I love Sunshine

Hello all! A friend is going through the AOS process and asked me the following question: "Which number will they use from my 2009 1040 Tax form to determine if I am above the 125% poverty threshold?" a: Line 22: Total Income b: Line 37: Adjusted Gross Income c: The higher of the two d: The lower of the two Apparently one is higher than the other for him - one makes the cutoff and the other does not. I did a search here and didn't find anything. A quick examination of links to the government guidelines here and here didn't reveal which one they use. Any advice would be appreciated. Poor guy is really nervous over this, and I don't want to tell him something incorrect.

Good luck. You have a lot of friends here if you need any assistance or have questions. You will do well

As a follow-up, we booked the flight in her passport name and arrived early at the airport as suggested by Lee and she had no problems. The check-in agent looked at her AP paper and we had no problems, but most likely due of her carelessness in checking rather than due to her agreement with the different last name. We did have a minor problem with her arrival into Seattle, because we only had 1 original AP form, not 2. We still can't understand how we would know that we need 2 for her arrival, but she's back now!

Congratulations, Clayton and Wen Li, You went from start to finish without a hitch, and serve as a model for others still in the pipeline. Hope your marriage stays strong and golden! ILS

Today Sunshine flew back from Shanghai through Seattle with one of her original AP papers and a photocopy, as has been suggested on this site by others. Upon arrival, she was pulled aside and asked where the other original AP form was. She replied it was at home (in South Dakota). She was told by the immigration officer that she should have received 3 copies from USCIS (like most others Sunshine only received 2). The officer also mentioned she should have at least 2 copies with her on arrival. He said "many lawyers mentioned that you only need to keep one copy with you, but they are wrong." Trouble is, there is nothing on the form that indicates she needed 2 copies on arrival. He let her go through after a 15 minute delay while he checked with another officer. He took the AP copy and let her keep the original AP. On her I-94 stamp, she was given a year of "legal presence". Just wanted to warn others that it might be a good idea to travel with both copies of AP, at least through Seattle.

Thanks always for the advice. On the AR-11 form, it asks "If not a Permanent Resident, my stay in the US expires on" and requests a specific date. Should this date be her EAD card expiration date? Or her original K-1 visa entry date plus 90 days? Or since we are out of the country at present, should this be whatever is written on her I-90 when she returns to the US?

For those who have changed their address recently with an AR-11, what does a person who arrived on a K-1 visa put in the "I am in the US as a..." field? The 4 choices are "Other", "Permanent Resident" "Student", and "Visitor". There is a text field to explain more if your choice is "Other". The choice will be either one of the first two. A K-1 visa holder is not yet a permanent resident, so "Other" is correct? What should be entered in the text box? I put "holds K-1 visa, but change to permanent resident status" She currently holds a EAD card and is awaiting the AOS interview, if that helps. Thanks!

Sunshine and I are now in China. Her passport is under her maiden name (call it "AB") and all of her documents with the US government, including her AP, EAD and SS card are under her married name (call it "ABC" with "C" being my last name). We went to the police station here in an attempt to change her name, but the police officer in charge was clueless and looked at her as if she was reporting that aliens have landed. They certainly aren't accustomed to performing this task here. I know some others have had their spouses take their name and a modification of the passport was done at the consulate in the USA, however, that will have to happen after we return. Now I worry about Sunshine's return flight since I don't know how to book her name. Should it be ABC and match her US documents? Or only AB to match her passport? I think the bigger trouble will be convincing the airline to let her on the plane rather than the US officials letting her back into the country. If a person is refused entry for visa violations, the airline must pay a penalty plus fly her back to her country of origin at their expense, so airlines are understandably cautious. We do have a certified copy of our marriage certificate with us. Has anyone ever run into this situation before? Which name is recommended to use for the return ticket? Also, has anyone done this here in China, or only at a consulate in the US? ILS

Here in Phoenix, my wife missed her appointment. I went to the biometrics facility itself and talked with the department head after pleading with the security guard about the long delay. She told me that I could come any Wednesday after my appointment as Wednesdays were their make-up appointment days. So this tells me (1) this is not an uncommon experience at the biometrics facilities and (2) they may have measures built in for appointment mistimings. It is hard to determine when the make-up day is, but just want you to know they could have one where both could make it up on the same day. Oh, remember to bring a copy of your marriage certificate if the name on her notice is different than the name on her id (passport). On her appointment day, I had to run home and get this, but my round trip was only about 10 miles, not 400! ILS

Thank you, everyone, for the information and good advice. I can give a neighbor my mail key and ask him to check my mailbox. Or I can have my mail held at the post office and come back to retrieve it before we depart.

