Adjustment of Status - I-485

Hello everyone! I’ve been following this forum almost from the beginning of my journey and I wanted to share my experience with everyone. I filed i485, i864, and i130 in 2015 to the National Benefits Center. My PD is December 11, 2015 and my field office is in Houston, Texas. I did not use a lawyer because being a full time student and having to pay my tuition out of pocket usually leaves my budget quite tight. The process was mostly smooth, except for one bump along the road. In March 2015, my EAD expired. I had gotten my EAD in 2014 under DACA. I was under the impression that the AOS process lasted around 3 months so I did not renew DACA, thinking I would receive my greencard before DACA expired. I was very wrong and as a result, lost my job. During that time is when I found this forum. It was very comforting to read about other’s experiences during such a difficult time for me. Because I did not use a lawyer, I did not know I could also file i765 with i485. When I lost my job, I quickly researched and realized I could file for EAD without a fee so I did that. I waited the complete 90 days before receiving my EAD. It was very tough with only my husband (US Citizen) working overtime in order to make ends meet. When I finally received my EAD, I applied for my job again and thankfully, my team kept the vacancy open until I was able to go back. I then continued to wait and wait for any update. As my fellow Houstonians know, we have to wait about a year from our PD to have our interview scheduled. So on December 22, 2016, after a year of waiting, I received notification that my interview was scheduled for January 25, 2017 at 9:45am. I was very happy but also nervous because the wait was finally coming to an end. I gathered as many documents as I could. My husband and I don’t really have any bills under both our names, except the car insurance and our lease, so I took those documents with us. I also made sure to gather pictures from the very beginning of our relationship and photos with our families.

On the day of the interview, we arrived at the office at 9:30am. We waited about an hour and a half to be called in by a very nice Caucasian lady in her 50s. She took us to her office and made us swear to say the truth and nothing but the truth. Then we took a seat and she began to ask me the yes or no questions. Then she asked for my medical since I had not submitted it with my original application. She opened the sealed envelope and said everything looked good. After that, she asked me for official documents, like our passports, my Border Crossing Card, birth certificates, and marriage certificates. Then, she began to ask us questions. She didn’t really ask us individual questions. She asked us “so where did you two meet?” and then to my husband, “how did you propose”, and things of that nature. The interview seemed more like a casual conversations between friends. The IO even laughed at my husband’s jokes; he loves to make people laugh lol. Then, she asked to see what documents I had brought that proved we live together. Then, she asked for our pictures. I only brought around 30 pictures but they spanned our entire relationship, all the way from my husband’s high school graduation (we are high school sweethearts) until now. I also made sure to include pictures of trips together and with each other’s families. She asked to keep some pictures and kept mostly those that included us with our parents and also of our wedding.

She then told us that it all looked good and I should get an update about my status online in two days and my approval letter and card would arrive in about a week. She also started to tell me that I would receive the “conditional greencard” which expires in two years because my husband and I haven’t been married for two years yet. She then walked us out of her office, back into the lobby and told us to have a good day. It was a really good interview and my husband even asked “that was it? What about the interview?” when we walked into the lobby again lol. He said that didn’t seem like an interview to him, that it was too easy lol. Unlike many people, the IO did not stamp my passport or even give me any document saying I was approved. I started to worry when I read others’ experiences saying that their passport was stamped, and I thought maybe I wasn’t actually approved like the IO told me. However, this morning my status updated to “New card is being produced”. The wait is finally over! I am so happy and planning a trip to Mexico for the summer!

All I can say to you all is to be patient and not dwell on the status of your application so much. I used to check my status every day but then realized that I should distract myself because this whole process would make me super anxious and was so stressful. If your marriage is real, you have nothing to worry about. Be hopeful! The wait does come to an end, eventually. ?