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Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: Indonesia
Timeline
Posted

The girl knows you barely a month, and she wants to get marriage? Where do you come from that makes marriage so common after just a short time of knowing each other? You will definitely encounter a lot of tough questions when It comes to AOS the interview, so be prepared.

Good luck!

It is pretty common in South Asia and parts of the Middle East.

Removing Conditions Timeline

Aug. 10, '17: Mailed in I-751

Aug. 21, '17: NOA1

October 23, '18: NOA2- approval

October 30, 18: 10-year GC received

Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: Hungary
Timeline
Posted

You can, but it might raise some suspicion. You also don't list your home country which does matter a little bit.

One thing I'm not sure you have considered so I'd throw it out is work. What are your plans for employment? Under your current visa, you won't be able to work (or accept payment from a company doing business in the US) until AOS is completed and any red flags can draw out the process. I know it's not what you asked, but I wanted to make sure you understood the financial implications of adjusting status.

He can have an EAD within 90 days of filing AOS. Country of origin does not matter with in-country AOS.

Entry on VWP to visit then-boyfriend 06/13/2011

Married 06/24/2011

Our first son was born 10/31/2012, our daughter was born 06/30/2014, our second son was born 06/20/2017

AOS Timeline

AOS package mailed 09/06/2011 (Chicago Lockbox)

AOS package signed for by R Mercado 09/07/2011

Priority date for I-485&I-130 09/08/2011

Biometrics done 10/03/2011

Interview letter received 11/18/2011

INTERVIEW DATE!!!! 12/20/2011

Approval e-mail 12/21/2011

Card production e-mail 12/27/2011

GREEN CARD ARRIVED 12/31/2011

Resident since 12/21/2011

ROC Timeline

ROC package mailed to VSC 11/22/2013

NOA1 date 11/26/2013

Biometrics date 12/26/2013

Transfer notice to CSC 03/14/2014

Change of address 03/27/2014

Card production ordered 04/30/2014

10-YEAR GREEN CARD ARRIVED 05/06/2014

N-400 Timeline

N-400 package mailed 09/30/2014

N-400 package delivered 10/01/2014

NOA1 date 10/20/2014

Biometrics date 11/14/2014

Early walk-in biometrics 11/12/2014

In-line for interview 11/23/2014

Interview letter 03/18/2015

Interview date 04/17/2015 ("Decision cannot yet be made.")

In-line for oath scheduling 05/04/2015

Oath ceremony letter dated 05/11/2015

Oath ceremony 06/02/2015

I am a United States citizen!

Filed: AOS (apr) Country: Scotland
Timeline
Posted

I used to live and work in Mumbai; common all over for people to meet for the first time through family and be married within a month or so. As an Operations Manager, we just had to deal with it when employees would go away to see family over a weekend and then come back on Monday saying they had met their future wife for the first time and were planning to leave within a few days for the marriage. Amazing culture!

Our Journey

Nov 17th 2003: Met in New Orleans 

Nov 30th 2004: Married in Belize

May 1st 2006: Moved from Louisiana to Scotland

Nov 3rd 2006: Jessica was born

Jan 18th 2011: Ellie was born

Feb 28th 2011: Moved to Mumbai, India

Jan 16th 2014: Moved back to the US

AOS - 2016
May 23rd: I-130, AOS, EAD and AP received
June 1st: Checks cashed
June 6th: Hard copy receipts received for I-130, AOS and EAD. AP receipt not received (however lawyer sent me copies of his receipts which included the AP)
June 6th: Receipt numbers work on USCIS.
June 11th: Biometrics notification
June 13th: Biometrics (walk in)

Aug 13th: Text notification for EAD. Card being produced

Aug 15th: Text notification for EAD & AP. Case approved

Aug 18th: Text notification for EAD. Card has been mailed

Aug 20th: EAD/AP Combo card delivered

2017

April 16th: Applied for EAD/AP renewal

April 25th: EAD/AP case received

May 16th: Text notification received for AOS case status update: interview is scheduled

