Consolidated NSC I-485 Tracker

Got The Card Production Ordered Email

on 2/6. Finally near the end of the road. Or tunnel if you will. Got the emails yesterday. Don't feel much joy, I've been waiting for so long, that I feel like they owed me this.
Will post when I receive the card. Thanks all again for information and mis-information over the past few years, may all of you be in my shoes very soon.
 
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No wait for FBI name check!

The same is reported here: http://www.immigration-law.com/Canada.html

Amazing, are they (USCIS) finally talking sense, after so many years !?!?!?!?

Looks like three things may have helped them to make the decision:
1. Lots of WOM. !!! BIG THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO DID IT !!!
2. Less current work for Adjudicating Officers due to India EB2 unavailability
3. A chance to start adjudicating with the oldest PD for India and China, as there will be less newer NC-complete applications

Beware of AC21/GC issues now... No switching jobs for 6 months after GC.

:)
 
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zgubi said:
on 2/6. Finally near the end of the road. Or tunner if you will. Got the emails yesterday. Don't feel much joy, I've been waiting for so long, that I feel like they owed me this.
Will post when I receive the card. Thanks all again for information and mis-information over the past few years, may all of you be in my shoes very soon.
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Zgubi
Congratulations. I remember you from June 07 frustrating messages. at last saw the light at the end of Tunnel. Correctly you deserve the freedom.
Enjoy and keep wishing for others to join you soon.
 
GC approvals and AC21

This sudden change in USCIS policy brings a new question to some of us. For example, I'm moving to a different company in 5 weeks. So far I was sure that I can use AC21 and my GC would not get approved in the next 5 weeks because of NC anyway. Now, with the change being rapidly applied at the Field Offices and Processing Centers (see posts by those who spoke to IO's recently), GC can come much sooner. What it means is that I may end up switching jobs right _after_ getting GC approval.

Any ideas how to protect ourselves in such a situation? Will timely filing of AC21 papers help proving that I intended to work for the new employer upon GC approval, even if GC approval happens before I join the new company?

I have no idea so far, but I'm trying to get an answer from several lawyers. Will keep you posted, but let's brainstorm here, too.
 
igor_ch said:
This sudden change in USCIS policy brings a new question to some of us. For example, I'm moving to a different company in 5 weeks. So far I was sure that I can use AC21 and my GC would not get approved in the next 5 weeks because of NC anyway. Now, with the change being rapidly applied at the Field Offices and Processing Centers (see posts by those who spoke to IO's recently), GC can come much sooner. What it means is that I may end up switching jobs right _after_ getting GC approval.

Any ideas how to protect ourselves in such a situation? Will timely filing of AC21 papers help proving that I intended to work for the new employer upon GC approval, even if GC approval happens before I join the new company?

I have no idea so far, but I'm trying to get an answer from several lawyers. Will keep you posted, but let's brainstorm here, too.
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I'm also changing the job in several weeks and the lawyer at new company said, that they are pretty sure that it's safe enough. Even if questions arise you have a strong point that you had accepted the offer and terminated the previous employment at the time when you were under AC21.
 
That has always been a problem with AC21.

The moment your AOS is approved, AC21 offers you absolutely no protection. If you are thinking of moving you need to do it BEFORE approval, or you need to placate your current sponsor, or you need, as dstu points out make the case that you had already lined up ac21-qualified job when GC came thru.

Remember, there is no problem for the new sponsor to take over sponsorship BEFORE you start working. GC is all about current SPONSORSHIP, not current job.

So, I would at the very leat get a letter from future employer, acknowledging that they are willing to take over your sponsorship NOW under AC21, even before you begin work.
 
Yes. I think we have a similar idea in mind. I do have several forms of proof showing that I intended to switch to them even before GC approval - H1 transfer, job offer, tons of immigration-related email. However, by obtaining a letter of _sponsorship_, and filing it with USCIS, I may have some protection even if I terminate my current employment right after GC approval, because of:
a) I would have explicitly invoked AC21 before GC approval
b) USCIS would have constructive knowledge of the change at the time of GC approval

nelsona said:
That has always been a problem with AC21.