The good news is Sunshine's EAD card and AP are in the mail as of the 18th of April. The bad news is we are moving out of state on the 29th of April and we have a trip scheduled back to China on the 13th of May. This raises concerns that things could get lost in the mail and not get resolved before our non-refundable flights depart. 1. How long does it take to get the EAD card and the AP letters once USCIS has mentioned they sent them? 2. For those who have received their AP and EAD cards recently, can they be forwarded to a new address (is there anything on the envelope that prevents them from being forwarded to a new address)? 3. Assuming that the AP papers don't arrive by the time we leave, can she simply go down to the consulate in Shanghai and have them generate another AP document to allow her to return? Or will we be entering a bureaucratic nightmare?

Yes, my wife is out of state, and that is why she wasn't able to appear. I did read that the official has the right to determine if my appearance on behalf of my wife is permitted, but that seems a little contrary to common sense. For example, if my wife was bedridden, does this require me to hire a lawyer to get anything done on her case? All the sudden there is an additional cost to me for an invalid wife that doesn't apply to others. Also, the Infopass appointment was made because we had fallen through the cracks and the sole purpose of this was to set a biometrics appointment. Why does this lady get to set the agenda without some form of advance notice to others of what is permitted in her fiefdom and what is not? It only makes sense that someone with an approval for Authorized Representative by the National Benefits Center should be an Authorized Representative in a local service center. This is a jurisdictional issue. Since many people are from the Chicago area, let me give an illustration: this is akin to you getting a speeding ticket in Rockford, Illinois only to have the Rockford police officer say your Illinois driver's license is not valid in Rockford since it was issued in Chicago.

I just spoke with someone in Senator Kyl's office -- his USCIS liaison, who agreed that this supervisor was out of line. (Senator Kyl is on the Senate Subcommittee on Immigration Border Security and Citizenship). I will submit a privacy act consent form and he will start asking questions about this matter directly with someone with far more decision-making power than this supervisor. Thanks, everyone, for your suggestions. I will let you know what happens!

LeeFisher3, This is great information. I am sure this supervisor hadn't bothered to do any sort of research on this, such as reviewing Section 292.1 that you found, prior to making her decision. Facts don't matter to her, the fastest path to her coffee break and to continue discussing the "Byonce - Jay Z wedding" with the others without typing a few lines in her computer to make this request are what does matter. Thanks to the others that also voiced their support for me. As a US citizen, it is really appalling to imagine how those [foreigners] without such information and a voice are treated. Sunshine's procedure in GUZ went fairly fast and smoothly, but after the recent experiences here in Phoenix with government officials, we admit a hefty loss of confidence in USCIS. I think contacting my congressman is a good start, and I will do this today. There is no room for this supervisor to start making her own rules over what should be permitted and what should not without checking the facts like Lee was able to discover. If she does it to me, she probably breathes fire on those without a voice. God forbid if this woman had to face off with Lee! B)

