Crazy Cat

Yep. I learned a lot from him and others over my 10 years here......

As the late (and great Visa Journey member) @geowrian once said, "USCIS is like a grocery store with many lanes. Some lanes are just faster than others". Waiting is one of the hardest parts of immigration.

We received notice that our interview would be a combo only 2 days prior to wife's N-400 interview. As @Edward and Jaycel said, go prepared for a combo.

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It's time for the Iranian people to regain their freedom. If they refuse, then the US might completely destroy their electric infrastructure.

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That is not an acceptable reason for the consulate to accept an I-130. It must be "exceptional circumstances". In fact, USCIS states that expediting the processing time as the sole reason is not an exceptional circumstance. I encourage you to read the USCIS guidance here: https://www.uscis.gov/policy-manual/volume-6-part-b-chapter-3 A. When the U.S. Department of State is Authorized to Accept and Adjudicate Form I-130 USCIS has delegated[7] authority to DOS to accept and adjudicate a clearly approvable Form I-130 filed abroad by a U.S. citizen petitioner for an immediate relative[8] if the petitioner establishes exceptional circumstances or falls under blanket authorization criteria defined by USCIS.[9] A clearly approvable petition is generally one that includes sufficient primary evidence to establish the status of the petitioner and the qualifying relationship.[10] This policy applies even in countries with a USCIS presence. Without such delegation, DOS has no authority to permit a U.S. embassy or consulate to accept a local Form I-130 filing abroad. If a consular officer in a U.S. embassy or consulate encounters an individual case that the officer believes needs immediate processing of a Form I-130 filed by a U.S. citizen petitioner for an immediate relative, the consular officer may, but is not required to, accept the local filing in exceptional circumstances, in accordance with the guidance below. If DOS accepts a petition, USCIS must receive notice of the filing and information about the basis for local acceptance. 1. Exceptional Circumstances Examples of exceptional circumstances include, but are not limited to: Military emergencies – A U.S. citizen military service member petitioner, who is abroad but who does not fall under the blanket authorization for U.S. citizen service members stationed abroad on military bases, becomes aware of a new deployment or transfer with little notice. This exception generally applies in cases where the U.S. citizen service member is provided with exceptionally less notice than normally expected. Medical emergencies – A petitioner or alien beneficiary is facing an urgent medical emergency that requires immediate travel. Threats to personal safety – A petitioner or alien beneficiary is facing an imminent threat to personal safety. For example, a petitioner and alien beneficiary may have been forced to flee their country of residence due to civil strife or natural disaster and are in precarious circumstances in a different country outside of the United States. Close to aging out – An alien beneficiary is within a few months of aging out of eligibility. Petitioner has recently naturalized – A petitioner and alien beneficiary has traveled for the immigrant visa interview, but the petitioner has naturalized and the beneficiary requires a new petition based on the petitioner’s citizenship. Adoption of a child – A U.S. citizen petitioner has adopted a child abroad and has an imminent need to depart the country. This type of case should only be considered if the adoptive parent petitioner(s) has a final adoption decree on behalf of the child and has had legal custody of and jointly resided with the child for at least 2 years.[11] Short notice of position relocation – A U.S. citizen petitioner, living and working abroad, has received a job offer in or reassignment to the United States with little notice for the required start date. Discretion The list of examples provided above is not exhaustive. DOS may exercise its discretion to accept clearly approvable local Form I-130 filings for other exceptional circumstances, unless specifically noted below. However, such filings must be truly urgent and otherwise limited to situations when filing with USCIS online or domestically with an expedite request would likely not be sufficient to address the time-sensitive and exigent nature of the situation. DOS may consider a petitioner’s residency within the consular district when determining whether to accept a filing, but it is not required.[12] B. When the U.S. Department of State is Not Authorized to Accept and Adjudicate Form I-130 DOS may not exercise discretion to accept local filings in certain scenarios. USCIS does not authorize DOS to accept a local filing abroad when a petitioner based in the United States seeks to travel and file abroad in order to expedite processing. DOS acceptance of Form I-130s abroad is intended to assist petitioners living abroad who demonstrate exceptional circumstances as described above. In addition, USCIS does not authorize DOS to accept a local filing abroad if the petitioner has already filed a Form I-130 domestically for the same beneficiary. If exigent circumstances exist, the petitioner should request expedited processing for an electronic or domestically-filed petition. Local consular or USCIS staff should inform the petitioner of the process to request expedited adjudication.[14]

You are correct. It will delay the process and/or add even more administrative processing time.

If she is residing there legally (you said vacation), may be possible if, for example, she has a pending short-notice job offer or assignment in the US. Contact the US Consulate in Mumbai and ask if you qualify for them to process the I-130. Step #1 is to legally marry.

DCF is not possible if the US citizen doesn't live there. Nothing related to immigration is fast. The CR-1 process is going to take about 18-24 months....maybe longer. That is just the harsh reality of the matter. Step #1 is to legally marry. Good luck.

No. That does not apply to Green cards. Also, note that, even when a 10 year Green card expires, status as a legal resident does not expire....only the evidence does. Regardless, airlines are authorized to board holders of expired 10 year cards.

Be aware that the ability to support a new immigrant is based on current annual income. That means income expected over the next 12 months from date of submission of the I-864 (needs supporting documents). What was reported on tax returns in the past is not important. Current annual income for a W-2 employee is calculated as: Gross pay from latest paystub multiplied times the number of pay periods per year (12 months). 125% of the threshold for the contiguous United States is $27,050 for a household of 2. I see no issue if the petitioner's income is still at the level as last year. Good luck.

From what you posted, it seems, to me, that you did everything correctly. Good luck.

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/News/visas-news/adjudicating-iv-applicants-in-their-country-of-residence.html "The Department of State is now requiring immigrant visa applicants to interview in the consular district designated for their place of residence, or in their country of nationality if requested, with limited exceptions.

Is this some new policy? Beneficiaries have normally been able to choose between country of birth (citizenship) or country of residence.