Any word on I-129f if filed in August?

[Shauneg 762]

Maybe if you have to wait longer, you'll understand. I brought this up in a previous post, but I'll spell it out for you because you asked.

When we started, the process took 4-5 months to get an approval for a petition. The expectations were set. Then USCIS started gradually moving the goal posts. When we were at four months, we thought an approval was coming soon, but it didn't happen.

Calling USCIS makes you realize that the only objective their customer service has is to get you to hang up. They stonewall, offer outdated information, no insight to the progress of your case, and sometimes they outright lie to you. Some agents are nice, others are abusive.

After you bang your head against this wall and other methods of trying to figure out what's happening, you get frustrated. The longer you do it, the more frustrated you get. That's why seven months is worse than four. It should seem obvious to anyone else who has been waiting as long for a petition. The problem is that people who haven't waited as long just don't seem to get it. It's something that you experience, which is why others who have shared this experience understand it better than those who aren't as far along.

Of course a longer wait is worse. I don't think anyone disputes that. Still that doesn't mean he can't tell someone to be patient since he's only been waiting 4 versus your 7. You literally told him not to until he's been waiting 7. That was my issue all along.

[wbeem 568]

Of course a longer wait is worse. I don't think anyone disputes that. Still that doesn't mean he can't tell someone to be patient since he's only been waiting 4 versus your 7. You literally told him not to until he's been waiting 7. That was my issue all along.

I knew your point. I also know you don't get it. Considering your circumstances, you're fortunate that you'll never have to get it.

[yuna628 9,680]

Hey guys,

Can we all try to be civil?

Hear me out, okay?

We are all, for lack of a better word, in the same boat.

Some longer than others. Some shorter than others. Some will be expedited. Some won't.

I think we all agree that waiting 200+ days, while others wait a mere 20 or less, is pretty ridiculous. I think we can also all agree that the system we're trapped in with little recourse is also pretty ridiculous.

Patience can wear very thin after waiting for a long period of time, and no one wants to be told to suck it up and keep waiting with what may feel like a fake smile. Likewise, no one wants to feel like they are lost in misery. Therefore, what we should do is find ways of encouraging each other and be sensitive to each other's perspectives without endless bickering. Personally I'm a realist. Someone with that personality doesn't want to buy into false hope, not when it's something as serious as their lives. Not when you've spent as long waiting as I have.

We know this wait is wrong and unjust. I cannot fault someone for being expedited due to what the directives say. Nor can I fault someone for living in a state that is handled by CSC. It is not the petitioner or beneficiary's fault. Be angry at the system that causes us to endure being apart.

Look, I filed in October. That's two months after wbeem, so the reality is I haven't waited as long as that couple. But I can tell you, it's every bit as painful to me... to us as a couple. I've been waiting over 10 flippin' years to be with my man. It's only just turning into March, and that means by the time May/June rolls around, I'll be waiting just as long as wbeem will have been. By that time Shauneg, you will most likely already be married to your loved one. With any luck wbeem will be close if not already headed down the altar.

That's the reality. A harsh one, but reality nonetheless.

We shouldn't have to be waiting 4 or 7 months. We shouldn't have to be waiting at all.

So guys, before you start fighting again.. take a breather (and no I'm not intending to tell you what to do with sass or snark but with real concern for each of you). Think about the butterflies in your stomach when you see your loved one again and never have to say goodbye. Think about the good things to come even if they may be peppered with difficulty (afterall.. AOS probably won't be a cakewalk either). Wbeem, I do fully believe that you'll be approved within the next month, statistically speaking. I feel terrible that anyone should have to wait this long or even longer.

[HungNhi 9]

Of course a longer wait is worse. I don't think anyone disputes that. Still that doesn't mean he can't tell someone to be patient since he's only been waiting 4 versus your 7. You literally told him not to until he's been waiting 7. That was my issue all along.

