Adjustment of Status - I-485

Hi Immihelp fam,

For over a year I’ve been following this forum and waiting for my I-485 approval and after a year and almost 3 months finally I feel like our lives have started to move again.

ISO - Immigration Service Officer
USC - United States Citizen

PD 12/30/16
Biometrics 1/23/17
EAD 2/14/17 (Expedite Approved)
Moved from Dallas to the Miami field office jurisdiction in August 2017.
Interview Scheduled in Dallas 10/16/17 for 11/16/17
Interview Cancelled 10/20/17 (Due to Dallas field office not having jurisdiction over our case anymore.)
Interview Scheduled 3/2/18
Interview Miami Field Office 3/19/18 10:30
Approved on the spot and given I-551 Stamp due to proof of immediate travel.
New Card being produced 3/19/18
I-485 & I-130 Approved 3/20/18
Card was mailed 3/23/18
USPS Informed delivery says the card will arrive 3/26/18

The interview itself was very interesting and a great experience, first off I was shocked how the whole day the ISO only worked on our case. We arrived at 9:30 and at 9:55 we were called into the ISO’s office. The ISO first greeting to us was warm and she even joked around with us a bit. First 15 minutes of the interview was her going through all the paperwork and making sure everything was in order, one of the first things she asked for was the updated medical which we had done the prior month. After that she asked us our full legal name and has swear an oath. She then asked us how we met, which was rather a long and complicated story as it involved so many people and we could tell she was entertained. Soon we went through a photo album of our time together as a couple from the beginning of our relationship, she asked who some people in the pictures were, we joked around situations during the photo and all in all we didn’t even see how fast the time was ticking. After that she asked us for joint documents for proof of bonafide marriage which we provided:

Marriage Certificate
Insurance Statements (Renters, Car, life, and beneficiary to USC 401K)
Both names on Lease in Dallas and in apartment in Miami
USC Bank joint statments and beneficiary to account.
Travel booked together
Joint Tax Return for 2016 & 2017 Tax year
USC Paystubs & Proof of employment
Both names on Car lease

After presenting her with these documents she said she needed the applicants bank statements as well to see if we had joint accounts and if the were used also, all the transactions were vetted and asked what were larger sums of money that were entering and leaving the account (such as rent payment, credit card payment, and salary deposit). And she also wanted to see our marriage certificate that was in Brazil (which was just an official document stating that the marriage performed in the US is valid and that Brazil recognizes this marriage and will register it in their country also. She gave us a pass to come after lunch (by this one it was around 12:15 and we also asked a question saying we had immidiate travel booked at night to go to Brazil, which we had proof of). At this point she exclaimed “Oh then come back as fast as possible with those documents, first go have lunch and then it’ll take a little longer and you’ll have to stay here a bit but I will have you on your way to Brazil tonight and that I am approving you for the 2 year conditional greencard once I get these documents.” (Since we both work for an airline booking travel isn’t difficult and easy to cancel). We were extremely happy and ran home as quickly as possible passed by a drive through for lunch as was back at the field office at 1:15. She called us back into the office had us sign a few papers confirmed that our new address was on our petition and escorted us back to the waiting area. Around 3:10pm she called us over at the infopass window and congratulated us and even told us that she thought the history of our relationship was truly beautiful. We almost cried and thanked her. By that time the my account USCIS website was already updated and today we found out that the card was going to put new address and we also received the approval notices!

It’s been a log journey and my advice to all of you is to remain calm during the interview, be yourself as a couple, bring evidence of joint documents (she mentioned how sometimes she has to beg couples for joint documents, and pictures. I feel like with our pictures in the chronological order was essential as we talked about our album like a story and it was great. All in all it was an amazing experience and she also explained when and how to file I-751 to remove the conditions and what documents to provide to possibly waive the interview. She said submit what you gave to me in the intrigue and keep up the good work and that we would be fine. I wish everyone here good luck and to remain faithful and positive, it was a gruesome wait but it paid off in the end and I wouldn’t have had it another way.