Baltimore Processing time for AOS makes no sense?

[jvl 3]

I am very confused. USCIS just updated processing times today. For I-485 in Baltimore, MD, it moved from April 3, 2016 (as of December 31, 2016) to April 9, 2016 (as of January 31, 2016). This makes no sense! Can anyone explain this? It makes no sense that they would only work through 6 days of cases in 31 days.

 

I would have been inclined to think that the December 31, 2016 date was incorrect, if not because they were processing March 13th or so as of November 30, 2016, and for the previous months the processing times did change as one would expect.

 

I am concerned because I have already been waiting for 8 months, and although I have an EAD, not having my green card yet is really limiting my job opportunities in my field in this area.

[MS and KK 13]

We have the same issues waiting in DC.  we called today and spoke to someone and they are now looking into our case

[jvl 3]

Yeah, this sucks. I guess the processing time is correct, because they updated it on March 14 to the same thing. Unfortunately I cannot ask anyone to look into my case, because my submission date is June 30. Good luck with your case, though.

[Hw0916 0]

On 3/9/2017 at 5:33 PM, jvl said:

I am very confused. USCIS just updated processing times today. For I-485 in Baltimore, MD, it moved from April 3, 2016 (as of December 31, 2016) to April 9, 2016 (as of January 31, 2016). This makes no sense! Can anyone explain this? It makes no sense that they would only work through 6 days of cases in 31 days.

 

I would have been inclined to think that the December 31, 2016 date was incorrect, if not because they were processing March 13th or so as of November 30, 2016, and for the previous months the processing times did change as one would expect.

 

I am concerned because I have already been waiting for 8 months, and although I have an EAD, not having my green card yet is really limiting my job opportunities in my field in this area.

I know. I have been waiting for almost 200 days too. My friend in VA already received her green card even though she sent the form 2 month later than I did. 

[jvl 3]

Well, this is true BS. They now went back to March 25, 2016. Can anyone explain to me why processing times go backwards? I tried to get a better idea of timelines for Baltimore by looking at timelines here, but there's relatively few cases, and many took around 6 months, which is clearly not my case (almost 10 months now and counting). I am just distressed that USCIS is making little or no progress towards my filing date.

[Hw0916 0]

3 hours ago, jvl said:

Well, this is true BS. They now went back to March 25, 2016. Can anyone explain to me why processing times go backwards? I tried to get a better idea of timelines for Baltimore by looking at timelines here, but there's relatively few cases, and many took around 6 months, which is clearly not my case (almost 10 months now and counting). I am just distressed that USCIS is making little or no progress towards my filing date.

So, I went to the infopass in Baltimore the other day and they said 'Do not look at the website timeline and do not trust that because it is incorrect.'. If you want to know what is going on your case, make an appointment to visit infopass. The officer said normal processing time is 6-9months, but it can be longer than that. It can take an year for some people, and it can take two years for some reasons. 

Edited April 18, 2017 by Hw0916

[jvl 3]

5 minutes ago, Hw0916 said:

So, I went to the infopass in Baltimore the other day and they said 'Do not look at the website timeline and do not trust that because it is incorrect.'. If you want to know what is going on your case, make an appointment to visit infopass. The officer said normal processing time is 6-9months, but it can be longer than that. It can take an year for some people, and it can take two years for some reasons. 

Well, that's a relief! I was considering making an infopass myself. I guess since I'm about to hit the 10 month mark, it would be a good idea, especially given what they told you. When did you have that appointment?

 

I'm just hoping I won't be on the 2 year side of things.

[Hw0916 0]

43 minutes ago, jvl said:

Well, that's a relief! I was considering making an infopass myself. I guess since I'm about to hit the 10 month mark, it would be a good idea, especially given what they told you. When did you have that appointment?

 

I'm just hoping I won't be on the 2 year side of things.

I went there on April 8th. I think you should hear any notice soon. But I recommend to visit them.

