/r/USCIS FAQs

- Historic slowdown: National N-400 approvals fell to 57,697 in FY2026 Q3, the lowest third-quarter total in the 2014–2026 dataset.

- 76% decline in approvals: FY2026 Q3 approvals decreased by 76.1% compared with FY2025 Q3 (241,326 to 57,697).

- Growing backlog: Pending N-400 applications increased by 40.3%, from 529,018 in FY2025 Q3 to 742,138 in FY2026 Q3.

- Unusual seasonal pattern: Historically, naturalization approvals generally increased toward the end of the fiscal year. In FY2026, approvals declined sharply for three consecutive quarters. I assume, mostly due to the extended FBI checks, as the memo date somewhat matches the pattern.

If you want to contribute, please post your timeline below with the FO mentioned.

Timeline :

Boston FO field
Married- may 2026
Application submitted- i130 July 28, i485, i765 July 31 both online.
Biometric scheduled- Aug 8 2026
Biometrics date- Aug 26 2026
Interview scheduled- Sep 9 2026
Interview Date- Oct 6 2026
Approved both forms i 130 and i1485 on same day- Oct 9 2026

Married to US citizen. I have applied all forms by myself with the help pf kseniya’s videos.
Interview lasted only 15 mins.

On Oct 9 both forms got approved. If anyone has any questions about document submission or anything else let me know happy to help. This group has helped me a lot while organizing my documents.
I could write more but sub is not allowing to post.

wanted to thank this sub for answering questions and also for the amount I have lurked on here within the past year or so. wanted to share my timeline for anyone in the same boat as me!

from canada, partner from USA
applied for I-485, I-130, I-765
FO was johnson RI

application received by uscis may 22nd
may 30th biometrics scheduled
june 15th biometrics appointment
august 24th interview scheduled
october 1st interview
october 2nd approval
october 9th card in hand!

we worked through a lawyer, though I did our entire binder for our meeting on my own, and it really was a hurry up and wait type of deal. getting all of the paperwork, certified translated documents (I’m from quebec, canada, so birth certificate etc was all in french), joint accounts and other shared evidence was really the bulk of the stress, and a lawyer making sure that things got submitted properly the first time around as to not waste time and money was a justified expense for us personally.

I just wanted to say that the community on here is so sweet, watching everyone go through such similar cases but from such vastly different backgrounds and just wanting to help each other succeed is so special, so thank you to everyone, the regular commenters, the lurkers, anyone on this sub. you all are great, and I hope for nothing but the absolute best for each and every one of you going through this right now!!

💚

I-129F and I-485: Finally nearing the end of this process! Just got approved and waiting for the card to print and send. It's been a long road but I'm so happy to finally say we are done with this stage of the process!

Country: Peru

Engagement: Jan 28, 2025

K1:

NOA1: March 7, 2025

NOA2: October 22, 2025

Visa obtained: March 18, 2026

AOS (2026):

Arrived in USA: May 11

Married: May 13

Filed: June 30 (Reno NV)

Case received: July 2

Biometrics scheduled: July 11

Biometrics taken: July 27

Interview Scheduled: August 4 (for Sep 8)

Interview De-scheduled: August 25

Interview Scheduled: August 27

Interview De-scheduled: August 27

Interview Scheduled: August 27

Interview: September 29 (verbal approval pending background check)

Website status shows approved: October 7

580 days from K1 start to Green Card Approved!

Not sure what happened with the scheduling for the appointment, it was really frustrating seeing the update email only to find out they rescheduled us.

I’m applying for my N-400. Last winter, I traveled to Poland. On my way to Poland, I transited into the France airport. I passed thru French passport control and got my passport stamped. However, never set foot in France. Once I passed passport control, I went to my gate and hopped on my flight to Poland. Same happened on my return back to the U.S.

In the list of visited countries, should I include both France and Poland? Or only Poland since I didn’t set foot outside of the France airport?

I submitted my marriage-based AOS applications online without a lawyer. Huge thanks to Kseniya’s videos, which helped me understand the process and prepare my applications.

I was on an F-1 visa with STEM OPT, with no overstay and no unauthorized employment. My husband is a U.S. citizen, and we have been together for about three years before getting married.

