Final Status on Green Card
Hello Everyone,
It's been some time since I last updated my status mainly due to not hearing back from USCIS for a long time after the biometrics appointment.
I finally had my green card this week and would like to share my experience which may help people currently are in the process or for future cases.
Before jumping to the end part which was the easiest part, I want to go back and shortly write about what happened after I submit my application.
Since I had a very low number my case was current in October, in the package AOS I also applied for advance parole document since there was an abroad conference that I wanted attend in late November. Unfortunately the document did not arrive on time and I couldn't made it to the conference which was very sad for me. I even went to Chicago to ask about this situation to USCIS office. Over there they told me that they don't prioritize the applications based on the dates you need to be abroad but rather just gave me an estimate of 3 to 4 months to receive the travel document after they received my original application. It seems unless you have something urgent such as life/death issues back at home they don't speed up your case, which I think is pretty ridiculous.
Actually after doing some web search on process time of advance parole document, I was well aware of the possibility of not receiving the travel document on time before I sent the original application. Since my number was low I was initially thinking of sending my AOS application after I come back from the conference. My number was already current and was always going to be until the fiscal year ends. That sounded like a pretty good idea and if I did not consult to anyone then I would have done this and send my application late November (after I return to US from the conference) and worst case it would have delayed the green card maybe for couple of months which would not have hurt me. But my family and friends did not wanted me to take chances on the green card application although my plan made sense. This was once in a lifetime opportunity. So I took the advice and sent the application and decided to wait on the advance parole document which actually arrived around mid December.
Now since I have my card in 5.5 months I can judge my past decision easier, I probably should have waited to submit my application after the conference, but it is not the end of the world. Hopefully I will get to go to more of them in the future. But it is still something to think for future cases that is going to be similar situations.
After receiving the travel document I did not hear anything back for almost 2 months, I called the call center twice in that period and they told me that the processing times for my office (Indianapolis) was 4 months and they kept saying that it was under normal process times so there was nothing to worry about. So I waited the 4 months from the time I sent the initial package and visited the USCIS office. There they told me that they were waiting for the Kentucky center to send them a form which they have requested twice. They said there is nothing to be done on my side and told me to wait for the interview letter which would come in couple of weeks. As the lady said approximately a week later I had my interview letter. It was scheduled for a month later and there was a page that listed the things I should bring to the interview. I looked at the letter and it seemed like I had already submitted most of the documents they ask for the interview in the original package. So I do anything until the day before the interview. The day before I got two transcripts from the school, copies of all the documents I submitted, originals of passport, birth certificate and drivers licence and finally the print out of the pay stubs and w2 forms.
I was pretty confident in the days coming to the interview day because I knew that my case was probably one of the most plain and simplest. I was single, without any kids, an f-1 PhD student who has been a research assistant for 5 years. My visa was still ongoing (ending end of this summer) and I always had an income that was more than 1.25 of poverty line so that I also did not need a sponsor. Actually I realized about this sponsor need the day before the interview as I was preparing the interview binder (typical act of a student like doing the homework the day before its due
), that made me little nervous until shortly after I found out about who actually needed a sponsor as I read in the document.
As expected the interview was as smooth and quick as it could be, I think it took like 10-15 minutes. I was there 10 minutes early and they called me 20 minutes after my exact interview time. One lady took me to her office, after I swore to tell the truth (only the truth
) she looked at my file, she double checked the name and the address' on the papers, then she started asking me those questions that are pretty weird to almost everyone that you simply say no to all of it, same as the ones that were at the end of the I-485 application (whether I was involved in terrorist activities or had previous crimes
). After that she asked to see my transcript which I had not put in my original package, I was so glad that I had it with me, happily presented that to her, she quickly glanced it, asked me about the school life and when I would be graduating; then she told me that my file looked good and she was going to recommend it,
this was pretty much the whole conversation in the interview.
Same day the online status jumped from initial review to card production, couple of days later the status was updated saying that it was given to usps on was on its way to me. I received the card 8 days after I had the interview, oddly the welcome letter arrived a day after the card.
This is my story on how I received my card, I thank all the members who shared their valuable experiences on this forum,
I wish the best of luck to all who are in the process of obtaining their cards.
