I485 Approved With No Interview

[Bobbi_Smith]

Hey guys,

So I've been hearing (through the brush) that some people have had their i485 approved without having an interview. If this has happened to you please let me know if you did anything out of the ordinary to make that happen. The USCIS has my medical exam so that shouldn't be an issue. I have never had an interview before though so maybe they won't approve me without an interview.

Like I said, I don't even know if they are actually approving i485 cases without an interview... just thought I'd ask.

Thanks

[PKumar01]

It's technically possible for the USCIS to practice discretion and waive the interview for applicants. I'd be interested to see if that's happening now due to the shortage of USCIS staff at interviews.

[Islandgirl93]

It’s more of a possibility for work based cases, for persons who came here on k1 who’d have initially had an interview before coming here, parents who are filing for their children and vice versa. But for marriage based it’s a bit more of a technicality. The two cases that I saw where the interview was waived they had an initial Interview and the interview that was waived would have been the second interview/ stokes interview. The other case that I read was something along the line of filing i130 first back in 2016 or something then i485 some time last year. And they too had an interview for the i130 which they said was similar to the i485 interview. I asked my lawyer about these situations and he said yes uscis can ofcourse waive interviews but they won’t just hand out gc to everyone especially before vetting who you are and if you’re relationship is real etc. he said for now they have a tentative reopening date in May and hopefully by then things can slowly return to normal where interviews are concerned. However there will obviously be a back log and there is no denying that. But in the event that things get worse where the virus is concerned and the offices are closed down for even longer... then they might have to take some other form of action. But who knows what that will be???!!!

[JaydenDad]

Covid just destroyed everything..... Things where moving so we'll ???? now it's just limbo and I think my lawyers some how forgot to file EAD for me. #frustrated

[Islandgirl93]

Covid just destroyed everything..... Things where moving so we'll ???? now it's just limbo and I think my lawyers some how forgot to file EAD for me. #frustrated

Would you be able to work now? Because most businesses seem to be cutting staff or closing down completely. I wouldn’t stress it too much because a lot of people aren’t able to work. But definitely call ur lawyer up and see what they can do with the ead... that’s why you pay them top dollars.

[Abi8814]

Hi there,
My Form I-485 was approved 4.9.2020 without an interview.
My interview was initially scheduled for march 26th but got cancelled due to covid 19.
By gods grace it got approved yesterday. My approval notice has been sent on mail. I guess my green card will be produced sometime soon.

[Bobbi_Smith]

Wow! My interview was supposed to be on March 26 as well. Did you already have an interview for something in the past? I'm wondering what my chances are of being approved. I haven't had any interview yet.. just a biometrics appointment

[Abi8814]

Bobbi_Smith I didn’t have any interview with the uscis in the past.
My case was received on Nov 21 2019
Biometrics appointment was on Dec 30 2019
Interview Date was Mar 26 2020 but it got cancelled as i mentioned earlier.
Guess I was just lucky. Btw my husband is just a GC Holder and I’m a canadian citizen.

[Gbuf]

I would be very interested in hearing from people who had this experience. My case is "ready to be scheduled an interview" since Dec/19. I came on a K1 visa and I had an interview in my home country. It was funny because my fiancé, now husband, as an employee of the embassy, was able to be there with me during the interview, not actively participating, but close to me. I really consider my case a good one to not be interviewed.

[anasmizyed12]

I think your case was very easy because you are Canadian citizen

[JaydenDad]

I think your case was very easy because you are Canadian citizen

most definitely reason why is coz he is Canadian. i'm still in Limbo, my wife is working so hard it hurts me... i really don't understand why sending EAD's isn't a top priority. my I 130 says approved pending verification, other than that, it's crickets i hear and stars i'm seeing. i just want to work

[lesslot]

I think your case was very easy because you are Canadian citizen

———
I’m a Canadian too but still waiting for an actual interview. (My case is ready to be scheduled for an interview)

[mymyselfandi]

My interview was scheduled for 19th March but got cancelled..

[shah_1988]

From what I have heard, most cases that had interview waived were employment based.
I came across 2 family based cases on different forums, who got their GC without interview were both from the Pittsburgh field office.
Makes it seem like it is a field office based decision. The discretion to waive interviews lies with the field office director in cases where there are no stringent policies, as per the USCIS manual

[inzaghi]

My employment based case was scheduled for interview early April and then got cancelled a few days earlier than that. After that, there was just an letter about interview cancellation.
In mid May, I got an RFE for medical exam documents. I sent those docs over early June. On June 19th, I-485 online status changed to "Case was approved" for both applicants.
I am still wating for my lawyer's reponse, but this seems like a case where an interview was waived and I-485 case approved without interview.