Missed biometrics appointment due to travel out of the country

[lemurianelf 19]

Hello good people.

I submitted the packed for the removal of conditions a week before going on a month long trip abroad.  Upon return I went through my mail and realized I missed the appointment. From my research, doing a walk in is a good option but the office they assigned to me is far and I'm going to be this week in NYC and want to try walk in there. Does anyone know if you can go to the ASC that you were not assigned as your ASC or should I only do a walk in in the office I was assigned?

[OldUser 7,323]

What does the online status say for your case? I think you should have tried walking in the next day after return to the US. Your case has all the potential of being denied or becoming messy. Just go to location USCIS assigned to you. You have letter with the address on it. NYC office is probably very busy and they can turn you away. Not only you'd show up wrong time, but also wrong place. My advice: drop everything and go there on Tuesday (not sure if Monday they're gonna be around as this is federal holiday AFAIK). Ideally you should have monitored online status and mail using USPS Informed Delivery and rushed back to the US to go to the appointment.

Worst case you can be denied and being prepared to be placed in removal proceedings.

Edited October 12, 2024 by OldUser

[lemurianelf 19]

I saw the letter on my return. I came back Wednesday. I had no idea they would send it within 2 weeks.

 

Also thanks that was very helpful just increasing my anxiety.

[Ban Hammer 13,490]

4 hours ago, lemurianelf said:

I saw the letter on my return. I came back Wednesday. I had no idea they would send it within 2 weeks.

 

Also thanks that was very helpful just increasing my anxiety.

note that the advice from the previous member is on target.  you may not like it, but it's worth following.

[OldUser 7,323]

I'm sorry if my comment made you anxious. My sole intention was to highlight the importance of addressing this ASAP. Good luck and let us know what happens next. Wishing speedy resolution

[ineedadisplayname 503]

Go to the assigned place as soon as possible and try to sort it out there.

 

This is a very good lesson on while dealing with USCIS taking month long vacations are not always advised since vacation doesn't count as a valid "excuse" of missing or rescheduling appointments. 

 

In general when dealing with USCIS think of it as they are not there to accommodate you at all. (there are exceptions for the rule, like ADA and acceptable reasons on why you need to reschedule an appointment).

 

Also create an account on their website and add your case plus sign up for informed delivery with usps to be sure you don't miss letters  (it can happen that usps messes it up which can delay things and out of your control)

[lemurianelf 19]

7 hours ago, ineedadisplayname said:

Go to the assigned place as soon as possible and try to sort it out there.

 

This is a very good lesson on while dealing with USCIS taking month long vacations are not always advised since vacation doesn't count as a valid "excuse" of missing or rescheduling appointments. 

 

In general when dealing with USCIS think of it as they are not there to accommodate you at all. (there are exceptions for the rule, like ADA and acceptable reasons on why you need to reschedule an appointment).

 

Also create an account on their website and add your case plus sign up for informed delivery with usps to be sure you don't miss letters  (it can happen that usps messes it up which can delay things and out of your control)

Yes thank you. Driving there first thing on tuesday.

[lemurianelf 19]

Just an update for any future readers who might be alarmed by the helpful person who told me "to prepare for removal proceeding". I called the next day for reschedule which they did no problem. Despite that, I dropped into the NYC ASC and was admitted zero problem with no appointment when I told them I lived far from the assigned Port Chester one. They took my prints and thats it.

 

 

Edited October 26, 2024 by lemurianelf
error

[lemurianelf 19]

On 10/12/2024 at 4:29 PM, Ban Hammer said:

note that the advice from the previous member is on target.  you may not like it, but it's worth following.

No it wasnt on target.  Telling me to get ready for deportation because I missed an appointment is not on target, not accurate and not helpful. It was easy peasy to reschedule and to walk into an office I wasnt assigned to. Zero problem. No one tried to deport me. Maybe before giving advice that could cause someone to panic and have a heart attack, inform yourself and know what youre talking about.

