What is my permanent resident date ?

[citizen2006]

In my I-485 approval date is Dec/18/XXXX. Also I-551 stamp on my passport has Dec/18/XXXX date. But my green card has 12/15/XXXX date. What date should I use in N-400 for permanent resident date. Please advise.

Thanks
Citizens2006.

 

[lohith]

In my I-485 approval date is Dec/18/XXXX. Also I-551 stamp on my passport has Dec/18/XXXX date. But my green card has 12/15/XXXX date. What date should I use in N-400 for permanent resident date. Please advise.

Thanks
Citizens2006.

I-485 APPROVAL DATE.

 

[Anahit]

In my I-485 approval date is Dec/18/XXXX. Also I-551 stamp on my passport has Dec/18/XXXX date. But my green card has 12/15/XXXX date. What date should I use in N-400 for permanent resident date. Please advise.

Thanks
Citizens2006.

It's the date on your green card. See instructions on N-400, Part 3, C.

 

[JohnnyCash]

citizen2006

As you are already being told that the 'date of approval of your I-485' should have matched with the 'date of your being a resident' indicated on your plastic green card. If not, then there is some mistake happened somewhere.

Could it be possible that you are on mistaken about the approval date of your I-485 with your interview date on your I-485? Because many times people only get interviewed but decisions cannot be made on their green card applications because of pending FBI background check or other reasons, which mistakenly leads them to believe as if they were approved on interviewed date while their application gets approved at later date when everything gets cleared. If this is not the case with you, then I strongly believe that USCIS made a mistake about 'approval date' on your plastic card since it is a common practice of them. In that case, you would need to rectify this mistake with them as soon as possible. You won't be paying any fee for filing I-90 Form since this is a mistake of USCIS. But it would take almost a year before you would receive a 'corrected' plastic card from them. How come you noticed this only now?

If you want to file for naturalization now or before you receive your 'corrected' plastic green card then you can file, but you MUST need to indicate the date when your I-485 got approved on your I-485 since this is the date when you have become a permanent resident of the United States. Along with your N-400, you should send the copy of your I-551 stamp on your passport and the approval letter of your permanent residency that you might have received in the mail once your application got approved if you still have that letter. At the time of interview you will be asked to present your green card, you can show your green card to the officer, and if officer would question anything then you can explain all this to the officer. Anyway, officer can check everything in the system within a second to verify the date of your approval of I-485.

 

[03N400Applicant]

I agree with JohnnyCash, it is the I485 approval date.

INS had printed wrong date on our green cards and we applied N400 based on 4 years and 9 months, based on the date on green card, and we got our whole application back stating that the I485 approval date is the correct date. In the process we lost the application fees for both of us.

USCIS did acknowledge that it is mistake on their part that they printed wrong date on our green cards. USCIS suggested for us to wait and apply N400 based on the I485 approval date. We just applied our N400 for both us last month only.

03N400APPLICANT

 

[Anahit]

Actually, that date should match the I-485 approval date. If it doesn't, the date on the card is wrong and needs to be corrected.
The I-485 approval date (or date a person entered with an immigrant visa, if the person did CP) is the only date that matters. It is the date they have in their file. Any different date printed anywhere else is a mistake.

Logically, yes, the date on green card and the I-485 approval date should match. But, it is not always true. You mentioned consular processing (CP). People, who go thru CP to get an immigrant visa, have the date of entry in to the US on their green card, not the I-551 approval date (I am one of them). So, in this case those dates do not match, unless the immigrant is a DV-Lottery winner or it is an I-130 case.

 

[Anahit]

[JoeF]Huh? What "I-551 approval date"? I assume you meant I-485.

Sorry. It was a typo.
Joe, this is how I understand it. Please correct me if I am wrong.

There is no I-485 for CP. I know, I did CP... For CP, the only date that matters is the date of entry into the US with the Immigrant Visa. For people who did AOS, the only date that matters is the I-485 approval date. For people who's I-485 is based on asylum, the date that matters is still the I-485 date. The start date of permanent residency is just backdated one year in this case.

What do you mean? I did CP. I came here with an immigrant visa. After living 1 year in US, I filed I-485, which was approved in 3 years. My green card had the date of entry, not the I-485 approval date.
Now, the CIS makes a lot mistakes printing the dates on green cards. So, you can't just take whatever date is on green card, knowing it is a wrong date (however, if you ask me, it is very clear in the instructions of N-400 to get the date from the green card, and if it's wrong because of the CIS, then it should be their problem). First, you should make sure you have the right date on your green card. And, that's the date you count 4 years and 9 months from.

