Edward and Jaycel

They will take a photo and fingerprints at the interview regardless of the new policy.... I think this is more towards limiting the "Biometrics Reuse" when filing for a benefit. If you haven't had a picture taken by USCIS within 3 years then they will not reuse biometrics data they collected further back than that 3 years and it looks like they will schedule you for a new appointment regardless of the last biometrics taken when you submit one of the applications listed in the policy.

US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is issuing new guidance that limits the age of foreign nationals’ photos that can be used to create immigration documents to no more than three years. This update enhances national security and prevents identity fraud. Effective immediately, the new guidance in the USCIS Policy Manual limits the use of photos to those that were taken within three years of the date a person files a USCIS form. Additionally, self-submitted photos will no longer be accepted. Only photos taken by USCIS or other authorized entities will be used. This ensures every photo used in a secure document is recent, accurate, and reliable—key requirements to preventing fraud and identity theft. Robust screening and vetting processes are critical to protecting the security and integrity of the U.S. immigration system. COVID-19-era flexibilities, which allowed the reuse of photos for up to 10 years even if a person’s appearance changed significantly, were kept in place longer than necessary. This compromised USCIS’ ability to verify, identify, and properly screen aliens. This policy change aligns with Department of Homeland Security priorities to modernize screening and vetting processes and address the vulnerabilities in identity documents. Certain forms will require a new photo, regardless of when an applicant’s or petitioner’s last photograph was taken. These include Form I-90, Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card; Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status; Form N-400, Application for Naturalization; and Form N-600, Application for Certificate of Citizenship.

She did not ever have it... The good thing at SLEC now (from what I'm told) is that they do the Interferon Gamma Release Assay (IGRA) Test for TB also and don't rely solely on the X-Ray like they used to. He will have to disclose his history and that should explain if they see any old scarring on the X-Ray. The thing is with SLEC is that it seems hit or miss depending on who the radiologist is reading the X-Ray. This was the biggest thing we were nervous about in the whole embassy process.

@Captain Ewok in addition to the [[Block new_topics_2019 is throwing an error]] it looks like the "Trending Immigration Discussions" section is not populating new stories as well

There is nowhere on the I-130 where you have to disclose these things.... However, USCIS still does background checks on the petitioners and I have seen on other platforms, an increasing number of US Citizen Petitioners reporting that they are being scheduled for biometrics appointments. Most of them have reported that they have some kind of criminal record, so be prepared for this. Also get ahead of the train here and start requesting whatever official court records / expungement certificates, DVTRO dismissal records you can get your hands on. Get a few copies of each. That way you will be prepared in case of an RFE from USCIS (when they RFE for court records, they want official, sealed/stamped court records) AND you will have another set to send to your wife as they will likely want official records at the embassy interview. I would also start crafting a short, sworn affidavit that you can have notarized, explaining these things. Then when the time comes, you are prepared for any eventuality and not scrambling with an RFE clock ticking down or trying to answer a 221g from the embassy.

Woo Hooo!!! 🎉🎉🎉 Congratulations!!

Have you made a public inquiry with NVC to get your case number yet?

Yes... Our status changed to "Card Produced" 5 days after the approval and it arrived in the mail 3 days after that. Our friends got their approval Dec.2nd and their status changed to "Card Produced" on Dec. 5th so it can go faster and slower

Woo Hoo!!! Congrats! 🎉🎉 That was almost exactly as long after the interview as our friends who got approved last week

I'm getting the same error

Fingers crossed for you guys!!

Our friends just got their approval - 125 days post interview, 65 days post congressional inquiry

If this is in the "Case Progress" tab, you can ignore the estimates there. They are notoriously inaccurate. I will say that a lot of the times it changes dramatically like that, it's because someone at USCIS did something with your file and it trips that progress estimator to change wildly for some reason.

Read the language carefully (especially pertinent in government Policy Memoranda) it says, "Place a hold on pending benefit requests". A benefit request is not "pending" until it has been accepted and a receipt notice issued. By this language, if they follow the memorandum, they should accept and receipt the I-751 (which includes the automatic 48-month extension). The adjudication of the benefit is then placed on hold. If it's not cleared up by May, file the I-751 as your window opens.

File on-time... The pause, according to the policy memo, is a pause on adjudications. Theoretically this means that your application should be accepted and receipt notice with 48-month extension should be issued.