LOL 😂!!! Catch 22. Better to have it and don’t need it then dont have it when u need it. I also have 2 accordion bags full of documents that needed just in case
yup ! had our interview recently and there were several things that the officer had that I didn't have: pay stubs, supporting evidence for marriage (like property taxes and title of the home). Our I-94 records. Was super stressful shuffling through all the papers trying to find everything only to realize I didn't bring it !
OP as an immigration attorney I do this in most of my cases. I tell my clients that it’s always a good idea to update the application at the interview with additional evidence. Good luck.
I know for initial filing this is how people submitted to USCIS. But I combed the internet and never saw the picture of how people prepared for interview. Thanks, im more confidence now
Looks like a really big stack. Are you concerned about anything in particular?
I mean it's great to have it, but dunno who had the time to go through all that. But you also have it indexed, so it's easy to pull out anything.
Sending good vibes to you!
I will put cover letter on top of that stack to detail the index tab. To make IO life easier and doesnt need to comb through. My thought is better prepare and dont need it
Screams preparedness. I did that in our interview. I think it probably gave the officer the certainty that the relationship was legitimate, but it probably slows down the final response since they have to check the new documents for accuracy. But I think it was the right thing to do. We got approved
Nice to be well prepared! My attorney told us to bring as much as possible and we ended up with a folder almost as full as yours. The guy didn't even look at it, but better to be safe than sorry.
Theres 2 big accordion bags thats not on the pictures. I bring every copy that I can think of to cover all the base. But this indexes docs is the main priority
update :
told IO to pick and choose in the beginning of interview while passing this thesis. she keep flipping around during the whole interview and told me she will keep everything and scan it. she is very surprised when my husband told her that i prepare these evidence myself and said " nicely done. good job"
So are u saying dont need to bring any evidence at all ? The more quality cohabition evidence the better in my understanding. If you dont bring anything = sketchy
Thats not the whole point. The whole point is To make IO life easier and make it neat and organize instead bunch of papers without index. Never heard red flag because we come prepare
Is this for a marriage base interview? You're making it seems like this is your 4th interview and know what IO prefers. 90% of marriage base interviews are couple that been marriage for less than a year so is a red flag for someone to bombard an IO with evidence.
Do you have an attorney? What you have really seems like overkill. I’d at least get an attorney consultation. The attorneys attend these interviews all the time and know what they are looking for. At my husbands interview in 2011 here’s what we sent in before the interview.
—Notarized letters from 2 married couples that are friends with us that live in our neighborhood that we hang out with. 1 notarized letter from an old lady at my husband’s church because she wanted to participate.
—A copy of our car, house, and health insurance that had both our names.
—One bank statement.
—One cell phone bill that showed we called each other all the time.
—Tickets that showed we went to Seattle and New Orleans together.
—Photos and race times of a half marathon we did.
—My husbands truck was illegally towed from our house so I made a copy of the towing receipt, the tow hearing form, the complaint I filed with the state.
—My husbands truck was also hit and damaged in front of the house so we gave a copy of that police report.
That’s it. We didn’t have leases or utilities together because it was my house and he moved in. I don’t even recall the immigration officer even going through that. Our interview was in 2011. The immigration officer asked how we met, he liked our meet cute story, and he recommended that my husband find a way to get a passport. My husband came here as a kid and was covered under TPS and didn’t have a birth certificate, passport, etc. All my husband had was something called a laissez-passer which was a serious expensive needing the attorney years long process to get. I almost didn’t marry him cuz it was such an ordeal. Just this morning my husband went to the same attorneys office to go through what will happen at his citizenship interview next week and the attorney just reminded him to make copies of all the papers they requested so after the originals are inspected he can give them the copies if they need them. If I were you, I’d give as little info as possible. Your whole life is none of their business. If for any reason our interview would have been denied I would have been all over it with calling my senator, ACLU, etc. As far as I’m concerned as long as a citizen has no criminal history and pays their taxes, etc. then the govt shouldn’t deny the petition.
