February 2018 submission- i-130, i-485, i-765 - concurrent filing

[Ch_Lusitano]

Thank you for the update and congratulations.
My PD is close to yours 2/22/18. My case i485 changed to ?Case is ready to be scheduled for interview? while I765 is still at ?fingerprints received and we are processing your application?

Would you recommend that I should start applying for jobs and fax them job offer if I get one?
Can you tell me the process you went through to get to them once you got the job offer?

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I?m from Atlanta. PD is 2/22. I?m now at ?case is ready to be scheduled for interview?

wow yours is at ready for interview? congrats! Have you received EAD? .... I started applying for jobs, am hoping that if i get job offer I can use it to expedite my EAD, I just want my EAD, everything else can take however long they want to take, I just want to work while i wait

[pyx]

Yes

Did they say any reason for rejection?

Form I-130was expired, so i refill the current form version

[MissTz1982]

wow yours is at ready for interview? congrats! Have you received EAD? .... I started applying for jobs, am hoping that if i get job offer I can use it to expedite my EAD, I just want my EAD, everything else can take however long they want to take, I just want to work while i wait

Yes it updated on 4/18 but Didn?t give me the status so I called Level 2 officer and he told me the status was ?ready for interview?.

I will start applying for jobs too and see if they can expedite my EAD. It?s a little hard collecting bonafide evidence of marriage like finances without state ID for us. My husband is a 1099, independent contractor so he doesn?t have benefits that he can add me to like insurance. Private health insurance is expensive and so we couldn?t afford it. I currently don?t drive so he can?t add me to his car insurance.

I think it will get easier with EAD.

[AngieMS]

Sure thing!... I currently have a validation error on my I-485 and ?Figerprints received? on I-765

I am also from Seattle. My PD is 2/21. Our cases are very close, except I filled I-130 with I-485 and I-765 all together. You filled separately. We are both fill to the Seattle office, so I think we should have similar interview dates. Please let me know if you hear anything. I will also update you on my progress. Thanks.

[MicaAshani]

Hi, I received my EAD and social security card and I was wondering how I can go about building credit with a social security card with DHS restrictions?

[MissTz1982]

Hi, I received my EAD and social security card and I was wondering how I can go about building credit with a social security card with DHS restrictions?

Get a secured credit card from Capital One or any other bank. You can put $100 on it and they will give you another $100. Pick a bill like a phone bill and make sure you use the card to pay the bill every month. Make your monthly payments on time for 5 months and they will increase your credit limit to probably $500. make sure you don?t spend more than 30% of your credit limit. After that you will get credit offers from other financial institutions.

[UScitizenFilingforspouse]

Yes it updated on 4/18 but Didn?t give me the status so I called Level 2 officer and he told me the status was ?ready for interview?.

I will start applying for jobs too and see if they can expedite my EAD. It?s a little hard collecting bonafide evidence of marriage like finances without state ID for us. My husband is a 1099, independent contractor so he doesn?t have benefits that he can add me to like insurance. Private health insurance is expensive and so we couldn?t afford it. I currently don?t drive so he can?t add me to his car insurance.

I think it will get easier with EAD.

In order to expedite the EAD, USCIS definitely responds better to requests that involve a pending job offer than to those that involve financial hardship. The rationale is that for marriage based cases you had to submit an affidavit of financial support. Therefore, they hear financial hardship and it ends there.
If your adjustment category is (c) 9 then it can be any job. It does not have to be your dream job. Literally - anything. Be mindful of the fact there?s always a chance that you?ll be asked about your job history at the interview. if you get the request approved and don?t take the job, then be ready to explain that you got a better offer etc.
Are you familiar with an Advanced Health Care directive? https://www.aarp.org/caregiving/fina...ce-directives/
I think that?s a document that would be very useful to you and your spouse in case something ever happened and either one of you were unable to make their own health care decisions. It costs 20 dollars. It?s a legally binding document and USCIS takes it very seriously as evidence of bona fide marriage.
Just my two cents.

[sinoptola]

Hi, I received my EAD and social security card and I was wondering how I can go about building credit with a social security card with DHS restrictions?

Go to Bank of America to open a deposit security credit card with any dollar amount as your desire and you are ready to start building credit on your own.

[UScitizenFilingforspouse]

Yes it updated on 4/18 but Didn?t give me the status so I called Level 2 officer and he told me the status was ?ready for interview?.

I will start applying for jobs too and see if they can expedite my EAD. It?s a little hard collecting bonafide evidence of marriage like finances without state ID for us. My husband is a 1099, independent contractor so he doesn?t have benefits that he can add me to like insurance. Private health insurance is expensive and so we couldn?t afford it. I currently don?t drive so he can?t add me to his car insurance.

I think it will get easier with EAD.

Of course, before telling people "well, just go get a driver's license", I check to see if their DMV thinks they're CBP or USCIS. They're strict - it seems. Here in Minnesota, it can be that way. And the way they talk to you...

Anyway, you mentioned you are not able to get health insurance at the moment. While that is OK, I believe you have to apply for a health care coverage exemption. Here's a link where you can look into it further. https://www.healthcare.gov/health-co...-how-to-apply/ Getting that joint exemption from health care coverage would be evidence of bona fide marriage for you too. Otherwise, you're leaving a loose end that USCIS can pull and we are required to either have health care coverage or seek an exemption.

