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Hi guys!! I went to my interview this morning at LA field office. Everything went well and at the end IO said he will approve our case and handed us the approval letter. He said we will receive the card probably in two weeks. I still haven't received any text/ email update on our case yet. Just wondering how long does it takes for them to update our case online?? Thanks mom and everyone else!! This forum really did help us a lot:)
 
You're right, the IO's response about your contacting your congress person isn't quite true - it's just an option they typically do not like. If memory serves me right though, your interview was in June, right? In that case, I would suggest another INFOPASS appointment in 2 weeks time, to be followed with the congress person option if there's still no decision by then.

Hi Mom,

I went to the USCIS today and basically got the same response: your case is with the supervisor and is still pending. I told the officer that I've not even received my interview letter yet and asked him to call the supervisor as his colleague had done before, but he refused to do so. He told me that "there a lot of you guys with pending lottery cases. Be patient and don't worry. She's aware of the deadline and she will review your case by then". Frankly speaking I don't trust what they say so I'm not sure if she'll review the case and send me an interview letter in time.

What do you think is the best course of action now? Contact my congress person immediately? What I'm afraid of is having the congress person contact them and then a negative reaction from the USCIS for "not being patient" with them. I was thinking about calling the customer service line and talking to a 2nd level officer before contacting the congress person. Do you think that will nudge the supervisor about the case?

And one last question, is it best to contact my congressman's office by email, phone or mail?

Thanks,
Armin
 
Hi Mom,

I went to the USCIS today and basically got the same response: your case is with the supervisor and is still pending. I told the officer that I've not even received my interview letter yet and asked him to call the supervisor as his colleague had done before, but he refused to do so. He told me that "there a lot of you guys with pending lottery cases. Be patient and don't worry. She's aware of the deadline and she will review your case by then". Frankly speaking I don't trust what they say so I'm not sure if she'll review the case and send me an interview letter in time.

What do you think is the best course of action now? Contact my congress person immediately? What I'm afraid of is having the congress person contact them and then a negative reaction from the USCIS for "not being patient" with them. I was thinking about calling the customer service line and talking to a 2nd level officer before contacting the congress person. Do you think that will nudge the supervisor about the case?

And one last question, is it best to contact my congressman's office by email, phone or mail?

Thanks,
Armin

My initial suggestion to contact your congressperson for help isn't quite applicable in your case for now, I believe. When I made that suggestion I thought you had already had your interview and we're waiting for a decision since June, so forget what I said about the congressperson.

The next step you could try is calling USCIS and requesting to speak with a 2nd level officer after speaking with the customer rep. You could ask them to send an expedite request to your FO based on the sunset provision - bear in mind they're not obligated to send out the expedite request, and even if they do, your FO is not obligated to act on it either. But the fact that you're following up on the case with your FO is most likely nudging things along, bringing it to the attention of the relevant parties even if you're not seeing any desired result for now. You can also schedule another INFOPASS appointment to occur in two weeks' time.
 
Hi guys!! I went to my interview this morning at LA field office. Everything went well and at the end IO said he will approve our case and handed us the approval letter. He said we will receive the card probably in two weeks. I still haven't received any text/ email update on our case yet. Just wondering how long does it takes for them to update our case online?? Thanks mom and everyone else!! This forum really did help us a lot:)

Congratulations! The fact that your IO issued your approval letter on the spot is good news. How long it takes to update the system depends on the IO involved, some update right away which is why some applicants have been able to report on getting status updates even before they get back home from their interview. Other IOs, though have the good intention of doing same could get side tracked by one thing or the other and simply forget about updating the case, hence the delay. The race is almost over for you!
 
I just received my NOA today! and I guess I'm waiting to get my finger print appointment letter. From what I understood is I should just wait, because there is nothing I can do until I do my finger prints, correct?
 
Congratulations! The fact that your IO issued your approval letter on the spot is good news. How long it takes to update the system depends on the IO involved, some update right away which is why some applicants have been able to report on getting status updates even before they get back home from their interview. Other IOs, though have the good intention of doing same could get side tracked by one thing or the other and simply forget about updating the case, hence the delay. The race is almost over for you!

