Field office asking for I-693 medical but according to the instructions this isn't required for K-1 filing AOS within a year of the overseas medical

[EandK 0]

We received an email from the Atlanta USCIS office asking to submit Form I-693. We did not send this with the I-485 because the instructions clearly state it is not required if the K-1 medical exam was completed within a year of submitting the AOS application. I have also seen many posts on this form confirming that no I-693 is needed.

 

From the I-693 instructions Frequently Asked Questions:

 

Quote

What if I am a K nonimmigrant visa holder and already had a medical examination overseas?
If you were admitted as a:
A. K-1 fiancé(e) or a K-2 child of a K-1 fiancé(e); or
B. K-3 spouse of a U.S. citizen or a K-4 child of a K-3 spouse of a U.S. citizen; and
C. You received a medical examination prior to admission, then:
    (1) You are not required to have another medical examination as long as you file your Form I-485 within one year
of an overseas medical examination; and
        (a) The panel physician did not find a class A medical condition during your overseas examination; or
        (b) The panel physician did find a class A medical condition, you received a waiver of inadmissibility, and
you have complied with the terms and conditions of the waiver.
    (2) Even if a new medical examination is not required, you must still show proof that you complied with the
vaccination requirements. If the vaccination record (DS 3025) was not properly completed and included as
part of the original overseas medical examination report, you will need to have the Part 10. Vaccination
Record completed by a designated civil surgeon. In this case, you must submit Parts 1. - 5., 7., and 10.
of Form I-693

 

The email further says we can drop the form off at the Atlanta USCIS office on one of two upcoming Saturdays. We're not opposed to getting another medical exam done but we're currently out of the country and will not be back in time.

 

So far we have only received this email. No RFE letter has been received nor shown on the my.uscis.gov site.

How should we respond to this? We would like to communicate to the office that the form should be required based on the medical being completed overseas as part of the K-1 visa process. And if it is required, we will not be able to provide it by the dates they have given.

 

The email says not to reply. So how should we proceed? Try to chat with a live agent online? Phone call?

Edited March 24, 2023 by EandK

[Mike E 11,739]

8 minutes ago, EandK said:

We're not opposed to getting another medical exam done but we're currently out of the country and will not be back in time

If it was a notice for an interview, would you be back in time?

 

 

[JeanneAdil 6,491]

The Atlanta office is free to ask for a new medical before continuing the process and when immigration wants a document ,  they want it

 

1. Who must submit Form I-693? Most applicants filing for adjustment of status to become a lawful permanent resident must submit Form I-693 completed by a designated civil surgeon. Certain other applicants may also be required to submit Form I-693 completed by a civil surgeon.

 

page 7 of 13

 

https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/document/forms/i-693instr.pdf

[Chancy 6,241]

4 hours ago, EandK said:

The email says not to reply. So how should we proceed? Try to chat with a live agent online? Phone call?

 

Looks like you got the email version of the I-693 courtesy notice, which is safe to ignore for AOS from K1 cases with completed DS-3025 and I-485 filed within 1 year of the visa medical.  As long as it's not an RFE, no need to worry.

 

[Boiler 45,467]

I have heard of people being asked for the Medical when they have it, not that uncommon, but dropping it off on a Saturday? that is weird.

[K1visaHopeful 2,814]

You sure it isn't the junk mail known as I693 Deficiency Notice, which you can disregard?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mrveg 11]

I'm from the Atlanta field office as well. I just got this same email with the same thing as OP. This is the official notice we received.

 

Your Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status does not include a completed and signed Form I-693, Report of Medical Examination and Vaccination Record.

 

Please submit a completed Form I-693, Report of Medical Examination and Vaccination Record.

 

Civil Surgeons and the Form I-693

A USCIS civil surgeon must complete and sign the form, and you must also sign the form. If the civil surgeon refers you to a specialist, the specialist must include his or her medical exam results and complete the proper sections of the Form I-693 before the civil surgeon may sign the form.

