Applied for CR1, but now eligible for IR1 (merged)

[Ben Murphy 11]

My wife and I got married in August 2019, and applied for the CR1 visa several months later. 

We have been waiting on our visa application long enough that we have now actually been married for more than 2 years, making us eligible to apply for an IR1 visa.

 

Is there any way we can change our application now? Would there be any benefit to doing this, and likewise would there be any detriment to doing this, e.g. putting us to the back of the processing line? 

 

Thanks in advance for any advice!

 

Ben & Lexi

[Ben Murphy 11]

14 hours ago, Crazy Cat said:

It does not matter what CBP says or what CBP  stamps in the passport. CBP does not determine whether a new immigrant receives a 2 year card or a 10 year card.  That is determined by the records when the card is produced by USCIS.  If entry is after 2 years of marriage, the new immigrant should receive a 10 year card.  If he/she receives the wrong card, a corrected card can be requested by submitting an I-90.  I strongly advise you to wait until after 2 years of marriage to enter the US, if you can.

My wife and I applied for a CR1 visa, but we are now eligible for the IR1. We received the NOA1, but nothing since. If when we do hear back we just carry on with the process, will they automatically issue me with an IR1 visa as I am eligible? Or do I need to make some amendments somewhere for them to do this?

 

Thanks!

 

Ben

Edited August 30, 2021 by Ben Murphy

[Crazy Cat 41,898]

4 minutes ago, Ben Murphy said:

My wife and I applied for a CR1 visa, but we are now eligible for the IR1. We received the NOA1, but nothing since. If when we do hear back we just carry on with the process, will they automatically issue me with an IR1 visa as I am eligible? Or do I need to make some amendments somewhere for them to do this?

 

Thanks!

 

Ben

No action needed.  What the visa indicates (CR1 vs IR1) makes no difference.  It all depends on the length of time between the date of marriage and the date the new immigrant enters the US.  If that length of time is 2 years or more, then a 10 year Green Card should be issued.

Edited August 30, 2021 by Crazy Cat

[Crazy Cat 41,898]

No action needed.  What the visa indicates (CR1 vs IR1) makes no difference.  It all depends on the length of time between the date of marriage and the date the new immigrant enters the US.  If that length of time is 2 years or more, then a 10 year Green Card should be issued.

[Ben Murphy 11]

1 hour ago, Crazy Cat said:

No action needed.  What the visa indicates (CR1 vs IR1) makes no difference.  It all depends on the length of time between the date of marriage and the date the new immigrant enters the US.  If that length of time is 2 years or more, then a 10 year Green Card should be issued.

Ah okay, that's good to know! We filed out petition in October 2020 and got the NOA1 back at the end of that month, but are still yet to hear anything. Does it seem odd to have waited 11 months and not made any progress?
We've been trying to get in touch with them to get some sort of status update (other than the 'received' status we get when we check on the embassy website. Do you have any recommendations on how best to get some sort of feedback with regards to the status of our visa application?

[Crazy Cat 41,898]

6 minutes ago, Ben Murphy said:

Ah okay, that's good to know! We filed out petition in October 2020 and got the NOA1 back at the end of that month, but are still yet to hear anything. Does it seem odd to have waited 11 months and not made any progress?
We've been trying to get in touch with them to get some sort of status update (other than the 'received' status we get when we check on the embassy website. Do you have any recommendations on how best to get some sort of feedback with regards to the status of our visa application?

It appears you are beyond the average for Nebraska Service Center as reported by other VJ members.  It could have been transferred.  They, sometimes, do that.  

 

[JeanneAdil 6,514]

https://egov.uscis.gov/casestatus/landing.do

 

Try this site to check status

 

 

they have shut down phone services but it is possible to speak to EMMA -computer generated answer system

if you check the following site EMMA will pop up in upper right hand corner

 

https://www.uscis.gov/tools

[Saqib-s 188]

1 hour ago, Ben Murphy said:

My wife and I applied for a CR1 visa, but we are now eligible for the IR1. We received the NOA1, but nothing since. If when we do hear back we just carry on with the process, will they automatically issue me with an IR1 visa as I am eligible? Or do I need to make some amendments somewhere for them to do this?

 

Thanks!

 

Ben

Were at the NVC stage waiting for documents to be approved (a stage ahead of you) and as our 2Y anniversary passed, the visa class in the CEAC / NVC portal automatically changed to IR1. 

[Saqib-s 188]

We're at the NVC stage waiting for documents to be approved (a stage ahead of you) and as our 2Y anniversary passed, the visa class in the CEAC / NVC portal automatically changed to IR1. 

 

[Ben Murphy 11]

2 hours ago, Saqib-s said:

Were at the NVC stage waiting for documents to be approved (a stage ahead of you) and as our 2Y anniversary passed, the visa class in the CEAC / NVC portal automatically changed to IR1. 

Great, thanks! 

[Ben Murphy 11]

4 hours ago, Crazy Cat said:

No action needed.  What the visa indicates (CR1 vs IR1) makes no difference.  It all depends on the length of time between the date of marriage and the date the new immigrant enters the US.  If that length of time is 2 years or more, then a 10 year Green Card should be issued.

We just found out that our application was sent from Nebraska to Potomac, which apparently is a normal thing for them to do. What would the purpose of that be? Not to do with our application specifically I hope? The processing times at Potomac for our situation is 13-17 months which is longer than Nebraska but as they go on submission dates we shouldn't lose our spot in the queue

[Ontarkie 14,231]

~~HIjack posts and replies split off another members thread and merged to this one. Please do not post questions for your own case in other members threads. It can cause confusion to the thread.~~

[Demise 1,290]

12 hours ago, Ben Murphy said:

My wife and I got married in August 2019, and applied for the CR1 visa several months later. 

We have been waiting on our visa application long enough that we have now actually been married for more than 2 years, making us eligible to apply for an IR1 visa.

 

Is there any way we can change our application now? Would there be any benefit to doing this, and likewise would there be any detriment to doing this, e.g. putting us to the back of the processing line? 

 

Thanks in advance for any advice!

 

Ben & Lexi

Whether or not you get a CR1 or IR1 visa depends upon how long you've been married as of the day of the consular interview. If less than 2 years - CR1, if more than 2 years - IR1. Then what kind of green card you actually get depends on how long you've been married as of the day you enter US on the immigrant visa, again less than 2 years - conditional 2 year CR1, longer than 2 years - 10 year unconditional IR1. Keep in mind that the visa is valid for 180 days, so if you're right on the edge, delaying your trip to US can be a pretty good idea.

 

If they accidentally give you a CR1 green card, you should file I-90 and return the wrong card and have them reissue it.

 

As is, you don't have to do anything, even if the consulate screws up and puts CR1 on your visa.

Edited August 30, 2021 by Demise

[Lil bear 4,225]

5 minutes ago, Demise said:

Whether or not you get a CR1 or IR1 visa depends upon how long you've been married as of the day of the consular interview. If less than 2 years - CR1, if more than 2 years - IR1. Then what kind of green card you actually get depends on how long you've been married as of the day you enter US on the immigrant visa, again less than 2 years - conditional 2 year CR1, longer than 2 years - 10 year unconditional IR1. Keep in mind that the visa is valid for 180 days, so if you're right on the edge, delaying your trip to US can be a pretty good idea.

 

If they accidentally give you a CR1 green card, you should file I-90 and return the wrong card and have them reissue it.

 

As is, you don't have to do anything, even if the consulate screws up and puts CR1 on 

Edited August 30, 2021 by Lil bear
Self edit