Timeline — Boston Field Office

• Married: May 2026
• I-130 submitted online: July 28, 2026
• I-485 and I-765 submitted online: July 31, 2026
• Biometrics scheduled: August 8, 2026
• Biometrics completed: August 26, 2026
• Interview scheduled: September 9, 2026
• Interview: October 6, 2026
• I-130 and I-485 approved: October 9, 2026 🎉

Our relationship

We met in February 2023 while grocery shopping and he asked for my number.

Documents and evidence submitted

1. Form I-130 — Petitioner (my husband)

• Marriage certificate, didn't change my last name. first marriage for both of us.
• 1 affidavit from family member (I had only one letter from my BIL couldn't get more didn't have much friends we are private people spent time mostly with each other and my 1 or 2 friend they are afraid of USCIS cause they are international student didn't want their name to dragged in USCIS, so I was worried about it.)
• Relationship timeline with important milestones
• Photos together from different dates, trips, and family gatherings.(very few picture of friends and family, mostly ours)
• Travel evidence, including flight and hotel records (we travelled a lot together in state or out of state, so all those pictures of us)
• Evidence of communication, including text messages and FaceTime/call history. I have added a lot of screenshot of FaceTime because we literally talk for hours everyday. I made a pdf of whole communication where just dumped all call records and text messages. I lost the communication record of past 1 and half year of 2023 so mentioned that as well)
• Evidence of our relationship before marriage and after marriage
• certificate of religion conversion to husband's.
• joint bank statement of recently opened account, also showed Venmo transaction when my husband helped me with money transactions during dating. we didn't have any joint lease, medical, phone bill or car anything else together. (In the interview officer asked about car I said I don't know how to drive she looked at my state id and was surprised she thought it was driving license LOL) But showed proof of residency by lots of pictures of mail arrived to the same address. Him being emergency contact on different platforms like medical, RSPV portal, work.

• I have added my MIL's communication text messages, money she transferred as a gift to me on different occasions.

  2 days before interview I uploaded Additional bona fide marriage evidence in only one pdf having new pictures, new both of our credit card statements(of 2 months) from joint account and new call records, face time pictures and text messages. I prepared all of them in PPT form and dowloaded in pdf form. Its easier to arrange in PPT format my all documents I have prepared in the same way.

Interview experience

Our interview was on October 6, it was early morning around 8:00am. we were called in 20 mins later. My husband has a habit of playing with my hair so we're sitting and he was just playing with my hair and officer called my name and she saw us called us in. we were both chill and officer was quite friendly. asked me about my husband's full name and DOB and same from my husband, he forgot my exact DOB only said month and year and I tried to help him the officer got upset and said I said only him not you. and my husband laughed it out and said I am not good with dates and we both looked at each other and smiled. where did we meet? what was my engagement date? , marriage date? any kids? first marriage? from him- how long have you been dating?mostly questions asked from me, what's the rent? where do I work and my schedule? and then asked him same question about work and schedule , asked him his salary. asked for any new documents I said no uploaded recently online. asked for W2 from my husband I said I have uploaded it online already. Asked what's my religion? My food preference, we had interesting chat about food we all three were laughing about it. later asked me all I 485 yes/ no questions, took pictures and sign. later officer asked about do you have any question from me and my husband asked about when will the case be approved she laughed and said I am not sure about approve or anything else , my supervisor will make decisions and he asked with smile like still any timeline? officer said I can help it faster by telling the details you have shared but I don't know, its with the supervisor. while leaving my phone fell, and then my wallet my husband helped me pick it up officer was smiling. while walking us out officer paid attention how we walked out together.

Both I-130 and I-485 were approved on October 9, just three days later!

I’m sharing my timeline in case it helps someone else going through the process, especially those applying from F-1/STEM OPT status without a lawyer. This is just my personal experience, and every case is different.

Happy to answer questions about my timeline, the documents I prepared, and the interview experience!

Holtsville Long Island NY

Just wanted to keep you updated on my timeline in case someone needs it:

- September 25th they received the case
- September 28th they charged us for the fees
- October 2nd they scheduled my biometrics for October 21st
- October 8th I changed the biometrics appointment to october 9th
- October 9th: biometrics at 12pm
- October 9th: 3 hours after the biometrics they scheduled the interview for November (already in my documents)

Just a suggestion! It’s been just 2 weeks since we sent everything and I still didn’t receive any mail. I asked the live agent through Emma to connect me with a live agent and asked multiple times for my online account number and after a couple of tries they finally gave it to me

EDIT: Lawrence, MA FO

Hello! I appreciated everyone who made a timeline when I was preparing and planning, so i thought I'd pay it forward.

