Edward and Jaycel

This is not required for the embassy interview, however some CFO counselors are requiring an FBI Records search results on the petitioner for the CFO Guidance and Counseling Program requirement. I have read 3 or 4 accounts in the last 6 months saying the counselor asked for it.

I would say to bank on at least 14 - 15 months. The hardest thing about this immigration process is managing your own expectations. The 2nd hardest is not comparing your case to others that filed around the same time as you.

Because we were able to get Jaycel's interview scheduled and visa in-hand in about 2 and a half months after the date of approval from USCIS. Now it seems to be taking USCIS 6-8 weeks at least just to send the approved application to the NVC and it's usually 4-6 weeks more before they send it to the embassy now. Things have slowed down a lot over the past 6 months. We were extremely fortunate to get ours as quickly as we did

Which embassy will be processing it?

There's no way to know for sure.... a lot depends on which embassy will be doing the interview and visa issuance.

Ah ok thank you for clearing that up.... so it looks like they sent back the whole I-765 and pieces of the I-485. Very strange. If I were in your shoes I would assume they rejected the whole thing especially since they sent back the I-864 which is in support of the I-485. It sounds in my mind like they opened the package, lost the I-485 application before they started processing it then rejected the I-765 due to no concurrent I-485 being with it. I would cancel the payment for the I-485 if you used a method that you can cancel and re-file ASAP.

Ok so the name on the passport is what is going to matter because when you fill out the DS-160 prior to the interview, it will need to match the passport. The visa will be issued in the name as it appears on the DS-160 and must match the name on the passport. Once your file is sent by USCIS to the NVC, you can do a public inquiry with them and explain that USCIS got the name wrong and include a copy of her passport bio page and ask them to correct it before sending to the embassy

I meant to ask which I-797.... is it the receipt notice or the approval notice for the I-129F? What is the name that is on your fiancée's passport?

I-797 for what? The I-129F? What is the name on your fiancee's passport?

Usually when USCIS determines they require biometrics from an applicant, they move pretty quickly to get it done - As @OldUser mentioned above, you may not hear anything for quite a while after it's completed.

Congratulations

And re-entry is at the discretion of CBP. From what I was told in talking to two immigration attorneys.... "The bar for them denying entry to an AP holder is even lower than denying entry on a visa. The CBP officer has to have a pretty good justification of inadmissibility or suspicion of visa fraud to deny a visa holder entry. There is very little needed to deny entry to an AP holder." This is why we did not even apply for AP when we submitted Jaycel's AOS package.

I will answer your second question first - We have no reason to believe that Jaycel's application would be denied. We are in a bona fide marriage and were together for three + years before we got married when she arrived here. The biggest thing right now is the quasi-legal status she is in while the Adjustment of Status application is pending. She is in what is called a "Period of Authorized Stay". Technically she has no legal status and the "Period of Authorized Stay" only is protected from accruing unlawful presence for inadmissibility purposes. And it is at the discretion of the Secretary of Homeland Security. In this heightened immigration enforcement time in the US, this always is at the back of your mind. It makes traveling within the US by air a bit nerve wracking. And of course, taking the risk of traveling internationally is unwise in this environment, except in cases of family emergency. So Jaycel will not be able to go home to see her family until she has her green card in-hand. She would never risk all of the time qwe put into this process so far to travel overseas on AP for frivolous reasons. As I said, the environment around immigration is very different today than it was in previous years. Nowadays, K-1s are taking about a year from the time the application is filed with USCIS until the foreign fiancée arrives in the US in the best of circumstances.

This is why I wanted to be sure they were prepared for it. This has been more difficult than we expected, especially the uncertainty of being in a quasi-legal status while the application is pending.

My comment earlier was made to be sure you understood the 12-18 months that she would have to stay in the US until the greed card was issued. As long as you both are prepared for that, then I say this is a perfectly viable option. Best to you both from me and Jaycel!

Did you not include passport photos with the I-765 application? They are required for that application also

No, once USCIS sends it to NVC, the case status on the USCIS site will change from "Case Was Approved" to "Case Was Sent To The Department of State"

Do you mean you want to get married where you are and return together to the US? If so, then this is not a K-1 Fiancée visa situation... This would be an IR-1/CR-1 spousal visa situation and would not be done in a year. If you are engaged and want to do the K-1 visa, you would need to get married in the US once you both go there. We got Jaycel here in 50 weeks using the K-1 but that was in the prior administration and things seemed to slow down a bit on the K-1s since the new administration came into office. If you pursue the K-1 visa you MUST give them court certified records of the case disposition or you will get an RFE. I made the mistake of not sending them in with my application, because like you, I misunderstood the instructions and thought I just had to give them the information. I got an RFE and it delayed my case by who-knows how long.

If she comes here with that intent, she will have to declare it to CBP at her PoE inspection and she will be denied entry. If she does not declare it, and just says something like "Tourism" and then files to adjust status, that is misrepresentation, which can cause her to be denied and get a ban on re-entry to the US. You do not want to go down that route. Besides, CBP would likely have knowledge of her approved I-130 that is pending consular processing and deny her entry anyway. My recommendation is to get this line of thought out of your mind and wait for the process at the embassy. Sometimes it can take up to a year or more for the interview to be scheduled. It all depends on the backlog at the embassy

Today's stats: May 26, 2025 21:40 MDT November 2024 Filed I-485 Stats • Approved: 6,750 (+165) • Denied: 1070 • FingerprintScheduled: 90 • InterviewCancelled: 284 • InterviewScheduled: 10,697 (-15) • Processing: 22,004 • Received: 603 • Rejected: 103 • RFE: 425 • Terminated: 171 • Withdrawal: 30 • Others: 39

In the additional comments section, you can do something like "From 8/15/2020 - 5/15/2024, while attending XXX College, I lived on campus at the following address(es): Address 1, Address 2, Address 3 etc., except during stays at my parents house in-between semesters and on breaks at their address at: 123 Maple Street....." I had several addresses the previous 5 years prior to my filing as I lived 4 different places just during the time I spent living in the Philippines and they would not all fit even in the additional information section, so in one of the spots on that page I referenced the appropriate Page #, Part # and Item # and wrote, "Please see attached sheet for address history." I then typed up a page referencing the Page, Part and Item numbers and explained my address history. No issues whatsoever with that and the I-129F was approved.

If you are qualified with income, leave the assets section blank and do not include bank account information. Tax transcript, W-2 and copies of pay statements for the previous 3 months should suffice.

You will have to make an appointment at your local SSA office and do it in person. It appears that they have ended the EBE program for I-765 & N-400 filers that automatically triggered SSA to send you a card, so unfortunately you will have to do it in person.

There is very little folks can do to answer your questions without knowing more about the case. I see you posted this in a K-1 forum. Is that the visa type? What embassy? Is this from the CEAC case status checker? If so, you must have a case number from the DoS I would assume? If so, your case is not on the way to the NVC, it's been there and already shipped to the embassy.

Oh Lordy.... We are waiting to be sure that the ROM has been transmitted to the PSA before asking for the PSA version because it's expensive to order 🤪