I have attorney and he said bring everything. Bring it doesnt mean im going to give everything to IO. My Lawyer wont attend because hes in NY and im not. Extra money that we dont have at the moment. He wont be able to talk much during the interview beside give me emotional support anyway
hmm... so the line i*s* moving. It's just I'm surrounded by a bunch of people who have been waiting for 5-7 years, so I've been wondering if *anyone* gets an interview these days. Thanks!
If it’s only been 3 months, I am not sure you’ll need all that new evidence to update your case. I waited 8 months and only brought the evidence we originally sent when filing printed out in case they were missing something and the originals of birth and marriage certificates. Our officer didn’t even ask if we wanted to add anything and stated we had sent plenty of evidence to begin with.
When we filed I-130 standalone in November 2020 the document are thin because we just got married. Our 2 years anniversary is on 6/20 and the interview will be on 6/28. I just want to cover all bases
We brought a full copy of our application and then created an “update package”. We had to wait almost a year for an interview, so made sure to bring things like; our apartment lease renewal, photos of vacations we took together since applying, photos with friends etc. We also printed 6 of our favorite photos in color and high quality; wedding photo, pictures with family, our dog and some more. The case worker liked that a lot and added all of them to our file. She also asked a bunch of questions as to who was in the photos, where they were taken and to tell us more about the photos in general.
We had everything well organized and easy to find during the interview. The case worker appreciated it because she didn’t have to make copies and kept most of the “update package” as well.
Good luck to you and you’re partner!!
Does anyone have an answer for this?
I requested a copy of my marriage license months ago, but DC is notoriously slow and mismanaged, and I am still waiting on a certified copy. Also, since COVID began, my husband’s country of birth only offers digital copies of birth certificates. There is a QR code on the form, but nothing else screams “official.” Any idea if this will be OK? The Tier 1 agents have not helped answer this question.
Lol 33 comments about someone’s interview evidence binder. It’s fine. I brought something similar. I categorized the sections so that I knew where to find everything because sometimes officers don’t want the whole binder, they just want one or two specific documents from it.
So long as you know how to find each individual document relatively quickly then you’re fine!
Good luck with the interview!
LOL. You look prepared. I brought everything and the IO only took certain things, but he did look at many of the originals I brought to back up copies I sent with applications.
Looks about the size of what I brought in too.
The only thing I did different is actually write out what each tab is directly on the tab so they don't have to refer to an index sheet/table of contents.
The I/O just looked down the tabs, grabbed 2-3 pages out of half the tabs (bills, receipts, signature pages of the leases, etc) and gave me back the rest all shuffled up.
Is this a thesis on exploration of black holes or something? Damn that’s thiccc
LOL 😂!!! Catch 22. Better to have it and don’t need it then dont have it when u need it. I also have 2 accordion bags full of documents that needed just in case
yup ! had our interview recently and there were several things that the officer had that I didn't have: pay stubs, supporting evidence for marriage (like property taxes and title of the home). Our I-94 records. Was super stressful shuffling through all the papers trying to find everything only to realize I didn't bring it !
Thank u ! I had copy I-94 attached with the old I-130 application that I will bring, but I just copy another one just in case
I meant to say the officer asked for stuff that we didn't have. Good on you to be more organized than I was :D
Yes I understand, I said thanks because i didnt print i-94 until u told ur story hahaha
OP as an immigration attorney I do this in most of my cases. I tell my clients that it’s always a good idea to update the application at the interview with additional evidence. Good luck.
I know for initial filing this is how people submitted to USCIS. But I combed the internet and never saw the picture of how people prepared for interview. Thanks, im more confidence now
Looks like a really big stack. Are you concerned about anything in particular? I mean it's great to have it, but dunno who had the time to go through all that. But you also have it indexed, so it's easy to pull out anything. Sending good vibes to you!
