Need advice on “your priority date could not be established” for I-485 form.

[Ryan LC 0]

So I tried asking this question on reddit, and helpful person directed me here.

Background:

The K-1 visa process went smoothly. I applied in March of 2019 and got our interview in November of 2019. My fiancée arrived in the US on January 17 and we got married on February 28. We thought we had all of our paperwork in order for the I-485 (application to adjust status for permanent residence). To our surprise, we got a rejection notice in April because our “priority date could not be established. I initially left the priority date blank on the I-485 form because our I-797 (the acceptance form for our K-1 application) did not have a priority date listed (it was left blank). After some google searching, apparently fiancé(e)/marriage visas do not have a priority date (they receive immediate priority), and priority dates are mainly for the other types of visa applications (please correct me if I’m wrong here). Magically, I was able to reach a USCIS representative. The representative wouldn’t give me too much clarity on what that specific rejection meant, but then eventually recommended I put the receipt date of our K-1 visa application as the priority date.

So we put the receipt date from our I-797 as the priority date and reapplied. Unfortunately, the application was denied again for the same exact reason. So I was hoping some of you on this sub may know the issue before we consult with an immigration lawyer. For reference, here is the rejection notice and our original I-797 acceptance for the K-1 visa: https://imgur.com/a/ZyXVXNF

We would really appreciate any help on this matter. Thanks!

Other information: 

Included in our submission was:

• G-1450: cc authorization
• G-1145 electronic notifications
• I-485: adjustment of status
• I-944: declaration of self sufficiency
• I-864: affidavit of support I-765: employment authorship
• And all of the corresponding evidence/items for each form (photos, tax forms, certified translations, etc.)

Evidence for the i485 included:

The notice of action (i-797), passport photos, birth certificates, marriage certificate, passports w the stamp and visa, I-94 arrival-departure record (evidence just for the I-485 form).

I've been focused on unable to establish the priority date part. Someone on reddit pointed out that the rejection notice points at the i-944 & I-864 forms I filled out. I thought those were filled out correctly. I just checked again to see if anything is missing or incorrect, and nothing is jumping out at me.

TL/DR: Our I-485 application got rejected for a second time (same reason each time) because our “priority date could not be established”. Any thoughts on how to correct this?

Edited June 8, 2020 by Ryan LC

[Letspaintcookies 2,310]

Did you marked the right category? What did you answered for part 2, question 2 of the I-485? 

[Ryan LC 0]

For the I-485 form, we checked off principal applicant and the family based option, 2.c. “Individual admitted to the United States as a fiancé or child of the fiancé of a US citizen., Form I-129F

[Ayrton 965]

57 minutes ago, Ryan LC said:

So I tried asking this question on reddit, and helpful person directed me here.

Background:

The K-1 visa process went smoothly. I applied in March of 2019 and got our interview in November of 2019. My fiancée arrived in the US on January 17 and we got married on February 28. We thought we had all of our paperwork in order for the I-485 (application to adjust status for permanent residence). To our surprise, we got a rejection notice in April because our “priority date could not be established. I initially left the priority date blank on the I-485 form because our I-797 (the acceptance form for our K-1 application) did not have a priority date listed (it was left blank). After some google searching, apparently fiancé(e)/marriage visas do not have a priority date (they receive immediate priority), and priority dates are mainly for the other types of visa applications (please correct me if I’m wrong here). Magically, I was able to reach a USCIS representative. The representative wouldn’t give me too much clarity on what that specific rejection meant, but then eventually recommended I put the receipt date of our K-1 visa application as the priority date.

So we put the receipt date from our I-797 as the priority date and reapplied. Unfortunately, the application was denied again for the same exact reason. So I was hoping some of you on this sub may know the issue before we consult with an immigration lawyer. For reference, here is the rejection notice and our original I-797 acceptance for the K-1 visa: https://imgur.com/a/ZyXVXNF

We would really appreciate any help on this matter. Thanks!

Other information: 

Included in our submission was:

• G-1450: cc authorization
• G-1145 electronic notifications
• I-485: adjustment of status
• I-944: declaration of self sufficiency
• I-864: affidavit of support I-765: employment authorship
• And all of the corresponding evidence/items for each form (photos, tax forms, certified translations, etc.)

Evidence for the i485 included:

The notice of action (i-797), passport photos, birth certificates, marriage certificate, passports w the stamp and visa, I-94 arrival-departure record (evidence just for the I-485 form).

I've been focused on unable to establish the priority date part. Someone on reddit pointed out that the rejection notice points at the i-944 & I-864 forms I filled out. I thought those were filled out correctly. I just checked again to see if anything is missing or incorrect, and nothing is jumping out at me.

TL/DR: Our I-485 application got rejected for a second time (same reason each time) because our “priority date could not be established”. Any thoughts on how to correct this?

 

The sentence has nothing to do with your rejection.

 

The "priority date could not be established" is the consequence of the rejection, not the cause.

 

Check the edition date and the expiration date of every form you filed. That might be the problem.

[GordonRamsey 22]

I would suggest puting N/A on the priority date. They might be rejecting it because:

 

a.) You left it blank so the document was considered incomplete.

 

b.) You included an incorrect priority date, since you don't have one, any dates that you would supply are incorrect.

 

Both are ridiculous.

[Ryan LC 0]

1 hour ago, Ayrton said:

 

The sentence has nothing to do with your rejection.

 

The "priority date could not be established" is the consequence of the rejection, not the cause.

 

Check the edition date and the expiration date of every form you filed. That might be the problem.

OMG. Thank you for this! I had initially filled out the old edition that expired on 3/31/2020. I then filled out the new one that expires on 10/31/2021. However, I guess I mistakenly printed out the old version.

[payxibka 10,047]

1 hour ago, Ryan LC said:

OMG. Thank you for this! I had initially filled out the old edition that expired on 3/31/2020. I then filled out the new one that expires on 10/31/2021. However, I guess I mistakenly printed out the old version.

I485 current edition (bottom left corner) is dated 10.15.19

[Ryan LC 0]

3 minutes ago, payxibka said:

I485 current edition (bottom left corner) is dated 10.15.19

Yes, I checked and all the forms are

up-to-date except the I-864. It’s unfortunate because I had filled out both versions, but mistakenly sent the old version.