We were originally scheduled for our biometrics on March 15, but because we would be out of town, we requested to be rescheduled for a later date, thinking it would be about 2 weeks from our request. As of today (April 8), still no appointment. So I scheduled one of the very limited USCIS Infopass appointments with the Phoenix office to talk about Sunshine's case while she is up taking care of business at our hotel out of state. The Phoenix USCIS "service" center had all the hallmarks of government inefficiency: 10 available windows, 6 of them occupied people right out of central casting for lazy government workers -- who were more concerned about their own personal matters and comparing shades of fingernail polish (i was close enough to listen, unfortunately) than helping the growing lines of customers waiting in the lobby area. Only 2 of the 6 employees even bothered to stop gossiping to help customers the 30 minutes I was waiting there. Now here is why I am upset: I tried to simply request an appointment for Sunshine's biometrics, and to see about how to get an AP for our scheduled May trip back to China. It turns out nothing could be done without her being present, even though I am her appointed and authorized representative per the G-28 form we filled out during AOS. Wait a minute! I was approved as a representative, and received copies of this. I showed him the copies of her info sent to my name. "Sorry, you must be an attorney to be a representative" "That's poppycock! I was approved!" He went to talk with the supervisor, who also agreed that I was not authorized. I asked to speak to the supervisor, a shrewish looking woman, about just wanting to set up a biometrics appointment a full month after we asked to reschedule. Her: "You are not authorized. Only lawyers are authorized. It seems you have misrepresented yourself." Me: "If that is so, why doesn't the G-28 require an Arizona Bar Number if only attorneys can be authorized representatives? Why was my petition approved by the national center? If they had a problem, why wasn't this denied? And why can't a husband be her authorized representative since she signed and approved this" Her: "Well that is the rule in this office, I am the supervisor." Me: "This is a federal form, and all offices should follow the same rules, correct?" Her: "In this office, I set the rules. If you are not a lawyer, you cannot do anything on her case unless she is present. That's it" At this time, this harpie-in-a-hairbun walked away. Has anyone else been denied? Also, who can I talk to about the Phoenix office and it's renegade rule-setting? I really think government workers in Arizona are the worst this country can muster.

ILS, you used her Chinese name, then last name as middle, and your last name for SS and all AOS forms but 131?? If my memory serves me correctly, I think we used that combination for all her forms, including the 131.

Congratulations to you and your family! Reward your SO on a job well done

Did the I-134 that you filled out only contain your financial information on it, or did it contain your parents as well? I know you had supporting documents to show your parents' support, but was that on your I-134 (or a supplemental I-134)?

Hi Clayton! We filed on Feb 13, received P1 on Feb 25 (sent on Feb 21) and our biometrics appointment was scheduled for March 15 at the Phoenix office. We will need to reschedule that appointment however. I don't know about receiving the green card without biometrics -- I would presume that this is a 'no'. I would schedule an infopass appointment with your local office if it is convenient. According to others, they might be able to do biometrics right then and there depending on how busy they are. Wishing you luck through all of this, ILS

Dave and Christine, It's gotta feel pretty good right now! Congratulations! ILS

Trigg, Its helpful to spit a heaping gob of whatever has infected you onto a public sidewalk, preferably in a busy public place. That will get it out of your system... according to Chinese medical logic. After all, hasn't it worked that way for thousands of years?

For #1, you just want to make sure (when you fill out the P4 paperwork) that she admits she was denied for a visa before. Sunshine tried to get a B-2 (tourist) visa but was rejected for insufficient ties in 2006 but listed this on her application. It never came up in our interview, but had she lied... might have been trouble. For #2, your current income and the permanence of your job matter more than the past, especially if it is explainable. You can write a letter as an attachment to your I-134. I did this. I even went to American Citizens Hour to explain this situation prior to the interview. Since the objective is for the visa officer to understand your situation in its entirety, this may help you when you get to that stage. For #3, her parents and your fiancee are qualifying under completely different conditions. Unless her parents can show many trips abroad and have strong ties to China (lots of assets, a business they own that is substantial, etc.), it may be a bit difficult for them to qualify.

Outside the consulate in GUZ there are many "agents" that promise to be able to help people get the pink. They lurk outside and look for sad faces or blue papers in people's hands. Truth is, there isn't much they can do that you cannot do better yourself. Be cautious about giving your information to someone who contacts you, as opposed to you contacting them (like an established visa attorney). They can get important information from your form and use this to write a letter to the embassy called a TPC (third party correspondence) saying your relationship is not bona fide. Not saying every person who approaches you will do this, but it has happened before and is documented here on CFL.

Just a quick follow-up: At the window during that visit, we insisted to the supervisor to take our application for the married name, which he (slowly and begrudgingly) did. We thought we made a mistake since they took her old SS card, leaving Sunshine with nothing. But 10 days later we got the new card with the new (married name). Just goes to show that the people the SSA has working the counters - and their supervisors - know very little about the K-1 and Marriage and the effects on the SS card.

Easy, just drive a few miles during Washington DC/ Northern Virginia rush hour...