Theory on processing times

[LydiaP 215]

16 hours ago, SvetikP said:

I have a theory on processing times. Younger couples go through quicker. They have less history that has to be checked. A couple at 20 that has no divorces, police records, no children, should be processed pretty quick. 

 

On the other hand an older couple at age 40 with divorce, children, police records (not me), now has to prove they are divorced, their past activities examined by USCIS. Longer processing time. 

 

Anyone have info on whether younger people get processed quicker? 

Nope. 

My fiance and are are 42 and 41. No divorce. No police history. Super thin file (except our evidence of relationship). Still waiting on my NOA2.

[John & Rose 7,239]

1 minute ago, Nevad@ said:

That's very interesting, thank you. I am new to this forum so had no idea about the thread you mentioned. So, the above is for the petitioner, what about the beneficiary? Hopefully, takes only a few days if not minutes.  

I did read something here the other day that the date of your submission does not mean much as all the applications show up as a pile in a big bin and your application may be either on top or on the bottom of that whole pile... There goes the waiting time.

It is an interesting read.  It was from a few years ago so some of it may have changed but it seems to still be somewhat accurate from what we are seeing.  I will try to locate the thread.

 

Earlier while May and June were anxiously waiting, I believe a couple November 16 filers were approved on January 2, just 47 days from filing non-expedited petitions.  We never figured that out as people who filed 6 and 7 months earlier were still waiting.  It is just bizarre and impossible to figure out what is going on.

[Nevad@ 26]

18 minutes ago, John & Rose said:

It is an interesting read.  It was from a few years ago so some of it may have changed but it seems to still be somewhat accurate from what we are seeing.  I will try to locate the thread.

 

Earlier while May and June were anxiously waiting, I believe a couple November 16 filers were approved on January 2, just 47 days from filing non-expedited petitions.  We never figured that out as people who filed 6 and 7 months earlier were still waiting.  It is just bizarre and impossible to figure out what is going on.

Yes, please do share if you find it. 

 

Yeah, that sounds like a total mystery)) would be why there is so many threads asking this way or another how long the processes will take and such. Just a mere thought of sitting and waiting for months and months is stressful. Long distance is NOT an easy thing.  So I sincerely wish everyone who is waiting to hear the good news sooner than they think.

[John & Rose 7,239]

2 minutes ago, Nevad@ said:

Yes, please do share if you find it. 

 

Yeah, that sounds like a total mystery)) would be why there is so many threads asking this way or another how long the processes will take and such. Just a mere thought of sitting and waiting for months and months is stressful. Long distance is NOT an easy thing.  So I sincerely wish everyone who is waiting to hear the good news sooner than they think.

I have been trying to remind everyone (and myself) to focus on our loved ones and not on the process.  LD relationships are stressful enough without the added stress of the unknown.  We were 9 months and 7 days waiting for NOA2.  Many were getting it at 6 to 7 months.  That would have killed me if it weren't for Rose.  She kept me focused on what truly mattered.  

 

When I filed (June 6), my VJ estimate for NOA2 was September 6.  3 months to NOA2.  As the timeline pushed back and the NOA2 was nowhere in sight things got very tense.  Add the less than immigration friendly administration and there were times I was wondering if we would ever be to together in the US.  

 

We will all get through this but we need to focus on our loved ones and allow this journey to play out as it will.

[geowrian 22,338]

55 minutes ago, John & Rose said:

Keep in mind that the "background check" only takes minutes and the adjudicator only spends 10 to 15 minutes on each petition, per an older thread with a Q&A with a former adjudicator.  A vast majority of the time is just spent sitting and waiting to be looked at.  If you have ever bought a gun in the States you know the background check is a simple input of a name and SSN into a federal database.  If you are clear, the check is done.  It takes under a minute.  If they find something it obviously takes more time and can even mean your petition will be transferred to the Vermont Service Center.

 

Delays for security check is just another excuse in their hands.  How can you argue with them?  Same with the I-94.  They know where you travel and when you travel.  Again, that is just another minute of their time to punch in the name and passport number.  What can they check with a divorce?  If the paperwork isn't complete they issue an RFE.  If it is complete, the divorce check is done.  They do not contact your Secretary of State or County Clerk.  The fact is a good adjudicator can look at the file and make a decision within minutes.  It doesn't matter how many addresses because they search via SSN and passport number.  1 address or 50 addresses doesn't impact the time it takes to run the background check.

 

All the adjudicator is doing is seeing if you have met at least once in the two years prior to filing, that the relationship appears to be bona fide and that both parties are legally free and clear to marry.  That is all they do at that stage.  They run a quick background check and look to see if the paperwork looks good without any red flags and they are done.

Hmm...there's a bit more to it than that, especially with more complicated cases.

