xtal

Hey guys, I haven't posted here in a while but wanted to let you guys know that my wife finally got her GC (March '08 approval date)! We went through the Dallas DORA process back in May '06 but we ended up being stuck in name check hell. Up until when they came out with the 180 day namecheck rule. One good thing that came out of it was that my wife received the 10 year GC so we don't have to remove conditions anymore. Of course when we got the card, they mis-spelled her name so we had to get that corrected through an I-90. But all's good now. As far as DORA goes, I think the DORA program works, it's the FBI namecheck that messed it up. Good luck to eveyone else who has an application pending, and thanks to the great Candle user community for all the help and very useful info that helped us through the various stages of this long process in the past 3 years. I'll stop by once in a while to see what's going on. Regards, Xtal

USCIS has reposted the FAQ about the namecheck policy change: http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/men...00045f3d6a1RCRD

Holy crap! I'm gonna drink to that!

Yeah - the namecheck process SUCKS. Honestly, I don't know what they do over at the FBI. Supposedly - 'Supposedly' they try to process the oldest cases first - then how come some checks finish after a year, while tons of older cases just sit there gathering dust? This frustrates me to no end. But something's gotta give - this thing is just getting worse and worse - I wonder what the FBI will do now that USCIS opened the flood gates for the H1 folks (they made all their priority dates current so they can apply for I-485). GRUMBLE.

That's EXACTLY right.

I wonder if it would be worth to create a separate forum on Candle for pending namecheck cases, or at least to start some kind of list of people who are stuck in it (with dates). In the last few years, the number of pending cases with the FBI has only gone up, so more and more people will be affected by this. <start rant> The stupidity with this whole thing is that the background checks are supposed to prevent crime/terrorism and such, but what's the purpose if it takes years to finish a background check? Almost all of the pending cases are probably false positives due to the fuzzy/loose name/dob matching they do. I'm not saying we should do away with security checks, but for crying out loud, come up with a better system... The current one is a JOKE. <end rant> .

Thanks for the info. BTW, there is a yahoo group called 'namechecktracker' that solely deals with the issue of long pending namechecks. It's quite an active group - which only proves that the current state of affairs with the FBI background checks needs some serious attention by the powers-that-be. I've been thinking of sending a FOIPA request to the FBI - even though it doesn't help the pending namecheck, it may shed some light on things.

Hi guys, It's been a while since I posted here but figured I'd give you all an update on what's been happening. In March 2006 my wife united with me when she got her k-3 visa. In May 2006 we filed for adjustment of status through the Dallas DORA program. For those of you who are not familiar with this program - it's a program where they try to adjudicate your I-485 within 90 days so that the cost of the EAD and AP can be saved. Well that's the theory at least. My wife was fingerprinted about 2 weeks after the interview, and then about 50 Days after that we got a letter saying that they probably won't be able to complete the case within 90 days, and that we were invited to apply in person for an EAD and AP, which we did. Today, almost 14 months later, there has been no change in our case. I called late last year and found out that they were still waiting for the FBI background check to clear. About 3 weeks ago I called again, and that officer said they would look into it and send out a notice with their findings. That notice we got yesterday, basically saying what I already suspected: background check hasn't cleared yet. So I think it's fair to say we are officially stuck in the Black Hole. At least my wife and I are together but not knowing when they will finish the background checks (and the greencard process) can be trying at times. From reading the 2007 Ombudsman report, the namecheck situation is worsening. The total number of cases pending with the FBI has risen from 236,000 last year to 329,000 this year. The number of cases that have been pending with the FBI for over 33 months has increased by 40% compared to last year (over 31,000 cases total this year). They simply don't have the resources to handle the case load and the cases are at the bottom of their priority list. There is not much one can do; except maybe file a Writ of Mandamus but I read that that has been limited as well as more and more people resort to this. Is anyone else on Candle stuck in the I-485 namecheck black hole? What are some of your experiences?

Correct that is what sucks about your situation, the clock to citizenship won't start until you have the green-cards. Which it has not yet, you are in limbo. Isn't the date on the I-551 normally the date when the AOS interview was done (assuming it was a successful interview and the background check comes back favorably)? Or do they use the date when card printing was issued?

Awesome, congrats!

The same thing happened to my wife and I when we filed for our EAD the first time. We also put the biometrics fee and the application fee on the same money order, and the whole thing (except the pictures) was returned due to incorrect fee (in our case there was an I-797). We had a cover letter breaking the whole package down, including the fee. When I called USCIS later on I swore I heard the officer on the other end scratch his head and stroke his chin. I believe you sent yours to Chitown right? That's where ours went also - seems they need to replace the folks who screen the packages.

Also, to get a TX license you don't need an SSN. They make you sign an affidavit at the DMV stating that you don't have one and have never applied for one. They will allow you to get the license then.

If you guys are planning to retire in China then it may not be a good idea for Lucy to naturalize. She'll be a US Citizen after she naturalizes and will need to get a Chinese tourist visa also to visit China. Not sure if there are ways around it really. It may also complicate things if she still has property in China. The biggest benefit of naturalizing is that Lucy will be able to vote in all elections and get a US passport. Having a green card is nice, but you still fall under immigration law - for example if she would get arrested for some crimes she could get deported - not saying she will of course. But it's like having this shadow over you. If you're a citizen then you are free from immigration law. It is a judge who actually naturalizes you, not USCIS (but you do apply with USCIS - they do the background checking, etc, and they interview you, and they either approve or deny the application). Only in very rare circumstances can citizenship be taken away (like treason or if you lied during the naturalization process). Being a US citizen also allows you to get certain public benefits - but that normally doesn't matter. From a day-to-day living point of view, the differences between being a US citizen or a greencard holder aren't big, but they may become big if immigration law changes in the future. Who knows, in this day and age. Also, certain jobs require you to be a US Citizen. When you apply for naturalization, you also have a chance to change your name to whatever you want. So you have to carefully weigh everything given your own situation to see if naturalization is the right move or not. BTW, did Lucy go through the DORA process in Dallas?

That's crazy. My wife and I also went through DORA and we were never asked about the actual I-693 (which of course, we also didn't have). Please keep us posted on how your DORA case progresses. My wife and I have been waiting for 5 months so far - still no GC. After about 70 days after the interview, we got one of those letters in the mail saying that they probably wouldn't be able to complete our case within 90 days but that we were welcome to come to their office at a scheduled date/time to apply for a work permit and/or advance parole. So we did. Oh and the reason why our case is held up? FBI background check. I guess only around 60% of DORA cases are actually completed within 90 days, and about 90% of the ones that don't complete within 90 days are all held up due to FBI delays. BTW, I hope your case will complete fast, but if you do get that letter after about 70 days, then I would go to the appointment as they will give you at least the work permit on the same day (not sure about AP because we didn't apply for it). You just need to fill out the forms ahead of time and bring them to the appt. Good luck.

Visa Express is the only service I used to get Chinese visas and I have always had good experiences with them. I would recommend them for sure.