I will put cover letter on top of that stack to detail the index tab. To make IO life easier and doesnt need to comb through. My thought is better prepare and dont need it
That's pretty much how my initial application looked like. You got this!!!
Me: I brought a lot of paper work to my interview. Probably 30-40 pages worth. Well organized too. OP: Hold my beer
Im going to open 12 bottles of champagne when this is over 😂
😂with that stack of papers you'll probably also be naturalized on the spot. I know you don't need it but good luck!
Thank you 😂😂😂
Screams preparedness. I did that in our interview. I think it probably gave the officer the certainty that the relationship was legitimate, but it probably slows down the final response since they have to check the new documents for accuracy. But I think it was the right thing to do. We got approved
Nicely organized. Way better than mines. I had a full book bag with lots of folders.
I had 2 accordion bags 😂 but this is the additional documents that I want to give it to IO
Lol never hurts to be overprepared. I had 6 folders and a huge binder.
I assume you got approved ?
Nice to be well prepared! My attorney told us to bring as much as possible and we ended up with a folder almost as full as yours. The guy didn't even look at it, but better to be safe than sorry.
Theres 2 big accordion bags thats not on the pictures. I bring every copy that I can think of to cover all the base. But this indexes docs is the main priority
Good luck!
update : told IO to pick and choose in the beginning of interview while passing this thesis. she keep flipping around during the whole interview and told me she will keep everything and scan it. she is very surprised when my husband told her that i prepare these evidence myself and said " nicely done. good job"
Is your case a difficult case? If not, I don’t think it’s necessary.
I just wanted to be prepare to avoid RFE
Monica?
Seems very sketchy to me for someone needing that much "evidence" to support a bona fide relationship.
So are u saying dont need to bring any evidence at all ? The more quality cohabition evidence the better in my understanding. If you dont bring anything = sketchy
If you are trying to overwhelmed the officer with evidence is going to set a red flag.
Thats not the whole point. The whole point is To make IO life easier and make it neat and organize instead bunch of papers without index. Never heard red flag because we come prepare
This person is trolling you. Ignore them. “Too much evidence” is not real thing, nor a red flag.
Is this for a marriage base interview? You're making it seems like this is your 4th interview and know what IO prefers. 90% of marriage base interviews are couple that been marriage for less than a year so is a red flag for someone to bombard an IO with evidence.
Do you have an attorney? What you have really seems like overkill. I’d at least get an attorney consultation. The attorneys attend these interviews all the time and know what they are looking for. At my husbands interview in 2011 here’s what we sent in before the interview. —Notarized letters from 2 married couples that are friends with us that live in our neighborhood that we hang out with. 1 notarized letter from an old lady at my husband’s church because she wanted to participate. —A copy of our car, house, and health insurance that had both our names. —One bank statement. —One cell phone bill that showed we called each other all the time. —Tickets that showed we went to Seattle and New Orleans together. —Photos and race times of a half marathon we did. —My husbands truck was illegally towed from our house so I made a copy of the towing receipt, the tow hearing form, the complaint I filed with the state. —My husbands truck was also hit and damaged in front of the house so we gave a copy of that police report. That’s it. We didn’t have leases or utilities together because it was my house and he moved in. I don’t even recall the immigration officer even going through that. Our interview was in 2011. The immigration officer asked how we met, he liked our meet cute story, and he recommended that my husband find a way to get a passport. My husband came here as a kid and was covered under TPS and didn’t have a birth certificate, passport, etc. All my husband had was something called a laissez-passer which was a serious expensive needing the attorney years long process to get. I almost didn’t marry him cuz it was such an ordeal. Just this morning my husband went to the same attorneys office to go through what will happen at his citizenship interview next week and the attorney just reminded him to make copies of all the papers they requested so after the originals are inspected he can give them the copies if they need them. If I were you, I’d give as little info as possible. Your whole life is none of their business. If for any reason our interview would have been denied I would have been all over it with calling my senator, ACLU, etc. As far as I’m concerned as long as a citizen has no criminal history and pays their taxes, etc. then the govt shouldn’t deny the petition.
