Spoke to USCIS in person today!

[jundibasam 0]

It went as I expected, and I got some good information from the USCIS officer there. At first, the guy was a jerk, but then he became more friendly as we talked and gave me some good advice and words of encouragement about this whole process. I really didn't get an answer from him on why my I-129F was transferred to another USCIS office, as this seems to happen rarely, but he insisted it was still in the California Center pending adjudication and everything looked good on all my paperwork and evidence so far. He also said he expects me to get a "final decision" within the next few weeks to a month. As i asked him questions about the process, he finally told me that they are backed up for two reasons, which I found to be the most interesting information he gave me. Everyone knows they more or less stopped processing petitions due to the fee increase in July resulting in a massive influx of petitions, they had a lot of the officers pulled off their normal adjudications and help with filing, data entry, and initial reviews checking the petitions for accuracy, correct filing fees and procedures, etc. But also he said that they stopped processing petitions in May/June during the height of the immigration debate and pending legislation in Congress to overhaul USCIS. Evidently, they didn't want to waste time or resources working on any new cases if Congress was going to change the processing and rules in midstream. So these things coupled together I guess is what is causing delays in April through June filers. I thought that was quite interesting. I didn't get anything done on my case, but I did get some good advice answers from this guy that I felt were honest. If anything, I left with more confidence and more optimism about the process, and with renewed hope action will soon happen

[jj119 0]

That is interesting on the explanation on why they are backed up, but how come some still get processed in resonable time while others approach or pass the 180 day mark lately. Some even petitioning for the same country still get done 2 months after I have filed. I really do want to call again today, because there are no touches today so far, but I called twice last week, so I guess I will just wait until friday again. I am glad they were able to talk to you and not just make up a bunch of stuff to get you out the door so fast. Good luck with the wait.

[jundibasam 0]

That is interesting on the explanation on why they are backed up, but how come some still get processed in resonable time while others approach or pass the 180 day mark lately. Some even petitioning for the same country still get done 2 months after I have filed. I really do want to call again today, because there are no touches today so far, but I called twice last week, so I guess I will just wait until friday again. I am glad they were able to talk to you and not just make up a bunch of stuff to get you out the door so fast. Good luck with the wait.

I don't know the answer. I sort of hinted at your question and asked him why my petition seems to be taking a long time, and he only said the standard answer that it only seems like a long time because of the separation but it still well within the standard processing times. Basically, i'm sure he has information on my case as he was able to read about it on the computer and tell me my initial evidence seems good enough that he doubts i'll get a RFE, but since he isn't the actual adjudicator, i'm not sure of how much details he could see about my actual case, but it was enough to tell me he thinks i'll get a 'final decision' in a few more weeks or month. By the way, I like how he always said 'final decision' because he never once said 'approval' or denial, and a few times he corrected when i said 'approval'me and said 'decision'. I guess he was just CYA and didn't want me to misquote him just in case.

Also, I read from somewhere else a long while ago that the process involves multiple background checks and information requests from other foriegn and domestic agencies, and maybe some people it just takes longer to get cleared through all these checks that they do. but you're right, it just seems some people get approved 2 or 3 months after filing while others (like you, me, and a few others) that it takes the full 6 month processing time. I know they do the whole NCIC thing to check your criminal history, but i'm sure they also run the beneficiary through some type of checks too. Also, I hear that they may pull credit reports too and look for suspicious things like purchasing a brand new mercedes right after your wedding when most people are usually broke because things like that might indicate collaboration or some type of payoff. This is pure speculation, mind you, as I have the slightest clue on USCIS, but I do have 8 years of military, law enforcement, and federal government experience and I read about it in detail a few years back in Time, Newsweek, or one of those magazines befor I had ever knew my wife existed.