OldUser

Agreed, it's sad. It's kind of general, almost universal knowledge in many countries of the world. I cannot go as a tourist to Australia and expect to vote in General Elections there, since I am not a citizen there. Even if I lived there since I was 5, but wasn't born or naturalized there... It's like having to explain you cannot legally drive a car in the US without getting a driver license first. One would think it's common sense. Oh well... I guess US could do more effort explaining to everybody who can vote and who cannot.

@Jorgedig @Mobius1 May I suggest that photos are only an additional piece of evidence, a small factor? Alone they would not help approving the case or waiving interview. Just like if you only sent a copy of marriage certificate and copies of green card, that would likely trigger an RFE. Joergedig had tons of other strong evidence, and not including photos did not play a role at all. That's great. But I would include them at the very end, as advised by lawyer, in addition to other important docs such as evidence of co-mingled finance to give the case 1-3% boost (or whatever) towards approval. The only useful photos are of the married couple with friends, family and acquaintances, over the period of time. All dated, and annotated with people on the photo to give context. E.g. "12.31.2021 - New Year dinner with family. Left to right: Bob Smith (father in law, Mary Smith (mother in law), Jack Brown (petitioner), Eva Brown (petitioner's US citizen spouse). Not trying to convince anybody, just expressing an opinion.

The way I understood @WaterLeaf's reply is the sentiment that "sadly" only US citizens can vote and non-citizens cannot. I think this is pretty normal for most of the world?

I think majority of countries work that way, e.g. only citizens can vote. Can you give examples of countries where anybody can vote? Or at least permanent residents?

Obviously, soon is not a solid date, and it's been like 3 years already. But nothing new was published, so keep using it.

As they say on website https://www.uscis.gov/i-751: "12/02/19. We will publish a new version of this form soon. In the meantime, you may continue using the 12/02/19 edition despite the expiration date. You can find the edition date at the bottom of the page on the form and instructions."

USCIS be like: Happy Holidays!

Hi @Mike E from what I understood, she didn't have 2 year green card with her. So airline employees were right to suggest she would not be allowed to board the plane from Europe to USA. Of course, if she applied for I-131A that's another story. Also, why do you think his wife should have a 24 month extension letter? Were they issued to everybody who had 18 month extension?

What's the Resident Since date on your wife's GC? Is expiration date exactly 2 years after Resident Since date? How long have you been married when wife got her GC? She may need to file I-751 to remove conditions. She cannot skip this step if her residency is conditional.

Pictures alone are not sufficient evidence, but they can add to other solid evidence you submit.

I guess each couple is different. I have maybe between 1000-2000 pics together over the last 5 years. But sent maybe 50? It took a lot of filtering 😄 I pretty much submitted photos from events and outings, pretty much 1-2 photos per month.

No, the USCIS wouldn't care unfortunately. He needs to satisfy the requirements for naturalization. The earliest he can apply for citizenship is 3 years after he became LPR (Resident Since date on his green card), provided he passes physical presence, continuous residence, marital union tests and his N-400 interview. If he has a conditional card, he needs to file I-751 too before applying for US citizenship.

USCIS sends it off to NVC, which then deals with embassies. But then maybe NVC may not always be able to send it to field office? I guess that translates to delays / black hole. Good questions.

Yes, but USCIS get it wrong still from time to time based on anecdotal knowledge I have.

Are you saying if co-sponsor earned $20k in each of the last 3 years, he will be OK to sponsor? My point was that the co-sponsor's income in the last 3 years should be qualifying. Unless I misunderstood your comment.

Just to make sure, you were married for over 2 years when you entered the US in Feb 2020? E.g. you have 10 year green card? Then yes, no problem with your tax returns for 2020 and 2021 only.

You need a co-sponsor. Somebody who has qualifying income. You would need 3 years of their tax returns showing qualifying income. Plus recent paystubs etc.

I-130 online application often makes USCIS think the petition is for an overseas case. It's much safer to file everything as one packet.

Fantastic news, congratulations and thank you for sharing your experience! You shouldn't be surprised USCIS didn't take your Philippines passport. US government cannot take away foreign passports (only hold temporarily for issuing visa etc). The Philippines passport is a property of Philippines 🙂 Now, you may be obliged to report your acquisition of US citizenship to Philippines, and they may take your passport. But you should learn, I think there is a more or less straightforward procedure you can undergo to reinstate your Philippines citizenship. If you want, you can be a dual citizen and enjoy benefits of both countries. But you would be subject to laws, duties and restrictions imposed by both countries too.

That should help. A sensible officer should understand that was a genuine mistake. However, you need to make sure you never identified yourself as a USC when getting a job etc.

Finita, la commedia... I don't think you can stay in the US unless you have any other valid status. Very unfortunate. Consult with a lawyer of course to see if there's any special provision allowing you to stay.

It's going into effect December 23rd, 2022!

If that's the case, you may be in a better situation, depending on other factors. That would be very bad news for the OP. Even of they did not do anything like this and were genuinely in love, their case would be scrutinized because of any wrongdoings by USC.

Did the lawyer know what you know now? E.g. USC's previous marriage without divorce docs available? If USC was still married to someone else, there was no any legal marriage between you and her. You did not enter a marriage. And if you were not married, there were no grounds for WAVA and I-485. That's the gist of it. That's a sad and tragic situation you're in...

Talk to a lawyer. This is 100% not a DIY case. Do you have any other status? If not, you might have accrued 10 year bar by now. I don't know if your ex could cooperate and produce any real paperwork regarding his previous marriages and divorces. If not, I don't think you have any chance unfortunately.