Huh again? DV or I-130 or I-140 are completely irrelevant for the start date of Permanent Residency.

That's why I excluded them.

Again, the approval date of the I-485 or the date of entry with an Immigrant Visa is what matters.

Right! And, whether it is the I-485 date or the date of entry, that's what your green card must show.

 

[lohith]

What do you mean? I did CP. I came here with an immigrant visa. After living 1 year in US, I filed I-485, which was approved in 3 years. My green card had the date of entry, not the I-485 approval date.

How can you file I-485 (AOS) after 1 year once you came to US by getting approval (temp I-551 stamping) by CP ?
One can do either CP or 485 exclusively NOT BOTH.

 

[JohnnyCash]

I did CP. I came here with an immigrant visa. After living 1 year in US, I filed I-485, which was approved in 3 years. My green card had the date of entry, not the I-485 approval date.

Either you are missing something out of this equation, or maybe I'm just a 'dumb and dumber' about immigration laws after having read/studied them for so many years. Don't you know that the sole purpose of having I-485 and filing I-485 is just for the issuance of immigrant visa only, which is also referred by 'parmanent residency' and 'green card'? So if you say that you did CP and came over here with an immigrant visa then what are you even talking about that you filed I-485 after a year later which got approved after 3 yrs later of filing? I meant- why did you file I-485 later on in the U.S. while you were already issued immigrant visa thru CP? Am I missing out something here?

An immigrant visa cannot be issued to a person who already has it. Besides, what is the use to even file for it again when you already have it? Further, two applications for an immigrant visa cannot be processed during the same time unless one of them is withdrawn before a decision can even be made on other one. You can choose ONLY one for immigrant visa out these two-either CP in abroad or I-485 in the U.S. I'm sure there is more into your case, which you might not know yet. Otherwise, it is simply just not possible and it is just a ludicrous of you if you even think that you had filed I-485 here if you were really entered in this country on an immigrant visa. I think you are confused with issuance of some other visa thru abroad than immigrant visa.

However, when you said that your green card had the date of your entry in the U.S. then it seems obvious to me that you really had immigrant visa when you entered into the U.S.. But then you having said that you filed I-485 after a year later of arrival and you also having said that it took almost 3 yrs for it to have approved then there is no doubt left in my mind that you are talking (perhaps confused) here about 'removal of condition' on your temparorary status. You actually had filed I-751 than I-485 to remove the condition on your temporary green card. That's why you waited for a year to file for it, and that's why it took almost 3 yrs to have it approved. Otherwise, only an asylum based I-485 needs to be filed after a year later once an asylum is granted to someone. When you were issued immigrant visa thru CP at U.S. embassy/Consulate at abroad, you were married with your spouse for less than 2 yrs. And even though a 'condition' on a termparory green card is removed at some other time, yet still the date when I-485 is approved or when an alien has entered into the U.S. on immigrant visa is the date when alien is considered to have obtained green card/permanent residency in the United States. You may enlighten us more since it might be possible that we don't know something about your situation or perhaps immigration laws which we should have known.

About USCIS telling for following their instructions in order to fill out N-400 then they are not telling to follow the mistake that they may have made on the plastic green card. You've got to use your common sense.

 

[Anahit]

OK, Johnny and Joe. I haven't read any law books, at least not yet. So, maybe you can help me to understand this issue, since it has always been a mystery to me. This is how I came to this country:
I never had any relatives in US. In 1990, I filled out an "Immigrant form" in my country. It was basically an application form requesting a permission to migrate to US. I put my husband as a main applicant, me as his wife and our two daughters, filled out the information about us, and sent it to Washington Processing Center. We were interviewed in 1993, and given a permission to move to US for "Permanent Residency" (that's exactly what the paper said, that's why I am confused). The status we got was "Parole". On the white card, we got at the port of entry, LAX, was stamped "Public Parole Interest" or something like that. That's about it. We did not have any green cards. We had to apply for them after living here for one year. So, we came here in 1994, applied for green cards in 1995, were interviewed in 1997, got an approval for adjustment of status in 1998 (I still wonder why it should have been adjusted), and only 4 years after the approval got our plastic cards.

