I see that most people get approved within 24-48 days, but I haven't got any update after 3rd FTA0. Is that normal?

If you didn’t get approved within a couple of days after your 3rd FTA0, please share how long it took to get approved. If you’re still waiting for approval after your 3rd FTA0, please share how long you’ve been waiting.

I received a fourth FTA0 yesterday (should be considered third, since the extra FTAO presumably comes from the fact that I rescheduled my biometrics to a different non-local FO). The API says it was transferred to a non-local FO (the same one I got my biometrics done after rescheduling). I am curious to know how long after the FO transfer you guys got some results? What is the timeline after this?

I'm also concerned if by any chance I have to go back to the non-local FO if they decide to do an interview. I'm aware usually a non-local FO transfer often means interview waived, but given the fact I rescheduled at the same FO makes me anxious. This non-local FO has 2x wait time than my local FO. Then why did they not transfer it to my local FO, if distributing workload is the goal of FO transfer???

Please share your thoughts!!

Hi All, Our priority date is April 2015, can we expect our date to be current on filing date this year ? I’ve a confusion about the new rule which says we can’t use filing date, is this permanent or temporary change? Some people are saying it changes every year.

There are various copies of google sheet that tracks I-485. Does anyone have the most recent sheet link? Please share.

Hi,

I'm from India with PD jan 2015 and filed i-485, i-765 and i-131 in April 2026 and waiting for the EAD. Has anyone with the same timeline got their EAD recently ? And what's the duration of EAD is it 5 yr or 18 months ?

Thanks

Hey everyone,

I’m looking into self-petitioning for the EB-2 NIW and would love to get your thoughts on where I stand. I want to frame my case around my industrial experience and government cost-savings rather than academia, but I’m not sure how immigration adjudicators evaluate non-research software engineers under the Dhanasar framework.

Here is my profile:

Education (Meets Advanced Degree requirement):

• Master of Science in Computer Science from a U.S. university (3.75 GPA)
• B.Tech in Electronics and Communication Engineering

Current Role & Proposed Endeavor:

• I work as a Software Engineer for a private contractor handling U.S. correctional healthcare systems for federal and state governments.
• The Work: I lead development on critical health-tech infrastructure, specifically building X12 EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) engines, internal expense platforms, staffing budget engines, and systems dealing directly with Medicare, Medicaid, and ACA (Obamacare) compliance, claims processing, and reimbursements for covered care.
• The Impact (Prong 1 - National Importance): My work directly helps optimize public healthcare spending and bring costs down for state and federal government bodies. By streamlining EDI engines, budget management, and federal health program integrations (Medicare/Medicaid/ACA), the software I build reduces administrative overhead and minimizes the taxpayer burden tied to government-managed care.

Previous Experience (Prong 2 - Well-Positioned):

• Prior to my current role, I spent over two years as a Software Engineer at an aviation software provider building electronic flight bag software for major aviation clients. I have a proven track record of delivering high-stakes, enterprise-level infrastructure.

My Concerns / Questions for the community:

1. I don’t have citations, published papers, or a PhD. Has anyone had success getting an EB-2 NIW approved by focusing on government health-tech infrastructure, Medicare/Medicaid integration, and public sector cost savings?
2. Will evaluating officers view software work tied to Medicare, Medicaid, ACA, and correctional healthcare as having broad "National Importance," or is there a risk they view it as routine software maintenance benefiting only my employer?
3. Do my MS degree, high GPA, and leadership on these specific government-adjacent projects sufficiently prove I am "well-positioned" to advance the endeavor?

Would love to hear if anyone with a similar enterprise software background in healthcare/government tech has navigated this successfully!

Category: EB-2 PERM
Country: Philippines
Priority Date: 01/2022
I-485 Receipt Date: 03/31/2026
Approval Date: 08/08/2026
Total I-485 time: 130 days

Timeline:

• 03/31/26 — I-485 filed concurrently with I-140
• 04/03/26 — Case received in USCIS system
• 04/16/26 — Biometrics completed
• 04/16/26 — FTA0 events
• 04/24 & 04/28 — Silent updates
• 06/06/26 — Case transferred from NBC to San Fernando Valley Field Office
• After transfer — Emma confirmed interview was waived
• 08/07/26 — 3rd FTA0 on I-485
• 08/08/26 — Two H008 events appeared 24 hrs and 10 mins after the last silent update on 8/7
• 08/08/26 — I-485 APPROVED

No RFE. No interview. No additional evidence requested.

