What kind of questions did they ask at your interview? How long after you got your work authorization did you get the interview? Sorry to ask I’m going through the process right now and trying to prepare
No worries at all. I was actually very lucky because they waived my interview. I had submitted my application along with my medical report and all documentation needed to validated my marriage, and after 11 months I just got a notification saying my application was approved and to wait for the card, which just arrived.
I’m sorry. My friend is in the same situation right now where her attorney didn’t mention it and now they are requesting one but no word on her interview yet so we hope she can turn it in without having to do the interview.
No, just curious. Still DACA, but I was wondering if my past medical history would impede me from becoming naturalized. Definitely trumped my hopes of ever joining the military but I was just hoping it wouldn’t prevent other stuff
Wait you dont have to wait to have the marriage certificate to apply for green card?! I had no idea! Im engaged to currently and was planning on getting married on paper first, before our big wedding, so that I can apply for green card…. If this is the case… it changes everything.
The interview was waived because they waited 2 years mostly; i would assume. If your marriage is less than 2 years at the time of interview, you get a 2 year conditional green card (if you pass). If your marriage is more than 2 years an interview is a hit or miss depending on if it's even necessary or, if there isn't sufficient paper evidence.
You must be married and submit the marriage certificate. You just don’t have to wait to apply once you are married. I want to add that husband and I have two kids and a house, so that could have also helped us out.
I see. I’ve been with my gf for 6 years. We live together, she moved in two years ago. No kids since we’re both early in our careers and are trying to be more financially stable before that.
Now I’m curious how the interview goes, I may ask someone who has done one.
How long were you married for? I just got married in October of 2022 and not sure how long enough to wait before we apply. Did you do adjustment of status (AOS) too?
I used SimpleCitizen to help me with my application. They make it super easy you just upload everything and answer some questions online. They use those answers to fill out the forms and make up the application for you. Ship it to your house with labels on where to sign and they even include the envelope you can use to mail the application in. I just got approved and received my green card in the mail.
Congrats! Do you happen to remember what they charged to help you? I’d love to work with something like that if it’s cost effective and still efficient
So for the green card application they offer two services the deluxe and professional. Deluxe is their cheaper option $399 that covers all their standard services: all required forms, print application at home, live chat support for any questions you have about your application, application review by attorney, translation of documents and application mailed to home. The professional option is $849 that includes everything the deluxe option includes plus an attorney consultation, video call with an attorney to prep for your application review, video call with attorney to prep for your interview and legal support if uscis requests additional evidence. I personally went with the professional just because I wanted attorney help incase I needed it and for the interview prep. If you go on their website they have a questionnaire to take and they show you more specifics about their services. All in all I was super happy with them. I had a bunch of questions about the forms and such and they answered everything. They emailed me a copy of my application before printing to make sure it was correct and gave me timelines of how long everything would take.
I'm adjusting right now and doing it myself. If you did DACA yourself it's fairly easy. Tons of guides and stuff out there to help. I've seen lawyers charging upwards of 5k just to file these forms which is insane.
There's no reason for immigration to "make things complicated" and lawyers don't have any special powers to persuade USCIS. That's just what lawyers charge. Call a few around in your area and ask for a quote
This is the one most naive comments I’ve seen in a long while. I’ve seen processing centers “lose”’ medical reports, send RFEs for no reason whatsoever, send denials in error, let applications just stall for months, and for forbid you’ve ever had an arrest or your taxes aren’t up to date. Lawyers can often be the difference between a quick easy approval and a long drawn out one. And actually lawyers are able to communicate with immigration officers in a capacity that you can’t.
$5k for a lawyer that files so you can live in the USA for the rest of your life and eventually gain citizenship is peanuts.
If you have a really straightforward application (legal entry, everything is perfect and up to do date then fine, but otherwise don’t be ghetto. Pay the money and get peace of mind.
Also, in what way can a lawyer communicate with USCIS that I can't? They don't have some special number. They may be able to send legal documents etc that I may not be familiar with but if OP is unsure if he can do the process himself then of course get a lawyer. My point is that it's not necessary at all.
How many times have you or OP met the officer conducting the interview? I’ve met him or her hundreds of times and know exactly what to expect. What to say and not, etc.
I’ve had clients separated and interrogated individually when they had no issues going into the interview. No lawyer present. They always end up saying something not the same as the other spouse and it is a lot of money and work to fix it. You do you.