 

[citizen2006]

Thanks Guys for giving me such a valuable information.

I think I should file I-90 electronically to get my card replaced. I am thinking to do this because I also have changed my name since I became PR.

It aprears that If I file I-90 electronically, I wouldn't have to submit physical green card. Is that right ?

I believe that at the time filing of N-400 (Which I am 5 months away). I am required to submit a copy of my green card. If my new card had not come by that time, can I use photocopy of my old card ?

Filing I-90 electronically now and applying for Citizenship in Sep'05, Do people see any problem in that ?

Any advise is appreciated.

 

[JohnnyCash]

Anahit

If you never had any relative in the US and nobody had sponsored you (and to your family) either for an immigrant visa, nor you had qualified for it based upon “exceptional skilled worker” without the need of any sponsor then all the previous presumptions are now ruled out. But you should also understand that you did not enter into the US on immigrant visa as you were kept saying earlier. But then later on you did admit that after your interview in 1993-you were given the permission to move to US for “Permanent Residency”, which also proves in itself by your own admission that you never had immigrant visa when you entered into the US. That’s why I told you earlier that it might be possible that you might have entered on some other visa than immigrant visa.

Now it also clears that you did not even have any visa whatsoever as well. Actually, you were paroled into the US, and parole is not an immigrant visa. There is still more mystery to your case, which only you can unfold like-what kind of parole, which country you have originally came from, and why you were paroled? I mean-you must had mentioned a REASON/BASIS for your desire to migrate to the US on the immigration form that you filled out at that time, isn’t it? Otherwise, obtaining a parole is VERY HARD (almost none to impossible) particularly the one you got. I’m not talking here about ‘Advance Parole’ based upon pending I-485 because obtaining this kind of parole is just like a piece of cake. There are many kind of parole available, but I won’t waste my time in discussing about all of them because based upon the stamped notation “Public Parole Interest” given to you guys at the airport, then I would only stick to the facts relevant to parole that might be used in your case.

The parole that was granted to you is actually granted to only those who are seemed to have a ‘bonafide asylum claim’, or to those who are ineligible to get a nonimmigrant visa to the US despite of having a very compelling reason to make a visit to the US. Thereby, after keeping in consideration all the facts about your case- like you having filed application in US Embassy at abroad and then that application was forwarded to Washington, and then you were given white card, and then you were paroled, then the notation-“Public Parole Interest”, and then you having filed for I-485 after a year later, then ALL this indeed proves that you were definitely granted an asylum unless you would like to unfold more mystery about it after checking your paperwork. The defining fact of your case that proves in itself that you were indeed granted an asylum is when you said that you had to apply for green card after living here for one year. Because, ONLY asylum applicants need to file I-485 after a year of living here if their case is granted either at asylum office or if they were paroled at the port of their entry in the US.

Since processing of I-485 does take a long time particularly in your jurisdiction and especially back then. So, the timeframe of your case doesn’t seem abnormal to me except arrival of plastic card after 4 yrs later after the approval. Why it took so long? I’ve never heard like this before, nor I’m saying that you are making up about this. Nevertheless, it doesn’t matter NOW “ since nightmare” is over.

 

[JohnnyCash]

citizen2006

I believe you did not read attentively my post to you, otherwise you would have found me saying that if you file for naturalization now or before you even receive your 'corrected' plastic green card in the mail then you can do that. You are allowed to file N-400 without the copy of your green card. But you must be asked to present it at the time of interview. Furthermore, what is the use anyway to submit the copy of 'incorrect' plastic card along with your N-400? Don't you know why USCIS ask for the copy of green card along with N-400? It is just to verify when you became a permanent resident. That said, if you would submit them the copy of your 'incorrect' plastic card then how it would help them to verify the corrected information about you? Rather, they may deny your application based upon the incorrect (inconsistent) information on your plastic green card. Since it is their assumption that if those information were still incorrect then you may have already made them to have corrected particularly when so long time has been passed by since they mailed that card to you. And I also said earlier that you may submit the copy of your I-551 stamp which they may have affixed on your passport, along with your N-400. And you may also send the letter that you might have received from USCIS in the mail once your I-485 got approved.

