DV 2022 AOS (Adjustment of Status) Only

[Sm1smom]

Hello members and moderators!
Hope you all had a great long weekend.

I'm assembling my AOS package and have some questions:

1) I have a different pending case with USCIS for which I have done the biometrics (October 2020) and awaiting interview. In my AOS package, do I need to include the last I-797, NOA I received for my other case?

2) On this forum I came across the USCIS's Twitter post from 2020 about not leaving blank space on forms. But there were some issues it might cause like if you put "none" in your middle name section you might end up getting a card that indicates "none" as your middle name. What parts of the form are okay to leave blank (ex: sections with additional names, addresses, preparer info, etc.) ?

3) To avoid mix-ups and loss of documents, is it a good idea to number the pages and put some info (ex: name, A#, form #) on documents that don't originally have page numbers?
If yes, is it okay to handwrite that info?

4) I'm an F-1 student. If I've undertaken on campus employment and did a CPT during my studies, do I need to submit a copy of my SSN?

Thanks in advance!

1. The AOS process spreadsheet recommends including I-797 NOA for current and past visa status (if applicable).
2. Please see this post with 3 samples of how to fill out the I-485. Use whichever you're comfortable with as a guide for filling out your forms.
3. You may do that if you like.
4. Please see the AOS Package section of the AOS Process spreadsheet for more guidance on what is recommended for inclusion in the AOS package.

 

[atrzad]

Hello,
I have done my biometrics on 11/19 and two days ago i got another notice for biometrics which was issued on 11/17 and it is scheduled for 1/6
for same forms.
What should i do?
sorry for asking again

 

[Sm1smom]

Hello,
I have done my biometrics on 11/19 and two days ago i got another notice for biometrics which was issued on 11/17 and it is scheduled for 1/6
for same forms.
What should i do?
sorry for asking again

Apologies for not responding to this question before.
I recommend you show up for that appointment. The ASC techs will let you know (when you show up) if there was no need to come in.

 

[Sm1smom]

Hello,
I have done my biometrics on 11/19 and two days ago i got another notice for biometrics which was issued on 11/17 and it is scheduled for 1/6
for same forms.
What should i do?
sorry for asking again

I recommend you add your timeline to the DV AOS 2022 Timeline Spreadsheet by the way - you all help each other by contributing and updating the spreadsheet as your cases progress.

 

[Luna P]

Hi Sm1smom. Thanks a lot for replying so quickly.

I forgot to ask one more thing. I have 9 years of school (primary and lower secondary) and 3 years of professional college education which accounts for 12 years of education in my home country. When I applied to university in US I did an evaluation of my diploma which confirmed that it is equivalent to vocational high school diploma. I was accepted to the university but would it qualify me for DV? It appears vocational school diploma is not considered equivalent to high school diploma for DV. FYI: I attend a university here in US but don't have a degree yet.

US Embassy website in Albania (unable to include links) states this:
"Education: Applicants must have completed a full-time high school education that is at least equivalent to a U.S. high school education (4 years, full-time, general studies). Full time general studies high school degrees do qualify for the lottery. Full time vocational high school degrees may qualify as long as they substantially conform to the core requirements of an equivalent United States general studies degree program. The final decision will be made by the consular officer on the day of the interview.

Part time high school diplomas – without a break from work, evening school, or correspondence – including five year programs or long-term programs (part time, without a break from work, evening school, or correspondence) don’t qualify for the DV. Even if you completed part of high school on the part time system, and part of high school on the full time system, this diploma will not qualify for the DV.

University degrees qualify for the DV program."

 

[Sm1smom]

Hi Sm1smom. Thanks a lot for replying so quickly.

I forgot to ask one more thing. I have 9 years of school (primary and lower secondary) and 3 years of professional college education which accounts for 12 years of education in my home country. When I applied to university in US I did an evaluation of my diploma which confirmed that it is equivalent to vocational high school diploma. I was accepted to the university but would it qualify me for DV? It appears vocational school diploma is not considered equivalent to high school diploma for DV. FYI: I attend a university here in US but don't have a degree yet.

US Embassy website in Albania (unable to include links) states this:
"Education: Applicants must have completed a full-time high school education that is at least equivalent to a U.S. high school education (4 years, full-time, general studies). Full time general studies high school degrees do qualify for the lottery. Full time vocational high school degrees may qualify as long as they substantially conform to the core requirements of an equivalent United States general studies degree program. The final decision will be made by the consular officer on the day of the interview.

Part time high school diplomas – without a break from work, evening school, or correspondence – including five year programs or long-term programs (part time, without a break from work, evening school, or correspondence) don’t qualify for the DV. Even if you completed part of high school on the part time system, and part of high school on the full time system, this diploma will not qualify for the DV.

University degrees qualify for the DV program."

The IO will make the final determination - regardless of how your home embassy treats or sees vocational schooling. The good news for AOSers is the fact that IOs do not seem to lay much emphasis on vocational schooling not meeting the DV requirement.
Nonetheless, unless you're asked to present a diploma (or degree) evaluation report, I recommend not presenting it to the IO when you do go in for your interview (and you obviously shouldn't include it with your AOS package). You should include a copy the Diploma issued from your home country. Plan on attending your interview with the original copy of that Diploma and copies of your college transcripts.

 

[Luna P]

The IO will make the final determination - regardless of how your home embassy treats or sees vocational schooling. The good news for AOSers is the fact that IOs do not seem to lay much emphasis on vocational schooling not meeting the DV requirement.
Nonetheless, unless you're asked to present a diploma (or degree) evaluation report, I recommend not presenting it to the IO when you do go in for your interview (and you obviously shouldn't include it with your AOS package). You should include a copy the Diploma issued from your home country. Plan on attending your interview with the original copy of that Diploma and copies of your college transcripts.

You're right, that makes more sense. Thanks a lot for your kind suggestion. I have a couple more questions if that's okay, apologies for the length of questions.

1) I have a pending asylum case and have mentioned it on my cover letter because i was told it would make it easier for officers to find my previous case and add it to the new one. I don't know if there any data on this, but is it be possible that a pending asylum case may affect the DV based AOS application in any way? And I'm not on asylum pending status. I have a valid F1 visa and never applied for EAD.

2) I did do a CPT and an on-campus employment. But I cannot fully support myself since I'm on an F1 visa. The spreadsheet mentions that if you don't have financial support then you can use I-134. Considering that I use I34 and my sponsor provided his financial info, do I still need to provide my financial documents? I'm asking because I did a CPT in 2019 and it's in my old I20 that I'm submitting along with the new. So is it necessary that I submit my payslips, employment verification, etc, because I may be asked to confirm my CPT? Or would it be redundant since I'm submitting I-134?

Thank you!

 

[Sm1smom]

You're right, that makes more sense. Thanks a lot for your kind suggestion. I have a couple more questions if that's okay, apologies for the length of questions.

1) I have a pending asylum case and have mentioned it on my cover letter because i was told it would make it easier for officers to find my previous case and add it to the new one. I don't know if there any data on this, but is it be possible that a pending asylum case may affect the DV based AOS application in any way? And I'm not on asylum pending status. I have a valid F1 visa and never applied for EAD.

2) I did do a CPT and an on-campus employment. But I cannot fully support myself since I'm on an F1 visa. The spreadsheet mentions that if you don't have financial support then you can use I-134. Considering that I use I34 and my sponsor provided his financial info, do I still need to provide my financial documents? I'm asking because I did a CPT in 2019 and it's in my old I20 that I'm submitting along with the new. So is it necessary that I submit my payslips, employment verification, etc, because I may be asked to confirm my CPT? Or would it be redundant since I'm submitting I-134?

Thank you!

1. In general, I have never recommended for someone with an asylum pending case to mention such on their cover letter, it is redundant information IMO considering you're already including your I-797 NOA to start with, they can always make the connection easily regardless of if mentioned in a cover note or not (so you call if you still believe doing so will help). You have nothing to worry about with regards to the asylum pending case impacting your DV based AOS application as long as you've been and continue to maintain your current F1 status.
2. You should always be prepared to demonstrate you were eligible to undertake the employment you had back in 2019, regardless of if they will ask you to demonstrate an eligibility to do so or not. I cannot tell you if including those financial documents are necessary or not, or if you "need to" include them, please use your discretion on what to do.

 

[adam69]

Hey SuperMom and team,

Had my interview this morning at 7am (haha) and everything seemed to go well. The FO told me and my husband that they would adjudicate today or tomorrow and we would know in 24-48 what the decision was. However, when I log into my USCIS account it says "New Card is Being Produced" so hoping this is a good sign. I'll let everyone know when/if I get the actual card in hand.

Thank you so much to everyone for your help with this, I can't believe how quickly it all went.

Congratulations

 

[Luna P]

1. In general, I have never recommended for someone with an asylum pending case to mention such on their cover letter, it is redundant information IMO considering you're already including your I-797 NOA to start with, they can always make the connection easily regardless of if mentioned in a cover note or not (so you call if you still believe doing so will help). You have nothing to worry about with regards to the asylum pending case impacting your DV based AOS application as long as you've been and continue to maintain your current F1 status.
2. You should always be prepared to demonstrate you were eligible to undertake the employment you had back in 2019, regardless of if they will ask you to demonstrate an eligibility to do so or not. I cannot tell you if including those financial documents are necessary or not, or if you "need to" include them, please use your discretion on what to do.

You are right. I'm probably overthinking it with my pending case. Thank you Sm1smom. Thank you for all your insight and wisdom. I had been struggling to process different kinds of information I needed to make a good decision, but this forum really helps me put my mind at ease. You're a gem!

 

[Ckb]

That is not a big deal. You can leave the DS260 as is.

I don’t know if this is useful at all but I was actually watching your video on YouTube at the time I wrote this and your “A delay is better than a denial” stuck with me, so I emailed them regardless….

I received an email back notifying me that they had unlocked my DS-260 within 24hr.

 

[Sm1smom]

I don’t know if this is useful at all but I was actually watching your video on YouTube at the time I wrote this and your “A delay is better than a denial” stuck with me, so I emailed them regardless….

I received an email back notifying me that they had unlocked my DS-260 within 24hr.

Good to know KCC unlocked your DS260 form within 24 hr, however I stand by the comment I made by the way, which I’m certain Simon will also agree with in this case - that correction is so minor it doesn’t fall under the realm of what could lead to a denial in any way whatsoever. The DS260, (while we recommend it’s submission for reasons already explained on the AOS spreadsheet) has no major role to play in the AOS process to start with. The “delay is better than denial” speech is one I also make for situations where unlocking the DS260 to make necessary changes/updates is of utmost importance, certainly not in this situation. But I understand this is your case, you do what what you’re comfortable doing.

p.s. You watched Simon’s video on YouTube, not mine. @Britsimon (aka Simon) and @Sm1smom (aka mom) are profiles belonging to two different people.

 

[Ckb]

Good to know KCC unlocked your DS260 form within 24 hr, however I stand by the comment I made by the way, which I’m certain Simon will also agree with in this case - that correction is so minor it doesn’t fall under the realm of what could lead to a denial in any way whatsoever. The DS260, (while we recommend it’s submission for reasons already explained on the AOS spreadsheet) has no major role to play in the AOS process to start with. The “delay is better than denial” speech is one I also make for situations where unlocking the DS260 to make necessary changes/updates is of utmost importance, certainly not in this situation. But I understand this is your case, you do what what you’re comfortable doing.

p.s. You watched Simon’s video on YouTube, not mine. @Britsimon (aka Simon) and @Sm1smom (aka mom) are profiles belonging to two different people.

