I485 Information, details and scenario playout

[Turbulent_Dragonfly]

Thanks for the detailed reply...I had tried to research before posting but couldn't find the complete answers.

Just a couple of quick follow ups:

1. Fragomen provided the same reason - that they don't have the original application and so can't apply in PP. However, the application was sent the normal route. Job/company/location are all same. Once we get the receipt notice, should I push for sending a request for PP update?

2. Still not clear about the whole 'free agent' and 'work in the "GC" job that you and employer signed up for after getting GC' part. I will try to look up AC21 guidelines.

AC21 is only allowed if you work in a job which closely tracks with the original job offer. So you can't go work in a gas station or something else because the new employer has to provide a I-485J attesting to the fact that the new job is similar to the original one. So you are a 'free agent' but you can only play within the same sport for another team, you cannot switch to another sport .

[idliman]

Thanks for the detailed reply...I had tried to research before posting but couldn't find the complete answers.

Just a couple of quick follow ups:

1. Fragomen provided the same reason - that they don't have the original application and so can't apply in PP. However, the application was sent the normal route. Job/company/location are all same. Once we get the receipt notice, should I push for sending a request for PP update?

2. Still not clear about the whole 'free agent' and 'work in the "GC" job that you and employer signed up for after getting GC' part. I will try to look up AC21 guidelines.

Q1. Your PD is May 17, 2011. Right now EB3I FA is at 01JUL10. As your FA date is not current, there is no pressing reason to do PP. However, if you think the FA date for EB3I will become current before the I-140 is approved in regular processing, go ahead. 6 to 8 months is the normal processing time for I-140. If you are an Oct 2020 filer, then you already at 4+ month mark.

Q2. I would wait 180 days from "Received Date" and for the underlying I-140 to be approved. That would make you eligible for AC21 "job portability" protections. Are you planning to keep your H1B as a backup in addition to "AOS Pending" status. If so, your employer needs to file amendment changing the location of your H1B. There are a lot of resources on the internet about AC21.

In addition, as you are in AOS Pending status, I would advise you to browse through EAD Template Thread and AP Travel Thread. That should give you a better understanding.

[idliman]

AC21 is only allowed if you work in a job which closely tracks with the original job offer. So you can't go work in a gas station or something else because the new employer has to provide a I-485J attesting to the fact that the new job is similar to the original one. So you are a 'free agent' but you can only play within the same sport for another team, you cannot switch to another sport .

You are right that a "Gas Station" or "Pizza Shop" cannot provide you a I485J. But, you have a window of opportunity to work in a "Gas Station" or "Pizza Shop" or not work at all in AOS Pending status if you play the game right. As long as you don't get a RFE from USCIS, you are fine. The moment you get a RFE, you have 2.5 to 3 months to get a job in "same or similar" category and make the employer to sign a "I485-J" and submit paperwork to USCIS. However, it would be safer if one sticks to "same or similar" job at all times.

[kuku82]

Q1. Typically 2 to 3 months. But now we are in unprecedented territory with October rush. I believe I485J will fall into I485 processing time which is upward of 12 months. I don't think you are going to do a service request for at least one more year.
Q2. The first time you submit I485J, it is just a confirmation of Bona Fide job (in good faith) offer. After 180 days, you can use I485J for portability to another employer. So both I485J's have their own purpose. 180 days is not a free ticket to I485. Lets say if USCIS picks up your original I485 and new I485J after 180 days, if they find something seriously wrong with original I485 (e.g., health, criminal, security, public charge or immigration violation, etc.,) they can reject the complete AOS application. So you are out of the woods only after I485 is properly adjudicated or pre-adjudicated.

Hope this helps.

Thanks Idliman that makes sense. Assuming there are no issues with the I485 itself, what are the risks one must consider when changing employers after 180 days pertaining to the pending initial I485J (bona fide job offer)? Have we seen RFEs regarding the I485J specifically once it has been filed?

[desiman]

so i became current in last months visa bulletin (08-Oct-09), but haven't received any RFE or any updates... I had completed biometrics in 2012 and submitted medicals second time in 2015... any insights on when usually the case moves....

