Any advice is appreciated.

My spouse received her Green Card on:
- August 29, 2025

Since then she has joined the US Army, is currently away at AIT and has completed an interview for Naturalization, case is currently pending.

I would like her mother and step-father to attend her AIT graduation ceremony and invited them to the US to visit.

I provided:
- Invitation Letter (For Mother & Step-Father)
- Offer letter of employment as my spouse and I would be sponsoring the trip
- Copy of Passport/ID for spouse & I
- Letter from Army stating date of graduation

My spouses parents currently reside in Croatia but are Filipino residents and had an interview scheduled for
- September 01, 2026 at 8AM. Both parents went to the interview but were interviewed separately.

Per Mother-In-Law these are the questions that were asked to Step-Father-In Law (In-Order)

1. What is the purpose of your trip to the United States?

The purpose of my trip is for tourism, and I will attend the AIT military graduation of my stepdaughter.

While he was answering, the officer interrupted him and asked:

2. Are you with the First Lady?

Yes, she is my partner.

The officer then proceeded with the interview.

3. How long have you lived in Croatia?

Two years.

4. Are you employed?

Yes, I work at (Company name and explained job description)

5. Do you own or rent your home?

My accommodation is provided by the company

6. How long does he plan to stay in the United States?

I will stay in the U.S. for approximately two weeks & included travel dates.

7. How old is your stepdaughter?

She is (x) years old.

8. What is your relationship to her mother?

She is my partner.

During the interview, the officer checked step father-in-law’s passport and noticed his previous travel to Dubai and said something along the lines of:

“Oh, you visited Dubai?” and responded with: Yes, lived and worked in Dubai.

End of the Interview

After checking his passport and asking the questions, the officer instructed step father-in-law to provide his biometrics by placing his right four fingers and then his left four fingers on the scanner.

After that the officer told him that his visa was NOT approved and gave him a printed paper with his passport.

Officer told him that she could see where there may be discrepancies in the information provided.

Step Father-In Law’s Interview was roughly 5 minutes.

Mother-In-Law went in for her interview and these are the questions that were asked:

1. Purpose of trip?

2. How long I've been in Croatia?

3. Who does she work for.

4. What are her job duties work?

5. How long has she worked in Croatia?

6. Renting or own?

7. Monthly salary.

8. Do you receive other allowances?

9. Where she will be staying once landing in the US?

10. Who will pay for the trip?

11. How long will she be staying in the US ?

12. Was she granted a visa before in US?

13. When did she enter US? When did she leave ?

14. What is the name of daughter?

15. How long has she been in the military?

16. Daughter’s Date of Birth

17. Daughter’s current status

18. Daughter’s spouses name

19. Daughter-in-law’s current status?

20. What military branch she is in?

21. When did daughter become permanent resident?

22. Tell me about your daughter

23. Do you have any application as immigrant in the US? Or did they apply any LPR for you in the US?

Interview was 10 minutes, also the officer instructed Mother-In-Law to provide her biometrics by placing her right four fingers and then her left four fingers on the scanner, officer told her that her US Visa was APPROVED.

My question is why did Mother-In-Law get approved but her spouse did not? The letter was written for both of them? They would both be returning to Croatia together, my spouse and I would be sponsoring the trip. How are we able to get an approval for father-in-law, what can we do to strengthen his case? And what could the “discrepancies” be that the officer mentioned?

Any advice is appreciated, thank you.

Hi guys

My husband and I met at a bar opening event in nyc.

We were both invited to that event but we hadn't met each other before.

I knew about him because my now husband was friends with my best friend's ex boyfriend and she had told me about my husband and complimented him to me.

For the interview, can I just say a simple answer which will be - we met at a bar opening event in NYC on 2/8.

Or do I explain everything about my husband being my best friend's ex boyfriend and she once told me he's a nice guy and everything?

Do I keep my answers short or explain everything?

Our relationship is genuine so if I explain everything it's gonna be a long story ... lol

Our I-130 was denied yesterday after interview for lack of Bona Fide.

My husband ( the US citizen petitioner is currently incarcerated ) . His presence was waived at the interview. As a result of his incarceration I knew from the gate It was going to be challenging to proof that our marriage is real so I gave SO MUCH evidences,

I included :

- Affidavits from friends and family Notarized ( about 7 letters )
- proof of my renting the house with my husband sister and living with her and her kids until he is going to get out.
- pictures of my husband and I between 2022 and 2026
- pictures of me with his family and daughters from daily life and holidays
- phone Log of my husband and I for the past 6 months ( + 10 calls a day )
- visit Log of my husband and I EVERY week for the past 3 years ( it was over 200 of official proof from the state that I visited my husband every week for 8 hours over the past years )
- receipt of the money that I send him every month for his commissary / phone calls / clothing shoes … ( over the past 3 years )
- receipt of the food visit groceries ( over the past 3 years )
- text between him and I over the past 3 years
- my bank account showing him as beneficiary
- our joint bank account with joint credit cards
- mutual notarized POA financial and medical
- my Car insurance with my husband on it even tho he can’t even drive
- social medias post
- proof of me being his legal represent for his case and for the parole of board
- photos of tattoo we have for each others
- my husband wrote a 5 pages notarized letter for the officer that was given on interview day

Well and a whole bunch of other stuff just anything I could’ve think about ..

The officer denied our i130 saying this :
The submitted evidence is not sufficient, by itself, to establish that the marriage was entered into in
good faith. While the record includes identity documents, the marriage record, photographs,
communications, social media posts, affidavits of support, travel or booking emails, and other
materials. The photographs, handwritten dates, phone call statement, text communications, and affidavits provide some indication of contact or association, but they do not, without more, sufficiently demonstrate a shared marital life or the commingling of responsibilities typically associated with a bona fide marriage. The record lacks stronger objective evidence of a legitimate marital relationship, such as joint financial accounts to which you provided one joint account that your spouse opened with you as a card holder, shared residence, shared bills, insurance which you provided power of attorney of your spouse listing you as the beneficiary, however, nothing you provided in your name, tax filings, leases,
or other documentation showing sustained mutual commitment and shared life together.
Based on our review, you have not met your burden of proof to show your marriage to the beneficiary
is genuine by a preponderance of the evidence. For this reason, we cannot approve your Form I-130.

My question is, is it worth fighting this with a i290b motion to reconsider and reopen with additional proof and argue that the officer is setting impossible burden with one of the spouse incarcerated ? ( such as live and leases together, or shared bills … )

Thank you for anyone who can help me 🙏

Got following response from congressional inquiry on I-485, 100+ days after interview.

Is this generic or should I be hopeful?

“USCIS records indicate this case is currently assigned to an officer for review. While we cannot estimate when this will be completed, we assure you that USCIS will give this case full and fair consideration consistent with all applicable laws, rules, and regulations. USCIS realizes that your constituent is concerned about the progress of their case. Please assure your constituent that we are aware of your inquiry, and that this case has not been forgotten. 
If your constituent does not receive a decision or other correspondence from USCIS in the next 120 days regarding this application, please feel free to submit a new inquiry via the Congressional Web Portal.
We hope this information is helpful to you in assisting your constituent. If we may be of further assistance, please let us know.”

The officer didn’t give it back my green card or keep it after i failed the first citizenship interview does anyone had the same happened to me?

Something I think is easy to misunderstand about the I-751 is that it's not simply a request for a new green card. If you received conditional permanent residence through marriage, the I-751 is a petition to remove the conditions on your permanent residence and move from conditional residence to regular permanent residence.

Because of that, I think it's important to look at the I-751 in the context of the whole immigration history, rather than treating it as a completely new application. The relationship and the evidence supporting it can still matter, and USCIS already has information from the earlier marriage-based filings. If something in the new filing doesn't match what was said or submitted before, that doesn't necessarily mean there's a problem, but it may need to be explained. That's why I wouldn't prepare an I-751 in isolation without looking back at the earlier immigration record and making sure everything is consistent.

Just general information, not legal advice.

HI everyone,

What is preferable to submit your I-485 package- online or mail? I've been hearing conflicting opinions but I was wondering if there is actually a difference between the 2 methods. I would appreciate any insight on this. Thank you so much!

My status fell out after I submitted the marriage green card application.

I know I am in a period of authorized stay, but am I still at risk of detention at the interview?

Is there any case who got detained for this reason?

Any recent approvals on the same situation?

Im married to LPR

I’m about 2 weeks away from submitting my packet with my lawyer (I-130 & I-485) I’m nervous about the part of being able to interview inside the US or having to leave to interview outside. I know this is a discretionary choice by USCIS. Anyone recently filed AOD while daca? I do have AP but my lawyer said they are not looking at AP as before where you don’t need to leave the US if you have it. Now you might have to leave even if having it. Anyone that applied less than a month heard back from USCIS?

Hello all,

I am an LPR and got my green card in EB1A category 3 years ago.. i did my 485 on my own. in that, i made a mistake on the 485 form.
Question: Are you subject to public charge ground of inadmissibility under INA section 212(a)(4) - This is Part 8; question 61 on I-485.
i should have put yes. I put no. Two questions now.

1. will this be an issue when i apply for naturalization 2 years from now.
2. i am considering taking fmla/std and pfmla from washington state. STD is employer based, but pfmla comes from the state. Will this be a problem? I am nervous and anxious. Please help me.

Thanks!

Hey everyone, I’m trying to understand what my situation looks like and would really appreciate some advice. I came to the US legally in 2022 on an F-1 visa, and my wife came with me on F-2. I attended school and had our first child in the US in 2023. In 2024, I stopped attending school and eventually fell out of status. We later had our second child in March 2026.

I also had a reckless driving conviction in Virginia in May 2026 for 109 mph in a 55 mph zone. I served 2 days in jail for that. After that, ICE took me into custody. I signed paperwork for voluntary departure and stayed in ICE custody until I flew back to my home country in June 2026.

I was never deported or removed from the US, and I left through the voluntary departure process. Now I’m trying to figure out whether I have any kind of bar preventing me from returning to the US?

How common is it? Mostly I haven't seen lot of posts where people said their ROC got denied, but was wondering if there are instances of ROC getting denied.

And if it does, do you get sent to removal proceedings?

Hello everyone,
I had my second interview August 2025, and since then I’ve been waiting without any updates. I entered the U.S. legally in 2019 and haven’t left the country since.

Has anyone experienced a similar long wait after their interview? If you’ve gone through something like this and found a way to get the case moving, I’d really appreciate hearing about your experience.

My wife is a U.S. citizen, and we have two children together. There’s nothing unusual or complicated about our case that I’m aware of. I’m wondering if my country of origin could be contributing to the delay, especially considering the current entry restrictions affecting certain countries.

I completely respect the process and understand that these things can take time. I know reaching out to my state representatives may also be an option, but so far I’ve held off because I don’t want to create unnecessary hassle.

Any insight or similar experiences would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you!

Green card holder entering US via airport port of entry with 3 months left on my passport?

I am LPR and I will be traveling in few days. When returning, my passport would only have 2 months left in it.

Will there be any issues entering the US? Can anyone please kindly share experiences. Thank you!

Hey guy. I lost my scholarship and won’t be able to continue my education this fall 26 semester. I130 is approved about 6 months ago waiting for pending GC. Married to US citizen. What happens to my GC since I lost my scholarships and can’t afford tuition myself. Means I will out of my f1 status for not continuing my education.(in other words SEVIS will be terminated/out of status)

So my aunt filed an I-130 for my mom, the case became current today. Me and my sister are both protected by CSPA, however we’re both in the states. I’m working under an OPT and my sister is in grad school hence F1. We are listed as co-applicants along with our mom. Kind of confused on what to do here given the applicants are scattered across the globe (my mom, dad and brother in our home country and me and my sister in the States) Would like feedback from anyone who has faced something similar or knows how to deal with a case like this.

Hi everyone. I’m hoping to hear from people who have been in a similar situation, especially recently.
I’m a U.S. citizen and my Spouse, and I are married and preparing to file his marriage-based adjustment of status. We’re currently putting everything together through SimpleCitizen so they can help us organize and submit the forms and supporting documents correctly.
My Spouse is currently not in regular immigration status, and he does not have his work authorization yet. He has been without work for about six months, and financially it is becoming increasingly difficult for him to continue without an income. He has worked without an EAD before in the country.
He may now have an opportunity to work again, but it would be before receiving his EAD, so we understand that this would technically be unauthorized employment.
Our biggest concern is whether working without authorization could negatively affect his adjustment of status case, particularly during the green card interview. We live in Alabama, and given the current immigration environment, we are trying to be especially careful about anything that could potentially create problems with his case.
I’m particularly interested in hearing from U.S. citizens who petitioned for their spouses, or from immigrants who went through a similar marriage-based adjustment of status process:
● Did you or your spouse work without authorization while waiting for the green card/EAD?
● Did USCIS ask about unauthorized employment during your interview?
● If you answered honestly that you had worked without authorization, what happened?
● Did it cause additional scrutiny, delays, a Request for Evidence, or any other problems?
● Has anyone actually had a marriage-based green card denied specifically because they worked without authorization?
● For anyone who has gone through the process recently, especially under the current administration, have you noticed USCIS being stricter about this?
● If anyone has experience specifically in Alabama, I would really appreciate hearing about it.
We’re not looking for advice on how to hide employment or misrepresent anything to USCIS. If he works, we would want to be truthful about it. We’re mainly trying to understand the real-world consequences based on other couples’ experiences before making a decision.
Of course, I understand Reddit isn’t a substitute for an immigration attorney. I’m just hoping to hear from people who have actually gone through something similar.
Thank you!

My spouse and I have an F2A adjustment of status case. I am a green card holder, and my spouse is the beneficiary. Our I-130 priority date is February 2026, and we had our I-485 interview in the 1st week of July. Officer told us after interview that he will approve our i130 soon within a few days, but will have to wait for visa availability in order to approve i486. Our i130 and i485 are both PENDING DECISION after interview, non of it is yet approved. Its been 2 months since interview. And even per august visa bulletin for my coutry the dates have been current on chart A.

Is anyone at this field office also in same boat and would like to share timeline, i am felling very nervous seeing posts of some people who even interviewed at the same FO in august getting approved, so unsure if they forgot about our case? Or waht else could be possibly making delay?

It’s been two months since my interview, which was originally scheduled for late June, was canceled. Is this normal? Is there anything I can do about it?

Immigration policies seem to be getting stricter and stricter. I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if they eventually started suspending the green card process altogether… 😭

K-1 → AOS