June 06th: Redo medical

June 20th: Interview date. Evening email: "We ordered your new card"

June 21st: Email received "Case was approved"

June 23rd: Email received "Card was mailed to me"

June 27th: 10 year Green Card delivered 

 

March 22nd 2020: N-400 window opens

 

Filed: AOS (apr) Country: Mexico
Timeline
Posted

I spoke to a lawyer when I was deciding whether to do what you are thinking of vs. a K1 visa. Based upon the advice I received from the lawyer, you have the correct fact pattern. You entered the country with the intention of returning... but spontaneously fell in love and decided to get married. I assume you had a return ticket to evidence your intention to return to Canada. His advice was to wait at least 2 months before actually getting married-- something about the burden of proof shifting from you to the USCIS after two months. Ultimately, we decided against following the lawyer's advice and did the K1 visa. My thinking was that the USCIS are not idiots and people try this all of the time. In my case, (different from yours) it was not a spontaneous decision-- therefore it would have been fraud. If you are genuine in what you say, I'd recommend speaking to an attorney. You and your spouse will need to go in well prepared and not let the case officer trip you up into saying something that would make your case go the wrong way.

Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: Hungary
Timeline
Posted

You can consult a lawyer, of course, but this is a very straight-forward AOS case.

Entry on VWP to visit then-boyfriend 06/13/2011

Married 06/24/2011

Our first son was born 10/31/2012, our daughter was born 06/30/2014, our second son was born 06/20/2017

AOS Timeline

AOS package mailed 09/06/2011 (Chicago Lockbox)

AOS package signed for by R Mercado 09/07/2011

Priority date for I-485&I-130 09/08/2011

Biometrics done 10/03/2011

Interview letter received 11/18/2011

INTERVIEW DATE!!!! 12/20/2011

Approval e-mail 12/21/2011

Card production e-mail 12/27/2011

GREEN CARD ARRIVED 12/31/2011

Resident since 12/21/2011

ROC Timeline

ROC package mailed to VSC 11/22/2013

NOA1 date 11/26/2013

Biometrics date 12/26/2013

Transfer notice to CSC 03/14/2014

Change of address 03/27/2014

Card production ordered 04/30/2014

10-YEAR GREEN CARD ARRIVED 05/06/2014

N-400 Timeline

N-400 package mailed 09/30/2014

N-400 package delivered 10/01/2014

NOA1 date 10/20/2014

Biometrics date 11/14/2014

Early walk-in biometrics 11/12/2014

In-line for interview 11/23/2014

Interview letter 03/18/2015

Interview date 04/17/2015 ("Decision cannot yet be made.")

In-line for oath scheduling 05/04/2015

Oath ceremony letter dated 05/11/2015

Oath ceremony 06/02/2015

I am a United States citizen!

Posted

Just marry - you should be good if this is all true.

If you go the K1 route you never know how long it will take etc.

Many of us including myself are kicking themselves in similar situation for returning before AOS. I miss my husband!

Filed: Timeline
Posted

Thanks everyone for being considerate, and sharing some of your personal experiences. I'll try to address some of concerns raised by posters in this reply.

For people who were wondering about my home country - I have an Indian passport, but I recently received Permanent Residency (similar to green card) in Canada. My fiance(e) was born in the US; however, her parents used to live in India.

@GreatDane thanks for bringing a good point about work (you have to always be aware of your financial situation). Fortunately, I had some excellent opportunities to intern at some of the top tech companies in the US (google crazy silicon valley intern salaries). As a result I have managed to accumulate substantial savings that should last us for almost a year without work. That being said, I was hoping to receive the EAD within 90 days of the initial filing, and start working immediately after that.

Even though I had never seen my fiance(e) (not even a picture) prior to my cousin's wedding, my uncle and aunt knew her since she was a kid. That helped expedite the family approvals. I understand that it's been a short period (34 days to be exact), but I don't think we are rushing into the decision. We have had excellent discussions regarding our plans for the future (short-term and long-term), shared morals and values, gender roles within the marriage, family expectations, and religious convictions among others.

