Colin Archer

well we went to the interview last week,it was quite nerve wrecking and the officer informed like you have said that we should have filed the i485 jointly with the i130,she asked some questions as regards the marriage and seemed satisfied as to its validity,where we met,how many at the wedding etc,after the interview she gave me a list of forms that she needs,i485,i864,i693,i765.She said she could see no reason why the petition could not be approved that day.Anyway you are right it is a very serious business and i have to say i am nervous,im sure we will have to go for another interview for the i485,what will they go over at that interview,i know there are security checks and that sort of thing,none of us have any problems with the law so that should be fine,but i am wondering what we can expect the next time.Thanks for your reply by the way.Oh,the reason she gave for the long wait was,she was working on a case previous to ours when it got put in abandonment,she then moved to our case only for the previous case to become active again,so she moved back to that case once again

Your lawyer is wrong. The current average processing time for an I-130 is 5 months. 14 months is definitely unusual.

People come to this forum to learn how to handle immigration petitions and applications without the assistance of an attorney. There are clearly written guides (see the link at the top of any page) that describe, in detail, how to prepare each type of petition or application, and what documents or evidence is required. However, virtually everything that's written in those guides can be also be discovered by simply reading the instructions for each of the forms. The guides on this site simply boil everything down into plain English, and leave out the irrelevant stuff that's contained in the form instructions of non-applicable circumstances.

You sent an I-130 with a marriage certificate and it was rightfully denied. You didn't read the form instructions. You've now sent the I-130 with the evidence that was missing the first time. Apparently, you still haven't read the form instructions or you would have known you could simultaneously file an application for your wife's green card. If you had done this then she would be getting a green card shortly after the interview. An approved I-130 will only make her eligible to apply for a green card.

Things got "blown out of proportion", as you say, because you said nothing had happened in your case for 14 months. For anyone on this forum, that would set off alarm bells. Everyone here knows it's not supposed to take anywhere near that long. So, the obvious question everyone wanted to know was what exactly did you do or not do so that they could try to figure out why it was taking so long.

Well we went to the interview and yes i should have filed the i485 jointly with the i130,the officer reviewed our documents in support of a bona fide marriage asked us where we met,how many guests at the wedding etc,she said there was no reason why the i130 could not be approved on the day,and gave me a list of forms to prepare i485,i864,i693 and i765.She was the one who brought up the subject of the duration on our wait,she said the case before ours was put in abandonment while she was working on it,she then moved to our case only for the previous case to be taken out of abandonment and then she returned to that case.The interview was last tuesday so i am still waiting for the written word from uscis regarding the i130.You are right i was taking this far to lightly,it is very serious business the interview was quite nerve wrecking,will they go over the same things at the i485 interview or is it different in any way?ps i am getting a lawyer to help me prepare the documents

You were accused of being sarcastic because you appear to be somewhat cavalier about the process. Nobody here would be that relaxed. Perhaps you weren't aware of the consequences if your wife's adjustment of status ends up being denied with prejudice. Are you aware that you could be subjected to a Stokes interview when you arrive at the USCIS field office in Atlanta? Do you know what a Stokes interview is? It's never too late to begin your education...

You really need to read some more--and be a little more responsible for what is a very serious issue for you and your wife's future. Good luck.

your right I have made some mistakes on the first app by not reading the requirements properly,but all seems to be on track now i have spoken with a lawyer of good reputation who has told me i have nothing to worry about and that 14 months is not unusual in fact the average wait time at the moment is 12 months,that was my originally my sole concern but somehow things got blown way out of proportion on this forum,thanks for your time.

You can't remember? What did you do with the papers?

No all i know is it was denied,and rightly so as i did not submit the required evidence the first time,it was obviously denied without prejudice or my second app would have been denied as promptly as the first one.

oh i cant remember to be honest,what is the difference and what do you mean with or without prejudice

ok i just looked it up.I doubt very much if it was denied with prejudice just for not submitting evidence of co habitation,that seems a bit harsh.

Was it "rejected" or "denied"? There's a big difference. If it was denied, was it with or without prejudice?

oh i cant remember to be honest,what is the difference and what do you mean with or without prejudice

Why didn't you tell us this??

It's unlikely that it was denied just because you didn't include something. What were the exact reasons for the denial? Was it without prejudice?

yes,it said lack of evidence,which was correct as i did not provide any evidence other than the marriage cert

Why it took 14 months, however, is another matter. You may have checked an incorrect box that misrouted it within the bureaucracy. Alternatively, there could be some questions about the relationship.

I have no idea why it took so long if there are any questions about the relationship we will answer them at the interview.I first filled two weeks after we got married but did not include any evidence to back up co habitation as i mistakenly did not think that was required at that stage.My app was promptly denied and rather than appealing the decision i just filed again but this time with all the required evidence and more.Maybe that had something to do with the delay

There is nothing wrong or incorrect about submitting a stand-alone I-130 even if the immediate relative beneficiary is in the United States and plans on adjusting status. It is just simply very inefficient considering that USCIS allows you to file the I-485 concurrently. The OP could have saved a good 5 months.

