How soon can I leave the employer after I get my GC
Q. How soon can I leave my petitioning employer once I get my green card approval?
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Getting F-1 while I-485/AOS is pending
Trying to get an F-1 while an AOS/I-485 is pending has been a recurring theme in our community. Last year in May/June we had spent two hours talking about this theme in our community conference calls. A lot of people wanted to do their MBA and were not able to wait for their green cards to join school.
Generally speaking when you have exhibited immigrant intent, getting an F-1 becomes difficult. On top of that, USCIS has said that F-1 is not compatible with a simultaneous I-485. But USCIS has never told us what happens if do file for an F-1 while an I-485 is pending.
Reassignment of I-485 to alternate eligibility
In a recent meeting, Nebraska Service Center has clarified why, some times, in cases of pending I-485 applications, USCIS approves AOS interchanging the applications of the derivative and principal applicant:
Applying for green card while on a B-1 or B-2 visa
The following FAQ should cover the issues.
Q. I am a US Citizen. My parents (or spouse/spouse-to-be) are in USA on visitors visa. Can I apply for their green card? How does it all work?
Interview at Buffalo (NY) DO
I had my interview back in November, at the Buffalo (NY) DO. It was so quick we were in and out of the office within 10- 15 mins. We had a very nice woman officer.
She asked us to swear the oath, she asked us 3 questions and wanted to see our utility bills.
Once she had photocopied them, she came back in the room and said my GC had been approved. She said i should recieve it within 2 weeks, which i did.
Hope everyone's GC interview could be so quick and easy.
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Consular Processing Experience
State
CA
Category: IR5 (parents)
Interview Date: Feb 2009
Consulate: Chennai, India
Jan 28, 2009: Called panel doctor Vijayalakshmi and fixed an appointment for Jan 31st, 11 AM.
30th Jan 2009:
Reached Lister Labs at 6:30 AM and no one was there. Security opened the gate and gave us the first token. We were out by 8:30 AM. Collected Sealed envelope at 4:30 PM. X-Ray, blood test cost: Rs 810.
31st Jan 2009:
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Interview Today and Approved
We had our interview today and our case was APPROVED! It was fairly easy and straight forward interview.
We checked in at 8:45 AM for our 9:15 AM appointment. We were called in couple of minutes before 9:15 AM, pretty good!
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Interview at Atlanta
State
GA
Just wanted to update everyone and say we had our interview this morning, scheduled for 8 AM in Atlanta. We got there at 7.55, checked in at 7.59 and were called at 8.02. Interview was all done in 10 minutes and we were out of the building at 8.15.
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Recording of Community Conference (Every other Thursday), 2015, March 19
Immigration.com
Nonimmigrant Visas
Immigration Law
Workload Transfer within Service Center Operations
USCIS recently began transferring some Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, cases filed by lawful permanent residents for their eligible family members from the Vermont Service Center to the California Service Center.
If your case was transferred, USCIS will send you a notice listing the transfer date and where your case will be processed. Your original receipt number will not change and this will not delay the processing of your cases except for the additional time needed to transfer the file.
Filing I-485 for Derivative Beneficiaries
Here is another question from one of our clients posted in our extranet forclients.com.
Qo. My Priority date became current as per August bulletin.
I and my wife are applied for I-485 on July 2007 (PF is done and got EAD and AP docs). At that time my son was in India and i could not apply for him.
Right now i am working on his I-485 paperwork and targeting to send his application to INS/Nebraska on August first itself (through your Law firm).
Fraud Allegations Under Immigration law
Inheritance of Earlier Priority Date Permits Beneficiary to Obtain Permanent Residence Quickly
Indian-born client had I-140 Approved and I-485 filed through first Labor Certification case under EB3 with a 2003 Priority Date. He also filed an I-140 under EB2 with a Priority Date of 2006. Rajiv advised to file I-485 through 2nd Labor Certification, requesting Service to permit inheritance of the 2003 Priority Date to have a current I-485 case. Based upon the 2nd I-485 being filed and the EB2 category request, the client obtained his Permanent Residency 1.5 months after filing the 2nd I-485.
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Cross Chargeability Based on Marriage to Canadian Spouse Permits Beneficiary to Obtain Permanent Residence Quickly
Indian-born client had I-140 approved under Category EB2 with Priority Date of 2003 and a pending I-485 case affected by retrogression. The client married a foreign spouse while I-485 was pending. The new spouse was born in Canada, a country not affected by retrogression in the client's category. We filed the I-485 for the new spouse and a request for cross-chargeability for the main applicant. The client's I-485 was approved 3 months after request for I-485 cross-chargeability and the spouse was approved 5 months after the I-485 filing.
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I-485 RFEs Based Upon Location of Applicant
We received I-485 RFE's for multiple pending clients where the sponsoring employer is located in State A and the applicant is living in State B. In such cases, USCIS requests justification for the discrepancy in locations. Citing to various section of pertinent legal code in our RFE responses, many I-485 applications have been approved within 60 days of RFE response submission.
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Replace Your Green Card
When to Replace Your Green Card
Lawful Permanent Residents
If you are a lawful permanent resident, you must replace your Green Card if:
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Making America Safe Again: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services End-of-Year Review Demonstrates Impact of Rigorous Immigration Crackdown
Release Date
12/22/2025
Under the leadership of Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem and USCIS Director Joseph Edlow, the agency has enhanced immigration screening and vetting protocols to protect communities and national security and has advanced immigration policies that put the national interest first.
Family Based Green Card Services and Fees
Note: Fees are payable by personal checks.
Note: For governmental Requests For Evidence (RFEs), we charge extra based upon the complexity of the issue(s).
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Family-Based Green Card
One of the most-used methods of getting a Green Card is through a member of the family. The two sets of eligible relationships are as follows:
- Relatives of U.S. Green Card Holders
- Relatives of U.S. Citizens
Eligibility
In order to sponsor a family member to immigrate to the United States, the sponsor must meet the following criteria: