faint, invalid digital Finger Prints problem

[mendieta]

Hi all

We went for FP2 today. First FP went fine for me, but in my wife's case it took them a loooong time to get somehow "clear" finger prints. Her skin surface is a bit smoother than usual, so she produces faint fingerprints. NO problem with regular, ink FPs. But USCIS uses (at least in Dover) a digital process, and the scanner doesn't seem to work for her. Anyone in the same boat ?

Long story short. FBI was unable to process her 1st FPs, and according to the technician today, they'll most likely be unable to process the new ones. So, what's next ? The technician thinks they'll call her soon for new FPs. But this is STUPID. How many times is she going to go through this ? And how much wasted time ? They'send a new letter, it goes through the postal system ... will this nightmare ever end ?

Any ideas, help or pointers are greatly appreciated !

 

[pg2111]

We went to fp last week. While we're waiting, I saw one lady gave her fps the old-fashion way, i.e. a ASC person rolled her hands with ink and then she put her fingers on to a card.
Everyone else at the ASC was doing the digital fps.

It's just my observation and I don't know exactly why that lady gave her fps the old-fashion way. Hope it helps.

 

[clueless_2]

Hard work

If I were you, I would
Request other ASC with non-digital FP and
Ask my wife to do some hard work i.e., dish-washing, gardening, or even playing some hand related game few days before the FP.

I hope your FP-2 goes smoothly.

Thanks

 

[mendieta]

We went to fp last week. While we're waiting, I saw one lady gave her fps the old-fashion way, i.e. a ASC person rolled her hands with ink and then she put her fingers on to a card.
Everyone else at the ASC was doing the digital fps.

It's just my observation and I don't know exactly why that lady gave her fps the old-fashion way. Hope it helps.

Thanks a lot pg2111,

It sure helps. Unfortunately, the guy taking the fingerprints was rude. Probably a xenophobe. Otherwise, we would have asked him why couldn't we try something different if the digital prints were obviously not working :-(

Based on your comment and common sense, this is what I think will happen:

1) FBI will send us a note saying they can't use the FPs
2) We'll get it in about a month
3) My wife does regular ink FPs
4) They mail them to FBI old fashion
5) Couple months later we get the results (mailing makes everything slower)

So, 2-3-4 months down the road we'll get the 485 approvals, instead of 1-2 months as we should expect at this point. Very dissapointing :-(

(Ironically, my wife had a FP background check recently, to work as a teacher !)

Do you guys think they'll hold my approval until my wife's FPs are approved ?

Thanks a bunch!

 

[mendieta]

If I were you, I would
Request other ASC with non-digital FP and
Ask my wife to do some hard work i.e., dish-washing, gardening, or even playing some hand related game few days before the FP.

I hope your FP-2 goes smoothly.

Thanks a lot ! Really hope so. You see ? That's the problem, I do all the cooking, washing and hardwork. My fault for not being a macho type

Now, seriously, I don't think we can choose another ASC right now. They kept the USCIS FP notification, and you really need it to do FPs. All we can do is, if her FPs don't work, as it looks like it'll happen, go NEXT time to a place where they do ink FPs. Right ? (or ask for them in the ASC we went this time)

Thank you!

 

[LJWaiting]

Difficulty with fingerprints

I went for my fingerprinting at San Antonio this morning and had the same problem with taking the prints. The lady taking the prints seemed to be having a lot of trouble with one finger especially and the machine kept rejecting the scan (the one where she rolls the finger) and so I asked if it usually takes this long, and she said no, it was because my fingers were unusually dry and so it was taking longer. She had to keep spraying the scan surface with water to help the prints to come out clearer. Once she'd finished, though, there was a second person who came over to confirm that the prints were clear and usable. (They explained to me that this was the QA step, and that it was to ensure I wouldn't have to come back for re-printing).

Hope this helps... and hope the first set works just fine in your wife's case!

eta: FWIW, I asked if using moisturizer would help her take the prints quicker (easier) and she emphatically said no, and that the water she was spraying was better.