 

Important: Only a designated civil surgeon authorized by USCIS to conduct medical examinations is qualified to complete the Form I-693. The civil surgeon must sign and date the Form I-693. Signatures by a nurse, physician’s assistant, or a doctor not designated as a civil surgeon are not acceptable. You must sign and date the Form I-693 when instructed to do so by the civil surgeon. The original completed Form I-693 must be sealed in a separate envelope by the civil surgeon. The sealed envelope must be returned, unopened, to this office.

A list of designated civil surgeons can be obtained by calling the USCIS Contact Center at 1-800-375-5283, or via the USCIS website at www.uscis.gov and using the MyUSCIS Find a Doctor tool at my.uscis.gov/findadoctor. You will need to provide your zip code or address. If you are hearing impaired, please call the USCIS Contact Center TDD at 1-800-767-1833.

Civil surgeons must use the current edition (07/19/2022) of Form I-693. You can find the current edition of Form I-693 on USCIS’s website at www.uscis.gov. In addition, the civil surgeon must ensure that all parts of Form I-693 were properly completed.

Important: All Forms I-693 signed by civil surgeons on or after October 5, 2022, must use the 07/19/2022 edition of Form I-693. USCIS will not accept the 09/13/2021 version (or any previous editions) if the civil surgeon signed the Form I-693 after October 4, 2022.

Reminder: Effective October 1, 2021, applicants subject to the immigration medical examination must complete the COVID-19 vaccine series before the civil surgeon can complete an immigration medical examination and sign Form I-693. This applies to Form I-693 signed by civil surgeon on or after October 1, 2021.

Additional: If your application is based on your marriage to a United States Citizen (USC) or a Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR), and you or your spouse have not yet submitted evidence of the bona fides of your marriage, you may submit this evidence at this time to accelerate the processing of the decision on your case.

If you wish to submit supplemental documentation, you may do so by bringing the documentation to the Atlanta Field Office. You may drop the documents off on Saturday, April 15, 2023, or Saturday April 22, 2023, from 09:00 am to 01:00 pm. Our address is as follows:

USCIS Atlanta Field Office 

2150 Parklake Dr. NE

Atlanta, GA 30345

Please include a copy of this e-mail with your Form I-693 to help us identify your case.

If your application is based on your marriage to a USC or an LPR and you would like to submit evidence of the bona fides of your marriage, please submit that evidence, with a copy of this notice, either:

o   To the field office address above, or,

o   If available, online by uploading the evidence through your USCIS account.

 

[EandK 0]

  

6 hours ago, mrveg said:

I'm from the Atlanta field office as well. I just got this same email with the same thing as OP. This is the official notice we received.

Yay Atlanta. Congrats to us for having the longest processing times in the country. Up from 34 to 38.5 months when I last checked 😅 🤐

Yes, this is the email we received. Exact same dates too. I noticed from your timeline that you received the K-1 visa about a year ago. We filed the AOS in November 2021 so we're at least 4 or 5 months ahead of you on the timeline. Seems unlikely (?) that they are adjudicating two cases from so many months apart. Maybe they had someone do a quick look through the pending cases for missing documents without considering that the medical exam was already done as part of the K-1 process. As for the specific Saturday dates and times, they probably sent out many of these emails and especially staffed on those days so someone will be there to accept these deliveries. Or maybe they are waiving interviews for a batch of cases and they just want a new medical report for some reason. Just wildly guessing here.

 

Anyway, we did more research on these courtesy letters and many field offices have been sending them out in recent weeks/months.

 

Examples on the USCIS subreddit

https://old.reddit.com/r/USCIS/search/?q=courtesy&sort=new&restrict_sr=on

 

Tweet from USCIS about courtesy letters. Here they are talking about employment based visas but sounds like the same thing being done for AOS applications now.

https://twitter.com/USCIS/status/1529493517894131712

 

After reading more about courtesy letters, our understanding is that these are not official requests in the same way as an RFE. Submitting the form may speed up processing but we aren't required to do so. Whereas, not responding to an RFE can result in a denial. Any other thoughts on this?

Edited March 25, 2023 by EandK

[BradPeters 0]

We just got this same email from the Atlanta office, with the same Saturday dates. I guess we will be shelling out another $500 for a new medical exam, even though we completed one during the K1 process.