Hi Mom, just received the " Welcome Notice was Mailed" email an hour ago!! Thank you for your reply and you are the best MOM!!:D
 
Make another INFOPASS visit to your FO. Phone call isn't likely to yield any desired outcome. When you get to your FO, ask them if your background check has cleared, ask them if your case KCC file has been requested and received. Politely remind them about the need to get your petition decided before the FY ends and the possibility of the applicable DV based visas running out.

If there's still no positive/encouraging news following the INFOPASS, contact your congress person. Engaging the services of a lawyer at this stage in particular is nothing but a waste of resources.

Dear Sm1smom, thanks. I went to an infopass few days ago. The gentlemen told me that everything on my case looks good, and my case is still pending (they haven't made a decision). The KCC file has been received; but he did not know the answer whether the background check has been cleared. He emailed the officer in charge of my case and encouraged me to be patient and come back couple of times in September, in case I don't hear back from them.
I am a scientist and that could be a reason for them to delay my case (I believe it is unfair, however)
Seeking congressman's help would not really help, would it?
 
Hi,

I have a question. Does the September 30 deadline for the DV-based green card refers to the last possible date to receive the physical green card or the last date to get the I-485 approval notice?
 
Hi,

I have a question. Does the September 30 deadline for the DV-based green card refers to the last possible date to receive the physical green card or the last date to get the I-485 approval notice?
Last day to complete the process and have your petition approved and visa number assigned to your case.
 
Dear Sm1smom, thanks. I went to an infopass few days ago. The gentlemen told me that everything on my case looks good, and my case is still pending (they haven't made a decision). The KCC file has been received; but he did not know the answer whether the background check has been cleared. He emailed the officer in charge of my case and encouraged me to be patient and come back couple of times in September, in case I don't hear back from them.
I am a scientist and that could be a reason for them to delay my case (I believe it is unfair, however)
Seeking congressman's help would not really help, would it?

Unfortunately, what you consider to be fair and what the U.S. government considers fair when it comes to immigration matters are different things.

Seeking congressional help may not necessarily resolve the issue, especially if the delay has to do with a pending background check, it can however shed more light on what's causing the approval delay.

I hope your case gets resolved soon!
 
Hi,

I have a question. Does the September 30 deadline for the DV-based green card refers to the last possible date to receive the physical green card or the last date to get the I-485 approval notice?

Last day for the petition to be approved.
 
Dear Sm1smom, thanks. I went to an infopass few days ago. The gentlemen told me that everything on my case looks good, and my case is still pending (they haven't made a decision). The KCC file has been received; but he did not know the answer whether the background check has been cleared. He emailed the officer in charge of my case and encouraged me to be patient and come back couple of times in September, in case I don't hear back from them.
I am a scientist and that could be a reason for them to delay my case (I believe it is unfair, however)
Seeking congressman's help would not really help, would it?
May I know are you from one of those countries where US consider as high risk?
 
Unfortunately, what you consider to be fair and what the U.S. government considers fair when it comes to immigration matters are different things.

Seeking congressional help may not necessarily resolve the issue, especially if the delay has to do with a pending background check, it can however shed more light on what's causing the approval delay.

I hope your case gets resolved soon!

I really hope so too :)
Sure thing, then I am going to contact my congressman next.
Thanks for sharing your experience Sm1smom; it would have been much harder without the forum.

@kchemist I don't think my country is considered high risk. However I am working with support of some of US national labs (meaning I have gone through back ground checks couple of times before).
Given the fact that we had to pay for i485, I really hope to at least receive a yes/no answer in the end. haha
 
My Biometric appointment letter says i should come on the 26th.
I came to the local USCIS office and the lady said that they can only do the biometric on the date in the letter.
What do you think, experts?

Thank you.
 
My Biometric appointment letter says i should come on the 26th.
I came to the local USCIS office and the lady said that they can only do the biometric on the date in the letter.
What do you think, experts?

Thank you.

Too bad they wouldn't let you do a walk-in. You can try at another ASC if you're able to go out of State, or there's another one not too far from you. Other than that, you'll just have to wait until your appointment day. You can also pick a different time of the day a couple of days down the road and give it another try.
 
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