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DV 2016 AOS Only

Luna0214 said:
Hi Mom,

I have another question...

My wife is the principal applicant and her qualification for the DV program is based on education (graduation from high school). She graduated from high school and university in the UK, and is now attending law school in ths US. She will graduate with a JD (graduate degree) in May.


We have her university diploma and proof of enrollment at her law school, but UK high schools do not issue a “high school diploma” like the US schools. Based on our research, 5 or more passes at grade C or above in the UK’s GCSE and A-level exams are generally considered equivalent to US high school diplomas, and is sufficient, at least for the CP process.


Because we are going through the AOS process with USCIS, who may be less familiar with the UK qualifications, we wondered if we should prepare additional documents to avoid confusion? Would a letter from the high school certifying the dates of attendance, or some authority stating that the GCSE/A-levels are equivalent to US High school diploma be helpful?


If anyone has experience going through USCIS with UK GCSE/A-levels, we’d love to hear.
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The standard or US High School graduation is the point at which an American can enter a US college (Uni). In the UK, there is now the UCAS scale to determine eligibility to enter Uni - and the minimum level is 3 A level passes. That same standard can be applied to US colleges.

However, the fact that your wife entered UK Uni, passed, and then went on to law school in the US shows that she has reached the bar (excuse the pun). So - she should take the O level, A level, UK Uni and proof of the law school.
 
Britsimon said:
The standard or US High School graduation is the point at which an American can enter a US college (Uni). In the UK, there is now the UCAS scale to determine eligibility to enter Uni - and the minimum level is 3 A level passes. That same standard can be applied to US colleges.

However, the fact that your wife entered UK Uni, passed, and then went on to law school in the US shows that she has reached the bar (excuse the pun). So - she should take the O level, A level, UK Uni and proof of the law school.
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Thank you for your comments Britsimon!!
 
Luna0214 said:
Hi Mom,

I have another question...

My wife is the principal applicant and her qualification for the DV program is based on education (graduation from high school). She graduated from high school and university in the UK, and is now attending law school in ths US. She will graduate with a JD (graduate degree) in May.


We have her university diploma and proof of enrollment at her law school, but UK high schools do not issue a “high school diploma” like the US schools. Based on our research, 5 or more passes at grade C or above in the UK’s GCSE and A-level exams are generally considered equivalent to US high school diplomas, and is sufficient, at least for the CP process.


Because we are going through the AOS process with USCIS, who may be less familiar with the UK qualifications, we wondered if we should prepare additional documents to avoid confusion? Would a letter from the high school certifying the dates of attendance, or some authority stating that the GCSE/A-levels are equivalent to US High school diploma be helpful?


If anyone has experience going through USCIS with UK GCSE/A-levels, we’d love to hear.
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^^ Yes to what he (Simon) said above ^^
 
Hello, I submitted my package a week and a half ago, it was delivered on the 10th of this month. I still have not received an acceptance text/email, or my notification letter, and the check has not been cashed. Is this normal? Should I contact USCIS?
 
I know that there are limited number of green cards for each year. I have done my biometric and just waiting for IL (more than 4 months). Should I be worried about the number of GCs or I have passed that level. I mean if my status shows "pending interview" (that's what they told me in INFOPASS), it means that I will get the interview anyway. Thanks.
 
Sm1smom said:
I'm not quite sure you're paying enough attention to what we're trying to point you to all along. There's nothing ingenious in what you've stated your lawyer is planning to argue your case upon. As a matter of fact, you don't need a lawyer for that line of argument - it's something you can politely point out yourself if it were to be raised during your AOS interview. Plus I'm convinced USCIS wouldn't even make an issue of that. If it's clear to me that a 'pending status' is considered a valid status, I see no reason why that wouldn't be obvious to USCIS at the time of the AOS interview, if the F1 petition was/is still pending by then.

If you take another look at my post, which you quoted in your above response, you will see the area of concern is if your F1 petition was to be denied BEFORE the AOS interview. For as long as the F1 petition is still pending by then (or it has been approved), you should be fine.
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Thank's a lot again for your answers. The only thing that I'm not 100% sure that it will be ok is if the F1 Notice of action (I 797 receipt ) would keep the place of a valid I-94? Is that at Uscis IO 's discretion or have you seen/ knew/ heard anybody who has applied to I-485 thru Dv lottery ( because I know that Aos thru marriage or employment based cases are a whole different story)?
That is basically my biggest concern that it would make me decide in 2 weeks if I should still further proceed with the AOS or change to CP.
Another question I would have is how can you 'request' Uscis for the interview once your biometrics are cleared?-Kcc is keep telling me that we need to request Uscis for that and they 'have' to schedule it?-In an Info pass is that easy to 'ask' for your interview letter, because all AOS Dv cases should have different processing methods/ timing, right?

