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My marriage based interview is scheduled on 3/12/21 in chicago. Please share your chicago experience here. Any tips are welcome. My lawyer told me Friday interviews are more detailed even if its first interview? Please share your marriage interview questions here.
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For what I've heard Chicago is pretty tough, so make sure you've got your s*** together. Chicago is my field office too and my interview is in 3 weeks. Pretty anxious to be honest haha.
My timeline so far:
PD 06/30/2020. Chicago field office.
-01/27/20: Same sex couple, married to USC.
-06/29/20: Package I-130, I-130A, I-131, I-485, I-693, I-765, I-864, I-864 joint sponsor and I-944 sent via certified mail USPS.
-06/30/20: Delivered by USPS and signed by Chicago lockbox T Thomas.
-07/25/20: Checks cashed.
-07/30/20: Text messages received with case confirmation numbers.
-07/31/20: Received NOA's in the mail.
-08/05/20: Received RFIE notification from USCIS for I-485, letter to follow via mail.
-08/10/20: Received RFIE in the mail asking for my partner's pay stubs for the last 6 months and letter of employment.
-09/18/20: Mailed out RFIE to Lee-Summit's office.
-09/21/20: USCIS confirms they've received RFIE.
-10/27/2020: Called USCIS regarding biometrics appointment not yet scheduled. USCIS send E-Request to Chicago FO.
-11/10/2020: Immigration officer reaches out to me via phone call to explain the reason I haven't received a biometrics appointment, appointment will come eventually.
-11/23/2020: USCIS files another E-Request for biometrics.
-12/04/2020: USCIS confirms biometrics appointment has been scheduled and letter with details is in the mail already.
-12/05/2020: Biometrics appointment scheduled for December 21st 2020.
-12/21/2020: Biometrics taken.
-12/22/2020: Biometrics applied to cases.
-12/29/2020: Case is ready to be scheduled for an interview.
-02/26/2021: Interview has been scheduled. Letter in the mail already. -
May I ask how was your interview? I’m from Chicago so I would like to know what to expect. Thank youOriginally posted by indian angel View PostComment
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Hey, do you mind sharing about your interview experience?Originally posted by indian angel View PostComment
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Hey guys! I’m from Illinois and our interview was easy back in 2018. Just go there prepared. Bring updated documents and pictures of you and your spouse with family and friends. Good luck!Comment
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I hope they are aware of COVID pandemic. I have only one family member and one friend and they both couldn’t visit our wedding in august 2020. Here unfortunately I don’t have friends so far and my husband is a bit older and don’t have family at all. We have just a couple pics with some acquaintances -4th July 2020. After that date we stopped seeing everybody because of COVID hit Chicago very hard. Our wedding was just two of us. Illinois doesn’t require any witnesses . We had no reception, restaurants were closed that time. Everything makes me sad when I look down on our pictures. And on the top of it I have been waiting for ead since October 2020 so we have almost zero financial stuffs together because I don’t have valid driving license. When I was undocumented I was a household cleaner and also this COVID thing hit this industry well. So we are really struggling financially. It’s not possible to wait one year for ead ☹️Comment
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I'm from Chicago too and my interview is tomorrow.Originally posted by Paula3444 View Post
My timeline so far:
PD 06/30/2020. Chicago field office. No EAD.
-01/27/20: Same sex couple, married to USC.
-06/29/20: Package I-130, I-130A, I-131, I-485, I-693, I-765, I-864, I-864 joint sponsor and I-944 sent via certified mail USPS.
-06/30/20: Delivered by USPS and signed by Chicago lockbox T Thomas.
-07/25/20: Checks cashed.
-07/30/20: Text messages received with case confirmation numbers.
-07/31/20: Received NOA's in the mail.
-08/05/20: Received RFIE notification from USCIS for I-485, letter to follow via mail.
-08/10/20: Received RFIE in the mail asking for my partner's pay stubs for the last 6 months and letter of employment.
-09/18/20: Mailed out RFIE to Lee-Summit's office.
-09/21/20: USCIS confirms they've received RFIE. -10/27/2020: Called USCIS regarding biometrics appointment not yet scheduled. USCIS send E-Request to Chicago FO.
-11/10/2020: Immigration officer reaches out to me via phone call to explain the reason I haven't received a biometrics appointment, appointment will come eventually.
-11/23/2020: USCIS files another E-Request for biometrics.
