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DV 2020 AOS Only

kratos said:
Hi everyone,

I had my bio appointment and I-485 interview at Phoenix FO. I arrived 15 minutes prior to my biometrics appointment. After going thru security, I checked in at the ASC and was promptly escorted to have my fingerprints and picture taken. I then proceeded to check-in at the reception and was told to wait for my interview. About 20 mins prior to my interview time, I was called into a room with two officers, a lady sitting on the corner and a man behind the desk.

I was told to take the oath and to tell the truth. The officer asked for all my IDs (Drivers License, Passport, EAD Card) and if I wanted to add any documentation to my application to which I answered yes and presented him with updated paystubs, bank statements, and 401k balance.

He started by asking me my Full Name, DOB, Place of Birth, and last entry date. Then we went through the I-485 form and he repeated all the questions where the answer is No (like are you a human trafficker and etc.). This took about 5-8 mins as I had to wait for him to finish reading every question and say 'No' out loud.

Afterwards he finished looking through my application and asked me to sign the I-485 document. Then he asked me about my work but mostly it was just a talking point. We talked about what I did and how Covid has impacted my job.

Then he proceeded to say that he's approving my application and is going to request a visa from KCC and he told me to expect to receive the physical card in 2 weeks. He asked me if I had any questions for him and I said no. He then returned all my updated documents which I provided to him at the beginning.

He also mentioned that uploading my fingerprints might take until tomorrow and that I should hear back from them soon.

Overall, it was a very swift process and the officer(s) were very kind and easy to talk to.

Good luck to you all. Now I anxiously wait to get the physical card in mail.
Click to expand...
Congrats @kratos!!! Happy to read good news like this..
 
This is about congressional inquiry. I know @ShazzA asked this before but as he got his bio done just after so the query was not required.

I am planning (only planning at this point) to submit an inquiry through my local US representative before they go on recess. Fortunately he is known to be very supportive of immigration issues. I have 3 questions:

Q1: Whom should I put as beneficiary? My name again?
Q2: What should be the filing date? My USCIS.gov shows fingerprint fee date as 14th May, NOA shows received date: 7th may, NOA notice date: 15th may.
Q3: Should I file two separate inquiry request , one for my wife and one for me? Or just one as I am the selectee and she is derivative and my single inquiry would be enough.

thanks
 
On July 10, I called the USCIS number to file an expedite request, but how do I know if there’s been a decision made on the expedite request? On the case status website, I see that it says on July 10 my expedite request “was completed”. Does that mean it’s rejected? I’ve come across people who said that they were informed of their expedite decision via email. So far I have received neither email nor physical mail regarding the expedite decision. I’m asking because I plan to submit a congressional inquiry soon, and I don’t want to do so until the expedite request has been resolved.
 
Hi everyone,

My wife and I also had a BIO appointment and Interview today at Phoenix FO, AZ.
The experience was very similar to the one that kratos and Magmag had.
The process went very smooth and everyone was super nice.

We went to the security 15 minutes before BIO appointment and were the first in the line (the line was about 10 people).
After passing the security, we were escorted to do our biometrics. The biometrics process took about 5-10mins.
Having done biometrics, we went to the reception desk to check-in for the interview and they added us to the system.

We waited for about 10 mins and were invited to the waiting room. The officer invited us exactly at the time we were scheduled.
First of all, we were asked about the ID and we provided our driver licenses. Then we took OAuth and promised to tell only the truth.

Before starting asking the questions, the officer asked us if we wanted to add something to our file or if we had any questions.
I asked her about our corrections that we sent a while back to Chicago lockbox and she confirmed that she had received them.

The initial questions were about the first pages of I-485 (First/Last name, DOB, Address, etc).
Having gone through these questions, we were asked some security questions (about 10-15 overall). We said the truth by answering "No" to every question.

Having asked these questions, the officer said that she will be approving our application, but she needs to wait for biometrics results that may take a few hours. We were told to expect our GCs within 2 weeks.

In the end, we talked about my job and WFH experience. Also, I asked what I should experience when I check the status on the website and she confirmed that the status will be soon updated.

Overall, we really enjoyed the experience and the people in the USCIS office.

In addition, we took quite a big file with us (all the copies/originals of everything that was submitted with the application). But we weren't asked about anything except for driver licenses. Thus, they didn't ask for originals for any I-485 and I-944 documentation that we provided.

Good luck to everyone and I wish everyone to had such a pleasant experience that we had.
 
asm_dv said:
This is about congressional inquiry. I know @ShazzA asked this before but as he got his bio done just after so the query was not required.

I am planning (only planning at this point) to submit an inquiry through my local US representative before they go on recess. Fortunately he is known to be very supportive of immigration issues. I have 3 questions:

Q1: Whom should I put as beneficiary? My name again?
Q2: What should be the filing date? My USCIS.gov shows fingerprint fee date as 14th May, NOA shows received date: 7th may, NOA notice date: 15th may.
Q3: Should I file two separate inquiry request , one for my wife and one for me? Or just one as I am the selectee and she is derivative and my single inquiry would be enough.

thanks
Click to expand...

1. Yourself
2. NOA date
3. Just one is ok - your wife can’t be approved without you anyways.
 
suemen said:
On July 10, I called the USCIS number to file an expedite request, but how do I know if there’s been a decision made on the expedite request? On the case status website, I see that it says on July 10 my expedite request “was completed”. Does that mean it’s rejected? I’ve come across people who said that they were informed of their expedite decision via email. So far I have received neither email nor physical mail regarding the expedite decision. I’m asking because I plan to submit a congressional inquiry soon, and I don’t want to do so until the expedite request has been resolved.
Click to expand...