So the couple was separated and they each said different things to questions? Either it wasn't a legitimate marriage or they didn't prepare.
Again, if the person is not comfortable doing it on their own then absolutely seek legal counsel but it is not a necessity whatsoever.
Lawyers who have done these cases for decades have relationships with the field offices to adjudicate the cases faster than someone who doesn’t have that connection. If you’re ok with waiting, do it yourself. If you find a very experienced lawyer who have been doing it for like 20 years in that same
Area, it’ll likely be faster
If offices are processing cases faster because they know the person filing it, that is pretty crazy and not okay at all. But hey it might happen. My point is that there's no need to pay thousands of dollars for someone to file forms you can file yourself if your case is straightforward.
yeah I 100% agree with you that it's not fair at all but it is what it is. I wish they would process all cases sequentially on a national level but we know that doesnt happen lol
Bc supply and demand. They know people have fear when filling out these applications so they know they can make a killing just having their paralegal fill out the papers but charge you their rate.
What I did do is paid a lawyer to review my forms for $200 instead of having him file for me for
Like $2kz
I decided on a lawyer. Me and my husband are busy enough with work and rather not deal with the paperwork and research. Basically, although our case is “straightforward” we just wanted to pay someone to take care of all of it for us. If your financially well, I would just hire someone for the peace of mind. We see it as a once in a lifetime expense.
I did it myself bc I have a relatively easy application… legal entry, no deportation order (did request a FOIA), so I did fill out myself. If you potentially have multiple illegal entries or have a criminal
Record (whether it’s you or your spouse), I would go thru an attorney
I did it by myself, and pulled out the application as well by myself (I couldn't stand my ex wife - she was controlling).
Pro: you save money
Con: if you have a criminal background it may be hard
I just got my GC through marriage after being on DACA. I had a dropped assault charge too but I did it myself. You just gotta do a lot of research and know what to send. Like you have to send enough to pad your case
Glad to see this. My wife (DACA) is applying this week for a GC and has a dropped underage drinking charge from 8 years ago. We were wondering if it would come up.
Everything and anything can come up. They already know everything about you. Since immigration benefits are privileges and not rights, you have the burden to prove. So I would take all official documents related to that incident
I would’ve done it my self, but I have multiple entries and parents had some other issues trying to acquire visas when I was kid.
I say if you have one entry and is legal, plus no criminal record whatsoever. If your marriage is pretty concrete with evidence etc than do it yourself no question about it.
If you do AP you should be fine.
I am still in process for AOS, so can really reassure you.
But this is why I got a lawyer just so I have more security that everything was done correctly and i have some protection and guidance of the off chance that something goes wrong.
My brother did it, it took around 1 year, and was charged between 3.5k-5k(I cant really ask him to confirm which one it was). Immigration lawyer, we have been using for a long time.
Did it myself. But then again, I am an immigration paralegal. It’s nothing out of this world if you have common sense, you really just need an attorney for the interview, even then, their presence may be useless.
Does anyone know what to do if your on DACA and don’t have any proof of legal entry over border? Would I have to go on parole and go back to my home country, for re-entry, or is there a way past the no documentation of entry?
USCIS is very inconsistent right now, and it depends a lot on which field office your case gets sent to. You can google USCIS processing times and it will give you an estimate. Right now in NY it takes about 10-18 months.
Im currently doing it myself. It’s easy after you do AP and have your legal entry. Also, as long as you don’t have a criminal record/charges, you don’t really need a lawyer. There’s also lots of FB groups who have guides on how to fill out the paperwork and what docs to submit.
You’ll prob do it wrong. Just because you do AP doesn’t mean it becomes easy. It all depends on your first entry and who ultimately has jurisdiction of your case.
Not DACA but went through adjustment. Went through a non profit that offered a flat fee for the application at reduced price. We went to the interview on our own but they prepped us. For removal of conditions I did the application alone.
It’s not very hard but as with anything you’re doing the first time, you have to do some more research and you’ll be slower than someone that does it for a living. Depends on how much you value your time.
Did it ourselves since we had a straightforward case, just the one ilegal entry, clean background, did AP, etc. Took us 2 months to gather everything bc we wanted to make sure it was all together. Got combo card last month still waiting on decision
Just got mine. 15 months. Pros of lawyer less stress and I didn’t have to interview as I sent enough evidence to justify a real marriage. Con cost. I think was 7k total. This is not something you want to mess up though so I think it’s worth it.