Initially, we were planning a small ceremony with just close family members. If we now decide to wait for 3-4 months before getting married, we are thinking of planning a bigger celebration (the whole nine yards :P). Will that raise undue suspicion?

Filed: Lift. Cond. (pnd) Country: China
Timeline
Posted

Thanks everyone for being considerate, and sharing some of your personal experiences. I'll try to address some of concerns raised by posters in this reply.

For people who were wondering about my home country - I have an Indian passport, but I recently received Permanent Residency (similar to green card) in Canada. My fiance(e) was born in the US; however, her parents used to live in India.

@GreatDane thanks for bringing a good point about work (you have to always be aware of your financial situation). Fortunately, I had some excellent opportunities to intern at some of the top tech companies in the US (google crazy silicon valley intern salaries). As a result I have managed to accumulate substantial savings that should last us for almost a year without work. That being said, I was hoping to receive the EAD within 90 days of the initial filing, and start working immediately after that.

Even though I had never seen my fiance(e) (not even a picture) prior to my cousin's wedding, my uncle and aunt knew her since she was a kid. That helped expedite the family approvals. I understand that it's been a short period (34 days to be exact), but I don't think we are rushing into the decision. We have had excellent discussions regarding our plans for the future (short-term and long-term), shared morals and values, gender roles within the marriage, family expectations, and religious convictions among others.

Initially, we were planning a small ceremony with just close family members. If we now decide to wait for 3-4 months before getting married, we are thinking of planning a bigger celebration (the whole nine yards :P). Will that raise undue suspicion?

You do not need to worry about any suspicions. You are already in the US, the only time for concern about intention to have been raised was when you were first going through USCIS when you arrived in the country. Once you have cleared through there you have no issues to worry about marrying and adjusting on your B visa. Even if you wait 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 months, ect... as long as you are still in the country and your wife is a US Citizen you can adjust with no consequences. However if you stay beyond your B Visa allows, and you do not marry/adjust status, you will risk a ban should the overstay exceed 180 days.

Use the duration of your permitted time to get to know this girl better, make sure this is what you want to do. If at the end of your approved stay you have any reservations, I suggest you return back to Canada and continue to develop the relationship.

Click Below to View my timeline (spoiler added to reduce visible space consumption)

 

Timeline to date:

11/11/14 - Met online through eHarmony
11/12/14 - Started communication through email (1-2 emails daily)
12/20/14 - Communicating through Phone Calls and Video Calls
07/04/15 - First Trip to China to visit her (spent time at her home, her hometown, and Beijing), Met the whole family.
07/18/15 - Sadly I had to return back to the US
10/01/15 - I am returning back to China to be with her again
10/11/15 - She will accompany me back on the same flight for 30 days
11/14/15 - She returns back to China
12/01/15 - I-129F Fed-Ex'd to the Lewisville address
12/03/15 - Packet signed for by the receiver
12/07/15 - NOA1 Generated
12/11/15 - NOA1 Received
01/14/15 - NOA2 Generated (Approved)
01/28/16 - NVC Received (Still waiting papers for official date)
01/29/16 - NVC Case# Assigned (Still waiting papers for official date)
02/03/16 - Case Sent to Embassy
02/04/16 - Case Received by Embassy
03/03/16 - Packet 3 Received
03/03/16 - Packet 3 Sent back to Embassy
03/04/16 - DS-160 Fee paid
03/09/16 - Packet 4 Received (Documents were prepared in advance)
04/02/16 - I return to China to provide moral and emotional support as she goes to her Interview on the 5th
04/05/16 - Interview Date (APPROVED!!!)