You will be fingerprinted again on I-90 and then interviewed too at local USCIS office, wherein your 'incorrected' plastic card will be taken away. So obviously, you cannot keep it after the interview. It is the production of green card that takes time and not the processing of I-90 since Service Center may issue/produce green card only once in every 2 months I guess, otherwise nobody could have ever understood why it takes them to mail a small and lightweighted plastic card almost a year in most situations?

 

[Anahit]

Thank you Joe and Johnny for your time.

Actually, you were paroled into the US, and parole is not an immigrant visa.

Yes, we were paroled into US. I never realized though, that we, actually, did not have an immigrant visa.

There is still more mystery to your case, which only you can unfold like-what kind of parole,

I tried to figure out what class of aliens were we in. It's most likely this:
8 CFR 274a.12(c) (11) - Public Interest Parolee - An alien paroled into the United States temporarily for emergency reasons or reasons deemed strictly in the public interest pursuant to Sec. 212.5 of this chapter; (Amended 1/4/95; 59 FR 62284)

which country you have originally came from, and why you were paroled? I mean-you must had mentioned a REASON/BASIS for your desire to migrate to the US on the immigration form that you filled out at that time, isn’t it? Otherwise, obtaining a parole is VERY HARD (almost none to impossible) particularly the one you got.

We came from Armenia. As I said, I filled out that application telling them about our desire to leave and work in US. No reason, whatsoever, just a wish. Now, maybe they liked the fact that we were both with high education, he was a programmer... I don't know. The fact is that they invited us for an interview.

The parole that was granted to you is actually granted to only those who are seemed to have a ‘bonafide asylum claim’, or to those who are ineligible to get a nonimmigrant visa to the US despite of having a very compelling reason to make a visit to the US.

At the interview we were asked about the reason why we wanted to move to US, if we had any complaints about our country or anything. The answer was "Absolutely not". We told the interviewer that we got our education in our country, we had a place to leave, we had jobs, we just wanted to live and work in US, so our kids could get an education in US. After the interview they handed us their decision letter, in which they were apologizing that they couldn't grant us a refugee status (we never asked for it), but they allow us to move into US with a status of "Parole".

Thereby, after keeping in consideration all the facts about your case- like you having filed application in US Embassy at abroad and then that application was forwarded to Washington, and then you were given white card, and then you were paroled, then the notation-“Public Parole Interest”, and then you having filed for I-485 after a year later, then ALL this indeed proves that you were definitely granted an asylum unless you would like to unfold more mystery about it after checking your paperwork.

I believe, the application was directly sent to Washington. We were given white cards here, at the LAX, upon arrival. I'll check my paperwork tonight to see if I can find anything that would help me to understand all this mess better.

The defining fact of your case that proves in itself that you were indeed granted an asylum is when you said that you had to apply for green card after living here for one year. Because, ONLY asylum applicants need to file I-485 after a year of living here if their case is granted either at asylum office or if they were paroled at the port of their entry in the US.

We were never granted an asylum. I know a lot of refugees, that were paroled into us, because they couldn't get an asylum status, and they filed for green cards after living here for a year, just like us.

Since processing of I-485 does take a long time particularly in your jurisdiction and especially back then. So, the timeframe of your case doesn’t seem abnormal to me except arrival of plastic card after 4 yrs later after the approval. Why it took so long? I’ve never heard like this before, nor I’m saying that you are making up about this. Nevertheless, it doesn’t matter NOW “ since nightmare” is over.

You can read about our journey in my very first post in this forum. It's #415 in this link: http://boards.immigration.com/showthread.php?p=1010329#post1010329.
Yes, that nightmare is over. Now we're in name check nightmare.

Thanks again!

 

[JohnnyCash]

Anahit

I've not read yet about your journey from the link that you have provided, but I would do that once I get some time. Also I want you to know that I mistakenly forgot to mention about refugee claim along with asylum when I was earlier talking about the basis of granting a parole that was granted to you. I believe your status was based upon ‘refugee’ claim because I can remember America having opened its door for refugees from Armenia during that time. That’s why you were not given any nonimmigrant visa, and that’s why your application was processed in Washington, and that’s why you got white card-only refugees and asylum seekers receive white card, and that’s why you were required to file I-485 after a year of living here.

You know what? It is very strange that you don’t even know the basis of your to have migrated to this country. No offence, but I’ve never met even a single person who doesn’t know why United States allowed him/her to have stayed here. I mean if I would have migrated to US from another country then I would have surely known why I was allowed to migrate here-like either I married to a USC, or I was sponsored by my family or employer, or I got asylum/refugee status, or I migrated without all this since I had extra exceptional skill which allowed me to bypass the need of having a employer, or I invested enough money in a business to have a green card. How come you don’t know why and for what reason you were allowed to live here? Did someone else file the paperwork for you guys? Do you still have the copy of the application that you initially sent to Washington D.C.? That application could clear it up all the mystery. Also, if you still have the copy of your I-485 as well then you can find out from there thru the eligibility paragraph that you checked for that application as the basis of applying that application. It is on the first page of I-485. It could right away clear up all the doubt that you might have about your basis of obtaining the green card.

By the way, you guys did not receive green card because you and your husband are highly educated. Because if this would have been the case then you guys would not have been paroled. Also, you would have been required to go thru the entire proper channel for that route.

 

[Anahit]

[JohnnyCash]

I believe your status was based upon ‘refugee’ claim because I can remember America having opened its door for refugees from Armenia during that time. That’s why you were not given any nonimmigrant visa, and that’s why your application was processed in Washington, and that’s why you got white card-only refugees and asylum seekers receive white card, and that’s why you were required to file I-485 after a year of living here.

Maybe. But we did not get a refugee status, nor did we ask for it.

You know what? It is very strange that you don’t even know the basis of your to have migrated to this country. No offence, but I’ve never met even a single person who doesn’t know why United States allowed him/her to have stayed here. I mean if I would have migrated to US from another country then I would have surely known why I was allowed to migrate here-like either I married to a USC, or I was sponsored by my family or employer, or I got asylum/refugee status, or I migrated without all this since I had extra exceptional skill which allowed me to bypass the need of having a employer, or I invested enough money in a business to have a green card. How come you don’t know why and for what reason you were allowed to live here? Did someone else file the paperwork for you guys? Do you still have the copy of the application that you initially sent to Washington D.C.? That application could clear it up all the mystery. Also, if you still have the copy of your I-485 as well then you can find out from there thru the eligibility paragraph that you checked for that application as the basis of applying that application. It is on the first page of I-485. It could right away clear up all the doubt that you might have about your basis of obtaining the green card.

I can understand your reaction to all this. I would probably react the same way if I was in your place. But I did not have a lot of information about the immigration to US at that point. I filled out that form, who someone brought from Moscow, sent it out and forgot about it until I got a response 3 years later. All I knew was that I asked for a permission to migrate to US. And I was shocked to read in the response we got from the U.S. Embassy in Moscow (that's where we were interviewed, since the Embassy in Armenia processed only non-immigrant cases) about "not being able to approve our application for refugee resettlement admission to the United States." This was a quote from that paper, which I still have. Unfortunately, I did not keep a copy of the original application, which I filled out myself. None of the reasons you mentioned, Johnny, was a case for us. As for I-485, it was done by an office in LA, and we weren't given the copies to keep. Don't ask me why I did not request the copies from them. I trusted them, and I thought they knew what they were doing. When I went back to them in 3 years to check some data in the application, they told me they did not have them anymore.

By the way, you guys did not receive green card because you and your husband are highly educated. Because if this would have been the case then you guys would not have been paroled. Also, you would have been required to go thru the entire proper channel for that route.

I did not say that. I knew some people, who filed the same application as I did, but they never got any response from Washington D.C. So, I was just trying to explain why would they respond to my application.

 

[JohnnyCash]

Anahit

First and foremost, I hope you and others to understand that I don’t visit this site to offend anyone even though sometime some of my opinions may sound like that. Instead I visit this site to help as much I could. Otherwise, I’ve nothing to gain in wasting my time and energy on this board. Besides, I’m just trying to help you in nailing down the basis of you were being granted a permanent residency in the US based upon the facts that you are providing here each time, especially when you don’t even know why you were even allowed to migrate here at first place. By the way, I’m not trying to find out what were your wishes for migrating to US; instead I’m trying to find out the legal ground under immigration laws that enabled you to have migrated here. There could not have been an exception made for you without the basis in law. I mean- there must have been a legal ground/eligibility under the immigration laws for you to have allowed migrating to US than only your desire to migrate to US. Right? It’s very hard for me to evaluate your case since the facts are kept unfolding in your case-like you were saying earlier that you did CP, and you also haven’t provided any information as well as to why and what kind of application US Embassy in Moscow turned down for you. So if more facts will keep coming, I would analyze your situation accordingly based upon new development/facts provided.