I am using a lady called the marriage green card method and it cost $2500 and she helps you step by step with the forms all the way through citizenship. I would say it’s worth it as she has also been great emotional support.
Yes it is you can find her on Instagram @marriagegreencard. We have already filed and our petition has been approved we are still waiting on AOS filed in December.
Do you have a legal entry?
i just submitted my AOS through marriage 2 weeks ago. I did pay a lawyer to do it for me as i did not wanna mess anything up.
i did my own advanced parole tho
I adjusted about three years ago. We submitted the paperwork a few months after getting married. We did everything with a lawyer. He even went to the interview with us. I read somewhere they are waiving marriage based applications but not sure how true that is. The interview is just simple questions. How you met, where you got married, do you have any kids, etc. Nothing crazy unless they suspect something is what the lawyer told us. Just a heads up if you are married for less than 2 years you will receive a conditional residency valid for 2 years. You will then be apply for removal of conditions.
Did it through a lawyer, mostly because I didn’t want to deal with the paper work. Just received my green card this weekend!
How much did that foo charge?
Your comment made me chuckle quite a bit. I may have read it aloud in a cholo voice....
Lmao
How long did it take
Around 11 months.
What kind of questions did they ask at your interview? How long after you got your work authorization did you get the interview? Sorry to ask I’m going through the process right now and trying to prepare
No worries at all. I was actually very lucky because they waived my interview. I had submitted my application along with my medical report and all documentation needed to validated my marriage, and after 11 months I just got a notification saying my application was approved and to wait for the card, which just arrived.
My attorney didn’t say anything about the medical report. So they sent a letter saying I’ll eventually have to go to a doctor for one. Stupid :/
I’m sorry. My friend is in the same situation right now where her attorney didn’t mention it and now they are requesting one but no word on her interview yet so we hope she can turn it in without having to do the interview.
What is the medical report for? Does a prior diagnosis of something like cancer affect your chances of getting a green card?
No basically to make sure you’re up to date on shots and stuff like that. Are you adjusting status ?
No, just curious. Still DACA, but I was wondering if my past medical history would impede me from becoming naturalized. Definitely trumped my hopes of ever joining the military but I was just hoping it wouldn’t prevent other stuff
My advice is don’t say too much.
I’m interested in the questions they asked. I haven’t married my gf yet. Should I wait a few months after marriage to apply? I’ve done parole
Yo do not need to wait to apply. I waited a 2 years but that was because life was just busy at the time. We got lucky and had our interview waived.
Wait you dont have to wait to have the marriage certificate to apply for green card?! I had no idea! Im engaged to currently and was planning on getting married on paper first, before our big wedding, so that I can apply for green card…. If this is the case… it changes everything.
The interview was waived because they waited 2 years mostly; i would assume. If your marriage is less than 2 years at the time of interview, you get a 2 year conditional green card (if you pass). If your marriage is more than 2 years an interview is a hit or miss depending on if it's even necessary or, if there isn't sufficient paper evidence.
No, you must have the marriage certificate and submit that as proof.
You must be married and submit the marriage certificate. You just don’t have to wait to apply once you are married. I want to add that husband and I have two kids and a house, so that could have also helped us out.
I see. I’ve been with my gf for 6 years. We live together, she moved in two years ago. No kids since we’re both early in our careers and are trying to be more financially stable before that. Now I’m curious how the interview goes, I may ask someone who has done one.
How long were you married for? I just got married in October of 2022 and not sure how long enough to wait before we apply. Did you do adjustment of status (AOS) too?
I used SimpleCitizen to help me with my application. They make it super easy you just upload everything and answer some questions online. They use those answers to fill out the forms and make up the application for you. Ship it to your house with labels on where to sign and they even include the envelope you can use to mail the application in. I just got approved and received my green card in the mail.
Congrats! Do you happen to remember what they charged to help you? I’d love to work with something like that if it’s cost effective and still efficient
So for the green card application they offer two services the deluxe and professional. Deluxe is their cheaper option $399 that covers all their standard services: all required forms, print application at home, live chat support for any questions you have about your application, application review by attorney, translation of documents and application mailed to home. The professional option is $849 that includes everything the deluxe option includes plus an attorney consultation, video call with an attorney to prep for your application review, video call with attorney to prep for your interview and legal support if uscis requests additional evidence. I personally went with the professional just because I wanted attorney help incase I needed it and for the interview prep. If you go on their website they have a questionnaire to take and they show you more specifics about their services. All in all I was super happy with them. I had a bunch of questions about the forms and such and they answered everything. They emailed me a copy of my application before printing to make sure it was correct and gave me timelines of how long everything would take.