The reason for 7 instead of 4 is simple. When youre at 7 months, he will (hopefully) have his NOA2 already. You wont be telling HIM to be patient. At 7, You will be next up for an approval, so the person you will tell to be patient will be someone who has waited less than you (although not you, since your case will be expedited. I wouldnt be surprised if you got your NOA2 before him and me). But now imagine someone with almost 50% less wait time than you tells you to be patient. That assumes you havent been already, or that you need a reminder of how helpless you are in the situation.

Analogy of the situation: Imagine youre in a line at the grocery store, buying food for your hungry family. There are only 2 lines, but one is for people who wore strictly blue shoes with white laces that day, so the line you and most other people are in gets longer and longer. Youve waited a while, hundreds, maybe even a thousand people have been checked out and its almost your turn to go up, maybe just a hundred more people to go. Then you look in the back of the line, and you see the manager pull someone out of line, who has only been in line for maybe a hundred checkouts. He/She gets pulled to the front of the line that you are in because the manager feels they need to go home faster than you. While coming up, the special case says, be patient, its almost your turn. //

People will all react differently to the situation we are all in. I stopped coming on here as often after seeing people from the Philippines and those in California worry about not getting their NOA2 4 weeks in, or people coming on to say "OMG fast approval, only 10 days at TSC" or whatever because quite frankly, those posts were a bit disheartening when you compare the situation. Had they created a thread for quick approvals or special case questions, I would have just not clicked on those threads, but instead people kept creating posts with vague titles. Just my $.02

Edited February 27, 2015 by HungNhi

[TabeaK 517]

I couldn't agree more. There are days I could scream whenever anyone - online or offline - tells me to be patient...

I know it isn't meant that way, but it feels so condescending.

The one time I did loose it when someone told me that, had I prepared my package with a great deal of attention to avoid mistakes then I would have my NOA-2 by now, cause said person received theirs in 2 weeks (CSC, ha!) hence, it must be my fault. At least venting does help a little.

Back to waiting and crossing my fingers for the early August filers to squeeze in their approval today!

This week has not been stellar as far as NOA-2 approvals are concerned.

[Jabl2rom 54]

"When we started, the process took 4-5 months to get an approval for a petition. The expectations were set."

Your fault. I started a month after you and it was quite clear the timetable was 6-10 months. You got your own hopes up. Blame no one but yourself for not researching the actual timetable for non-Filipino filers in the TSC.

"Calling USCIS makes you realize that the only objective their customer service has is to get you to hang up."

The government is a non-competitive entity in terms of administrative processes. Surely this isn't the first interaction you've had with them. Again, no surprises here. I suggest reading threads about the nightmarish attempts to get a hold of NVC, because that is what awaits us.

"After you bang your head against this wall and other methods of trying to figure out what's happening, you get frustrated. The longer you do it, the more frustrated you get."

Again, this is a government entity. If constantly contacting them is making you frustrated (which, in my case it would frustrate me to no end, thus I don't even bother unless it is absolutely necessary) I suggest abandoning attempts at figuring out what is happening to your case on a daily basis. Maybe once a week (or two weeks) call them, however you are essentially talking to a black hole and anything you say to them isn't really being transmitted anywhere. It is just adding to your frustration. For some, being active with their case enables them to feel a sense or purpose, alleviating some of the stress associated with such a long wait. Clearly that isn't the case with you. I recommend just taking a break from VJ until you get your NOA2, and come back with better peace of mind. I will probably be doing that soon as well.

[Penguin_ie 5,994]

****** One post removed for bad language and several for bickering. Let's get back to support and constructive advice, please ******

[sco/wen 3]

Could be me , August 4, NOA1 at California Service Center......i get nothing , No RFE....I have submitted 2 different inquiry. Get a response that they can't put an exact date on processing times, some cases take longer than others.... My lawyer contacted them, my States Senator contacted them, the Omsbudsman office has contacted them .....The response given is my case is with an officer and is being worked on.