Secondly, I’ve never said that you told us that you might have received your permanent residency because of you being highly educated. Instead, I was merely trying to explain to you that given the consideration to all the facts relevant to your case-particularly white card and parole, it simply could not have been possible for you to have migrated to US based upon you having being highly educated. My such comment was in response to your this statement: “maybe they liked the fact that we were both with high education, he was a programmer”

Thirdly, again no offense to you- but you SHOULD have the copies of all the papers that you have/had submitted/were submitted on behalf of you to US govt. from beginning to end of your immigration journey. That said, even though you had trusted the office that filed the papers for you in LA, yet still you should have the copies of all of those papers particularly when those papers were/are concerned with your immigration life in this country than theirs. Trust has nothing to do with keeping/having all the record in your possession especially when those records belong to you. See, if you would have all the record with you, you won’t be confused. Am I wrong? And what kind of this agency/office is in LA, which looses people’s files/papers? Just a friendlier suggestion: Never ever trust anyone, not only about immigration or documents, but also in any walk of life. I’m telling you based upon my experience in life. Sometime, those whom you trust most will hurt you. Rest is up to you.



“we did not get a refugee status, nor did we ask for it”

It seems obvious to me that you are still confused; otherwise you won’t be saying that you did not get a refugee status, particularly when every single fact and evidence in your case is self-explanatory about you having obtained a ‘refugee status’ in the US. Let me break it down those evidences and facts to prove to you that you were indeed granted a ‘refugee’ status.

(1) Isn’t it you said that the paper that was given to you after your interview in US Embassy in Moscow states: "not being able to approve our application for refugee resettlement admission to the United States."? Be noted: Refugee Resettlement Admission to the United States????? Doesn’t it strike to you that the application that you filed in 1990 was indeed an application for refugee status? Otherwise, why US Embassy in Moscow even had your such application at first hand, and why they were even talking about Refugee Resettlement?

(2) Isn’t you said that the US Embassy in Moscow handed over the decision letter after the interview in which they were apologizing that they couldn't grant you a refugee status? Be noted again: Refugee Status???? You still don’t seem to realize that even though you did not ask for a refugee status in your beliefs, yet still the application that you filed in 1990 was indeed an application for a refugee status in the US. You might not have read well that application when you filled out that application. The reason for them not to grant your that application because you told them during the interview that you had no complaints against your country, and that you had jobs, and that you had your education there and other good things, which obviously puzzled the US Embassy in Moscow. Because, at one hand you were talking so goody things being having no complaints whatsoever against your country, but then on the other hand- you had filed the refugee application. Therefore, the US Embassy in Moscow mistakenly thought that you were scared to say anything bad about your country at that time, which has been reported the case with many applicants for refugee and asylee status. That’s why you were paroled into the United States than granting the refugee status at US Embassy in Moscow.

(3) Isn’t it you said that at your interview in Moscow, you were asked if you had any complaint about your country? Why you were even asked such a question if it was not for a refugee/asylum claim? Otherwise, this question NEVER been asked in any other eligibility for immigration except refugee and asylum claim.

(4) Isn’t it you said that someone brought that application from Moscow? If it was a normal application then why it was not available in Armenia? Even though Armenia only handles applications for nonimmigrant visa. Did you bother to read that application thoroughly to know what was that application for; particularly when you and your husband are highly educated?

(5) Again, the white card is issued to only refugee and asylee if in case you are not paying attention to this fact.

(6) Again, the requirement of filing I-485 after one year later of living here or one year after granting the status, only pertains to refugee and asylee if in case you are not paying attention to this fact as well.

(7) And as I told you earlier that during that time, America had opened its door for refugees from Armenia, Afghanistan, Albania.

(8) If you still believe that you did not get refugee status, and if you still believe that US allowed you to migrate here just because you disclosed your wish for your children’ education in the US only, then I believe more than half of the world would migrate here if migration to US is that easy. I think you might be aware of the fact that US embassies around the globe are darned busy in handling migration claims of “lined up crowd” in their backyard. And I think you are also aware of the fact that million of people are living here for so many years without any legal status. Some are even for more than 25 yrs. So if migration is that easy as you believed in your case was then I guess the 20 millions illegal aliens won’t be living under the shadow here. I just want you to know all this fact.