04/25/16 - POE Dallas Texas (DFW) smooth sailing through customs

04/25/16 - Arrived in Nashville, TN 10pm
04/29/16 - Marriage Certificate received
SSN filed somewhere after this point (exact date is not remembered, received after a 30 minute wait)
11/16/16 - AoS packet mailed (i-485, i-765, i-131)
11/18/16 - AoS packet received
12/06/16 - Check Cashed
02/28/17 - EAD and AP Approved
03/02/17 - NOA2 for EAD and AP Arrived
03/02/17 - EAD/AP Card Arrived
Filed: Timeline
Posted

Use the duration of your permitted time to get to know this girl better, make sure this is what you want to do. If at the end of your approved stay you have any reservations, I suggest you return back to Canada and continue to develop the relationship.

I like this (even though my parents might not). I think the best thing for me would be to take my time, and postpone my decision until it's closer to my I-94 expiry date. I just need to have a persuasive conversation with my previous manager.

Filed: Lift. Cond. (apr) Country: China
Timeline
Posted (edited)

**​One post contributing nothing to the discussion removed along with post quoting.**

Edited by Ryan H

Our journey:

Spoiler

September 2007: Met online via social networking site (MySpace); began exchanging messages.
March 26, 2009: We become a couple!
September 10, 2009: Arrived for first meeting in-person!
June 17, 2010: Arrived for second in-person meeting and start of travel together to other areas of China!
June 21, 2010: Engaged!!!
September 1, 2010: Switched course from K1 to CR-1
December 8, 2010: Wedding date set; it will be on February 18, 2011!
February 9, 2011: Depart for China
February 11, 2011: Registered for marriage in Wuhan, officially married!!!
February 18, 2011: Wedding ceremony in Shiyan!!!
April 22, 2011: Mailed I-130 to Chicago
April 28, 2011: Received NOA1 via text/email, file routed to CSC (priority date April 25th)
April 29, 2011: Updated
May 3, 2011: Received NOA1 hardcopy in mail
July 26, 2011: Received NOA2 via text/email!!!
July 30, 2011: Received NOA2 hardcopy in mail
August 8, 2011: NVC received file
September 1, 2011: NVC case number assigned
September 2, 2011: AOS invoice received, OPTIN email for EP sent
September 7, 2011: Paid AOS bill (payment portal showed PAID on September 9, 2011)
September 8, 2011: OPTIN email accepted, GZO number assigned
September 10, 2011: Emailed AOS package
September 12, 2011: IV bill invoiced
September 13, 2011: Paid IV bill (payment portal showed PAID on September 14, 2011)
September 14, 2011: Emailed IV package
October 3, 2011: Emailed checklist response (checklist generated due to typo on Form DS-230)
October 6, 2011: Case complete at NVC
November 10, 2011: Interview - APPROVED!!!
December 7, 2011: POE - Sea-Tac Airport

September 17, 2013: Mailed I-751 to CSC

September 23, 2013: Received NOA1 in mail (receipt date September 19th)

October 16, 2013: Biometrics Appointment

January 28, 2014: Production of new Green Card ordered

February 3, 2014: New Green Card received; done with USCIS until fall of 2023*

December 18, 2023:  Filed I-90 to renew Green Card

December 21, 2023:  Production of new Green Card ordered - will be seeing USCIS again every 10 years for renewal

 

Posted

Also know that once you marry, you can't leave the US or you'd need a spouse visa to move back. You may be able to visit on the B2 after you're married but it's not guaranteed. You won't be able to travel out of the US until you've applied to adjust status and gotten the temporary work and travel authorization. Which takes about 3 months.

So really, I assume that if you were planning to visit for 3 weeks, you probably still have a life up in Canada that you can't just walk out on. So marrying and AOSing will really complicate that unless you've got someone who can handle your affairs for you.