 

The background checks are more than just a name + SSN and you get back an instant result most times. The checks at this stage go out to a few different agencies, most of which come back right away. Some, such as the FBI check, can take minutes, days, weeks, months, or longer to come back. For my federal security clearances, my coworkers and I have to go through the same checks every 6 months, and sometimes they get hit with delays as well (even if they were fine for their previous clearance). The FBI background check is a black box...USCIS requests it then they are on hold until they hear back. Yes, most cases comes back very quickly, but it's not unusual for them to take a bit longer.

 

Going back to your gun purchase background check, that's only 1 check against a subset of databases, and even that has a fairly high occurrence (7.9% in 2014) of cases taking over 3 days to complete. Of the ones that take over 3 days, the average response to get the result is about a month. Due to law, if they do not complete within 3 days then purchase is permitted to proceed (at the seller's discretion). I forget the exact numbers, but there are several hundreds of people annually who successfully purchase a firearm and go through the background check but are later found to have been prohibited from purchasing firearms. The purchases were permitted due to the background check threshold being exceed. I don't mean to take this thread off-topic...it's not about guns in any way at all. It's just that the example provided is only a subset of checks and even that has considerable delays in a decent percentage of cases.

 

As for the I-94, I think that's likely there to verify information they already have on file.

For a divorce, they must verify the authenticity of the documents and that the divorce is final and meets certain requirements (i.e. ensure due process was met...i.e. it wasn't performed via a so-called "divorce mill"). I'm not saying this is a big delay in many cases....presumably most divorces sent here would be US-issued divorces...but it does get more complicated when you start dealing with potentially forged documents, divorces where only one party participated, etc.

 

But yes, I get and agree that most cases likely take a matter of several minutes. There's just a lot of outliers that take longer, plus the massive backlog.

[JC&BS 75]

I have heard that the time of year you file matters. Colder months have less cases than warmer months(due to less travel to marry/get engaged).

 

[jyaku 138]

Younger is not faster. I was in adminstrative processing for almost 10 years.

 

Green Card Interview nov 1997, placed in AP and the only reply I would get would be "security check". I finally got my green card in 2007.

 

I wish it was a bad joke but no.. it was my life.

Edited March 30, 2018 by jyaku

[JD2017 34]

Here is that post that was mentioned from the former adjudicator.

[DennisWaldron 124]

18 minutes ago, JD2017 said:

Here is that post that was mentioned from the former adjudicator.

I think i read through this once. Haha... i wonder what was this touched function? And what it was like.

Can you imagine... the excitement of knowing your case was actually touched at certain points. 🤣🤣🤣

[Belma15 12]

I am positive 100% that age those not have nothing with this.I am 44 and my fiance is 47 never be marry and don't have kids.We are still waiting and God nos how long we going to have to wait.It is up to luck and time I totally understand this people that they are doing this job.It is not easy  them job we can talk much as we can.Because it is not easy to say yes are no.God blessed them all for everything Amen.Wish us all good luck.

[geowrian 22,338]

2 hours ago, DennisWaldron said:

I think i read through this once. Haha... i wonder what was this touched function? And what it was like.

Can you imagine... the excitement of knowing your case was actually touched at certain points. 🤣🤣🤣

I had to look this up myself as it was from so long ago. This is in reference to an old tracker...the current one doesn't show when the case was last accessed/modified/touched....only when the actual status updates.

[DennisWaldron 124]

1 minute ago, geowrian said:

I had to look this up myself as it was from so long ago. This is in reference to an old tracker...the current one doesn't show when the case was last accessed/modified/touched....only when the actual status updates.

Haha... yes right. 

Just saying... cant imagine. 

You see how people get so excited when members like @Naes post a scan. 

Imagine how we would act if we could see a touch. 

I see some good and bad if there was a function like that  🤣🤣

[geowrian 22,338]

5 minutes ago, DennisWaldron said:

Haha... yes right. 

Just saying... cant imagine. 

You see how people get so excited when members like @Naes post a scan. 

Imagine how we would act if we could see a touch. 

I see some good and bad if there was a function like that  🤣🤣

Yeah,. I'd have a field day with that info!

Yes, Naes is a god-send. She does amazing work. For reference, the scans she runs are through the script I made. haha

Edited March 30, 2018 by geowrian

[Naes 12,205]

5 minutes ago, DennisWaldron said:

Haha... yes right. 

Just saying... cant imagine. 

You see how people get so excited when members like @Naes post a scan. 

Imagine how we would act if we could see a touch. 

I see some good and bad if there was a function like that  🤣🤣

 

I came to say literally this for @geowrian! He is a godsend! Believe me!!!

 

4 minutes ago, geowrian said:

Yeah,. I'd have a field day with that info!

Yes, Naes is a god-send. He does amazing work. For reference, the scans he runs are through the script I made. haha

Thank you for the thousandth time  

 

i am a she by the way 

[DennisWaldron 124]

2 minutes ago, geowrian said:

Yeah,. I'd have a field day with that info!

Yes, Naes is a god-send. He does amazing work. For reference, the scans he runs are through the script I made. haha

Love it... amazing work my friend.

Hats off and a bow for you and naes... you create many smiles a day. A little something to keep our heads up while dealing with this.