[Moveon]

so i became current in last months visa bulletin (08-Oct-09), but haven't received any RFE or any updates... I had completed biometrics in 2012 and submitted medicals second time in 2015... any insights on when usually the case moves....

Are you in TSC ? TSC is currently running slow and the recent weather events in the Dallas area might have slowed them down further for a week or two .
Most in NSC have gotten RFEs into Jan .

[desiman]

yes TSC...

[racharox]

I received a RFE for birth certificate for my spouse and submitted the response. USCIS acknowledged it immediately after they received it. Is that of any indication of potential advancement of FA dates in the coming months?

[idliman]

I received a RFE for birth certificate for my spouse and submitted the response. USCIS acknowledged it immediately after they received it. Is that of any indication of potential advancement of FA dates in the coming months?

Unfortunately No. RFE process and responding to RFE are all integral parts of maintaining your "AOS Pending" status. If you don't reply to RFE in a timely way, your I-485 application will be rejected/denied. So RFE's are serious business and at the same time show progress in adjudicating your file. This is the same for a 2009 PD applicant or 2014 PD applicant. Even if your PD is not going to become current (like the people who filed in 2012 and still waiting), USCIS will process your file and pre-adjudicate, so that your case file is ready to be approved when GCs are available.

Moving the PDs or future movement is dependent on how many visa's (GC is an immigrant visa) remain open for issuing.

[AceMan]

Aceman, thanks very much for the suggestion!
Although we havent received the rejection packet yet, we looked at derivative I-485 form and we did leave 3.a blank and our lawyer seemed to have agreed.
I have 2 questions, would the community be very kind to provide your thoughts?
1. Should 3.a checkbox be selected in the derivative's I-485? (Primary is EB2-I)
2. Can we file corrected application in February, knowing FA date should be used for filing per Feb VB i.e. does this restriction apply to re-submitting rejected applications too?

Thanks again!

So good news, the rejected form after re applying with the correct forms and sent on January got accepted for the spouse and kid which was rejected earlier.

[raradhya]

H1b - Transfer after 180 days for primary but not transferring h4 for spouse. how does it work out in-terms of legal status and GC processing.

Hello Gurus's need some input from people who dealt with similar situation.

I applied for I-485 and I-765 on Oct 29 2020, have not received EAD/AP or no fingerprint yet. I have also filed i-485j and medical along the application.
Now due to some work situation i am going to join a new company on May 3 rd (after 180 days to take advantage of AC21) and working with the new company attorney to transfer my H1b.

1. The new company do not want to file h1B transfer in premium. I have to bear the premium cost so i am fine not taking that route.
2. The company is not transferring my wife's H4. she has H4 EAD valid till October but never used it.

My question is will it be OK to not transfer H4 while i am on H1B and wife is in AOS pending "Trishanku state" . i want to know so i don't have to spend on wife's transfer cost and if we are going to get EAD anyway why bother.

[bangaloreboy]

If you are missing the the columns 3a or 9a on the derivatives application, you might be in luck and might be able to refile. https://millermayer.com/2020/in-resp...ection-policy/

Hello Aceman and others who may be in the same boat as I,
USCIS has now accepted by wife's derivative application which was initially rejected for missing 3a/9a in Part 2 of the I-485 application!
My wife's FP got scheduled too...
This follows USCIS's notification that they would accept such rejected applications.

[bangaloreboy]

Hello Aceman and others who may be in the same boat as I,
USCIS has now accepted by wife's derivative application which was initially rejected for missing 3a/9a in Part 2 of the I-485 application!
My wife's FP got scheduled too...
This follows USCIS's notification that they would accept such rejected applications.

thanks Aceman/idliman for your suggestions! small victories do tend have an effect of providing great relief!

[AceMan]

Hello Aceman and others who may be in the same boat as I,
USCIS has now accepted by wife's derivative application which was initially rejected for missing 3a/9a in Part 2 of the I-485 application!
My wife's FP got scheduled too...
This follows USCIS's notification that they would accept such rejected applications.

Very nice. When is she scheduled to for FP?

[bangaloreboy]

Very nice. When is she scheduled to for FP?

