NorthByNorthwest

I had the same issue, in essence the US FOIA info is a bit hit or miss, especially when it comes to land crossings. It is also not consistent which document number is used, so unless you list all possible travel documents in the request you might not get everything. For example I got back results with the following for document number: * Foreign passport # * A-number without the A * NEXUS card number (not the PASSID, even though I only listed the PASSID in the request) * I-485 petition number In 2022 my CBP FOIA request took about 60 days. In an earlier 2020 request (was going to do a 3-year N400 but skipped it due to the pandemic) I got results with different level of detail and I didn't list all document numbers for that one. Again - seems pretty much hit-or-miss depending on who handles your FOIA request. For land crossings into Canada I got much better results from an ATIP request from Canada's CBSA in less than 30 days - I recommend that option.

Unless things have changed, your A-number is printed on your visa sticker, that won't help with the missing NOA2 though. One would think a photocopy of the visa itself would be sufficient since the visa would not have been issued without an approved petition, but since there are multiple branches of government involved that might be too much of an assumption... If it were me and the 90-day limit was approaching I'd consider filing without the NOA2, but then there's certainly a risk that the I-485 would be returned outright, or be delayed for an RFE later, so definitely a sticky situation.

See this page for info on how to submit documents through CEAC or by postal mail: https://jp.usembassy.gov/visas/immigrant-visas/family-immigration/case-status/

To add to this, some countries have totalization agreements with the US so if you don't have enough work credits in the US you may be able to count work in those other countries as well into the US system. In my case I worked for over 10 years in Japan so I qualify for basic Japanese benefits - if I for some reason were to not reach 40 quarters in the US I could transfer the Japanese credits (and lose Japanese benefits in the process). By retirement time I'll have to look into whether it is more beneficial to keep the Japanese benefit as-is or transfer to the US. More info here: https://www.ssa.gov/international/agreement_descriptions.html#monthly I don't know if any of this applies to Medicare benefits though...

At the time it was regular postal mail - things may have changed by now though.

In Japan 2016 all instructions for medical / signing up for visa appointment etc came from the local embassy to me (beneficiary) only, all petitioner got was a notice that the I-129F had been approved.

The system won't let you input dates in the future. They will ask for it during the interview, my interviewer could already see trips done since the application on her computer and added those to the file as we went through it.

Your wife can do a FOIA request for US entry/exit records. Note that the exit records are a bit hit-or-miss since there are no formal exit checks in the US (though more and more airports do biometric exit checks), those dates tend to come from airline records or other countries that share data. The process also usually takes a few months. I combined a US FOIA request with Canada ATIP request to reconcile tens of land border trips to Canada before my N-400.

Things may have changed since 2016, but in my case I (the beneficiary) got a letter from the US embassy in Tokyo notifying me that they were ready to start processing my case, it had a case number starting with TKY, a copy of the approved I-129F including A-number, WAC number and TKY number added. It also had an instruction sheet on how to start the DS-160, how to book medical etc and how to book visa appointment etc. Note that this was sent to me in Japan, not the petitioner, she never saw the TKY number on anything sent to her in the US.

I just looked back at my old pile of documents, I interviewed at the Tokyo embassy and did indeed have a TKY number in the welcome letter from the embassy, it was also written on the copy of the approved I-129F. If your fiancee is not in Japan, the theory fails...

This is the way to go, I did and had passport (and passport card) in hand 3 days after naturalization. When I was at the passport agency I overheard several people that were there to expedite regular applications that were already in progress but ran out of time due to travel and I believe they got their passports as well either same day or next. As long as you live close enough to an agency to be able go there twice over a few days and have the time to wait in line it's the fastest option by far. Once you have established to the call center agent that you have urgent travel you will get a time slot at the agency, but at least in Seattle that time slot doesn't really mean much, when you get there you'll wait in line for an intake agent to check that you have all necessary paperwork, then you'll get a number to wait for your turn at the counters to actually take your application. When you come back for pickup it's faster, but count on spending a few hours there for the first day.

Within Europe/Schengen your checked luggage always goes to your final destination regardless of point of entry into Schengen. You pass immigration at first point of entry but you only clear customs at destination.

Interesting, that was not the case for me in WA back in 2017, but things could certainly have changed since then or WA is just more lenient. If EAD is deemed sufficient in MI one could argue that EAD by itself doesn't grant you lawful status, you're still just in authorized stay while I-485 is in process, but perhaps it's seen as good enough for DL in those states?