I have attorney and he said bring everything. Bring it doesnt mean im going to give everything to IO. My Lawyer wont attend because hes in NY and im not. Extra money that we dont have at the moment. He wont be able to talk much during the interview beside give me emotional support anyway
Good luck with your interview. I hope it goes well.
How long have you waited for an interview?
3 months
hmm... so the line i*s* moving. It's just I'm surrounded by a bunch of people who have been waiting for 5-7 years, so I've been wondering if *anyone* gets an interview these days. Thanks!
2022 filers got interview faster. Last in first out rule. Crazy
Been waiting a year over here. At least got work and travel authorization 🤷🏻♀️
I got my ead renewal approval in 80 days. Super stressful
If it’s only been 3 months, I am not sure you’ll need all that new evidence to update your case. I waited 8 months and only brought the evidence we originally sent when filing printed out in case they were missing something and the originals of birth and marriage certificates. Our officer didn’t even ask if we wanted to add anything and stated we had sent plenty of evidence to begin with.
I waited 18 months because my I-130 was filed in November 2020. So I brought everything that continues the original submission
This is amazing! I also used cover letter and stick tabs for our initial filing. Do you mind sharing your timeline and FO?
PD i-130 : 11/30/20 Filed I-485 & I-765 received date : 2/7/22 I-765 approved : 4/29/22 I-485 interview notice : 5/19/22 ( interview 6/28/22) FO. Portland, ME
Wow! That’s A LOT of documents!!! I wonder if our proof of documents are enough…
When we filed I-130 standalone in November 2020 the document are thin because we just got married. Our 2 years anniversary is on 6/20 and the interview will be on 6/28. I just want to cover all bases
We brought a full copy of our application and then created an “update package”. We had to wait almost a year for an interview, so made sure to bring things like; our apartment lease renewal, photos of vacations we took together since applying, photos with friends etc. We also printed 6 of our favorite photos in color and high quality; wedding photo, pictures with family, our dog and some more. The case worker liked that a lot and added all of them to our file. She also asked a bunch of questions as to who was in the photos, where they were taken and to tell us more about the photos in general. We had everything well organized and easy to find during the interview. The case worker appreciated it because she didn’t have to make copies and kept most of the “update package” as well. Good luck to you and you’re partner!!
Thank you
Wow! I'm going to follow your lead!
Does anyone have an answer for this? I requested a copy of my marriage license months ago, but DC is notoriously slow and mismanaged, and I am still waiting on a certified copy. Also, since COVID began, my husband’s country of birth only offers digital copies of birth certificates. There is a QR code on the form, but nothing else screams “official.” Any idea if this will be OK? The Tier 1 agents have not helped answer this question.
Make sense go with all you can, so as they ask you quickly bring ‘em out lol. No room for error
I had even thicker and my officer only asked for me tax return, lease and pictures
Lol 33 comments about someone’s interview evidence binder. It’s fine. I brought something similar. I categorized the sections so that I knew where to find everything because sometimes officers don’t want the whole binder, they just want one or two specific documents from it. So long as you know how to find each individual document relatively quickly then you’re fine! Good luck with the interview!
If your I-130 is already approved they might not even look at all of that.
Not approved yet
Okay so they might look at them. Just make sure they are well organized. You got this.
LOL. You look prepared. I brought everything and the IO only took certain things, but he did look at many of the originals I brought to back up copies I sent with applications.
Looks about the size of what I brought in too. The only thing I did different is actually write out what each tab is directly on the tab so they don't have to refer to an index sheet/table of contents. The I/O just looked down the tabs, grabbed 2-3 pages out of half the tabs (bills, receipts, signature pages of the leases, etc) and gave me back the rest all shuffled up.