groot

hey, i need some guidance here if possible as i'm in a pretty stressful situation. just want to put it out there that i've gone through the entire process correcty (met my wife online, we then applied for k1, permanent residency, etc). my current situation is that at the end of 2015, within the last 90 days of my temporary 2 year conditional status, i applied for removal of conditions with i751. completed my biometrics in january 2016, and recevied notice that the process was underway. anyway, it's now april 2017 and i still haven't heard anything - till today, that is. i received a notice from uscis saying that they sent me a notice requesting evidence in support of i51, and pursuant to title 8 code of fed regs 8cfr section 103.2 (b) i was granted till feb 13 2017 to respond and that because i haven't my permanent residence status is terminated. i never ever received a letter or notice requesting evidence. at all. there are two other people in our household and none of us ever saw a letter from uscis, between this one, and the one noting receipt of the i751 petition. i regularly checked the e-file status website and nothing ever updated, and even called customer service twice, both times being told that i'd hear it's been accepted/need additional evidence, via mail. i now am sitting with the i-290b in front of me, needing to pay $675 to file an appeal. all because this notice was either lost or stolen during the process of being sent to me. does anyone have any advice or have they gone through a similar situation? i am so stressed now

Guindalf

You can file an appeal, <<<SNIP>>>

It's impossible to prove a negative, the biggest problem is convincing someone that you didn't receive the RFE.

As you are now out of status and technically currently in this country illegally, you have two options - 1) File an appeal, in which case, you can remain until there's a ruling one way or the other or 2) Get on board a plane back to Blighty pronto.

Someone will be along shortly to correct me if I'm wrong or to add any other options I may have missed, but I wouldn't hold out a lot of hope.

ian-mstm

Did you apply jointly with your wife or on your own with a waiver? I ask, because the last time you posted you had moved out and left your wife living with her mother.


Unfortunately, if you didn't receive a notice it is not the fault of US immigration. Once they put a letter in the mail, the responsibility shifts to the US Postal Service for delivery.


You failed to respond to an RFE! Hire an immigration attorney. You do not want to do this on your own.

Ian

groot

thanks for the response, ian. much better than the first. filed jointly and we are still happily married. already emailed the closest immigration lawyer, and will make an appointment as soon as possible. if worst comes to worst and i have to leave the country, would i have to reapply for a marriage visa? or is there a different route?

Noorah101

This is actually fairly common. The lawyer will help you get the case reopened for an appeal and most likely will be approved.

Worst case scenario, if the I-751 ends up denied and you are removed from the USA, you would have to go down the IR-1 Immigrant visa route, but at least then you'd get a10-year green card.

But that is not likely to happen.

Rene

groot

that offers some relief noorah, thank you. now i just have to find money to pay the appeal form of 675 plus immigration lawyer fees. that will be fun

ian-mstm

I'll just add a bit more... do not, under any circumstances whatsoever, leave the US. The moment you are out of the country your options become severely limited. As long as you are in the US you have more options to turn this around.

Ian

Rete

Many people use their cells to post on BE. The use of cells for texting makes using capitals, etc. very difficult.

Get up on the wrong side of the bed.

To the OP: Please ignore the triade.

groot

thanks for the responses everyone, will be calling a really well reviewed immigration lawyer on monday to get the ball rolling on the appeal

KK85

Goood luck, groot!

groot

I've researched this a little and was wondering if anyone can confirm it. The USCIS case status website should reflect when an RFE has been mailed out, correct? I think I have a very good case of reopening as my receipt number shows no updates whatsoever, and have taken screen shots and videos to show this.

KK85

In theory, yes. But everything I have ever read about it would suggest that website is scarcely updated. (I might be mistaken, but I feel like I've seen some people here (was one Ian?) say that the website updated to reflect changes in their case's status years after the actual event. )

I believe the advice most often given is to keep your eye on your mailbox, and use physical letters and/or checks being cashed as evidence of work being done on your case, as the website doesn't reliably reflect anything. For your purposes, I couldn't say whether your screenshot evidence could be used certifiably to suggest you received no RFEs, because of the information above. But not sure how it might stand in a court of law, as indeed - unless or until informed otherwise - perhaps some of us would be of the belief we could rely on the website's information!

Noorah101

The website updates are not reliable at all.

Rene

ian-mstm

True story: my status after filing AOS was "AOS Pending"... and it was like that for close to 5 years... 3 full years after I was already a US citizen! The web site updates are completely unreliable.

So, no - the web site doesn't always reflect reality.

Ian

groot

thanks peeps, i wonder if my imm. lawyer will use that in my defence. there's no point having a case status website if it doesn't give you case statuses lol