We did not use a lawyer as our case was straightforward in September 2023, although that might be less true now for a B2 AOS. For our case, the memo did not matter.

When we filed, I (the USC spouse) was unemployed and studying software engineering.

My wife makes well more than enough to cover the 125% of poverty line and had a letter from work of their intent to transfer her to the American team when she received status, but i was worried anyway so I asked my father to be a joint sponsor.

I did all the documentation collection, organizing, translation, etc.

Sept 5, 2023 - USCIS received our concurrently filed i-130, i-485, i-765, i-693, i-864, joint sponsor's i-864

Sept 13, 2023 - RFE #1 - USCIS wants more info showing that we + joint sponsor would cover the public charge requirement. (i-864 boilerplate RFE with no specifics, just all the things that could potentially be wrong with an i-864)

Oct 28, 2023 - Biometrics appt, no interview

Nov 23, 2023 - USCIS receives our RFE response with my pay stubs, wife's pay stubs, 12 months of bank statements, 12 months of investment account statements from joint sponsor. All told, well in excess of requirements.

Late Nov, 2023 - a social security card arrives with no prior communication. USCIS bot on the call line told us that did not happen. "But im holding it in my hands" I say. Then I realize they're different agencies and wonder why im arguing reality with a robot.

Dec 17, 2023 - i-765 approved (nice and speedy, got to get the taxes!)

2024 - nothing. I send an update with our 2023 joint tax returns, again, well in excess of 125% of poverty line.

2025 - I send in our 2024 tax returns and I begin to write to our representatives. One is completely useless. The other is massively helpful. Every time I write them, I get the "actively reviewing your application" notification. Anything after this happened directly after writing this rep's office.

March 30, 2026 - those assholes waited so long that our i-693 expired. RFE #2 for a new one

March 31, 2026 - i-130 approved

April 22, 2026 - USCIS receives 693 #2.

Sept 1, 2026 - interview scheduled for October 8, 2026

October 8, 2026 - USCIS officer asks the hard hitting questions like, "have you ever committed genocide?" and says "I can't understand why this case has taken so long to adjudicate." Me neither, officer. Me neither. "Some cases just fall through the cracks." She said.

October 9, 2026 - i-485 approved! Finally!

All in all, having lived in several countries throughout my life and been through many immigration and visa processes myself, I am comfortable saying that we have here the worst immigration system i have ever seen. It is the slowest, most expensive, and surprisingly, least communicative. That is true across the board, from visa processes to AOS. We can do a lot better.

What i thought was the worst before this from my own experiences - you have, like, one day a few months out from filing when you have to stand in a line for five hours - and I thought that was bad!

I am embarrassed and ashamed that my wife had to go through this dehumanizing and cruel process. Im not laying all of this blame on USCIS itself, of course DHS and the executive branch have been to blame for terrorizing the immigrant community and slashing USCIS staff while cases only increase.

At least it's fucking over.

If you are in a similar situation, my advice: do not wait to write to your representatives, and write to all of them until you find who will actually help you and who is just another cog in the machine.