She is scheduled for May 20th

[Turbulent_Dragonfly]

H1b - Transfer after 180 days for primary but not transferring h4 for spouse. how does it work out in-terms of legal status and GC processing.

Hello Gurus's need some input from people who dealt with similar situation.

I applied for I-485 and I-765 on Oct 29 2020, have not received EAD/AP or no fingerprint yet. I have also filed i-485j and medical along the application.
Now due to some work situation i am going to join a new company on May 3 rd (after 180 days to take advantage of AC21) and working with the new company attorney to transfer my H1b.

1. The new company do not want to file h1B transfer in premium. I have to bear the premium cost so i am fine not taking that route.
2. The company is not transferring my wife's H4. she has H4 EAD valid till October but never used it.

My question is will it be OK to not transfer H4 while i am on H1B and wife is in AOS pending "Trishanku state" . i want to know so i don't have to spend on wife's transfer cost and if we are going to get EAD anyway why bother.

If your wife is not planning to work, then yeah AOS pending is fine. Only thing I am not sure of as I don't know which state you live in is if she needs to renew her driver's license. Hopefully you will have EAD by then but who knows since as you yourself know you have been waiting for approaching 7 months since you initially filed for I-485. Also not to scare monger, but if the I-485 is denied for some reason, then she will immediately go out of status. That's why it's better to have an underlying status.

[manubhai]

H1b - Transfer after 180 days for primary but not transferring h4 for spouse. how does it work out in-terms of legal status and GC processing.
...
...
2. The company is not transferring my wife's H4. she has H4 EAD valid till October but never used it.

My question is will it be OK to not transfer H4 while i am on H1B and wife is in AOS pending "Trishanku state" . i want to know so i don't have to spend on wife's transfer cost and if we are going to get EAD anyway why bother.

Please confirm with an attorney. Should be a quick confirmation.

My understanding - after multiple H4 renewals, some with H1 and some applied separately - is that H4 does NOT need to be renewed just because you (H1) are transferring to a new employer. With what you've written, if H4-EAD is valid till October, I conclude that her H4 is also valid till October. You "CAN" renew the H4 right now with H1, but don't have to. You can do that in late August/early September if your EAD/AP doesn't arrive by then.

The above of course doesn't hold if you are "renewing" your H1 because it's expiring, which further implies that H4 is also expiring at the same time. The above is only for a new H1 with a different employer while the existing H1 (and hence H4) still has validity left on it.

Again - Please confirm with an attorney. Should be a quick confirmation.

[Zenzone]

While the medical RFE came from the Field Office and I replied back, my application is primarily with NBC. I don't know who owns the processing of my application from now on and who does the final adjudication and approval whether its NBC or the FO. Just wanted to clarify as I saw few messages asking about the FO details.

[qesehmk]

Exactly. Unfortunately, USCIS seems to have co-opted Chrlie now and he is busy defending and justifying their failures rather than forcing their hand. I think forcing USCIS to accept all applications by everyone as long vast numbers of visas continue to be available is the only way to force them to use up those visas. If Charlie doesn't do it, which he should as per the law, then USCIS should be forced via litigation. There is a backlogged indian community with priority dates from 2015-2021 who would never see a green card, or even EAD/AP in many cases, in their lifetime if the current pandemic windfall of visas is allowed to be wasted. Somehow, the backlogged indian community has decided to put all their eggs in the basket of that mirage -country cap removal via legislation -while passively watching USCIS waste enough visas to wipe out a substantial portion of the legilation, visas that are available under current law without any legilative or executive action. If we cannot even get an agency to do what it is required by law to do, expecting to get legislative or executive action is a foolhardy.

People these are exatly my thoughts. I 100% agree with positive.

as shared there is no law that all the available GC numbers should be used and allocated in a year, so we can't sue on that aspect. Not sure why all groups that were trying to get the bills passed or lobby like IV and others why are try silent and not putting some pressure and following up to see that the numbers get used and allocated when we have the abundance. Not sure why everyone is so quite on that aspect.