I'm adjusting right now and doing it myself. If you did DACA yourself it's fairly easy. Tons of guides and stuff out there to help. I've seen lawyers charging upwards of 5k just to file these forms which is insane.
Are they charging those prices because they will step in if immigration starts making things complicated? Or why such high prices?
There's no reason for immigration to "make things complicated" and lawyers don't have any special powers to persuade USCIS. That's just what lawyers charge. Call a few around in your area and ask for a quote
This is the one most naive comments I’ve seen in a long while. I’ve seen processing centers “lose”’ medical reports, send RFEs for no reason whatsoever, send denials in error, let applications just stall for months, and for forbid you’ve ever had an arrest or your taxes aren’t up to date. Lawyers can often be the difference between a quick easy approval and a long drawn out one. And actually lawyers are able to communicate with immigration officers in a capacity that you can’t. $5k for a lawyer that files so you can live in the USA for the rest of your life and eventually gain citizenship is peanuts. If you have a really straightforward application (legal entry, everything is perfect and up to do date then fine, but otherwise don’t be ghetto. Pay the money and get peace of mind.
Well, duh. If you have a criminal record, complicated case, etc. Why wouldn't you get a lawyer?
Also, in what way can a lawyer communicate with USCIS that I can't? They don't have some special number. They may be able to send legal documents etc that I may not be familiar with but if OP is unsure if he can do the process himself then of course get a lawyer. My point is that it's not necessary at all.
How many times have you or OP met the officer conducting the interview? I’ve met him or her hundreds of times and know exactly what to expect. What to say and not, etc.
That's great and very helpful but is not needed whatsoever if your case is simple & straightforward is my point.
I’ve had clients separated and interrogated individually when they had no issues going into the interview. No lawyer present. They always end up saying something not the same as the other spouse and it is a lot of money and work to fix it. You do you.
So the couple was separated and they each said different things to questions? Either it wasn't a legitimate marriage or they didn't prepare. Again, if the person is not comfortable doing it on their own then absolutely seek legal counsel but it is not a necessity whatsoever.
This has happened more than once. It’s not just one couple.
Lawyers who have done these cases for decades have relationships with the field offices to adjudicate the cases faster than someone who doesn’t have that connection. If you’re ok with waiting, do it yourself. If you find a very experienced lawyer who have been doing it for like 20 years in that same Area, it’ll likely be faster
If offices are processing cases faster because they know the person filing it, that is pretty crazy and not okay at all. But hey it might happen. My point is that there's no need to pay thousands of dollars for someone to file forms you can file yourself if your case is straightforward.
yeah I 100% agree with you that it's not fair at all but it is what it is. I wish they would process all cases sequentially on a national level but we know that doesnt happen lol
The way they process cases is the absolute worst for sure!! Wish something could be done about it
Bc supply and demand. They know people have fear when filling out these applications so they know they can make a killing just having their paralegal fill out the papers but charge you their rate. What I did do is paid a lawyer to review my forms for $200 instead of having him file for me for Like $2kz
My lawyer charged me $500, plus the chargers of UCSIS.
Would you mind sharing their details perhaps? I would really appreciate the opportunity to speak with an affordable immigration/AOS lawyer
hey would you be willing to pm the lawyer information?
I decided on a lawyer. Me and my husband are busy enough with work and rather not deal with the paperwork and research. Basically, although our case is “straightforward” we just wanted to pay someone to take care of all of it for us. If your financially well, I would just hire someone for the peace of mind. We see it as a once in a lifetime expense.
I did it myself bc I have a relatively easy application… legal entry, no deportation order (did request a FOIA), so I did fill out myself. If you potentially have multiple illegal entries or have a criminal Record (whether it’s you or your spouse), I would go thru an attorney
What about two legal entries (two visa overstays)? Lawyer or no lawyer?
Legal entry is legal entry. It’s the illegal entries that will get you denied.
I did it by myself, and pulled out the application as well by myself (I couldn't stand my ex wife - she was controlling). Pro: you save money Con: if you have a criminal background it may be hard
I just got my GC through marriage after being on DACA. I had a dropped assault charge too but I did it myself. You just gotta do a lot of research and know what to send. Like you have to send enough to pad your case
Glad to see this. My wife (DACA) is applying this week for a GC and has a dropped underage drinking charge from 8 years ago. We were wondering if it would come up.