-12/04/2020: USCIS confirms biometrics appointment has been scheduled and letter with details is in the mail already.
-12/05/2020: Biometrics appointment scheduled for December 21st 2020.
-12/21/2020: Biometrics taken.
-12/22/2020: Biometrics applied to cases.
-12/29/2020: Case is ready to be scheduled for an interview.
-02/26/2021: Interview has been scheduled.
-03/30/2021: Interview.
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This was my ******** post in the group I belong to:Originally posted by Paula3444 View Post
GUYS.....I AM OVERWHELMED HAHA...
AOS SAME SEX COUPLE MARRIAGE BASED INTERVIEW APPROVED ON THE SPOT. CHICAGO FIELD OFFICE.
Well, this was uhmmmmm a journey, or the beginning of a great journey? haha
Our interview was today at 02:00PM hours, Chicago field office.
EAD never got adjudicated.
I have been living in the US for over 13 years out of status, from a B2 visa. I am the beneficiary. My partner is the petitioner. We are the same age, he is actually 1 month older than me (We are 35 year olds but still look like 20 haha).
We first met in 2006 when I first came to the US for visiting. We briefly dated on and off, I left in 2007, came back again in 2007 and left in 2008, came back in 2008 again and being so young at the time, I never left.
One thing led to another, and we separated and became friends. Years past, and again we started to date, until things got serious around 2018.
We got married on January 27th 2020, but didn't file 'till June 2020 as we wanted to gather more docs for proof of bona-fide.
We didn't have a big wedding. Something very small at the city hall downtown Chicago, just the judge and 3 closest friends of ours and a friend who's a photographer (how convenient right?)
In the original package for proof of bona-fide we sent:
-ID's matching address (both of our IDs showed our previous address because we had not yet gone to the DMV, I updated my license right away because it expired on 02/28/21 so I did it on that day, my partner did not update his because he didn't have time and with covid; getting into the DMV was a nightmare, besides his license doesn't expire until the end of the year...I'll explain what happened during the interview with his below)
-Copy of car insurance and car insurance card with both names on it.
-Copy of 1 credit card with both names on it.
-Copy of ComEd bills and internet with both names on it.
-Copy of checking account statement with both names on it.
-10 pictures
-Current lease with both names on it.
-Rent rcpts from our landlord with both names on it.
-Copy of 3 affidavits confirming our relationship.
-A lot of email print outs from the USPS email delivery service showing we both get mail at the same address.
-Renters insurance we got last year.
-Copy of bills from our mechanic for the oil changes we've made before.
INTERVIEW:
Our interview was at 02:00PM. We arrived at the building around 01:50PM, upon entering the building you have to go thru airport security like scenario, one of the security officers will ask for you interview notice, so please have that handy. We took our shoes off, belt, emptied our pockets and placed everything inside a small bin. Funny thing, my partner had his small pepper spray hanging on the car's key chain and we almost got arrested haha. They understood and we had to throw it out. After clearing that little misunderstanding, we went thru the metal detectors and were given our stuff back. We went straight ahead to a window right on the first floor and were told to take our notice to the 2nd floor. Once there, a lady stamped out notice and wrote a number on it, and said that would be our number, someone will come out and call that number. We sat down around 02:10PM and an officer called us around 02:45PM, we were the last couple to be interviewed for the evening (Lucky us?).
The officer called our number and he right away introduced himself. A very super nice and professional black African American officer. He immediately made us feel welcomed. We followed him and went inside his office. I could not resist to compliment how good his office smelled. He sat us down and talked a little bit about who he is and what he does, and he sworn us in.
AND HERE WE GO GUYS...
