spitts77

Can you go get the stamp in your passport before the 12 month expiration (ie - the week before) rather than waiting until it expires??

AGUILA

Yes, but is better to wait because they MIGHT send a new NOA, and that will save the trip to the local office :-) but if you need evidence of your status for traveling/employment you can go ahead one week before the expiration and get an I-551 stamp.

spitts77

what if you have been out of the country and need to come back in to get the extension.... say you come in 1 week before it expires, will they stop you and be more suspicious if the expiration date is very close? If you are out of the country if would seem risky to wait for a letter in case it never arrives and you were instead stuck with an expired NOA.

AGUILA

It does not matter when you get the stamp, the status STAYS regardless of having proof of it or not! USCIS can very easy check if the I-751 remains pending on their computers

spitts77

So are you saying that, if I was out of the US on the date when the NOA expired, my status does not expire with it but I just do not have proof of that status? In the system I would have been extended for another 12 months and this would be available at POE if there were questions?

AGUILA

Exactly, the status is extended until there is a decision on your I-751.

Please read the following memo from USCIS:

http://uscis.gov/graphics/lawsregs/h...ensn120203.pdf

swannie

Thanks for posting the link to that memo!

swannie

Regarding a post earlier in this thread: Can someone confirm or deny that, at the Newark office, renewal stamps are only given on Fridays? And how recently that information was obtained?

I've perused some related threads from late last year, and it seems people waited in line and got the stamp on days other than Friday (just not Wednesday, when the office is open for appointments only). So I assume we'll be fine going there early tomorrow morning (Thursday).

LKish

Don't know if this helps but my husband got his extension on his I-751 about 5
days after the first notice expired (GC date June 30, 2000, expiration of first
NOA June 30, 2003). I think we went on a Monday or Tuesday and got there very
early. DO NOT GO ON A WEDNESDAY! That day is reserved for appointments only.

By the way, he got a second NOA extending his GC another year about 10 days
after we stood in line for the stamp.
He applied for removal of conditions March 30, 2002 and they were removed March
30, 2004 during his N-400 citizenship interview. Two year wait (VSC - Newark).

Linda

swannie

update: Steve got his new I-551 stamp on Thursday!

Here's a summary of the day at the new 3rd Floor processing center at the Newark BCIS:

Our trip to the BCIS office happened to coincide with their launch of a new queue system for processing same-day requests. We waited on line as before (got there at 5am and there were about 15 people or so ahead of us). After the appointments line was let in at around 7:30, we were herded into the indoor holding area at around 8, and went through the X-ray machine. Then we went to the third floor via the middle set of elevators (the ones that still say they don't go to the third floor, even though they obviously do). After leaving the elevators, we were ushered into the HUGE new staging area. There were plenty of helpful members of staff to explain the process. The new space is bright, spacious, and not at all intimidating. There is even a separate waiting/window area beyond the initial processing area for EAD requests.

After going to a "triage" window and explaining the purpose of our visit, an officer briefly reviewed our paperwork, entered some information into her computer (flashy new Dell flat-screen models), and printed out a ticket with a letter and number on it. Our category was B, for extensions, and we were number 504 (for this category, they began at 500; other groups simply started at 1). The tickets are also time-stamped so you (and they) know exactly how long any given person has had to wait to be processed. We sat down and waited for our number to be called. The numbers are both announced over a loudspeaker and displayed on two electronic boards that also direct you to the appropriate window.

After about two hours of no Bs being called (but plenty of Cs, As, Es, and a few Gs and Fs), I asked one of the apparent supervisors what might be causing the processing of our particular category to be so delayed. He tried to tell me that the other people being called were all there before we were (and indeed, about 60 or so people, including those with appointments, were), but it was clear that other people who were in line after us had already been called to windows for further processing. After a lot of hand-waving (by him), and vague explanations that "the system would soon balance out," I said I would be happy to patiently wait my turn but was wondering if there was a specific reason this one category seemed to be backlogged. He couldn't tell me why, of course. It was only later in the afternoon that I learned it was the very first day of trying out the new system, which explained a brief computer glitch in the morning where all the electronic number boards went blank. But given the circumstances, things went surprisngly smoothly, albeit slowly.

At around 11:30 or so we were finally called to the window, handed Steve's documents to the officer who deemed them to be in order, and were advised to take our seats while a background check was performed (if only they could have initiated that in the triage window!). Of course, it took longer than the estimated 30 minutes to process, but we finally walked out with Steve's new 1-551 stamp at around 1:25pm.

LKish

We had a very similar experience at Newark last July! We got there at 4:30 and
did not get the I-751 extension stamp until 11:55. We too thought there might
be a problem since no B were being called. Guess it's going to take a while to
improve the system.

Linda and Chris
Can-Am Class of 1998