The OP's interview is the normal bona-fide marriage interview, but only that relationship will be in question--and not the beneficiary's admissibility to the US as with the I-485. Once the I-130 is approved, he will send in the I-485 by itself. After this, there will likely (not always) be another interview just for the applicant (i.e. the beneficiary of the I-485) to determine admissability only--not the marriage. The interview notice the OP received is not a fraud interview; it is the normal joint bona-fide marriage interview since his wife is in the US.

Thanks for that,like i have said im very happy just to have heard something from them,something that seems to be moving forward at that.

I'm sorry, I can't help you then. Maybe someone else can try.

Normally, a person with an in-country spouse will file Adjustment of Status with a concurrent I-130/I-485 petition. They file a whole slew of forms, including affidavit of support and a medical. The process takes a few months and there is a joint interview at the end.

People with spouses out of country will file a stand-alone I-130. The petition takes about 5 months to be approved and then it will go to the National Visa Center, where the petitioner will send in an Affidavit of Support. Then once that is approved the packet goes to the US embassy in the spouses country and the spouse does a medical and an interview.

Sometimes, when USCIS suspects fraud with a stand-alone I-130 petition, they will schedule a pre-interview with the petitioner, and scrutinize the marriage to decide if they should approve the petition. This appears to be what you are doing now, which is totally the wrong process, and why some people here think you are suspected of fraud. You think you are supposed to submit an affidavit of support at this interview you are having. Something is seriously wrong here. You say you have been waiting 14 months. That alone is a major problem. I tend to think there are serious details you are leaving out, or that you do not understand which has jeopardized the process.

People have asked you here about your case, and you appear sarcastic. We still don't know what you filed, how your spouse previously abandoned PR status, how she got back in the country, etc. These important details will help us help you.

You can bring a horse to water, but you can't force it to drink.

I do appreciate your help and i apologize if i came across as sarcastic,it was not my intention,my only concern in my first post was that this was taking a long time for some reason,however now that i have the news of the interview all is well,i would say i just submitted the wrong form for my situation or not enough forms.I can assure you and anyone else who may have been reading my posts their is nothing sinister or fraudulent in any of my dealings with the uscis or anybody for that matter,once again thanks for your time

I will repeat my request: Please tell us who you are, where you are, and what you are trying to apply for. Your case appears to be seriously messed up, with wrong forms, pre-interviews for fraud, all kinds of problems. If you let us know these things, then maybe we can help.

Oh, also tell us how residency was abandoned, the whole story. It's not to pry, but we can't help with no information.

My name is Colin Archer i am a US citizen,I live in GA I am trying to get permanent resident status for my wife who is a British citizen.Nobody from USCIS has told me there are any problems,i have satisfied their requests for all documents,my marriage is totally legitimate,why would there be any problems,they have informed me today that i have an interview the end of this month.Now i have quite a few forms to fill out,affidavit of support etc,

If she is in the US, then why didn't you file AOS with a concurrent I-130/I-485 petition?

Im afraid i dont know what an AOS IS,

Yep http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/326303-i130/page__view__findpost__p__4865039

Well, now you know what's going on at least. If I were giving you an interview, the first thing I would ask is, why were you willing to let this go on for 14 months? Why didn't you follow your wife to the UK when she left?

firstly i complied with everything they asked for and was quite prompt at that,it seems that the ball was in their court and secondly my wife is sitting beside me as i type

Maybe you will get a local interview due to red flags. At least they know you exist.

I just got a letter today,i have an interview in Atlanta the end of the month,

Make an InfoPass and go.

what is an infopass?

The processing time is WAY off, but the interview is very normal.

Why haven't you gone to the Atlanta office yet to ask them in person? The call center is useless.

I agree the call center is a waste of time,i have never even thought of going to Atlanta in person,i figured they would get with me eventually,however fourteen months seems to be unusual to say the least

The only thing I can think of is that you, as the petitioner, are being a given a pre-interview, because there are red flags in your case. They do this from time to time, and it seems Atlanta is your local office. Is there anything unusual about your case, a large age difference? a different birth country than Scotland? As to the delay, I can only guess extensive background checks.

My wife had a green card in the past and lost it due to non residence,maybe this has something to do with the delay

Your USCIS local office is Atlanta and your I-130 was transferred from California back to Atlanta?

Yes,about six months after i sent it,it was transferred to Atlanta which would be the closest office to me

Colin Archer, did you send in the I-130 ONLY or did you send in the I-130 with I-765, I-485?

When did you last call USCIS customer service?

i130 only last time i called them was about two months ago

Was it a stand-alone I-130? It would help if you would tell us what you are attempting to apply for and who you are and what country the beneficiary is from (it says Scotland but it may be more complicated).

Yes,it was an i130 filed on behalf of my wife who is from the UK,

14 months, Atlanta? Unusual!

Did you call the USCIS customer service or schedule an Infopass at your USCIS local office?

I have called them dozens of times,they then send me a letter in recognition of the phone call and tell me if i dont hear from them in six months to call them again

No it's not normal. You sent a stand-alone I-130?

You are supposed to send it to the Chicago Lockbox, not California. Did you send it to California directly?

No i sent it to Chicago,i received a letter saying it was now in California and later, a letter telling me it was transferred to Atlanta

I filed an i130 14 months ago,to the California service center,it has since been transferred to Atlanta,which is odd as Atlanta does not process i130 i hear.Is 14 months a usual time to be waiting?