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DV 2017 AOS Only

Sm1smom said:
Well, I've been reluctant to create a DV 2017 AOS Thread as I wanted an actual selectee to have the honor :p of doing that. However, it looks like we may end up with individual Threads being created if this isn't done soon.

So here's an AOS Thread for the lucky selectees already based in the U.S. and planning on processing AOS. Please go through the attached spreadsheet, (it will do you a world of good), and post subsequent questions regarding the processing on this Thread.

Best of luck through the journey!
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I can't believe you have gone to all this trouble! Thank you so much for all your efforts with this spreadsheet and thank you @Britsimon for referring me here. Super helpful.... I'm going through it carefully!

I am new to this site so sorry if I'm posting in the wrong area (?) but I'm on an o1 visa living in the USA. My husband is on an o2. I was principal winner on Dv. He is listed as spouse on Dv. I have put in my d260 form for 2017 selection. I've paid the fee and stated I wish to do aos. I have not filed anything further and have not filed the I-485 yet.

I had already booked to fly to Europe for my husband and I end of May (booked a long time ago)

O1 is a dual intent visa as far as I know. I don't have to maintain a residence in my home country. O2 is not dual intent. O1 is similar to h1 except it isn't specifically listed as an exclusion like an h1 is for advanced parole.

I won't be filing my i485 till I return from Europe.

My question is -

1. If I fly to Europe for one week without advance parole, will I be allowed back in the country?
2. Will my husband on an o2 be allowed back in the country
3. If we travel without advance parole does it mean they let us in the country but our adjustment of status application is abandoned. However we still have our o1 and o2 visa therefore can continue to work on that then reapply for adjustment of status.
4. Is the filing of a d260 considered changing your intent and therefore you must have advanced parole to travel? Or is it only the i485 that means you need advanced parole.

Thank you so much for your help... :)
 
emjay said:
I can't believe you have gone to all this trouble! Thank you so much for all your efforts with this spreadsheet and thank you @Britsimon for referring me here. Super helpful.... I'm going through it carefully!

I am new to this site so sorry if I'm posting in the wrong area (?) but I'm on an o1 visa living in the USA. My husband is on an o2. I was principal winner on Dv. He is listed as spouse on Dv. I have put in my d260 form for 2017 selection. I've paid the fee and stated I wish to do aos. I have not filed anything further and have not filed the I-485 yet.

I had already booked to fly to Europe for my husband and I end of May (booked a long time ago)

O1 is a dual intent visa as far as I know. I don't have to maintain a residence in my home country. O2 is not dual intent. O1 is similar to h1 except it isn't specifically listed as an exclusion like an h1 is for advanced parole.

I won't be filing my i485 till I return from Europe.

My question is -

1. If I fly to Europe for one week without advance parole, will I be allowed back in the country?
2. Will my husband on an o2 be allowed back in the country
3. If we travel without advance parole does it mean they let us in the country but our adjustment of status application is abandoned. However we still have our o1 and o2 visa therefore can continue to work on that then reapply for adjustment of status.
4. Is the filing of a d260 considered changing your intent and therefore you must have advanced parole to travel? Or is it only the i485 that means you need advanced parole.

Thank you so much for your help... :)
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If you're not submitting your I-485 package before you travel, all the questions you're asking are not applicable - that is a brief summary of my response, but I will still attempt to answer each listed question:

1. An AP is not applicable in your case if you're yet to file for AOS, so the question isn't if you'll be okay returning without an AP card. Regardless of if an immigrant intent has been demonstrated or not, re-admission is never guaranteed unless you're a USC.

2. See 1 above

3. You have no pending AOS petition if you're not planning on filing AOS prior to your trip. Plus, see 1 above.

4. Submission of form DS260 signifies an immigrant intent, it however has nothing to do with an AP card, again if you haven't filed for AOS.
 
Sm1smom said:
If you're not submitting your I-485 package before you travel, all the questions you're asking are not applicable - that is a brief summary of my response, but I will still attempt to answer each listed question:

1. An AP is not applicable in your case if you're yet to file for AOS, so the question isn't if you'll be okay returning without an AP card. Regardless of if an immigrant intent has been demonstrated or not, re-admission is never guaranteed unless you're a USC.

2. See 1 above

3. You have no pending AOS petition if you're not planning on filing AOS prior to your trip. Plus, see 1 above.

4. Submission of form DS260 signifies an immigrant intent, it however has nothing to do with an AP card, again if you haven't filed for AOS.
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So best advice for Emjay is to file once she returns - right Mom?
 
Britsimon said:
So best advice for Emjay is to file once she returns - right Mom?
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Long story short, yes. Although I wouldn't recommend filing right away due to the 30-60-90 days rule which technically speaking we know isn't a rule but something to be aware of. Plus if for any reason she or the spouse gets subjected to a secondary inspection and there is evidence of plans of filing AOS upon admission, they may be denied entry.
 
Sm1smom said:
Long story short, yes. Although I wouldn't recommend filing right away due to the 30-60-90 days rule which technically speaking we know isn't a rule but something to be aware of. Plus if for any reason she or the spouse gets subjected to a secondary inspection and there is evidence of plans of filing AOS upon admission, they may be denied entry.
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You rock Mom.
 