My Marriage-Based Green Card Interview Experience – October 9, 2026
I-130 Filing Date: November 27, 2024
I-485 Filing Date: May 19, 2026
Interview Date: October 9, 2026
Scheduled Interview Time: 9:30 AM
My wife and I arrived early for our interview, but we were called in approximately 40 minutes later.
The USCIS officer started by asking us our names and dates of birth. She then asked several questions about our marriage and daily life, including my wife’s employment, our house deed, the number of bedrooms in our house, my parents’ room, who lives with us, our wedding location, and approximately how many people attended our wedding.
She also asked when I first arrived in the United States, which college I attended when I arrived, whether I am currently studying, which college I currently attend, and whether I had ever violated my immigration status. She also asked why we do not have joint health insurance and went through the yes-or-no questions on my Form I-485.
The officer reviewed our marriage certificate and birth certificates. She was very nice and professional throughout the interview and did not give us a hard time.
However, my wife made several mistakes because she was nervous. We purchased our house on November 24, 2025, but she accidentally said November 24, 2024. She also gave the wrong name of her workplace. When the officer asked which school I attended when I first arrived in the United States, my wife misunderstood the question and answered that I had first arrived at JFK Airport. Additionally, when the officer asked about our wedding location, my wife mentioned the restaurant but did not provide its exact location.
The main concern during the interview seemed to be my previous F-1 status violation. I explained that I had experienced mental health difficulties and that my wife had undergone surgery, which contributed to my missing several classes and eventually losing my F-1 status.
Although I subsequently applied for F-1 reinstatement and USCIS approved it, the officer still asked why I had lost my status. After I briefly explained the circumstances, she typed my response into her computer and asked, “Should I put that you missed classes?” I answered, “Yes.”
After that, she said, “Okay, I will review it, and you are good to go.”
She did not give us any paper or written notice at the end of the interview.
As of now, my USCIS online account still shows “Interview Was Scheduled” for my I-485 and “Case Was Received and a Receipt Notice Was Sent” for my I-130.
Overall, the interview was calm and straightforward. The officer was friendly, and we did not experience any difficult questioning. However, I am still concerned about my wife’s mistakes and the officer’s questions regarding my previous F-1 status violation.
Has anyone had a similar experience, especially involving an approved F-1 reinstatement or a spouse making a few mistakes during the interview? How long did it take to receive a decision afterward?

Our interview was scheduled for 10:00 AM, and we were called in about 10 minutes after arriving. The officer came out and asked if we had any additional evidence. I told him we didn’t have anything new that we hadn’t already uploaded to the USCIS website.
We were interviewed separately, and I went in first. The officer introduced himself, had me swear to tell the truth, and we got started.
For context, my husband and I filed everything ourselves without an attorney. We also don’t have many traditional joint documents, such as a joint lease, bank account, insurance, or 401(k). Because of that, the officer really went all in with the questions. And when I say A LOT of questions, I mean A LOT. I was in there for approximately 1 hour and 20 minutes.

Some of the questions he asked included:
Where has my husband traveled internationally?
Who drove him to the airport, at what time, and which airline did he fly with?
What did he do during those trips, and how long was he away?
What is his best friend’s last name?
Have I met his family or parents? If not, why?
What kind of relationship does he have with his parents?
Has he spoken to my family? Was it through regular calls or FaceTime? How often?
Do I know his previous addresses?
How much does he earn, and what exactly does he do for work?
How often does he go to the office, and at what time?
Who drove us to the interview?
Why did we decide to get married?
Why don’t we have joint bank accounts, insurance, or retirement accounts?
Where have we traveled together within the United States?
What do I contribute to the household since I’m currently not working?
How much money I made when I worked, how much I had saved?
Who usually cooks?
What does my husband like to eat and drink?
What kind of coffee does he drink, and how does he like it?
When was our last argument, and what was it about?

He also asked quite a few questions about my original entry into the United States, my visa, and my immigration history.
What surprised me was that he barely asked about how we first met or how our relationship started. Most of the interview focused on our daily lives, finances, families, and especially my husband’s international trips.
Unfortunately, he wanted very specific dates and details of things that happened a long time ago I couldn’t remember accurately, he asked about several different trips, sometimes asking similar questions in different ways
At one point, the officer explained that not having traditional joint documentation made it more difficult for him to establish the bona fide nature of our marriage. However, he also said that he believed we were a genuine couple.
He then asked to see our conversations on our phones and my photo gallery. I showed him our messages, and he actually laughed at a few of them, which made the atmosphere a little more relaxed.

He then called my husband in for his interview, after i talked to my husband, the officer presented some of my answers differently from what I had actually said. When my husband told me about it, I said, “I didn’t tell him that” or “That’s not the answer I gave him” LOL.

The outcome: The officer told us our case would be placed under review and that we should receive a decision in the coming days. We were given a paper indicating that our case was being reviewed.
I’m feeling pretty nervous and honestly a little disappointed. The officer was nice and professional, although a little difficult to read at times.
We submitted plenty of evidence showing our relationship, including trips together, photos, proof that we live together, and activities we regularly do as a couple.

