OldUser

She's able to travel now, but she cannot reenter the US on F-1 visa with intention to adjust status as this could be perceived as immigration fraud. Also, any entry to the US on non-immigrant visa is a discretion of CBP. If they find out she got engaged to US citizen, she may be not allowed back in the US and her F-1 visa could be revoked. If she never dated an American, and was planning to leave the US after studies, she could go back and forth to Colombia no issue. The issue arises after engagement or marriage as non-immigrants cannot have immigrant intent.

Typically 15 months to get I-130 approved. So you're getting close.

You weren't asked, somebody else may be asked. Typically, when consular officer or USCIS officer sees folder with evidence - they won't press too hard, as it's waste of time. People who come without evidence or unprepared suffer the most.

You should only marry based on love. New marriage won't add any tangible protective measures. If USCIS doubts your first marriage or accuses you of fraud, they won't care about second marriage. They'll be insisting on proving your first marriage was real before approving anything else. You can't apply for another I-485 while you have conditional LPR status. Getting I-751 approved is the only realisitic path.

There is no such required minimum time to be married. You're removing conditions based on marriage entered in good faith, which is allowed. Not all real marriages last long.

From your other thread, I remember you weren't 100% sure whether decree was sent because lawyer filed it?

Good luck and keep us updated! Your thread may have somebody in the future in similar situation.

Status update is optional. A lot of the times online status does not reflect actual state of affairs. I have the same, biometrics reuse was never a status on my case, though biometrics were reused.

What would happen if USCIS denied your I-751? Would any of this business matter if you cannot remain legally in the US? I know for sure I'd drop everything to sort out immigration stuff unless my wife was giving birth on that day or I was getting $1000000 cash that I couldn't miss.

I submitted some stuff that I already submitted during AOS, because instructions asked for evidence since beginning of marriage. My I-751 was approved. Each petition / application should be self sufficient and stand on its own.

I-129F is not a visa, and DS-160 hasn't been filed. So I would check "no"

What says it? I-751 instructions say you have to submit evidence from start of marriage to current date.

This... It applies to all sorts of cases in immigration. My I-751 was estimated 7 months when I filed. It took ~20.5

No, those estimates in MyProgress are largely inaccurate. People get "Your case is taking longer than expected" 9 days after filing the case! Others get "7 months to decision" on the day of their oath. There's nothing to be worried about.

As far as I know, 3-9 months is a typical timeline for Advance Parole approval (I-131) The cost is $630

If he does it soon, it would be OK as she's on F-1. Based on what OP describes, she doesn't even travel overseas while on F-1. It's definitely worth discussing, especially how she feels about having a small ceremony here and big celebration in Colombia a while later. I wouldn't wait until her visa expires to propose, this will disrupt her life for 2+ years. Marrying soon means she'll likely get GC sometime in first half of 2026.

Could take months. What was it for I-864? If yes, the case can take many more months after replying to it.

My understanding, this is relevant to consular processing. E.g. I-130 that was apporoved 2+ years ago cannot be used to obtain immigrant visa unless kept alive with NVC. I'm not aware of such restriction with USCIS when adjusting status. If I-130 got approved, it got approved. As long as you're still married, it can be used for AOS even 5 years later without keeping it alive. As long as one has approval notice for I-130, a copy can be mailed with I-485 to adjust status. Here are data points of somebody going through adjustment with 4-5 year old approved I-130: https://www.lawfully.com/community/posts/does-i130-can-be-expired-after-being-aproved-8HKYtNu7nHhowItPj3LURg==

Yes, get marriage license and marry her like you'd marry an American lady. As long as you and her are free to marry (e.g. not currently married) you'll be fine. After marriage you'll have to file for her adjustment of status, that's a bunch of forms, roughly $1500-2000. Once she gets GC she can stay in the US indefinitely. She can travel before receiving GC if she pays for advance parole.

No, K-1 would take a year or so before visa is issued. Marry before her visa expires in the US. This removes a lot of headache. You can have traditional celebration in Colombia later on advance parole or when she has GC.

How would she reenter the US once her visa expires? Spousal visa takes 1.5-2 years to be issued. I recommend popping a question, marrying and adjusting her status before F-1 visa expires. That way she wouldn't have tobe stuck outside the US for 2 years.

I don't believe it's true for most F-1 visa holders. Students get time off and can travel outside the US during breaks.

This is normal. N-400 cannot be decided without I-751. Inquiry is not pressuring anybody. The only thing that would force things to happen is a lawsuit, Writ of Mandamus. But typically you won't sue before N-400 interview, unless you want to sue for I-751 decision. For which 21 months is not that surprising. Mine took about this long when thing were faster. To give a perspective, I filed N-400 in December 2024, I-751 was approved in 2023. I'm not expecting decision until November 2025 or early 2026. One year is reasonable for N-400 without pending I-751. Elections are over, there's new administration coming. USCIS priorities are likely going to shift from naturalizing peope fast to other things.' If I filed in March 2024, I'd start worrying after May-June 2025.

Each case is unique. A lot depends on your background, immigration history and whether I-751 is still pending. The people who got approved - did they have pending I-751?

What sort of consequences? OP stated I-130 was approved. What can be terminated? I was under impression once I-130 is adjudicated, it'a adjudicated, there's nothing to terminate?