I gotta to say that I am sometimes ashamed that we Indians have no self respect. Compared to our education and money power we seem to have almost no fighting spirit. Any other community so oppressed would go and knock doors of supreme court and knock all TV channels (which are paid by the way ... and so it is so easy to make yourself heard). Go create a lawsuit that will have merit. All you have to do is - build 10-20 cases that will show that those those specific backlogged folks suffered material damage to their careers and/or life because USCIS failed to utilize visas. Spend money even if you are not one of those people. Because it will help you in the long term. Build advocacy that is separate from IV who have damaged themselves permanently by aligning politically with right wing anti immigrants. So I am not going to put faith in IV anymore. But I can't believe that among a million desi backlogged people - some of whom are C level people - earning 1M plus - we can't find people with courage to do proper advocacy. Shame on you.

[chandukechacha]

Hello,

My priority date is end of May 2011. My company filed EB3 downgrade in October. My downgrade 140 is under processing and my company is not doing premium processing. They are stubborn on this and I am not sure how long 140 regular processing will take.
I am current in July in both EB3 and EB2. My previous employer with whom I have Eb2 140 approved is willing to take me back into their company after green-card approval and provide I485J if I wish to file in EB2.

My question is Can I go ahead and file a new 485 (using prior employers eb2 140)?. Can I have 2 active 485's at the same time and choose 1 at the time of approval?. Would filing a 2nd 485 automatically cancel out the downgrade 485?

Answers on this will be very helpful for me

Anyone that can provide some inputs?

[rsnake]

Anyone that can provide some inputs?

Are they not doing PP because of cost issues? You can offer to pay them for it and it's completely legal for the employee to pay for I-140 premium processing.

You can have two or even more than two active 485s but with the current pace of processing it's better to stick with the one from Oct. If you file the second one, when they get to adjudicating the one that's ahead, they will ask you to withdraw the other. It's not automatic.

[knighthood83]

Got to know from Emma today that my case has been transferred to the local field office on 6/16 from the national benefits center . Interestingly this happened 2 days after I received the 485J notice which was mailed out on 6/14. My PD 10/08/2010 EB2I. What is the significance of the case reaching the field office?

[chandukechacha]

Are they not doing PP because of cost issues? You can offer to pay them for it and it's completely legal for the employee to pay for I-140 premium processing.

You can have two or even more than two active 485s but with the current pace of processing it's better to stick with the one from Oct. If you file the second one, when they get to adjudicating the one that's ahead, they will ask you to withdraw the other. It's not automatic.

Thanks for the reply!. They are not willing to do (even if I pay),their point is we already did a big favor by letting you downgrade, basically not my job kind of attitude in big company environment. I have been trying for the past 6 months with no use.
I am at a point of leaving the company because of this, but wanted to see what is the best path for me rather than taking an emotional decision.
I am expecting my I140 (SRC) to take around an year to get approved in regular processing and then my I485(SRC again) processing would start. I am thinking may be it is better to apply in Eb2 which would probably go to MSC where things are a lot better in terms of processing times.

[PDAUG2011]

Its likely for Medicals especially given your Form-J is now approved.

Just got the mail, RFE is for medicals and it is from FO. I think this is what I will have to do - get the sealed I-693 again from the doctor and ship it with the RFE letter and forget about the sealed I-693 that I FedExed earlier this month. I will really appreciate if someone can provide the feedback on this approach.

[rohanvus]

Thanks for the reply!. They are not willing to do (even if I pay),their point is we already did a big favor by letting you downgrade, basically not my job kind of attitude in big company environment. I have been trying for the past 6 months with no use.
I am at a point of leaving the company because of this, but wanted to see what is the best path for me rather than taking an emotional decision.
I am expecting my I140 (SRC) to take around an year to get approved in regular processing and then my I485(SRC again) processing would start. I am thinking may be it is better to apply in Eb2 which would probably go to MSC where things are a lot better in terms of processing times.

My PD is DEC2,2011 . In my case i tried PP at TSC but till date havent received any update from USCIS - No reject mail , nothing (per lawyer) . In this helpless situation i was considering using EB2 path whenever FAD reaches Dec2,2011 under EB2 . Atleast that way you can get out of clutches of TSC (which is the slowest of all even during normal conditions )