I-751 - Removal of Conditional Status - Approved!

A

andr0s

Registered Users (C)
Hello, everyone!

I just came back from the interview at USCIs office in Denver, CO, and it would appear my conditional status (marriage-based) has been lifted - I was told to expect a 10-year Green card in mail soon, and representative stamped my passport with a temporary travel permit.

So, WOOT!

A great thank you goes out to everyone on this board, both those who answered my questions in specific, as well as those who asked, and answered, other questions related to problems many of us are encountering.



Once I get home and catch some sleep, I'll post a more detailed summary of interview itself, as well as submitted documentation and other circumstances.
 
I-751 application timeline

OK, as promised (albeit a mite belatedly) here's the timeline of my I-751 & documentation we provided:

02/10/2006 :
Original mailing date of I-751

*Included Documents:
  • I-751 Application
  • Marriage Certificate
  • Tax forms (joint-filled) for 2004, 2005
  • Letter of Proof from Wells Fargo - Joint Banking account
  • W-2 forms from both of our employers for 2004 & 2005
  • Letters of Affidavit from Coworkers, Friends and Family (5)
  • Proof of joint medical & life insurance

02/20/2006 :
Received letter from USCIS confirming recipt of I-751 Application, granting me a temporary 1-year GC extension pending resolution of I-751

02/22/2006 :
2-year Green Card expired.

04/17/2006 :
Received the USCIS letter requesting additional documentation to be submitted.

04/19/2006 :
Replied to request for additional documentation.

*Included Documents:
  • Plane tickets & room reservations for 3 joint trips (2 national, 1 international) in 2005 & 2006.
  • Photographs from several of our joint travels and celebrations - anniversaries, chrismas, etc. (~30 photos)
  • Court documents showing our joint application for custody of our niece (app was denied).
  • Additional Affidavits from friends (4)
  • Proof of joint residence: utility bills addressed to me or my wife with same address, bank statements etc - none of them in both names. (15)

09/30/06:
Received letter informing us my application was forwarded to local (DEN,CO) USCIS office for further processing and adjudication.

01/14/07:
Received letter from local office requesting 'our presence in the office to discuss an official matter' on 02/01/07 7:10AM

02/01/07:
Went to local USCIS office for the interview. (see next post for interview summary).

*Included Documents (some redundancy):
  • Joint tax filings for 2004, 2005, 2006
  • W-2 forms from all employers for 2004, 2005, 2006
  • Letters from life insurance companies indicating we're each other's 100% beneficiaries on insurance etc.
  • Title & credit app info for my new car & motorcycle(my name only).
  • Insurance info for all vehicles (joint on her car, mine only on mine).
  • DMV & Car Insurance letters outlining my wife's 'dirty' driving record (DMV) and reasons why it prevented my wife from being added to my car insurance.
  • Additional Affidavits from Friends & Family (6).
  • Affidavits from non-profit organisations I volounteer at (3).
  • Cros-section of 3 years' worth of utility bills, bank statements etc (none in both names).

Interviewing officer approved my I-751, stamped my passport, took my GC, told me to expect new one in the mail.
 
Congrats!!

It took them almost a year to remove the conditional status??? That's rediculous, I hope when it's time to file mine in 2 years, it won't take them as long.
 
I-751 Interview : Q&A

Here's the reconstruction of questions we were asked by interviewing officer during I-751 interview, along our answers, as precisely as I can remember them (hey, it was 7AM). Interview was joint, so we weren't interviewed separately. However, both me and my wife made sure that only the one of us being asked the question did the answering.

Questions to which we had complete and correct answers:
  • What is your spouse's birthdate?
  • What is your spouse's middle name?
  • What are your spouse's parents' names?
  • Do you have any children?
  • What is your home address and phone #?
  • Where does your spouse work?
  • What is your spouse's position / job title?
  • How, when, where did you meet?
  • When and where did you get engaged?
  • When and where did you get married?
  • When and where did you go to your honeymoon?
Questions to which one or both of us gave incomplete, or incorrect answers:
  • (To my wife) What's your husband's motorcycle's brand name?
  • Her answer: "Yamaha, I think. Black. I don't like him riding the motorcycle. (It was a Kawasaki)
  • What is your spouse's cell phone number?
  • Both our answers: "No clue - have it stored on speed-dial in my cell phone."
  • (To me) What are names of your wife's boss and coworkers?
  • My answer: "I don't know - she telecommutes."

In addition to above questions, he asked us about our free time activities - thankfully, both me and my wife are active in the same non-profit organisation which consumes most of our free time, and our familiarity with each other's duties and activities within said organisation apparently served very well in persuading the officer that we actually spend "more time than most married couples I know together" (officer's words). We also talked about our intention to move towards Pacific coast in the near future, and again, our familiarity with each other's plans and hopes regarding that move served to reinforce officer's perception of our marriage as sound, firm and bona fide.

In the end, I must share this: It is my sound impression that officer mainly relied on 'questions between questions' to determine that we're truly a married couple in love, living together. He wasn't paying too much attention to our answers to his formal questions, but he was very attentive to our responses to 'casual conversation topics' such as sports, travel and socializing activities. Clearly, it was just our officer's approach and not something to be absolutely expected, but still something I hope will be useful to anyone who reads this.

In the end, after ~15 minute interview and chat, officer declared he is approving my I-751 petition, asked for my passport and green card, stamped my passport with a temporary travel permit to serve me until I receive my new Green Card, and wished us a pleasant day.


After being through it all, I can only say: may your interview be as painless as mine, and your wait much shorter!
 
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