Thank's in advance again!
 
Marian Valentin said:
Thank's a lot again for your answers. The only thing that I'm not 100% sure that it will be ok is if the F1 Notice of action (I 797 receipt ) would keep the place of a valid I-94? Is that at Uscis IO 's discretion or have you seen/ knew/ heard anybody who has applied to I-485 thru Dv lottery ( because I know that Aos thru marriage or employment based cases are a whole different story)?
That is basically my biggest concern that it would make me decide in 2 weeks if I should still further proceed with the AOS or change to CP.
Another question I would have is how can you 'request' Uscis for the interview once your biometrics are cleared?-Kcc is keep telling me that we need to request Uscis for that and they 'have' to schedule it?-In an Info pass is that easy to 'ask' for your interview letter, because all AOS Dv cases should have different processing methods/ timing, right?

Thank's in advance again!
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You seem to be turning in circles. Your main concern at this stage is not whether the "F1 Notice of action (I 797 receipt ) would keep the place of a valid I-94". Your I-94 you can find here: https://i94.cbp.dhs.gov/I94/consent.html. Several people, independently from each other, have informed you what the risk to your DV AOS application is. Hence, there is no need to repeat this issue in detail here once again: you will be successful if your AOS process may be finalized before your pending, independent F-1 application would possibly be declined first, in which case your DV AOS filing would be left in limbo. This is not rocket science. Good luck! Truly, I am not sure whether you have options other than to see the AOS process through to the end at this stage of the game.
 
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Marian Valentin said:
Thank's a lot again for your answers. The only thing that I'm not 100% sure that it will be ok is if the F1 Notice of action (I 797 receipt ) would keep the place of a valid I-94? Is that at Uscis IO 's discretion or have you seen/ knew/ heard anybody who has applied to I-485 thru Dv lottery ( because I know that Aos thru marriage or employment based cases are a whole different story)?
That is basically my biggest concern that it would make me decide in 2 weeks if I should still further proceed with the AOS or change to CP.
Another question I would have is how can you 'request' Uscis for the interview once your biometrics are cleared?-Kcc is keep telling me that we need to request Uscis for that and they 'have' to schedule it?-In an Info pass is that easy to 'ask' for your interview letter, because all AOS Dv cases should have different processing methods/ timing, right?

Thank's in advance again!
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Again, you're not focusing on what I firmly believe could be the game changer for you. However, because I understand how stressful the AOS process can be in general, much more stressful in your particular situation, I will respond to this post.

1. A pending status is a pending status, regardless of if the AOS petition being filed while already in a pending status is marriage, employment, relative, or DV based. A pending status is not FO or IO based.
2. A "request" with USCIS is already made by virtue of your submitted AOS petition - basically, what KCC is telling you is that if you want to process your selection via status adjustment, you need to file a formal request with USCIS. You're assigned a FO based on your home address as indicated on your I-485. Your FO, based on the workload they have to contend with, will then schedule your interview - you do not make any other formal request. You may schedule an INFOPASS to follow up on the status of your case, if you feel it's been pending for a while, it's not guaranteed to lead to the IL being sent/issued right away.

Now, I strongly suggest you go through the AOS spreadsheet we've put together to help you understand the AOS process. It's obvious to me, at this stage you clearly don't understand the process. There's no reason to be calling KCC if you're processing AOS, KCC does not handle AOS cases, their reps do not understand what the process involves.

p.s. I'm really not sure what it is you're paying your lawyers for, if they can't explain the interview process to you; or clarify what a pending status is.
 
Hi guys,
My bio date was on Nov 25th 2015 and we received our EAD on January 8th but we have not heard for our interview yet. It has been around 4 months that I have sent my I-485 and this is making me worried. Any experience or tip?
Case No: AS 25**, current in October.
I am in PA, FO: Philadelphia.
Story: I was selected for DV and my NIW application got approved around October. I went with DV lottery because I thought it is faster.

I am also wondering how possible it is that USCIS waives my interview. NIW application does not generally have interview and I thought this is the case for my DV lottery application as well.
 
NiwDV said:
Hi guys,
My bio date was on Nov 25th 2015 and we received our EAD on January 8th but we have not heard for our interview yet. It has been around 4 months that I have sent my I-485 and this is making me worried. Any experience or tip?
Case No: AS 25**, current in October.
I am in PA, FO: Philadelphia.
Story: I was selected for DV and my NIW application got approved around October. I went with DV lottery because I thought it is faster.

I am also wondering how possible it is that USCIS waives my interview. NIW application does not generally have interview and I thought this is the case for my DV lottery application as well.
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Why would completion of DV AOS process expected to be any faster, if your National Interest Waiver application was approved last October? https://www.uscis.gov/eir/visa-guid...ed-second-preference/national-interest-waiver
To your question: it is very highly unlikely that your DV interview will be waived, it is an integral part of the DV AOS process as designed.
 