What a fricken joke !!

[martako 8]

You haven't received anything yet and it has already been 7 months? That is pretty long. My then fiance was here in the US 7 months after we filed. Let's see it got the lockbox thingy on 2-15 and he came here on 9-30, so yeah it was like 7 months total. But the last two months were the struggle to get an interview. All the paperwork had already been sent accepted, I'd received the NOA1 and NOA2 by mid July and his stuff was sent to his embassy by late July. Are you constantly checking the "Check my case" thingy on the USCIS website? I feel like you've been waiting an awful long time. What's the story with you and your fiance? Any things that might be seen as "red flags" to the government? In my experience in talking with other people, they don't like it if you didn't meet organically. I mean like if you met online in a dating site, they have been known to see that as a red flag. They also tend to deny cases where the woman is much older than the man. Those cases tend to take YEARS and YEARS. I would be crazy frustrated if I had been waiting around for 7 months without even a NOA1. That's crazy!

you are not really helping here with saying all this . . .

[Shauneg 762]

The reason for 7 instead of 4 is simple. When youre at 7 months, he will (hopefully) have his NOA2 already. You wont be telling HIM to be patient. At 7, You will be next up for an approval, so the person you will tell to be patient will be someone who has waited less than you (although not you, since your case will be expedited. I wouldnt be surprised if you got your NOA2 before him and me). But now imagine someone with almost 50% less wait time than you tells you to be patient. That assumes you havent been already, or that you need a reminder of how helpless you are in the situation.

Analogy of the situation: Imagine youre in a line at the grocery store, buying food for your hungry family. There are only 2 lines, but one is for people who wore strictly blue shoes with white laces that day, so the line you and most other people are in gets longer and longer. Youve waited a while, hundreds, maybe even a thousand people have been checked out and its almost your turn to go up, maybe just a hundred more people to go. Then you look in the back of the line, and you see the manager pull someone out of line, who has only been in line for maybe a hundred checkouts. He/She gets pulled to the front of the line that you are in because the manager feels they need to go home faster than you. While coming up, the special case says, be patient, its almost your turn. //

People will all react differently to the situation we are all in. I stopped coming on here as often after seeing people from the Philippines and those in California worry about not getting their NOA2 4 weeks in, or people coming on to say "OMG fast approval, only 10 days at TSC" or whatever because quite frankly, those posts were a bit disheartening when you compare the situation. Had they created a thread for quick approvals or special case questions, I would have just not clicked on those threads, but instead people kept creating posts with vague titles. Just my $.02

In this case, usuing your analogy, it's two people next to each other further back in the line as and one telling the other to be patient its almost our turn....not someone walking by. Then you getting mad at them saying you've been in line longer so they can't say that. That's what happened here. It wasn't a CSC filer or a Phils expedite saying it. It's an applicant from Jamica at TSC.

Edited March 1, 2015 by Shauneg

[MissPearls 38]

I can't really believe I just read all that...

In the months I've been here, this place has always been so supportive and encouraging. With the exception of a small handful of people. I don't get how nobody understands it. Whether you have been waiting 1 month, 3 months, or 7, which seems to be some magical number that's going to turn me into a cynical monster according to some posts, it's hard no matter what. We are ALL separated from our loved ones. For a variety of reasons it's hard on every single one of us. I'm sure a lot of us have or have had things going on when we needed our other half.

The part that really gets me, is somebody telling someone to not say words of encouragement towards someone else. That didn't even come from the OP. Did the OP even post again afterwards? They created the thread, the words were spoken to them. If they didn't want to be told to be patient, they could have said something. I don't think one person should dictate how others are spoken to, or what is said.

I get that it's hard, patience tends to fade, and again, you might turn into a cynical monster at the 7 month mark, but we're all here for the same reason. Why can't everyone just support everyone else? At least I know where my logout button is now.