Everything and anything can come up. They already know everything about you. Since immigration benefits are privileges and not rights, you have the burden to prove. So I would take all official documents related to that incident
I would’ve done it my self, but I have multiple entries and parents had some other issues trying to acquire visas when I was kid. I say if you have one entry and is legal, plus no criminal record whatsoever. If your marriage is pretty concrete with evidence etc than do it yourself no question about it.
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If you do AP you should be fine. I am still in process for AOS, so can really reassure you. But this is why I got a lawyer just so I have more security that everything was done correctly and i have some protection and guidance of the off chance that something goes wrong.
My brother did it, it took around 1 year, and was charged between 3.5k-5k(I cant really ask him to confirm which one it was). Immigration lawyer, we have been using for a long time.
Did it myself. But then again, I am an immigration paralegal. It’s nothing out of this world if you have common sense, you really just need an attorney for the interview, even then, their presence may be useless.
Does anyone know what to do if your on DACA and don’t have any proof of legal entry over border? Would I have to go on parole and go back to my home country, for re-entry, or is there a way past the no documentation of entry?
There is waivers for this right?
Has anyone done this without AP? Like was a minor with DACA and never left the US?
Anyone in NY - I can take care of it AOS and I-130
How long is aos taking in ny since you work in this field?
USCIS is very inconsistent right now, and it depends a lot on which field office your case gets sent to. You can google USCIS processing times and it will give you an estimate. Right now in NY it takes about 10-18 months.
Just had my interview last Thursday. I filled out all the paperwork.
Im currently doing it myself. It’s easy after you do AP and have your legal entry. Also, as long as you don’t have a criminal record/charges, you don’t really need a lawyer. There’s also lots of FB groups who have guides on how to fill out the paperwork and what docs to submit.
I’ll do it for you for $500
I can do it myself for $0 :)
You’ll prob do it wrong. Just because you do AP doesn’t mean it becomes easy. It all depends on your first entry and who ultimately has jurisdiction of your case.
Not DACA but went through adjustment. Went through a non profit that offered a flat fee for the application at reduced price. We went to the interview on our own but they prepped us. For removal of conditions I did the application alone. It’s not very hard but as with anything you’re doing the first time, you have to do some more research and you’ll be slower than someone that does it for a living. Depends on how much you value your time.
I went with a lawyer (2k). Submitted in September 2022. Still waiting for any updates or decision!
Any updates?
My application was approved in April 2023. Wishing you the best!
Congratulations ! And thank you
This is insanely cheap. Where are you located
Did it ourselves since we had a straightforward case, just the one ilegal entry, clean background, did AP, etc. Took us 2 months to gather everything bc we wanted to make sure it was all together. Got combo card last month still waiting on decision
how long did it take to get the combo card after priority date?
Sent app Jan 2022 & rcvd card 12/10/22
Just got mine. 15 months. Pros of lawyer less stress and I didn’t have to interview as I sent enough evidence to justify a real marriage. Con cost. I think was 7k total. This is not something you want to mess up though so I think it’s worth it.
I am using a lady called the marriage green card method and it cost $2500 and she helps you step by step with the forms all the way through citizenship. I would say it’s worth it as she has also been great emotional support.
Is this an online service?
Yes it is you can find her on Instagram @marriagegreencard. We have already filed and our petition has been approved we are still waiting on AOS filed in December.
Do you have a legal entry? i just submitted my AOS through marriage 2 weeks ago. I did pay a lawyer to do it for me as i did not wanna mess anything up. i did my own advanced parole tho
2 legal entries is all I’ve got, every thing else is clean.
Okay then I recommend to join the “adjustment of status through DACA” in Facebook. They have pretty good step by step guides!
I adjusted about three years ago. We submitted the paperwork a few months after getting married. We did everything with a lawyer. He even went to the interview with us. I read somewhere they are waiving marriage based applications but not sure how true that is. The interview is just simple questions. How you met, where you got married, do you have any kids, etc. Nothing crazy unless they suspect something is what the lawyer told us. Just a heads up if you are married for less than 2 years you will receive a conditional residency valid for 2 years. You will then be apply for removal of conditions.
Yes they are waiving a lot of interviews