EURO2014 said:
Why would completion of DV AOS process expected to be any faster, if your National Interest Waiver application was approved last October? https://www.uscis.gov/eir/visa-guid...ed-second-preference/national-interest-waiver
To your question: it is very highly unlikely that your DV interview will be waived, it is an integral part of the DV AOS process as designed.
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I did not get your point from the link. In comparison with NIW based I-485 submission which could last at least 5 months (at time of my I-485 submission), DV lottery seemed to be faster.
Anyway, does any one has any tip for me? how typical is it to to so long and still have not received interview invitation?
 
NiwDV said:
I did not get your point from the link. In comparison with NIW based I-485 submission which could last at least 5 months (at time of my I-485 submission), DV lottery seemed to be faster.
Anyway, does any one has any tip for me? how typical is it to to so long and still have not received interview invitation?
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You had indicated that "my NIW application got approved around October", suggesting that USCIS had already reviewed and approved your respective filing requirements 1 through 3, detailed in the link I sent you, by that time? Hence, assuming that this was the case, my question was "why would (you have expected) completion of DV AOS process ... to be any faster?", which I think is a fair question. In respect to DV AOS process, you may want to review timelines in Sm1smom's AOS folder, you may find your situation to be nothing but usual. Good luck!
 
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NiwDV said:
I did not get your point from the link. In comparison with NIW based I-485 submission which could last at least 5 months (at time of my I-485 submission), DV lottery seemed to be faster.
Anyway, does any one has any tip for me? how typical is it to to so long and still have not received interview invitation?
Click to expand...

Yes, it is possible for a DV based AOS petition to be approved without an interview. This however is FO based, it's not a general practice. So check the AOS spreadsheet (link on the first post/page 1 of this Thread) for the Timelines spreadsheets for information regarding how your FO handled previous DV based AOS petitions.

This is should also give you an idea of how long your FO typically takes in completing the DV based AOS process. If the comparison indicates your case as looking unusually long, then you need to schedule an INFOPASS appointment right away to follow up on the case.
 
EURO2014 said:
To your question: it is very highly unlikely that your DV interview will be waived, it is an integral part of the DV AOS process as designed.
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It's not unlikely/unusual for a DV based AOS petition to get approved without an interview.
 
Sm1smom said:
It's not unlikely/unusual for a DV based AOS petition to get approved without an interview.
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Sure, I do understand that it does happen - thank you for pointing this out, Sm1smom. From this OP's perspective there presumably should not be a general expectation that this will necessarily happen in his specific case, though, NIW and all... ;)
 
Sm1smom said:
The online status, when reference is made to something that was mailed, typically doesn't say what the decision is/was. Sounds like what was initially mailed to you could have been a denial notice, you'll just have to be patience for now to see what shows up in your mailbox and to what the eventual decision will be.

It's a good thing though you got to the source of the confusion regarding your status and you've taken the necessary steps to rectify and inform USCIS. So patiently wait for whatever it is to show up or for the next update. It's not over yet, and there's still lots of time left.
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Update: Today I got the Welcome Letter in my mail box, unfortunately it was dated Feb 18 (1 day before case update date). I guess it means my case was approved after interview. But when I submitted the letter from ISSS to them on Feb 19, it made the officer concerned and she reopened my case. I'm way regretful since I think I made the situation more complicated by sending the "wrong SEVIS status report". I'm still waiting for the reopen mail to see what is the instruction.
 
EURO2014 said:
You had indicated that "my NIW application got approved around October", suggesting that USCIS had already reviewed and approved your respective filing requirements 1 through 3, detailed in the link I sent you, by that time? Hence, assuming that this was the case, my question was "why would (you have expected) completion of DV AOS process ... to be any faster?", which I think is a fair question. In respect to DV AOS process, you may want to review timelines in Sm1smom's AOS folder, you may find your situation to be nothing but usual. Good luck!
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As I mentioned, AOS through DV lottery is generally faster than NIW which was at least 5 months while I was submitting my case. Thanks...
 
Sm1smom said:
Yes, it is possible for a DV based AOS petition to be approved without an interview. This however is FO based, it's not a general practice. So check the AOS spreadsheet (link on the first post/page 1 of this Thread) for the Timelines spreadsheets for information regarding how your FO handled previous DV based AOS petitions.

This is should also give you an idea of how long your FO typically takes in completing the DV based AOS process. If the comparison indicates your case as looking unusually long, then you need to schedule an INFOPASS appointment right away to follow up on the case.
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Mom, thank you. My field office is Philadelphia and I am gonna schedule an infopass appointment on the earliest available date.
One more question, I called USCUS and they told me you should wait. How long should I wait to be able to submit an inquiry?
 
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