 

[Anahit]

Johnny, I asked you to help me understand these issues, and I thank you for your time. And, believe me, I am trying to give you as much information as I can.

There must have been a legal ground/eligibility under the immigration laws for you to have allowed migrating to US than only your desire to migrate to US. Right?

Right. But I never knew what it was.

Secondly, I’ve never said that you told us that you might have received your permanent residency because of you being highly educated. Instead, I was merely trying to explain to you that given the consideration to all the facts relevant to your case-particularly white card and parole, it simply could not have been possible for you to have migrated to US based upon you having being highly educated. My such comment was in response to your this statement: “maybe they liked the fact that we were both with high education, he was a programmer”

All I meant by that was that maybe just maybe that was the reason someone paid attention to my application. Again, that's because that's all that application contained: information about us - who are we, what we do. No political or any other issues for that matter. I just can't see why else they would respond to me.

Thirdly, again no offense to you- but you SHOULD have the copies of all the papers that you have/had submitted/were submitted on behalf of you to US govt. from beginning to end of your immigration journey. That said, even though you had trusted the office that filed the papers for you in LA, yet still you should have the copies of all of those papers particularly when those papers were/are concerned with your immigration life in this country than theirs. Trust has nothing to do with keeping/having all the record in your possession especially when those records belong to you. See, if you would have all the record with you, you won’t be confused. Am I wrong? And what kind of this agency/office is in LA, which looses people’s files/papers?

Don't you think I know it by now? I learned it hard way. I do all my paperwork myself now. I agree with you 100%. That office did not loose my files. They said they keep the files for 3 years only, and when I was there it was a little more then 3 years.

It seems obvious to me that you are still confused; otherwise you won’t be saying that you did not get a refugee status, particularly when every single fact and evidence in your case is self-explanatory about you having obtained a ‘refugee status’ in the US. Let me break it down those evidences and facts to prove to you that you were indeed granted a ‘refugee’ status.

I am not confused about this. We did not get a refugee status.

(1) Isn’t it you said that the paper that was given to you after your interview in US Embassy in Moscow states: "not being able to approve our application for refugee resettlement admission to the United States."? Be noted: Refugee Resettlement Admission to the United States????? Doesn’t it strike to you that the application that you filed in 1990 was indeed an application for refugee status? Otherwise, why US Embassy in Moscow even had your such application at first hand, and why they were even talking about Refugee Resettlement?

Yes. It did strike me right there, in Moscow, in a few hours after the interview, when they handed it to me, and even earlier at the interview when we were asked all those questions, because I did not think I asked for refugee status. What do you think I should have done: Go back in and say "Excuse me, I did not ask for this"? I did not care for that. They gave us permission to leave with "Parolee/Public Interest" status. And that's all that mattered.

(2) Isn’t you said that the US Embassy in Moscow handed over the decision letter after the interview in which they were apologizing that they couldn't grant you a refugee status? Be noted again: Refugee Status???? You still don’t seem to realize that even though you did not ask for a refugee status in your beliefs, yet still the application that you filed in 1990 was indeed an application for a refugee status in the US. You might not have read well that application when you filled out that application. The reason for them not to grant your that application because you told them during the interview that you had no complaints against your country, and that you had jobs, and that you had your education there and other good things, which obviously puzzled the US Embassy in Moscow. Because, at one hand you were talking so goody things being having no complaints whatsoever against your country, but then on the other hand- you had filed the refugee application. Therefore, the US Embassy in Moscow mistakenly thought that you were scared to say anything bad about your country at that time, which has been reported the case with many applicants for refugee and asylee status. That’s why you were paroled into the United States than granting the refugee status at US Embassy in Moscow.
(3) Isn’t it you said that at your interview in Moscow, you were asked if you had any complaint about your country? Why you were even asked such a question if it was not for a refugee/asylum claim? Otherwise, this question NEVER been asked in any other eligibility for immigration except refugee and asylum claim.

You must be right. I just can't think of any other explanation here.

(4) Isn’t it you said that someone brought that application from Moscow? If it was a normal application then why it was not available in Armenia? Even though Armenia only handles applications for nonimmigrant visa. Did you bother to read that application thoroughly to know what was that application for; particularly when you and your husband are highly educated?

