Our cases were approved on 8/16. We received our courtesy copies and our attorney received the originals. We went ahead for stamping with courtesy copies. Just did not want to wait for receipt of originals from the attorney.
Reached Charlotte office at 6130, Tyvola Center (the address on the approval notice is wrong) at 6:15 AM. We wee the 7th, 8th and 9th in the line. BTW, please note, eventhough Charlotte has introduced INfoPass they continue to accept up to 100 customers on a walk-in basis. I knew about this by calling the NCSC.
We were allowed in around 7:30 AM. (standard security procedures. No Food or drink allowed inside. No cell phones turned on) The lady distributing the tickets said that we really need to get an appointment the next time we come there. We just nodded and hoped we did not have to return for stamping on a different day.
We entered the waiting hall that had chairs to seat about 200 - 250 people and about 7 - 8 counters. The next ticket number is called by the CS rep ready to service the ticket and the number flashes on a large screen alongside the counter number and also on top of the counter on a small screen. The rep calls for the number about 3 times before (s)he gives up and goes for the next one.
I was called in less than 20 minutes (but what seemed like forever). The lady behind the counter (LBC) asked for the puspose of my visit:
ME: "I have an approval notice from NSC for my 485 petition. I have come for stamping my passport"
LBC: "Alright, please give me your passport and the approval notice"
ME: handing the passport .. "I have the expired passport along with the new one"
LBC: "Yup .. thats ok" .. while thumbing through both the passports ..."Hmm... where is your I-94 .. I dont see it here" .. she did not notice that I was already handing her the I-94 that I had along with my H1-B 797 that also had the expired I-94. ... she took it when she saw it.. "oh! ok!"
ME: "I also have my EADs and 6 copies of APs.... old and new"
LBC: "Good .." and she took them.
She got the I-89 (?) form ready .. put it in the template an made me sign on both sides. She then took the right hand index finger print on the form and said,
LBC: "please be seated sir, I will call you by your first name as soon as I complete the processing. It will be a few minutes"
While waiting my spouse was called in on another counter and so was our daughter on yet another counter. I went with my daughter and helped her out. (she is 10 and was excited to get herself finger-printed).
We sat there waiting and in about 5 minutes were called again. I noticed that the LBC had written "IBIS ok ... cleared. No additional checks required" on the approval notice. She also had some other words there .. but this was all I could read, inverted .. before she stapled all of our documents and filed them away. .. she the proceeded to put the red stamp which i a temporary evidence of acceptance for permananent residence .. hand wrote the validity date until 8-23-2005 and also wrote my A# and said:
LBC: "The stamp is valid for one year. You shd receive your card in under a year at the address mentioned here... is this your correct address (she read out my address).
ME: "Yes it is"
LBC: "This stamp is good for travel and employment and if for any reason you need it again after a year .. please come and get a fresh one."
ME: "Thanks".
LBC: "Thanks. Have a nice day"
Both my spouse and daughter had pretty much the same experience and we were out of there around 0800 AM EST.
I have tried to remember this in as much detail as I could. Please let me know if you need any specific information and I will try to provide it. All told, it was a pretty straight-forward experience.
Thus, yet another milestone is reached in our lives and a new one starts in the city where it all started, alomst 6 years ago. I had landed in Charlotte on one very cold night in November 1998 and still remember looking around for an address at 2:00 AM in the morning. It seemed poetic justice that we shd be accepted for permanent residence at the USCIS office in the same city 6 years later.
Cheers all ... and Good luck to all 485 applicants who are waiting...
Reached Charlotte office at 6130, Tyvola Center (the address on the approval notice is wrong) at 6:15 AM. We wee the 7th, 8th and 9th in the line. BTW, please note, eventhough Charlotte has introduced INfoPass they continue to accept up to 100 customers on a walk-in basis. I knew about this by calling the NCSC.
We were allowed in around 7:30 AM. (standard security procedures. No Food or drink allowed inside. No cell phones turned on) The lady distributing the tickets said that we really need to get an appointment the next time we come there. We just nodded and hoped we did not have to return for stamping on a different day.
We entered the waiting hall that had chairs to seat about 200 - 250 people and about 7 - 8 counters. The next ticket number is called by the CS rep ready to service the ticket and the number flashes on a large screen alongside the counter number and also on top of the counter on a small screen. The rep calls for the number about 3 times before (s)he gives up and goes for the next one.
I was called in less than 20 minutes (but what seemed like forever). The lady behind the counter (LBC) asked for the puspose of my visit:
ME: "I have an approval notice from NSC for my 485 petition. I have come for stamping my passport"
LBC: "Alright, please give me your passport and the approval notice"
ME: handing the passport .. "I have the expired passport along with the new one"
LBC: "Yup .. thats ok" .. while thumbing through both the passports ..."Hmm... where is your I-94 .. I dont see it here" .. she did not notice that I was already handing her the I-94 that I had along with my H1-B 797 that also had the expired I-94. ... she took it when she saw it.. "oh! ok!"
ME: "I also have my EADs and 6 copies of APs.... old and new"
LBC: "Good .." and she took them.
She got the I-89 (?) form ready .. put it in the template an made me sign on both sides. She then took the right hand index finger print on the form and said,
LBC: "please be seated sir, I will call you by your first name as soon as I complete the processing. It will be a few minutes"
While waiting my spouse was called in on another counter and so was our daughter on yet another counter. I went with my daughter and helped her out. (she is 10 and was excited to get herself finger-printed).
We sat there waiting and in about 5 minutes were called again. I noticed that the LBC had written "IBIS ok ... cleared. No additional checks required" on the approval notice. She also had some other words there .. but this was all I could read, inverted .. before she stapled all of our documents and filed them away. .. she the proceeded to put the red stamp which i a temporary evidence of acceptance for permananent residence .. hand wrote the validity date until 8-23-2005 and also wrote my A# and said:
LBC: "The stamp is valid for one year. You shd receive your card in under a year at the address mentioned here... is this your correct address (she read out my address).
ME: "Yes it is"
LBC: "This stamp is good for travel and employment and if for any reason you need it again after a year .. please come and get a fresh one."
ME: "Thanks".
LBC: "Thanks. Have a nice day"
Both my spouse and daughter had pretty much the same experience and we were out of there around 0800 AM EST.
I have tried to remember this in as much detail as I could. Please let me know if you need any specific information and I will try to provide it. All told, it was a pretty straight-forward experience.
Thus, yet another milestone is reached in our lives and a new one starts in the city where it all started, alomst 6 years ago. I had landed in Charlotte on one very cold night in November 1998 and still remember looking around for an address at 2:00 AM in the morning. It seemed poetic justice that we shd be accepted for permanent residence at the USCIS office in the same city 6 years later.
Cheers all ... and Good luck to all 485 applicants who are waiting...