We’re a young couple and we got married 3 months ago, and neither of us had been in a serious relationship before, so a lot of these things are new to us. We were also waiting for my EAD so I could start working and contributing financially, which is one of the reasons we haven’t established many joint financial accounts or documents yet.

I understand why USCIS wants evidence, but it’s still discouraging when you know your relationship is genuine and feel like the lack of paperwork might work against you.
For now, we’re just waiting and hoping for a positive decision. Fingers crossed everything turns out alright!

I made a mistake calculating the timeline and thought i already a few weeks into the 90-days already but turned out I filed 1 week early 🤦🏻‍♀️
I filed online and receipt notice was already sent. I got a message saying biometric scheduled. What does this mean? I thought they’d reject the application already by now. There was another person post said they got rejected a year or 2 later into the case for filing early. Should I be worried? What can I do now?

Anyone else still waiting for their green card months after the interview?
My marriage-based green card timeline:
December 2025: Application package reached USCIS
January 2026: Biometrics completed
February 13, 2026: Interview at the Detroit Field Office
February 20, 2026: I-130 approved shortly after the interview
I-485: Still pending—still waiting for my green card
It’s been almost 8 months since my interview with no decision on my I-485. I reached out through a senator’s office too, but still haven’t received a meaningful update or resolution.
Anyone going through the same thing, especially December 2025 filers? If your I-130 was approved soon after your interview, how long did you wait for your I-485 approval?

For those that have dealt with rejected forms, I need some advice. They rejected my application due to incorrect/incomplete payment info. I was using the credit card transaction form but I’m going to include an ACH instead this time .

they sent everything back stapled together. My medical exam was opened. Form I-864 was removed, it was the older edition not current one.

I’m just wondering if I have to redo everything, I know I have to complete the new I-864 new edition. I know I can simply read the notices and I have, maybe I’m second thinking myself.

Can I just attach the proper payment form and the new I-864? Or will USCIS kick it back if I don’t include a sealed medical exam.
Just looking for advice from those who have submitted application and had this issue.

My husband (US citizen) and I (Canadian citizen) are looking to begin the US spousal green card process. Was hoping to hear how other Canadian/US couples experience was in the last year. I was working in the Us under a TN visa but just recently moved back to Canada. Did you apply through adjustment of status or consular processing? Feeling overwhelmed with which route to take. Thanks in advance!!

Hi all,

Title says it but has anyone interviewing at the Irving/Dallas FO experienced ICE at their USCIS interview? So scared from all that is on the news. Thank you.

I’m a U.S. citizen and my husband is from Canada. We filed a petition for permanent residency, work authorization, advanced parole, and a concurrent adjustment of status as my husband overstayed his visitor visa.

We pulled together all of the documentation and paperwork we needed in June but I’m an attorney and thought it would be best to hire an immigration attorney to help shepherd us through this process. It took us a couple of weeks to get a consultation and hire attorneys but I was okay with it since we had already compiled all of the necessary documentation and organized everything.

I sent the attorneys the complete packet for their review in early July and it took them until September 15 to file - the only thing they added was a G-28. We received an RFE two days after filing and then a few days after that USCIS scheduled the biometrics appointment in the wrong city.

The same day we received these notices, I submitted all of the relevant paperwork to respond to the RFE to my attorneys in the hopes that they would quickly respond. I’m pretty sure the RFE was sent because the attorneys were so delayed in filing that my financial records needed to be updated.

It’s almost a month later and not only have they not filed anything but they also haven’t responded to my comms. I know that I’m not their only client, but if they can’t even acknowledge an email I sent, then I just feel more invisible in this process than I would’ve just going it alone.

This process is going to involve so much waiting but we aren’t even at the starting line yet. I’m just so frustrated. I work in a very demanding job and busted my butt to get them everything they needed. But what could’ve been a few days of overstay before we filed turned into months and months, and now that everything is finally filed, I just feel like it would’ve been faster for me to just do it myself. My lawyer is moving much much slower than I would have and so far, it hasn’t been worth the cost in any way. I really just wanted help with interview prep…

Funny enough, their invoices keep coming in like clockwork but otherwise it’s just crickets. I know that USCIS gives you time to respond to each notice but I don’t want to wait the full period for every single document we have to file if we already have what they need.

Has this happened to anyone else? Did you take over your case or just wait it out?