This is a fuzzy area where lawful status is not the same as being in a period of authorized stay - here's some reading on the subject: https://www.murthy.com/2018/12/17/differences-between-lawful-status-period-of-authorized-stay-unlawful-presence-2/ This is also why you need to be paroled into the country (through I-131/I-512 Advance Parole) if you want to travel while your I-485 is pending. Different states handle this differently, coming to Washington from Japan I got lucky with my Japanese DL granting me an exemption from the test. Also, I was just able to get by with just enough documentation within the first 90 days while my I-94 was still valid, otherwise I might have had to wait for EAD as well. It might be worth asking if you can gather all the required documentation while your I-94 is still valid, but it sounds from the other Michigan folks like this might not work. I think I used something like these and scraped by with 10 days to spare: Social Security Card Swedish passport with K-1 visa and I-94 printout / still valid Swedish driver's license Japanese driver's license with translation/certificate from Japanese consulate

Cool, I didn't know that was a thing. Out of curiosity, what is that product/service called at Fedex?

#3 - as the immigrant, this would all be household effects: https://www.cbp.gov/travel/international-visitors/kbyg/customs-duty-info#:~:text=Household effects conditionally included are,books%2C implements%2C and instruments. Technically you're supposed to have owned everything at least a year, though I have not heard of that ever being verified. #4 - interesting question, for most people this tends to be used for container shipments arriving well after the immigrant has already arrived in the US and these forms are handled by the moving company. I would think sending 20-30 boxes by FedEx from the Netherlands will cost you well over $10,000 - have you looked at other options? For reference, 7 years ago I spent about $12,000 to get 17m³ worth of stuff from Japan to the US including packing on the Japan side with separate crating of a 70" TV and an expensive bike. If you have the money, by all means go with FedEx, but that's not a common way of doing it.

Yeah, it would be an improvement to not actually have to pay for biometrics if it is waived...

Not sure where I got UK from, I meant to say "pension income from home country" plus any other income from assets etc. You can claim a parent as tax dependent even if they are not living with you. There also seems to be a new law in California that does let you include a dependent parent on your Covered California plan, so you may be in luck: https://www.coveredca.com/support/before-you-buy/dependent-parents-or-stepparents/#:~:text=Beginning in 2023%2C a new,the health plan's service area.

In the vast majority of cases elderly parents can not be covered under children's health plans. He is not entitled to Medicare until he has been a resident for 5 years, and at that time he must pay into the plan, as of 2024 that will be $505 / month for Medicare Part A and at least $175 / month for Medicare Part B. If he has little or no income he would typically be eligible for Medicaid after 5 years as well, but California has less strict rules than most states. Depending on pension income from the UK he may qualify for Medi-Cal from day one.

I had to learn how to write cheques moving to the US, in Europe they went pretty much extinct 40 years ago and I never learned how to fill one out...

$1,225 is indeed the correct fee for I-485 from K-1. It wouldn't surprise me if the two separate money orders tripped you up here - someone at the lockbox intake saw one of them and spent all of 5 seconds concluding that the wrong fee was submitted without even looking for the other one. Did you list "U.S. Department of Homeland Security" as the payee?

Just to add to the above - current processing times for I-90 are showing 28.5 months so you will in all likelihood be a citizen before you ever see that replacement card, but you still need to file the I-90 (and pay the $540 fee...) to have proof of status.

Yeah, it was hit or miss for me - the actual interaction with the officer in secondary (in airports) never took more than a minute or two, it was waiting for my turn that tended to take time if many international flights came in at the same time. Entering on AP at the Canada/US land border were the only times I've ever had bad experiences with CBP staff. It happened more than once that they were outright rude about having to go through the extra steps related to admitting me on AP and being overall snarky about it like "AP is not for leisure travel, you know, we might not let you in next time". I stuck with "I'll keep that in mind sir" and never had any issues beyond that, I estimate I entered about 10 times while on AP.

When you enter on AP you could technically be denied, in practice the only real risk of getting refused entry is if you're stayed outside the country for an extended period and was found to have abandoned your I-485 while you were away, for example if you missed an appointment for biometrics or interview, or if you did not respond to an RFE. As long as you're only away for a few weeks at most you should be fine. It is also worth noting that when you enter the US on AP you will most likely end up in secondary inspection every single time, so allow extra time when booking connecting flights. Personally I'd allocate a minimum of 4 hours for connections while on AP.

Expect questions on how you met, how you got married and how you're living together since getting married. You may also get asked personal details about each other and extended families to show that you have a real relationship.