Didn't add I-944 to AOS

[irishoxford 39]

Hey everybody,

I've been in the States for 10 years on F-1, then F-1OPT, F-1, and currently on my second round of OPT and am a visiting instructor at a university in Florida.  I married a U.S. citizen in February of this year and am going through AOS.  Downloaded all of the forms in February after our marriage, completed them, sent them off (on Friday 29th Feb.), and only found out tonight that I-944 is now required (seemingly they only gave a few days of advance notice on the i-485 page).  I'm sure I'm not the only one in this position.  

Any advice on what to do?  Should I complete it and send it in immediately with a letter explaining/asking for it to be added to our file?  Or should I wait?  

Thanks for the help!  I'd normally feel stupid if I'd made a mistake, but this one seems kind of understandable...

J

 

Edited March 4, 2020 by irishoxford

[milimelo 4,514]

Get the form ready for when it’s asked for - either RFE or interview. 

[irishoxford 39]

Milimelo,

Thanks so much for your response.  USCIS seemed unsure whenever I called them this morning as to what would happen.  They *thought* that the whole application would be sent back with instructions to attach the i-944, but they weren't sure.

 

In response to my question about sending in the i-944 on its own and appending a letter asking for the i-944 to be collated, they said that it was unlikely that they'd be able to do that, but that there was nothing ultimately stopping me from trying.  So that's what I'll do in the interim.

Posting this all for anyone who is in my rather niche position.  We'd downloaded all forms in mid-Feb, completed them, but in the meantime USCIS changed the note on the i-485 page, so we obviously didn't see it before filing on Feb 29.  A bit of leeway would have absolutely helped for the first month of this new rule, and an RFE would be the most humane route here, but we'll see!  Just kicking myself for the wasted time.

 

Again, thank you.  

J