485 pending & planned travel... need advice

Priya_GC

Registered Users (C)
Hi everyone,

Here is my case history. I am a derivative applicant and my husband's I-485 case has already been approved (2 weeks ago). We plan to go to India very soon. I am worried because of two reasons:

1. What happens if I get approved just before leaving and there is no time to make an appointment for stamping? What will happen when I try to re-enter in about one month?

2. What happens if I get approved while I am out of the country?

I am currently working on EAD and I do have advance parole.

Gurus, please help... I am really worried.

Thanks!
Priya
 
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Priya_GC said:
Hi everyone,

Here is my case history. I am a derivative applicant and my husband's I-485 case has already been approved (2 weeks ago). We plan to go to India very soon. I am worried because of two reasons:

1. What happens if I get approved just before leaving and there is no time to make an appointment for stamping? What will happen when I try to re-enter in about one month?

2. What happens if I get approved while I am out of the country?

I am currently working on EAD and I do have advance parole.

Gurus, please help... I am really worried.

Thanks!
Priya

As long you have valid AP, you can always enter back into US after your 485 approval. If you get approved right before you leave, but before you get your passport stamped, you can still use your valid AP to enter back. (Do check with your lawyer for that one though, but I am pretty sure that you can do that).
 
1. If your I-485 is approved just before leaving then according to my lawyer your status has changed since your I-485 is approved and you should not leave the country before getting your passport stamped. Thats the reason I pushed back my trip to india in January more than a week to attend a wedding in India. So that if my I-485 is approved I have enough time to get the passport stamped and be in India for the wedding.

2.Sure enough four days after leaving US , mine and my wifes 485 were approved and we came back using our AP with out any problem and got our passport stamped few days back. No problem at all anywhere.

Hope this helps.
Rajiv.
 
this is just paranoia!

Among all the great, wonderful, fantastic information available on this forum,
this is one thing I do not like about this forum - when it creates paranoia like this.

In this case, when paranoid users convey that you cannot travel just because you have received an email telling you that your case is approved:

1) What proof does USCIS have that you have received and read your email?

2) AP is meant for being able to travel outside the country without abandoning your application for adjustment of status. What logic tells you that using it after it is approved, will abandon it?

3) There are posts from users that have entered on AP in such scenarios without any problem. There was only one where the person was asked if he was aware that his case was approved before he left. He said that he was not, and he was let in with a deferred inspection.

4) There have been cases where users have got approval emails, and later found out that the email was in error. If you read the terms and conditions of the USCIS email notification system, you will know that it absolves itself of any errors. So, there is no way to rely on emails as 100% proof that your case is approved. So, if you are asked if you were aware that your case was approved - you can truthfully say : "No"!

I quote from https://egov.immigration.gov/cris/jsps/termsconditions.jsp?contextType=CU_EN :

Accuracy, Completeness and Timeliness of Information on the Site
We are not responsible if information that we make available on this site is not accurate, complete or current. The materials on this site are provided for general information only, and any reliance upon the material found on this site will be at your own risk. We reserve the right to modify the contents of the site at any time, but we have no obligation to update any information on this site. You agree that it is your responsibility to monitor changes to the site.


5) What proof would the CIS have that you have received your approval notice, until you walk in for a stamp. Surely, you cannot wait for months between your approval and stamping and claim that you did not receive your approval, but if its a matter of days - come on!

The bunch at the CIS maybe a crabby bunch, but they are humans. They may seem like they are out there to get you - but they cannot stretch the rules to such an extent.

Having said the above, I do want to absolve myself too - this is my personal opinion. This is not communicated to me by an attorney and I have not specifically read any rules. I do know this: If an officer at a POE stops you from entering as a permanent residence because you left after finding out that your case was approved, there would be a lot more to it. I would be willing to bet that the officer would have many easier tools at hand to stop you. They are not going to call for trouble by being unreasonable like this.

So stop worrying and have a safe trip!
 
Thanks magajmari for your comprehensive reply. The last paragraph you wrote sounds scary to me and is my real worry:

Assume that...
I receive the I-485 approval letter Friday evening and my flight is next day morning. Should I continue with the flight? One can also assume that I would have gotten the approval email about 5-7 days earlier. What are my choices at that point?

Priya.
 
don't open the envelope!

Honestly, you are really helping me - it helps to know that there are others who worry more than I do! :D

If I were you, and I received a letter from the USCIS late Friday evening before a weekend I am supposed to travel, and I have received an email about the approval, I know what's in there - I would not open the envelope until I was on the plane. On the way back I'd tell the officer precisely this:

"I was so busy packing that all I could do with the Friday mail was to put it in my handbag!!"

And if I was the officer letting me in, I would get such a kick out of that answer that I would have to hold my stomach laughing and remember me for the rest of my life. :D

I did not quite understand rajiv_ksharma's post - he says he put off his trip by more than a week and then his approval came four days after he left - so basically, he missed out more than a week's worth of time in India. Totally unnecessarily. It would have been better for him if he left as planned, right?

As long as you stick to your story of not being (officially) aware of your case being approved, you will be fine. In my opinion, the chances of you being questioned on this are very slim.

(Yuk this post stinks! Too many I's and me's :cool: )

Ok - let me ask you some practical questions:

1) When exactly are you planning your trip? If you have enough time, just go ahead an schedule an appointment using infopass. The worst case is that you don't get your approval and you have to cancel it. You do not need an approval to make an appointment.

2) Have you followed up with USCIS as to why your case is not approved? Has your husband done his stamping? Did you go with him to the USCIS office and ask about your case?

For all you know, your case may also have been approved and your notice may be in the mail soon. In all the years I have put in this, one thing I am sure about - the online system of USCIS, especially the email system is not reliable.
 
Priya_GC said:
Thanks magajmari for your comprehensive reply. The last paragraph you wrote sounds scary to me and is my real worry:

Assume that...
I receive the I-485 approval letter Friday evening and my flight is next day morning. Should I continue with the flight? One can also assume that I would have gotten the approval email about 5-7 days earlier. What are my choices at that point?

Priya.
Priya:
I know one guy who got approved and after that travelled abroad without passport stamping and came back to the US. Again, travelled abroad without passport stamping and reentered the US without any problems.

It all depends on how logically you can answer your questions at POE.
 
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