Finally, I was in touch with Senator Thom Tillis, the new addition to the Senate from North Carolina. He was a staunch opponent of same-sex marriage, and as a Republican, inclined to oppose immigration as well, so I wasn't sure what to expect. Surprisingly, his office was the most responsive. I received an email to sign the privacy release, which I did the day I received it, and within a week I received a phonecall from one of his local staff members saying she'd been in touch with TSC and since my petition was within standard processing times, there was nothing more they could do (however, she did say she would keep checking on our case every thirty days--that time is coming up quickly and I've yet to hear another response, so we'll see), but that if we reach six months, they'll be able to "pull the petition," which I guess means expedite it? In any case, I was somewhat surprised how it took nearly a month for Burr to get a generic message from TSC, but Tillis was able to get in contact with them within a week; possibly it's because Tillis stands more to gain, as a new senator, building constitutuent relationships than Burr does, so his office is working especially hard to achieve this? He may also be in need ot positive public feedback from same-sex couples to salvage his image from his recent campaigning since same-sex marraige is now legal. I can't be certain. However, even while on the phone, I pressed for information about the backlog and what's being done to fix it, and my requests were immediately dismissed.

So now I feel out of options, since whereas I had complete confidence in the political process, it seems to have failed where I needed it to succeed. I'm considering penning a letter to the president, as he's the only other human being I can think of who might be worth contacting. What do all of you think? Is it worth it?