[OldUser 7,323]

5 hours ago, lemurianelf said:

No it wasnt on target.  Telling me to get ready for deportation because I missed an appointment is not on target, not accurate and not helpful. It was easy peasy to reschedule and to walk into an office I wasnt assigned to. Zero problem. No one tried to deport me. Maybe before giving advice that could cause someone to panic and have a heart attack, inform yourself and know what youre talking about.

It's good you went to the appointment. Acting fast is the key to success. Good luck with your journey.

Edited October 26, 2024 by OldUser

[JKLSemicolon 419]

On 10/25/2024 at 7:12 PM, lemurianelf said:

No it wasnt on target.  Telling me to get ready for deportation because I missed an appointment is not on target, not accurate and not helpful. It was easy peasy to reschedule and to walk into an office I wasnt assigned to. Zero problem. No one tried to deport me. Maybe before giving advice that could cause someone to panic and have a heart attack, inform yourself and know what youre talking about.

I read the part of @OldUser’s post about “being prepared to be placed in removal proceedings” as referring to the case, i.e. if one misses a biometrics appointment and never follows up, reschedules, etc., USCIS could deny the case and prepare for removal proceedings. It was specifically mentioned as the worst-case scenario and I don’t read it as telling you to prepare for that yourself; the emphasis was on what you could do to prevent that from happening, which you then did.

 

That you were fortunately able to follow up before something like a case denial happened does not mean that someone was wrong in pointing out what could have happened otherwise.

 

 

[RM1996 14]

On 10/25/2024 at 9:09 PM, lemurianelf said:

Just an update for any future readers who might be alarmed by the helpful person who told me "to prepare for removal proceeding". I called the next day for reschedule which they did no problem. Despite that, I dropped into the NYC ASC and was admitted zero problem with no appointment when I told them I lived far from the assigned Port Chester one. They took my prints and thats it.

 

 

Hi, I'm having the same problem. You did a walk-in after missing your biometrics appointment an they let you do it? I went in today and was informed I could not do my biometrics as I do not have a schedule appointment date.

[mindthegap 2,599]

On 10/25/2024 at 9:12 PM, lemurianelf said:

No it wasnt on target.  Telling me to get ready for deportation because I missed an appointment is not on target, not accurate and not helpful. It was easy peasy to reschedule and to walk into an office I wasnt assigned to. Zero problem. No one tried to deport me. Maybe before giving advice that could cause someone to panic and have a heart attack, inform yourself and know what youre talking about.

 

Well, @OldUser said "Worst case you can be denied and being prepared to be placed in removal proceedings" which IS accurate.

Legally, they can - and do - regularly deny cases for missing a biometrics. USCIS are horrendous at rescheduling these things, and it isn't uncommon at all. 

 

They also specifically said worst case, and removal proceedings, which is an entire process that is initiated upon a denial, and not some sort of instant deportation. 

It was helpful. Just because you don't like what you hear, and the possible consequences of your actions (yes, you were travelling, but the legal onus as a USCIS applicant and a resident alien is squarely on you to be informed of your status and any appointments pretty much at all times) doesn't invalidate the comment at all. 

 

[Edit] - I just noticed this is a couple of month old thread that has been bumped by someone in the same situation. My comment still stands though.

Edited January 6 by mindthegap

[lemurianelf 19]

23 minutes ago, RM1996 said:

Hi, I'm having the same problem. You did a walk-in after missing your biometrics appointment an they let you do it? I went in today and was informed I could not do my biometrics as I do not have a schedule appointment date.

Yes, I went to the office in Manhattan and mine was 2 hours away. However, I did first get a new appointment date and then did a walk in.

 

You need to call the uscis number. Then an agent will take your credentials and get back to you. I received a notice 2 days via the online portal with a new appointment date. Then I did a walk in. Try that.

[RM1996 14]

41 minutes ago, lemurianelf said:

Yes, I went to the office in Manhattan and mine was 2 hours away. However, I did first get a new appointment date and then did a walk in.

 

You need to call the uscis number. Then an agent will take your credentials and get back to you. I received a notice 2 days via the online portal with a new appointment date. Then I did a walk in. Try that.

Thank you, i called on Friday and haven't heard anything! Hopefully, I get something this week 😭.