Marriage/ AOS Timeline:

23 Dec 2015: Legal marriage

23 Jan 2016: Wedding!

23 Jan 2016: "Blizzard of the Century", wedding canceled/rescheduled (thank goodness we were legally married first or we'd have had a big problem!) :sleepy:

24 Jan 2016: Small "civil ceremony" with friends and family who were snowed in with us. December was a bit of a secret and people had traveled internationally and knew we *had* to get married that weekend, and our December legal marriage was nothing but signing a piece of paper at our priest's kitchen table, without any sort of vows etc so this was actually a very special (if not legally significant) day. (L)

16 Apr 2016: Filed for AOS and EAD/AP (We delayed a bit-- no big rush, enjoying the USCIS break)

23 Apr 2016: Wedding! Finally! :luv:

27 Apr 2016: Electronic NOA1 for all 3 :dancing:
29 Apr 2016: NOA1 Hardcopy for all 3
29 Jul 2016: Online service request for late EAD (Day 104)
29 Jul 2016: EAD/AP Approved ~3 hours after online service request
04 Aug 2016: RFE for Green Card (requested medicals/ vaccination record. They already have it). :ranting:
05 Aug 2016: EAD/AP Combo Card arrived! (Day 111)
08 Aug 2016: Congressional constituent request to get guidance on the RFE. Hoping they see they have the form and approve!

K-1 Visa Timeline:

PLEASE NOTE. This timeline was during the period of time when TSC was working on I-129fs and had a huge backlog. The average processing time was 210+ days. This is in no way predictive of your own timeline if you filed during or after April 2015, unless CSC develops a backlog. A backlog is anything above the 5-month goal time listed on USCIS's site

14 Feb 2015: Mailed I-129f to Dallas Lockbox. (L) (Most expensive Valentine's card I've ever sent!)

17 Feb 2015: NOA1 "Received Date"
19 Feb 2015: NOA1 Notice Date
08 Aug 2015: NOA2 email! :luv: (173 days from NOA1)

17 Aug 2015: Sent to NVC

?? Aug 2015: Arrived at NVC

25 Aug 2015: NVC Case # Assigned

31 Aug 2015: Left NVC for Consulate in San Jose

09 Sep 2015: Consulate received :dancing: (32 days from NOA2)

11 Sep 2015: Packet 3 emailed from embassy to me, the petitioner (34 days from NOA2).

18 Sep 2015: Medicals complete

21 Sep 2015: Packet 3 complete, my boss puts a temporary moratorium on all time off due to work emergency :clock:

02 Oct 2015: Work emergency clears up, interview scheduled (soonest available was 5 business days away--Columbus Day was in there)

13 Oct 2015: Interview

13 Oct 2015: VISA APPROVED :thumbs: (236 days from NOA1)

19 Oct 2015: Visa-in-hand

24 Oct 2015: POE !

15 Dec 2015: Fiance's mother's B-2 visa interview: APPROVED! So happy she will be at the wedding! :thumbs:

!

Filed: Timeline
Posted

Also know that once you marry, you can't leave the US or you'd need a spouse visa to move back. You may be able to visit on the B2 after you're married but it's not guaranteed. You won't be able to travel out of the US until you've applied to adjust status and gotten the temporary work and travel authorization. Which takes about 3 months.

So really, I assume that if you were planning to visit for 3 weeks, you probably still have a life up in Canada that you can't just walk out on. So marrying and AOSing will really complicate that unless you've got someone who can handle your affairs for you.

Actually, I'm quite close to doing just that. The lease on my current apartment ends in December so I can store my stuff there till then (I hope I'll get the green card or AP by that time). I spoke to my roommate, and he is okay forwarding any important letters that I get in the mail. I just cancelled my wireless plan with Rogers, and switched the region for my Netflix/Spotify subscriptions. I didn't own a car in Vancouver, so that helped. As I interned in the US multiple times previously, I kept my old US bank account and US credit cards so I can afford to keep all my Canadian funds untouched. It's still a huge shock to my close friends and family in Canada; but they are pretty chill. And, they all plan on visiting soon (to meet the mysterious girl who took me away :P). Once the dust settles, I plan on going back and move back with all my stuff.

 
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