Realistic wait times after removal of conditions pending

[gunny.ream 1]

So, I applied for a new DL because I needed to change the address. They asked for a copy of my GC and my extension letter. The new DL arrived in the mail today, and I'm surprised they only granted it for a year. Is this because of my pending I-751/N-400? I usually see the expiry date closer to the GC expiration, especially with the extension letter.

[OldUser 6,663]

35 minutes ago, gunny.ream said:

So, I applied for a new DL because I needed to change the address. They asked for a copy of my GC and my extension letter. The new DL arrived in the mail today, and I'm surprised they only granted it for a year. Is this because of my pending I-751/N-400? I usually see the expiry date closer to the GC expiration, especially with the extension letter.

Which state? Also when was the last time you paid for DL? Many states have 5 years until you have to renew. So if you applied for DL while on some other status, had it for 1 year, renewed when you became GC holder, you may only have a year left until you have to pay the fee and get 5 years. That happened to me. I renewed GC twice while on conditional GC. First time for free, and it was like for a year, then paid the fee and got it for 5 years.

Edited May 29 by OldUser

[gunny.ream 1]

State: CA

Last time I paid for DL was in 2021

My first DL was issued in 2021 and expired in 2025 and I paid for it (cant remember how much).

The second DL is issued in 2024 (a week ago) and expired in 2025 and I paid $30.

 

 

[Mozillaman 7]

On 5/29/2024 at 1:04 PM, gunny.ream said:

So, I applied for a new DL because I needed to change the address. They asked for a copy of my GC and my extension letter. The new DL arrived in the mail today, and I'm surprised they only granted it for a year. Is this because of my pending I-751/N-400? I usually see the expiry date closer to the GC expiration, especially with the extension letter.

Sounds like you didn't renew your Driver's License. Account to the CA DMV website, it costs $36 to get a replacement DL; and given this and the previous expired the same year, it wasn't renewed, it was replaced. It's OPTIONAL to get a replacement card when you change your license in CA for future refernce: https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/online-change-of-address-coa-system/

 

[OldUser 6,663]

13 minutes ago, Mozillaman said:

Sounds like you didn't renew your Driver's License. Account to the CA DMV website, it costs $36 to get a replacement DL; and given this and the previous expired the same year, it wasn't renewed, it was replaced. It's OPTIONAL to get a replacement card when you change your license in CA for future refernce: https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/online-change-of-address-coa-system/

 

Thanks for clarifying. I also researched this topic and wanted to reply with similar conclusion but forgot.

Edited June 3 by OldUser

[JKLSemicolon 413]

On 5/29/2024 at 2:04 PM, gunny.ream said:

So, I applied for a new DL because I needed to change the address. They asked for a copy of my GC and my extension letter. The new DL arrived in the mail today, and I'm surprised they only granted it for a year. Is this because of my pending I-751/N-400? I usually see the expiry date closer to the GC expiration, especially with the extension letter.

In our state (NM) the Real ID compliant driver licenses or state IDs are only issued for one year at a time to conditional GC holders. We were told at the MVD office that this restriction comes from DHS. The license/ID itself is also marked “TEMPORARY” at the top. Since the deadline for Real ID compliance keeps getting pushed back we’ll probably do the non-Real ID version (issued for 4 years) next time around, which may not be an option in other states.

Edited June 3 by JKLSemicolon

[OldUser 6,663]

2 hours ago, JKLSemicolon said:

In our state (NM) the Real ID compliant driver licenses or state IDs are only issued for one year at a time to conditional GC holders. We were told at the MVD office that this restriction comes from DHS. The license/ID itself is also marked “TEMPORARY” at the top. Since the deadline for Real ID compliance keeps getting pushed back we’ll probably do the non-Real ID version (issued for 4 years) next time around, which may not be an option in other states.

In CA we don't get "Temporary" on Real ID DL

Edited June 3 by OldUser

[Positive_Vibes 63]

On 5/29/2024 at 2:11 PM, gunny.ream said:

State: CA

Last time I paid for DL was in 2021

My first DL was issued in 2021 and expired in 2025 and I paid for it (cant remember how much).

The second DL is issued in 2024 (a week ago) and expired in 2025 and I paid $30.

 

 

 

Looks like you just got a replacement DL to change the address on it, hence the same expiration (2025)

[gunny.ream 1]

I got a chance to an agent from USCIS and I got following info:
My interview was requested and is waiting to be scheduled. It was requested on 05/24/24 and the location of the case is NBC.

 

When the interview is scheduled, does the case move to the field office? So, do the processing times of a field office not apply to my case at the moment? Because if I look up my field office times...I'm definitely out of the normal process times. I guess they're all estimates.

[OldUser 6,663]

2 hours ago, gunny.ream said:

I got a chance to an agent from USCIS and I got following info:
My interview was requested and is waiting to be scheduled. It was requested on 05/24/24 and the location of the case is NBC.

 

When the interview is scheduled, does the case move to the field office?

Yes. The office needs to have paperwork to interview you.

2 hours ago, gunny.ream said:

So, do the processing times of a field office not apply to my case at the moment? Because if I look up my field office times...I'm definitely out of the normal process times. I guess they're all estimates.

They're estimates for people filing new cases now. You won't start from scratch.

[gunny.ream 1]

What's the average time for a case to go from "interview pending" to "interview scheduled"? The fact that my interview is in requested state is a good thing?

[OldUser 6,663]

19 minutes ago, gunny.ream said:

What's the average time for a case to go from "interview pending" to "interview scheduled"? The fact that my interview is in requested state is a good thing?

This depends on local field office AND your luck. There's no official statistics collected on this... Can take few weeks to a year or more in rare cases. Some people are stuck in this phase for a while, but most get interview within few weeks or months.

Edited September 3 by OldUser

[gunny.ream 1]

I just got an email saying "Interview was scheduled" haven't received a mail yet. 

Any DOs and DONT's during interview?

Thank you.

[OldUser 6,663]

15 minutes ago, gunny.ream said:

I just got an email saying "Interview was scheduled" haven't received a mail yet. 

Any DOs and DONT's during interview?

Thank you.

1. Bring your US citizen spouse if you're still married

2. Make sure to have matching address on your IDs

3. Bring all evidence of bonafide marriage you have

4. Bring lawyer if you can afford one

5. Practice questions with your spouse

 

Do not tell stories. Answer questions directly. If unsure, don't remember or don't know something, don't make it up. If you don't understand a question, ask for clarification.

[gunny.ream 1]

We have an RFE on our I-751, so I'm sure the first set of questions will be related to that and then the N-400 application. Any suggestions on this? We sent in all the evidence months ago (details on previous pages), so that should be in the system.

 

1. Regarding the addresses on our IDs: my wife still has her parents' house on her driver's license as she didn't update hers. I updated mine a few months ago. I'm not sure if this is considered a red flag. Either way, its too late to update now.

2. I got laid off from my day job, so the health insurance evidence we submitted is now obsolete. Are there any issues with this?
3. Should I take my physical green card and extension letter too?

4. When should I expect a mail for the interview? Hopefully there's enough time window from the mail arrival to interview date.

Edited October 8 by gunny.ream