The moment your AOS is approved, AC21 offers you absolutely no protection. If you are thinking of moving you need to do it BEFORE approval, or you need to placate your current sponsor, or you need, as dstu points out make the case that you had already lined up ac21-qualified job when GC came thru.

Remember, there is no problem for the new sponsor to take over sponsorship BEFORE you start working. GC is all about current SPONSORSHIP, not current job.

So, I would at the very leat get a letter from future employer, acknowledging that they are willing to take over your sponsorship NOW under AC21, even before you begin work.
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2nd REF, Helped need, Thanks

Received the 2nd Ref from USICS after I have submitted the 1st Medical REF. They requested:
1. All pages of my passports
2.2006 Tax transferscripts for me and my spouse both.
3.W2 and 1099 forms for 2006 and 2007.

Who is in the same boat? how could I do? Thanks.
 
Congrats waitingHoping ,

I am still waiting for the correction and fighting with my stupid attorney on this issue. I contacted Congressman office and waiting for USCIS response to them. May be next week I hear some thing from them. I asked my attorney to fax my documents , but he is not ready to do that ..He mailed my docutments to Nebraska, USCIS to get the service error correction...No response till now..hoping some thing will happen soon.

Will let you know if there is any progress..and may buzz you if I need more info.

Thanks
SN



waitingHoping said:
SN4GC,

I want to update you with regard to I-140 PD error correction, as we discussed months ago.

The priority date error on my I-140 approval notice has been corrected on 01/30/2008, and I received the new approval copy on 02/04/2008. This is about 2 months after the initial attempt by my attorney to request such a correction. She tried 5 requests via faxes and Amendment via mail. I also sent 4 faxes, as well as contacted Congressman. I don't know which one eventually caused the correction to happen.

I hope the similar error on your I-140 priority date gets corrected in a timed fashion.

Good luck.

WaitingHoping.
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Just called IO at NSC. She told me that NC is still pending. Then she asked if I knew that a new memo became effective today, which will allow them to process cases stuck in NC for more than 180 days. She did not know when they will start approving the cases, as system is being changed right now. However, she did tell that cases will be processed in the order they were received. She did not know how many people are in front of me and when can I expect my GC (I did not ask this question, she just told me that, maybe anticipating a question that I did not intend to ask).

So, we're getting more and more confirmations :)

Note about address change. Address on my son's file was incorrect. Even though I filed address change for him online (back in July) and received a confirmation letter, it was not changed in their system. If you changed address, you may want to double-check with USCIS anyway. She corrected the address during the phone call.

The main reason for the call was to check fingerprint expiration status. She told me that my fingerprints have expired, and the same will expire for my wife in 12 days. So, she sent notices requesting a rescheduling for both of us.

Amazing how much useful info and great service you can get from a phone call if you can get to a nice immigration officer!
 
Will USCIS reveal it ?

So, NC memo came. Now question for those retrogressed is how soon the queue will move . Is there a way for one to get the USCIS reveal how many are there in the queue before one's PD ? I mean i want to Know how many are there in the India EB2 queue ( until PD 2002 ) waiting for visa numbers. If i know this , i can divide that number with 3000 and find the number of years i need wait.
 
Potential Visa Unavailability

I'm very surprised to see rumors about ROW retrogression due to the new change in USCIS/FBI policy. Is it retrogress because of 8K more EB approvals? A load that USCIS would process in a matter of 8 additional working days?