I filled the I-485 and I did the biometrics but i need to go in europe with my wife for an important travel. I have an H1B and my wife a H4. I didn't file for an AP (as per the spreadsheet)
1/ are we gonna be able to come back in the country
2/ if yes are we loosing our AOS petition
thank a lot for you advice, I know that it s better to avoid to travel, but i have to for family reasons
 
pilepoil99 said:
I filled the I-485 and I did the biometrics but i need to go in europe with my wife for an important travel. I have an H1B and my wife a H4. I didn't file for an AP (as per the spreadsheet)
1/ are we gonna be able to come back in the country
2/ if yes are we loosing our AOS petition
thank a lot for you advice, I know that it s better to avoid to travel, but i have to for family reasons
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1. While it is true that H1/H4 visas are dual intent visa, and you should be okay even though you've displayed immigrant intents, admission/re-admission is never guaranteed unless you're a USC. The CBP officer makes the call on who to admit/re-admit.

2. Your AOS wouldn't be considered abandoned if you travel out while the petition is pending because you have dual intent visas.

If you miss your interview though, you case will be denied.
 
Sm1smom said:
1. While it is true that H1/H4 visas are dual intent visa, and you should be okay even though you've displayed immigrant intents, admission/re-admission is never guaranteed unless you're a USC. The CBP officer makes the call on who to admit/re-admit.

2. Your AOS wouldn't be considered abandoned if you travel out while the petition is pending because you have dual intent visas.

If you miss your interview though, you case will be denied.
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Thank you Sm1smom, I see in some websites that I need to apply for a new H1B visa stamp at the embassy to be able to reenter, is it correct ? I have a valid h1b visa and I'm still working for the same employer
 
pilepoil99 said:
Thank you Sm1smom, I see in some websites that I need to apply for a new H1B visa stamp at the embassy to be able to reenter, is it correct ? I have a valid h1b visa and I'm still working for the same employer
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Right, if you haven't left the US since you got your H1B approval notice and don't have the visa sticker in your passport, you'll need to get that before you can return. I just had to do this for my H1B. I didn't have an issue with CBP but, as Sm1smom said, you just never know.
 
GSab said:
Right, if you haven't left the US since you got your H1B approval notice and don't have the visa sticker in your passport, you'll need to get that before you can return. I just had to do this for my H1B. I didn't have an issue with CBP but, as Sm1smom said, you just never know.
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oh i see, well i have the visa in my passport (for 2.5 years now), so you travelled abroad with your h1b and pending AOS and you didn't had any issue at the CBP officer ? not even a long wait in the little room to double check everything :)
 
We had our interview this morning, and were verbally approved!! Thank you so much to everyone on this forum, especially sm1smom for the invaluable help. We couldn't have done it without you!

For the interview itself, we were 45 minutes early, luckily, because it took that long to get through security. (We are in Los Angeles so I'm sure it's a busy office.) Although my husband and I were assigned different appointment times, they let us in together. A lovely lady spoke to my husband (alone) first, asked to see original degree and marriage certificates, and then he was done. I (the dependent) was called in for close to an hour to justify all my travels, prove that I had fulfilled the residency requirement from a prior J visa, and explain my job (I'm a scientist who works with satellites). The lady phrased it as a casual chat, but asked me about the projects I'm working on, multiple times and in multiple forms. Thankfully she was happy at the end! All told, we were there for about 2.5 hours, including wait times.

Good luck to everyone else on this journey!
 
pilepoil99 said:
oh i see, well i have the visa in my passport (for 2.5 years now), so you travelled abroad with your h1b and pending AOS and you didn't had any issue at the CBP officer ? not even a long wait in the little room to double check everything :)
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Just the regular wait in the long line :) I did almost miss my interview because the letter came while I was gone but thankfully I returned in time for the interview. If you're going to be out of the country/ away from your mailing address after sending in your documents I'd have someone check your mail very regularly and keep an eye out for any USCIS mail so you don't miss anything.
 
SaffaMama said:
We had our interview this morning, and were verbally approved!! Thank you so much to everyone on this forum, especially sm1smom for the invaluable help. We couldn't have done it without you!

For the interview itself, we were 45 minutes early, luckily, because it took that long to get through security. (We are in Los Angeles so I'm sure it's a busy office.) Although my husband and I were assigned different appointment times, they let us in together. A lovely lady spoke to my husband (alone) first, asked to see original degree and marriage certificates, and then he was done. I (the dependent) was called in for close to an hour to justify all my travels, prove that I had fulfilled the residency requirement from a prior J visa, and explain my job (I'm a scientist who works with satellites). The lady phrased it as a casual chat, but asked me about the projects I'm working on, multiple times and in multiple forms. Thankfully she was happy at the end! All told, we were there for about 2.5 hours, including wait times.

Good luck to everyone else on this journey!
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That's great. Congratulations
 
GSab said:
Just the regular wait in the long line :) I did almost miss my interview because the letter came while I was gone but thankfully I returned in time for the interview. If you're going to be out of the country/ away from your mailing address after sending in your documents I'd have someone check your mail very regularly and keep an eye out for any USCIS mail so you don't miss anything.
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well i m out for only one week, unless the letter for the interview is for the same week i will be ok, i will try to have someone checking my mail box anyway
 
Sm1smom said:
Oh no, Simon you rock ;)
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Amazing! Thank you so much. Ok that's great. Yes I was also wondering about the 30/60 day rule. The reality is I probably won't have received the receipt back for my $330 payment before I leave anyway. So I definitely won't file before and now need to have a think about when I file when I get back bearing in mind that the cut off is 30 September.

Thank you again for this extremely detailed advice... thank you @Britsimon and thank you @Sm1smom ! This site is amazing!
 
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