Even though you do not have an ID, there are still plenty of ways for you to document evidence of bona fide marriage. Did you get a joint checking account yet? Don't try to do it online. Just walk into a branch with your passport. It's usually fine. Bank of America is very laid back about this.

Alternatively, you can be added to your spouse's checking account as an authorized user. I would go the extra mile and document use of the check card in your name. Make it a point to pay with it for things that are for your spouse or for household bills. Receipts are a great source of evidence of bona fide marriage. A receipt can vouch that you at a location at a certain time. They often serve as alibis in legal proceedings. Find ways to tie receipts to text messages, to pictures of a trip, to dinners with friends - even those simple daily text messages "hun, don't forget to get bread and eggs. We are out" become significant when you tie them to a receipt.

USCIS does not expect everyone to have mortgage and several life insurance policies. It takes time to get established in this country. So in lieu of financial evidence, you can go heavier on evidence that places you two at the same location at the same time, either at home, at the gym or at a restaurant.

It's not about how much you have in the bank; rather about showing that you two trust each other with whatever you have. If you aren't working, it may feel like you don't have much financial evidence of bona fide marriage. I beg to disagree. If you have full access to your spouse's account, you sign rent checks as an authorized user, if you get a Target red card., I think that speaks volumes about the bona fides of your marriage. See... if only one spouse is working, and the non-working spouse has unrestricted and documented access to everything, then in theory the working spouse has more at risk in that arrangement than the non-working spouse. So if you focus on staging your evidence around that premise, you would be able to show solid evidence of commingling of finances. To commingle finances, only one of the two parties needs to have something that can be shared.

So do not get stuck on what you do not have and work on staging your evidence to show your spouse trusts you with finances/belongings.

I would also go heavy on affidavits from people who know you and from people who do not know as well, BUT who see you together often enough to infer that you two must be a married couple. I would go the extra mile and get those notarized because that certifies the notary public verified the identity of the person signing it. Every UPS store has a notary public. Sworn affidavits are fine. But with USCIS, you always want to submit "best evidence" if you are able to. Since traditional financial evidence is lacking, then throwing that notary stamp adds legitimacy to your claim.

All the best. Here is a link to a thread that contains all kinds of tips/experiences. https://www.immihelp.com/forum/showt...interview-tips

[UScitizenFilingforspouse]

Hi, I received my EAD and social security card and I was wondering how I can go about building credit with a social security card with DHS restrictions?

Your first step is to get your driver's license. Credit bureaus use your social security and driver's license in order to verify your identity. You are able to get credit cards without a driver's license. However, reporting to the credit bureaus is not consistent.
Usually, your best bet is to get a card from the bank where you have your checking account. US bank is very generous with those who are just starting, actually.

I strongly recommend that you inform yourself about identity theft. Consider the information on this website. You can opt out of pre-screened credit card offers. These offers can make you vulnerable to identity theft. https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/article...surance-offers

Consider getting a mailbox at the UPS store.

[pyx]

In order to expedite the EAD, USCIS definitely responds better to requests that involve a pending job offer than to those that involve financial hardship. The rationale is that for marriage based cases you had to submit an affidavit of financial support. Therefore, they hear financial hardship and it ends there.
If your adjustment category is (c) 9 then it can be any job. It does not have to be your dream job. Literally - anything. Be mindful of the fact there?s always a chance that you?ll be asked about your job history at the interview. if you get the request approved and don?t take the job, then be ready to explain that you got a better offer etc.
Are you familiar with an Advanced Health Care directive? https://www.aarp.org/caregiving/fina...ce-directives/
I think that?s a document that would be very useful to you and your spouse in case something ever happened and either one of you were unable to make their own health care decisions. It costs 20 dollars. It?s a legally binding document and USCIS takes it very seriously as evidence of bona fide marriage.
Just my two cents.

@Uscitizenfilingforspouse, I will like to know if I can I register for the AARP then add my wife who is a US citizen to it?

[UScitizenFilingforspouse]

@Uscitizenfilingforspouse, I will like to know if I can I register for the AARP then add my wife who is a US citizen to it?

Hi there,

yes, the cost of your membership includes a membership for your spouse. I was pointing out something else though. The link directs you to the Advance health care directive forms specific to each US State. I did a google search and that link came up. I worked for AARP in their membership department and know the organization offer reliable information to seniors. So I figured I could trust the info there.

All the best.

[MicaAshani]

Your first step is to get your driver's license. Credit bureaus use your social security and driver's license in order to verify your identity. You are able to get credit cards without a driver's license. However, reporting to the credit bureaus is not consistent.
Usually, your best bet is to get a card from the bank where you have your checking account. US bank is very generous with those who are just starting, actually.

I strongly recommend that you inform yourself about identity theft. Consider the information on this website. You can opt out of pre-screened credit card offers. These offers can make you vulnerable to identity theft. https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/article...surance-offers

Consider getting a mailbox at the UPS store.

Great thank you ! Quick question. My license in Jamaica expired in November, am I able to use those to get a license in the US? Without having to take the driver's test and online test?

[jzgr24]

no, I asked that as well as my license from my home country is still valid, they told me at the BMV that i still need to do both exams even when I have an international drivers license as well

Great thank you ! Quick question. My license in Jamaica expired in November, am I able to use those to get a license in the US? Without having to take the driver's test and online test?

[aria347509]

My PD is 2/28. Yesterday my status changed to ? interview was scheduled? through Casetracker app. However my uscis account doesn?t change its status. Hope i will receive the letter soon. Filed office: Boston.