TLDR: DACA category since age 4. I'm now 36. Received green card after marriage based petition approved.
Timeline:
12/2019 - Filed i485+i130+1765
02/2020 - EAD Received
03/2020 - Ready to be scheduled for Interview
10/2020 - EAD Renewed
11/2020 - Renewed EAD Received
12/2020 - Interview Scheduled Status Update
01/2021 - Interview Notice Received (2 weeks after update) scheduled for 02/10/21
02/2021 - Interview Completed
03/08/2021 - Card Being Produced (1mo after Interview)
03/10/2021 - Case Approved
03/11/2021 - Card Mailed
03/12/2021 - Card picked up by USPS (tracking provided)
03/15/2021 - Green Card Delivered!
Our appointment was scheduled for 1:45PM but we didn't get to see the officer until 3:15PM. Long wait was probably due to computer issues they experienced. A dozen others were waiting for their citizenship oath and got sent home because the computers went down and asked to return the next day.
Luckily, this didn't impact our interview. When we got in, the officer asked us to tell him about our lives. My wife and I recently had a baby so we told him off the bat what had changed since we filed and he basically said "Oh, you all had a baby? Well, this will be the fastest Interview ever then". Outside of our date of births, address, and standard 'have you committed any crimes questions' he didn't ask anything else. He didn't ask anything about our marriage, how we met, when we got married, how we got married etc. so he made it real simple. The actual interview was less than 5minutes.
We did come prepared and provided birth certificate, ssn and pictures of our child and offered copies of our bank and mortgage statement as well and he said that would be more than enough.
The officer also told us he was reviewing my file before we came in so that's also what took so long. I've actually been in the states for 30+ years since I was 4 years old (previously as a DACA kid which I allowed that status to lapse after getting married). I believe since he recognized I've been here practically my whole life, never committed any crimes, and have a stable job that our marriage is just the natural course of my phase in life so I believe that's why he was extremely lenient in the interview.
He informed us to expect the green card in about 10 days or so. Moral of the story, if you're marriage based, get yourself a baby. KIDding but not KIDding (pun intended)
I don't want to give people the false impression that it's always that easy. I'm the last one in my family to achieve legal status.
The reality is, this has been a long time coming for me. As a teen, I witnessed us having our family based adjustment of status get denied, appealed, denied, wind up in court facing deportation. I watched them detain my dad (now deceased) and take him to jail for no reason other than for our original immigration sin of overstaying our visas. I watched as my sister had to live in shame and wear an ankle monitor to work/school for again no reason other than immigration harassment. I watched my mother work her butt off to pay for the thousands in legal fees we've paid over the years. Immigration for the regular folk shouldn't have to be this difficult. Yes, my parents made a mistake and overstayed. It just shouldn't take half of someone's life to make amends for it.
In any event, I share these details as I know many of you are anxious, nervous, stressed, worried about what can or will happen to you or your families while you try to get through your filings. You're not alone. Thousands have been in your same shoes and thousands more will follow in your footsteps as well. The main advice I can offer is , just remain steadfast, continue to do the right thing, turn to your God for patience and have faith that everything happens for a reason. The universe will take you exactly where you're supposed to be and no place else.
Best of luck and take care.
[link] [comments]
source https://www.reddit.com/r/immigration/comments/m5x7m2/green_card_received_32_years_in_the_making/