[bunkx 25]

The Washington DC office wait time seems to be around 218 days according to latest data from USCIS times. Which would put me August/September-ish for the interview. Every time I ask though they say things like "it could be may, it could be december. you never know" - so now I have to live in this odd uncertainty where I'm scared to travel because what if they give me an interview date for when I'm out of the country? It would cost a fortune to fly back on such short notice. It's best to sit tight and get it all over with before making big and expensive family visits I guess. Other than that, the EAD/AP combo works for pretty much everything so there really is no rush on the GC, is there?

[Hw0916 0]

9 hours ago, bunkx said:

The Washington DC office wait time seems to be around 218 days according to latest data from USCIS times. Which would put me August/September-ish for the interview. Every time I ask though they say things like "it could be may, it could be december. you never know" - so now I have to live in this odd uncertainty where I'm scared to travel because what if they give me an interview date for when I'm out of the country? It would cost a fortune to fly back on such short notice. It's best to sit tight and get it all over with before making big and expensive family visits I guess. Other than that, the EAD/AP combo works for pretty much everything so there really is no rush on the GC, is there?

The thing is a combo card is not a green card. This is a huge difference. Yes, you can travel and work. However, you always have possibility that they might reject your case or have some issues. You never know. You might think this is not a big deal, but not everybody think the same way you think. Plus, I'm wondering why you couldn't get it yet. My friend applied her green card to DC office last November and she already had her interview last February. She has her green card now. 

[jvl 3]

20 hours ago, Hw0916 said:

I went there on April 8th. I think you should hear any notice soon. But I recommend to visit them.

Thanks! Just made an appointment last night. I'll be seeing them in two weeks, unless I'm lucky enough to receive my interview notice sooner than that. Thanks so much for the advice! And I hope you get your interview soon as well.

 

9 hours ago, bunkx said:

The Washington DC office wait time seems to be around 218 days according to latest data from USCIS times. Which would put me August/September-ish for the interview. Every time I ask though they say things like "it could be may, it could be december. you never know" - so now I have to live in this odd uncertainty where I'm scared to travel because what if they give me an interview date for when I'm out of the country? It would cost a fortune to fly back on such short notice. It's best to sit tight and get it all over with before making big and expensive family visits I guess. Other than that, the EAD/AP combo works for pretty much everything so there really is no rush on the GC, is there?

Unfortunately this is not an option for you if you need to go to Europe, but I made travel arrangements through Southwest Airlines, because they don't charge people for changing their travel plans, and you always learn of your interview one month in advance. It ended up not affecting my travel plans at all, because, as you can see, I didn't had my interview at that point. Anyways, are you sure there isn't an airline you can use that lets you change your travel plans?

 

And I guess for most people their lives don't change as much by having the EAD/AP combo card as opposed to the actual GC, aside from the uncertainty, but it does in my case. I already had a job interview in which I was told that I couldn't be hired without a GC. The thing is there are some jobs that even people on EADs can't be hired for. Heck, there are even some jobs that require US citizenship.

[jvl 3]

On 4/18/2017 at 4:46 PM, Hw0916 said:

I went there on April 8th. I think you should hear any notice soon. But I recommend to visit them.

So, thanks for saving me a couple of days of freaking out. Turns out I just got the interview notice today. My interview will be a little less than 11 months after my filing date. Just wanted to let you know in case that helps with your case. I hope you hear from them soon!

[Hw0916 0]

30 minutes ago, jvl said:

So, thanks for saving me a couple of days of freaking out. Turns out I just got the interview notice today. My interview will be a little less than 11 months after my filing date. Just wanted to let you know in case that helps with your case. I hope you hear from them soon!

Congrats! Finally! Thanks  

[jvl 3]

Just wanted to let everyone know that my interview went pretty smoothly on the scheduled day, although I had to wait for a couple of hours before being called in. After the interview the officer said he had no concerns and that he would recommend for approval. The case status was updated in the late afternoon to case approved! So hopefully even if it takes long for people to get their interviews, approvals are being done soon. I will have to mention, though, that during an InfoPass they told me that I-485's are not this office's priority, and they're looked at only once a month! But there's a light at the end of the tunnel, people!