I know this number sounds strange, there are many people who wait, but here is the calculation, see if you can find a significant flaw:

Real data (see sources below):
1. Total I-485 pending at the end of 2006 = 580K
2. Total I-485 pending at the end of 2007 = 833K
3. Total I-485 denial rate = 14%
4. Total I-485 approved every day = 7K
5. Total I-485 and N-400 stuck in FBI for more than 180 days (May 2007) = 329K - 183K = 146K
6. Total I-485 and interviewed N-400 stuck in FBI = 50% of all stuck
7. EB I-485 part in total volume of GC approvals = 12.5% (159K out of 1,266K)

My calculations (based on data above and some assumptions):
EB I-485 pending at the end of 2006 = 580K * 12.5% = 73K
EB I-485 pending at the end of 2007 = 833K * 12.5% = 104K
EB I-485 approved every day = 7K * 12.5% = 1K
Total I-485 stuck in FBI for more than 180 days = 146K * 50% = 73K
EB I-485 stuck in FBI for more than 180 days = 73K * 12.5% = 9K
EB I-485 stuck in FBI that will be approved = 9K * (100 - 14)% = 8K

Sources:
http://www.dhs.gov/xlibrary/assets/CISOMB_Annual Report_2007.pdf
http://www.dhs.gov/ximgtn/statistics/publications/yearbook.shtm
http://www.dhs.gov/xlibrary/assets/statistics/yearbook/2006/table10d.xls
http://www.uscis.gov/files/article/APPLICATIONS FOR IMMIGRATION BENEFITS_December07.pdf
http://www.uscis.gov/files/pressrelease/budget_factsheet_02042008.pdf
 
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Igor I don't see how reducing namecheck backlog would have any effect on any cut-off date, since these cases have ALWAYS been included in the potentially approvable cases, so having them become approved in a zero sum gain.

It is much like the DOL backlog; every fall the numbers would be retrogressed in anticiapation of the onslaught for the PBEC, when it would not come the dates would move forward, especially in the summer. Had the backlog cleared the numbers would have stayed exactly where they were, not retrogressed.

Now, the fact that there will be some increase in the rate of approvals, might result in stagnation of the cut-off date where it currently is, and, eventually result in some categories becoming unavailable.

But those who think that RoW will retrogress further sound like they've been listening the the whiners from IndianVoice too long. The vast majority of 'new' cases filed last summer were Indian, since Row had been advanced the last 2 summers, but not India.

I'm a BIG fan of both retrogression, as this forces fifo, AND per country limits, which removes lobbying.
 
Another confirmation

Just had an Infopass appointment at San Jose. Officer confirmed the Memorandum, but said something like "now we can, but we don't have to". He added that there is still no procedure in place for pulling such cases from a queue, and recommended to write to Congressman/Congresswoman, Senators, President and First Lady, because now the response will probably not say "background checks remain open".

Update: Just talked to person from my Congresswoman staff: he said that he was talking to USCIS on Friday regarding the Memorandum, and they also told him that there is no procedure yet. But they are working on it. Also, he mentioned that the Memorandum is for USCIS internal use only, and did not recommend to present copy of it to USCIS officers during Infopass appointments.
 
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I just talked to a lady at NSC. She mentioned that my name check is still pending, but there was a memo recently that would allow the cases that were pending name check for >180 days to be approved. She said they dont have a process yet to figure out which cases have to be approved following this memorandum. Once they figure out a process, she said there will be 2 steps -
1) The cases will be processed based on the I485 receipt date (FIFO)
2) Visa number is available for the case's PD.

She clearly said that if visa number for a given PD is not available, there is no way of approving such cases.

I believe our next hurdle is making Visa number available for EB2. My PD is in mid 2002. So I dont know how long I have to wait for the visa to become avaialbe and for the cases that I have a prior receipt date than mine to be cleared, so I can have a chance for getting approved.
 
Also, he mentioned that the Memorandum is for USCIS internal use only, and did not recommend to present copy of it to USCIS officers during Infopass appointments
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While the memo is for internal use, ity was sent to AILA by USCIS, and is thus in the public domain. You can look at the AILA website, under the section that contains ALL the stuff that USCIS forwards to AILA.
 
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