I have no idea if I could have gotten the same application in Armena. Just never asked. You have to realize that I would probably never fill out such an application if it wasn't for that person who happened to visit the US Embassy in Moscow, bring some extra applications with him and gave one to me. I thought I read it and understood it (it was in Russian, by the way, I did not know any English then), but now I am not so sure.

(5) Again, the white card is issued to only refugee and asylee if in case you are not paying attention to this fact.
(6) Again, the requirement of filing I-485 after one year later of living here or one year after granting the status, only pertains to refugee and asylee if in case you are not paying attention to this fact as well.

Again, parolee is not a refugee or asylee.
I know how hard it is to migrate to US. I am aware of the facts that you mentioned. And, I don't know anyone else who has a similar case like mine. I mean I know a lot of people with the same status, but they filed for refugee status. None of them filed the application that I did, which was named "Immigrant Form".

 

[JohnnyCash]

Anahit

“Johnny, I asked you to help me understand these issues”

Then what do you think I’m doing here? Chitchat??? Just kidding. Please listen, I’ve recollected my knowledge on ALL the immigration laws available in the book on your specific situation, including contacting many prominent immigration attorneys (at least 13 of them), but still we all could not be able to find a law under which you could have been admitted in the US except a refugee status. And since I also like to be challenged then believe me- I’ve done very extensive research on this matter, and I even went beyond my ways to figure it out the legal basis for allowing you to migrate to US, and all I came up-refugee status. Besides, whatever special decree might have been ordered by President under INA 207 as JoeF mentioned, yet still they all are for a ‘refugee status’ anyway.

Further, I think you have missed something out of my earlier postings about parole. I never said that parolee is a refugee or asylee. Instead I said that the white card which was issued to you at your arrival over here is ONLY issued to a refugee/asylee once his/her claim is granted. Refugee and asylee is a temporary status granted to a person based upon the merit of his/her case. After a year later, this person may file for a LPR based upon that temporary status. While on the other hand- a parole is issued to let admit someone into the US on temporary basis ONLY when it is seemed that someone has a bonafide claim of refugee/asylum. Or it is issued when someone doesn’t qualify for a visa to the US and s/he has a compelling need to make a visit to US. You were paroled into the US because you did not have any visa or any status (refugee/asylee) when you entered into the US. Again, I’m not talking here about Advance Parole based upon pending I-485.

You said that you filed “Immigrant Form”, but then every form for an immigrant visa is called “Immigrant Form”. So how would someone know what kind of form it was? And even though that “Immigrant Form” only mentioned about filling out your personal biodata, yet still it must have its own specific purpose like every immigration form does. For example, I-485 is filed for having immigrant visa; I-751 is filed to remove the condition on a temporary green card, N-400 for naturalization, etc..etc. So, the “Immigrant Form” that you filed must have some specific reason for it. By the way, mostly immigration forms usually ask the same general questions about a beneficiary as that "immigrant form' had asked. So there was nothing unusual in that form if it had asked only those information on you.

If you still believe that you did not obtain refugee status then can you have any hunt of yours on this matter? Just a rough idea in case. Because if you did not have any relative in the US, nor anyone sponsored you, no Private Bill was ever introduced for you, you did not invest a half million dollars in a business here, and you did not have "exceptional skill" to qualify for LPR in US by your own, then how could it possible for you to have landed here if it wasn't for a refugee/asylee status. If my memory serves me well then I cannot recall any immigration law which had enabled you in migrating to US without pertaining to one of the above category. Further, how can you be SO SURE that you did not get refugee status when you don't even know what is the basis of your LPR nor you know what kind of "immigrant form" you filed in 1990?

I think you should try hard to find the copy of that form. Otherwise, I’ve already given my verdict on it unless a private bill was signed specially for you or some kind of exception made specially for you at that time, which I am sure not the case here. No kidding, I’ve personally known at least 200 illegal people who have been living here for the last 20 yrs without any status; I think they would love to file “Immigrant Form” that you filed in order for them to obtain “VIP” treatment as you got. I’m dead serious on this.

 

[jumbojumbo]

Date on GC does not match with approval date

My 485 approval date do not match with the date on my card. I spoke with my company (one of the big corporates in bay area) attorney and was told not to worry about it. This thing happens quite often and no action is required from our side.