Call USCIS to see if they can give you an update/explain what the “completed” means in this case since you never got a response.
 
Just had the Bio and Interview at Phoenix today as well.
Similar experience with my fellow Phoenix DV applicants. (Probably saw some of them today).
The officer went through the i485 form and asked a few travel history which took about 30 mins.
At the end, he just said need to wait for the bio result to approve the case and it could take a week.
The case was updated "Interview Was Completed And My Case Must Be Reviewed", so not sure if others has the same updates?

Thank you to @Sm1smom and all contributors for this great forum/timelines with so much information especially under these uncertain times.
 
tekken123 said:
Just had the Bio and Interview at Phoenix today as well.
Similar experience with my fellow Phoenix DV applicants. (Probably saw some of them today).
The officer went through the i485 form and asked a few travel history which took about 30 mins.
At the end, he just said need to wait for the bio result to approve the case and it could take a week.
The case was updated "Interview Was Completed And My Case Must Be Reviewed", so not sure if others has the same updates?

Thank you to @Sm1smom and all contributors for this great forum/timelines with so much information especially under these uncertain times.
Click to expand...

Thanks for this update. Your account of what your IO told you is more in line of what I expected others to have been told - not saying others narratives are not accurate. I expected the the IO to have pointed out the fact that the final approval depends on the background check clearance.

Fingers crossed for you!
 
suemen said:
On July 10, I called the USCIS number to file an expedite request, but how do I know if there’s been a decision made on the expedite request? On the case status website, I see that it says on July 10 my expedite request “was completed”. Does that mean it’s rejected? I’ve come across people who said that they were informed of their expedite decision via email. So far I have received neither email nor physical mail regarding the expedite decision. I’m asking because I plan to submit a congressional inquiry soon, and I don’t want to do so until the expedite request has been resolved.
Click to expand...
Sm1smom said:
Call USCIS to see if they can give you an update/explain what the “completed” means in this case since you never got a response.
Click to expand...
Something similar happened to me- I submitted an expedite request on 15th, and on the 21st, the following updates showed up on MyUSCIS:
- On July 21, 2020, your request to have your case expedited, referral number ######, was assigned to an officer for response.
- On July 21, 2020, we sent a response to your request to have your case expedited, referral number ######.
- On July 21, 2020, your request to have your case expedited, referral number ######, was completed.
Click to expand...

I received an email then, as well, but it said:
On 07/15/2020, you or your representative contacted U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) about your I485 because you believe your case is outside normal processing times [I did not note this, so it may possibly be a standard response]. We are still reviewing your case. We received your expedited request on 07/15/2020. The Case has been forwarded for managerial consideration. Once approved you will be notified.
Click to expand...
As it had been 5 full working days since my request, I called, to follow up, and seek interpretation of these messages, and the status of the request, but I was advised to call back for tier 2, tomorrow, as the representative was unable to give me anything other than what I could already see online; she also said that there's probably a letter on its way. If it just has the same contents as the email, it won't be very informative.

Edit: congrats to all those who had successful interviews!
 
Sm1smom, agree, the notice that I got says that the case can't be approved before bio results.
On the other hand, it also says that the reason for not approving - Approved when bio is received.
So technically, it depends and it can be denied, but since in my case I didn't have any crimes, arrests, etc, it's unlikely.
 
kratos said:
Hi everyone,

I had my bio appointment and I-485 interview at Phoenix FO. I arrived 15 minutes prior to my biometrics appointment. After going thru security, I checked in at the ASC and was promptly escorted to have my fingerprints and picture taken. I then proceeded to check-in at the reception and was told to wait for my interview. About 20 mins prior to my interview time, I was called into a room with two officers, a lady sitting on the corner and a man behind the desk.

I was told to take the oath and to tell the truth. The officer asked for all my IDs (Drivers License, Passport, EAD Card) and if I wanted to add any documentation to my application to which I answered yes and presented him with updated paystubs, bank statements, and 401k balance.

He started by asking me my Full Name, DOB, Place of Birth, and last entry date. Then we went through the I-485 form and he repeated all the questions where the answer is No (like are you a human trafficker and etc.). This took about 5-8 mins as I had to wait for him to finish reading every question and say 'No' out loud.

Afterwards he finished looking through my application and asked me to sign the I-485 document. Then he asked me about my work but mostly it was just a talking point. We talked about what I did and how Covid has impacted my job.

Then he proceeded to say that he's approving my application and is going to request a visa from KCC and he told me to expect to receive the physical card in 2 weeks. He asked me if I had any questions for him and I said no. He then returned all my updated documents which I provided to him at the beginning.

He also mentioned that uploading my fingerprints might take until tomorrow and that I should hear back from them soon.

Overall, it was a very swift process and the officer(s) were very kind and easy to talk to.

Good luck to you all. Now I anxiously wait to get the physical card in mail.
Click to expand...
Congratulations
 
tekken123 said:
Just had the Bio and Interview at Phoenix today as well.
Similar experience with my fellow Phoenix DV applicants. (Probably saw some of them today).
The officer went through the i485 form and asked a few travel history which took about 30 mins.
At the end, he just said need to wait for the bio result to approve the case and it could take a week.
The case was updated "Interview Was Completed And My Case Must Be Reviewed", so not sure if others has the same updates?

Thank you to @Sm1smom and all contributors for this great forum/timelines with so much information especially under these uncertain times.
Click to expand...
To confirm this, because I don't have the bio yet, after my interview the status changed to "Interview Was Completed And My Case Must Be Reviewed." Now I'm just waiting for the biometrics but my ASC only opens on July 27.
 
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