Yeah, that's fair. Oh ok, I read your display name as "Simon" reminds me of a car number plate where you sub letters for numbers to spell a name, haha. My bad!

 

[srbdragon]

Hi mom,

had a quick question before I ship off my AOS application.

In regards to the employment history, for “Your Occupation “ I have added information technology for both my present and previous job.
I currently work in cyber security and my previous job was just solution analyst for a consulting firm. Would you recommend adding actual job titles to the mentioned field or does Information Technology satisfy the answer?

 

[coffeemonster]

Hi mom,

had a quick question before I ship off my AOS application.

In regards to the employment history, for “Your Occupation “ I have added information technology for both my present and previous job.
I currently work in cyber security and my previous job was just solution analyst for a consulting firm. Would you recommend adding actual job titles to the mentioned field or does Information Technology satisfy the answer?

I would regard "occupation" as being "what you do in layman's terms", not what field you work in or what HR calls you internally. Something like "IT" is too vague and "solution analyst" is something that only has meaning within your profession, or maybe only within your company. I don't know if it matters that much, since they can ask you at the interview, but I would try be a little more specific about what you do while sticking to lay terms.

For instance, I work in IT and my job title was "Tech Lead" but I wrote "Software Developer" or something like that.

 

[Sm1smom]

Hi mom,

had a quick question before I ship off my AOS application.

In regards to the employment history, for “Your Occupation “ I have added information technology for both my present and previous job.
I currently work in cyber security and my previous job was just solution analyst for a consulting firm. Would you recommend adding actual job titles to the mentioned field or does Information Technology satisfy the answer?

Just use your best judgment

 

[AlmostDone]

Hello,

I would like to ask a question. I am a DV 2022 winner. Preparing for the AOS process. I am a medical doctor. I do have my medical school diploma and my specialty certificate with me here but I don't have my high school diploma with me here in USA. It's in my home country and it's very hard to travel overseas just to get it. Would it be a problem for me throughout the AOS process? Because I read a reply that saying some officers might insist to see the high school diploma.

 

[Sm1smom]

Hello,

I would like to ask a question. I am a DV 2022 winner. Preparing for the AOS process. I am a medical doctor. I do have my medical school diploma and my specialty certificate with me here but I don't have my high school diploma with me here in USA. It's in my home country and it's very hard to travel overseas just to get it. Would it be a problem for me throughout the AOS process? Because I read a reply that saying some officers might insist to see the high school diploma.

We have no way of knowing if that will be a problem for you or not, we do know some IOs have insisted on seeming the HS Diploma (like previously stated). You can either arrange for it to be mailed to you, or mail your AOS package as is and hope you’re not asked to present it.

 

[AlmostDone]

We have no way of knowing if that will be a problem for you or not, we do know some IOs have insisted on seeming the HS Diploma (like previously stated). You can either arrange for it to be mailed to you, or mail your AOS package as is and hope you’re not asked to present it.

Thank you so much for your rapid reply @Sm1smom I will try to reach out to my high school and get it done. I still have time. My case number is in 20***.

 

[Britsimon]

Good to know KCC unlocked your DS260 form within 24 hr, however I stand by the comment I made by the way, which I’m certain Simon will also agree with in this case - that correction is so minor it doesn’t fall under the realm of what could lead to a denial in any way whatsoever. The DS260, (while we recommend it’s submission for reasons already explained on the AOS spreadsheet) has no major role to play in the AOS process to start with. The “delay is better than denial” speech is one I also make for situations where unlocking the DS260 to make necessary changes/updates is of utmost importance, certainly not in this situation. But I understand this is your case, you do what what you’re comfortable doing.

p.s. You watched Simon’s video on YouTube, not mine. @Britsimon (aka Simon) and @Sm1smom (aka mom) are profiles belonging to two different people.

"which I’m certain Simon will also agree with in this case" - Yup.

A few days off on travel history - totally trivial, I would never have recommended unlocking for that.