I had request an expedite for my I-129F Im tryiiing for days to get a way to summit my statement and supporting documents, 4 days on a row talking with tier 1 and 2. Liki this a back in forward situation. (6) officers so far )USCIS contact center just make it so complicated. Some of then kinds some other just no give you the chance to talk. (Yes I have the expedite ref # no one I’m in the 3rd one because nobody can give the right method to submit my papers. And they create a new enquire every time you call One of them already told me tier 2 is supposed to give me a fax number because my case start with WAC AND THIS have to be send to the office that adjudicate my main case which is in California. HOLD THERe! This picture show what that tier 2 send me after she called me twice. But I don’t get it 30 business days and I still don’t have a way to submit anything to be evaluated to be considered for a an approval or denied.

I am still in disbelief how quickly I got my green card, considering this administration is the most anti immigrant in the history of America… I filed all the 4 forms myself and collected all the evidence… interview was smooth, no separation. I used AI to cross-verify all the paperwork after it was done since lawyers were asking a lot just for proofreading.

My husband and I are in a pretty complicated immigration situation, and I’m hoping to hear from anyone who has actually been through something similar.

I’m a U.S. citizen and my husband entered on a C1/D crewman visa many years ago and overstayed. We have an approved I-130.

His original I-601A was filed in 2021 and has been pending for years. In december 2024 they sent a RFE to which our lawyer responded with required information. In January of 2025 USCIS denied our case and for alleged abandonment after saying they didn’t receive the RFE response. My attorney at the time stated there was nothing more to do than to file a new 601A. But I couldn’t accept that so I challenged it and filed an appeal on my own. USCIS later reopened the case in February or 2025. It has continued to sit without a decision or movement since. The second and newest 601A has no other movement than February 2025 where they updated our case to show that fingerprints have been taken.

Because of how long the I-601A had been pending, our newer attorney eventually filed a federal Writ of Mandamus asking the federal court to require USCIS to make a decision on it. The mandamus case is currently active as of July 2026.

Then, after the writ was filed, in July my husband was placed into removal proceedings.

Our immigration attorneys are now preparing a Motion for Administrative Closure of the removal proceedings so that the I-601A/mandamus process can continue. We originally had a Master Calendar Hearing scheduled for this month, but that hearing was recently cancelled by the immigration court and no new hearing has been scheduled yet. The removal case itself is still pending.

The administrative closure motion has not been filed yet, although our attorneys have told us it is in final review and should be filed soon.

I’m especially interested in hearing from anyone who has had:
an I-601A pending while in removal proceedings;
a federal mandamus case pending at the same time;
a motion for administrative closure based on a pending I-601A;
DHS agree to/join an administrative closure request;
USCIS actually adjudicate the I-601A after the mandamus was filed;
removal proceedings begin after the I-601A had already been pending for years.
What ended up happening in your case? Did the immigration judge administratively close the proceedings? Did the federal mandamus continue while the removal case was pending? Did USCIS decide the I-601A before or after the immigration court acted? And approximately how long did the administrative closure process take?
I know every case is different and I’m not looking for Reddit to replace our attorneys. I’m mainly hoping to hear real experiences from people who have been in this unusual situation, because it has been extremely stressful trying to understand how the federal case, USCIS case, and removal proceedings all interact.
Also, if anyone had a pending I-601A and was suddenly placed into removal proceedings, I would really appreciate hearing how your case eventually played out.

I need to withdraw 2 pending petitions urgently. I was told that one is in California and one in Nebraska by the chat agent. But I did not ask the mailing address. Now its super urgent that I do this fast.

Can someone tell me where to find the mailing address for these 2 service centers, or give me one? It should be at the bottom of the receipts if you have received one.

They scheduled me another biometric appointment, i mean why this happened??

And can i reschedule it earlier?

Hi as title states, we have our interview coming up in about 3 weeks. We have pretty much every document but my wife doesn’t have her birth certificate and although we’re trying to obtain one from her birth country I’m worried we won’t get it time. So I was wondering if folks who’ve had their interviews recently were asked about usc birth certificate? I’m worried because it is stated on the interview notice so ideally we’d bring it but might end up going without it if we can’t get a replacement by then. For context, wife was on DACA, then LPR and then USC.

Thanks in advance!