[EatBulaga 315]

On 3/25/2023 at 1:22 AM, EandK said:

After reading more about courtesy letters, our understanding is that these are not official requests in the same way as an RFE. Submitting the form may speed up processing but we aren't required to do so. Whereas, not responding to an RFE can result in a denial. Any other thoughts on this?

I got the same email and I plan on going thru with the I-693 if only to get some movement from the Atlanta Field Office?

https://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/798091-request-for-form-i-693-courtesy-email/

 

On 3/27/2023 at 12:22 PM, BradPeters said:

We just got this same email from the Atlanta office, with the same Saturday dates. I guess we will be shelling out another $500 for a new medical exam, even though we completed one during the K1 process.

The Civil Surgeon that we got quoted 250 (paperwork) + 750 (blood test), but our health insurance will cover the 750. 

https://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/798160-how-likely-will-i-get-a-rfe-ds-3025/?tab=comments#comment-10822068

 

If anyone is NOT following thru with the I-693 medical in the courtesy email, and the I-485 case is delayed beyond the 2-year marriage date, will the Atlanta Field Office grant the 10-year GC?

https://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/797800-aos-to-10-year-gc/

With the current wait time of 38.5 months, is anyone in Atlanta Field Office getting the 10-year GC?

If anyone knows of any K1-to-AOS cases getting the 10-year GC because of the delays, please let me know. Thanks.

 

[MnY 3]

Got the same email, Atlanta Office   we just had our medicals done.  NOw ...do we send them in as the email says, or wait for RFE?

this is so confusing.

[EatBulaga 315]

On 4/6/2023 at 12:02 PM, MnY said:

Got the same email, Atlanta Office   we just had our medicals done.  NOw ...do we send them in as the email says, or wait for RFE?

this is so confusing.

If you got the I-693 medical sealed packet already, no reason to sit on it?

You might as well follow the instructions in the courtesy email to submit it?

I'm posting our I-693 experience at

https://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/798091-request-for-form-i-693-courtesy-email/

 

[EandK 0]

OP here. We received a status change on our case which makes it sound like no RFE will be coming for the medical.

 

Case Is Being Actively Reviewed By USCIS
As of April 7, 2023, we are actively reviewing your Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, Receipt Number IOE**********. Our records show nothing is outstanding at this time. We will let you know if we need anything from you. If you move, go to www.uscis.gov/addresschange to give us your new mailing address.

 

@EatBulaga @mrveg @BradPeters @MnY

[EatBulaga 315]

3 hours ago, EandK said:

OP here. We received a status change on our case which makes it sound like no RFE will be coming for the medical.

 

Case Is Being Actively Reviewed By USCIS
As of April 7, 2023, we are actively reviewing your Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, Receipt Number IOE**********. Our records show nothing is outstanding at this time. We will let you know if we need anything from you. If you move, go to www.uscis.gov/addresschange to give us your new mailing address.

 

@EatBulaga @mrveg @BradPeters @MnY

We got the same update.

https://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/786775-july-2022-aos-filers/?do=findComment&comment=10827679

And this was after we went to see the Civil Surgeon.

In the I-693 medical exam, the doctor said the foreign spouse needed an extra particular vaccine dose not listed in the DS-3025.

https://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/798091-request-for-form-i-693-courtesy-email/?do=findComment&comment=10826873

We hope this will avoid any future I-693 RFE.

And we plan to submit extra evidence of our marriage as instructed in the courtesy email.

 

Whether this was a waste of money or time or whatever, we see it as an opportunity to submit more stuff in hopes to get our case moving.😂

Edited April 12, 2023 by EatBulaga

[centric23 95]

18 hours ago, EandK said:

OP here. We received a status change on our case which makes it sound like no RFE will be coming for the medical.

 

Case Is Being Actively Reviewed By USCIS
As of April 7, 2023, we are actively reviewing your Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, Receipt Number IOE**********. Our records show nothing is outstanding at this time. We will let you know if we need anything from you. If you move, go to www.uscis.gov/addresschange to give us your new mailing address.

 

@EatBulaga @mrveg @BradPeters @MnY

The updates are weird once it gets to field office, but the RFE will eventually show up in your portal. They won't continue with your case until medical is received.