The interview started by him telling me that he was going to speak to my partner only and to basically shut up haha. He asked my partner only 4 questions, he started by saying:
"Mr. xxxx, I want to know 4 things and I want you to tell me this in a conversational way, I want to know WHEN you met your partner, HOW, WHY you decided to marry him, and WHAT led you to make that decision" All of this while he was taking notes. Then my partner went ahead and explained to him the whole thing. He kind of screwed up the date we met haha, but the officer understood that and he seemed not to really care about that little mistake. After that, the officer asked him about my full name and date of birth, he asked him to provide our IDs and birth certificates. He asked why our driver license had a different address and he got super serious right there, we explained that the only reason I renewed my license was because mine expired on 02/28/21 and his license doesn't expire until the end of the year and that he just didn't want to go to the DMV due to all the Covid-19 restrictions. The good thing is that I had with me my old license which also showed our previous address so he was pleased with that. He asked my partner if I knew his parents and what they thought about our marriage, he explained that his dad passed away in 2015 and his mom died last January, and that she was super conservative about gay marriage as she's from the south unfortunately. And that was it for him. Then, he turned to me and he asked me about how many times I entered the US prior 2008, he asked me if I ever overstayed during those previous visits, he asked me if I was currently working LEGALLY which I said no because the EAD was never adjudicated, he asked me what my mom thought about our marriage, and then after that he proceed to ask yes/no questions, while taking notes. Soon after that he asked for pictures, and additional documentation, which we provided, we brought 4 pics with people in them, the rest were basically selfies. He asked us who the people in the pics were.
After that, he wrapped up the file and said that everything looked good and that he'll recommend the approval, he said to check the USCIS app within the next 48 hours for updates. I asked "Officer is it safe to plan travels (wink)?" and he said "You guys should be good" and he smiled hehe. Interview lasted about 30 minutes.
He walked us out and while walking outside he said "welcome to America"...
OMFG...I broke down right there haha, we went to the parking lot after perhaps 8 minutes and my I-765 said "New card is being produced". One hour later my I-485 changed to "New card is being produced".
What a day guys, all I can say is, be YOU! Don't be nervous, make it look natural, do not interrupt the officer, answer only what they ask, don't be extra, dress business casual, highlight in yellow your names on whatever documents you're providing, sending proof of bona-fide in your original package is extremely important, bring additional documentation, I noticed that they definitely see your body language and they'd grill you if they see you nervous, make sure there are no discrepancies with your dates, from the moment you met until you moved in together, everything should make sense and you should make it easier for the officer, and I can't stress this enough; address the officer only by "OFFICER" (not sir, or m'ammmm).
My timeline so far:
PD 06/30/2020. Chicago field office. No EAD.
-01/27/20: Same sex couple, married to USC.
-06/29/20: Package I-130, I-130A, I-131, I-485, I-693, I-765, I-864, I-864 joint sponsor and I-944 sent via certified mail USPS.
-06/30/20: Delivered by USPS and signed by Chicago lockbox T Thomas.
-07/25/20: Checks cashed.
-07/30/20: Text messages received with case confirmation numbers.
-07/31/20: Received NOA's in the mail.
-08/05/20: Received RFIE notification from USCIS for I-485, letter to follow via mail.
-08/10/20: Received RFIE in the mail asking for my partner's pay stubs for the last 6 months and letter of employment.
-09/18/20: Mailed out RFIE to Lee-Summit's office.
-09/21/20: USCIS confirms they've received RFIE.
-10/27/2020: Called USCIS regarding biometrics appointment not yet scheduled. USCIS send E-Request to Chicago FO.
-11/10/2020: Immigration officer reaches out to me via phone call to explain the reason I haven't received a biometrics appointment, appointment will come eventually.
-11/23/2020: USCIS files another E-Request for biometrics.
-12/04/2020: USCIS confirms biometrics appointment has been scheduled and letter with details is in the mail already.
-12/05/2020: Biometrics appointment scheduled for December 21st 2020.
-12/21/2020: Biometrics taken.
-12/22/2020: Biometrics applied to cases.
-12/29/2020: Case is ready to be scheduled for an interview.
-02/26/2021: Interview has been scheduled. Letter in the mail already.
-03/30/2021: Interview
-03/30/2021: Case approved on the spot. Conditional green card.
-03/31/2021: I-130, I-131, I-485 and I-765 shows "Case approved".
Feel free to ask me anything.
Thank you guys.
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Congratulations . Must be such a relief!!12/24/2019 - I130/I485//I765 Filed concurrently.
1/13/2020 - 3 Physical Receipts received..
1/17/2020 - Received ASC appt letter - scheduled for 1/27
1/27/2020 - FingerPrints taken
1/30/2020 - Case Updated to show fingerprints were taken.
2/18/2020 - RFE for birth certificate.
5/4/2020 - Response sent for RFE
5/7/2020 - Response Received by USCIS
7/2/2020 - Ready to be scheduled for interview.
7/13/2020 - EAD approved
7/20/2020 - Received I797 for EAD
2/22/2021 - Interview Scheduled.Comment
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Congratulations..Comment
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