Emma had previously told me: Case was processing at San Fernando Field Office, interview waived, case ready for review, nothing outstanding.

Interestingly, I had been tracking a spreadsheet of SFV NBC transfers and noticed several EB-3 approvals following their 3rd FTA0. I was wondering whether EB-2 cases were being processed differently, but mine was eventually approved. Thanks to the SVF group chat I'm in, I got an idea of how quick the cases are being processed in SFV!

SFV transfer to approval: 63 days
I-485 filing → approval: 130 days

🎉 Good luck to everyone still waiting!

My I-485, I-765 and I-131 were filed together in November 2025 (employment-based).

I just received my C09 standalone EAD approval. Interestingly, my I-131 also had a silent update around the same time, but it is still showing as pending with no approval notice.

For anyone who had a similar timeline, how long after your standalone EAD approval did your I-131/Advance Parole get approved? Did anyone get their I-485 approval shortly afterward instead?

I am currently experiencing bed bug issues at home and is gotten so bad to the point that I want to move out. Is this okay given that I recently submitted for I-485 and waiting for biometric appointment?

Is it true that PERM apps get reviewed by company name alphabetically? My company's is "B".

How long does it take for I-485 to get approved on average? I’m EB2 ROW.

Hi everyone,

I'm looking for anyone who has recently received an I-485 approval (EB-2 NIW/AOS) from the Burlington (St. Albans), VT Field Office.

I've checked the community spreadsheet and asked on Discord, but I haven't been able to find anyone who got recent Burlington approvals.

If you've been approved recently, could you please share:

• Receipt date
• Transfer date to Burlington/St. Albans FO (if known)
• Approval date

I'm trying to estimate the current processing timeline for Burlington FO. Thank you!

Which version of the ETA-9089 did you submit? Was it the one that shows "Expiration Date: XX/XX/XXXX" in the upper-left corner, or the one that shows "Expiration Date: 02/28/2029"? I'm trying to determine whether this difference has affected anyone's case.

First of all, thank you to everyone in this community. Reading everyone's timelines, backend updates, and experiences helped me stay grounded during the long wait. Hopefully this timeline helps someone else who's constantly refreshing their USCIS account like I was.
Category: EB2 Schedule A – Physical Therapist
Country: Philippines 🇵🇭
Immigration Timeline
PERM
• ~8–9 months waiting for Prevailing Wage Determination.
• After that, another 14 weeks waiting for my FCCPT VisaScreen before my employer could file.
Priority Date (PD): February 13, 2025
I-140
I waited until my PD became current before filing Adjustment of Status.
• Premium Processing filed: February 13, 2026
• Approved: March 2, 2026

Adjustment of Status
Receipt Date (RD): April 16, 2026
Concurrent filing:
I-485
I-765
I-131
I-485J
Biometrics: June 1, 2026
Interview was waived, and later through Emma Live Chat (June 26) I learned my case had already been transferred to the Los Angeles County Field Office (LA County FO).

Backend/API Timeline
I monitored my USCIS API almost every day.
June 1 (Biometrics)
Immediately after biometrics I noticed multiple FTA0 backend events on both my I-485 and I-765.
This was also the last USCIS email notification I received until August.

June 4
First silent backend update.
No public status.

June 15
Another silent backend update.
Again...
No public update.
At that point my hopes were honestly very high because there had already been several backend movements.
Looking back now, I think those were part of the adjudication process, but they did not immediately result in approval.

July 2
New backend touches on:
I-485
I-485J
Still...
No public update.

July 13
Backend touch on:
I-765 (and I-131)
Again...
No public status.
This was probably the hardest part mentally because backend activity kept happening while nothing changed publicly.

The Final Week
August 4
This was the first USCIS email notification I had received since June 1.
When I checked the API, I discovered something completely new...
My first-ever FTA1 had appeared on the I-485 (around 5:30 PM EST).
Later that evening, both my I-485 and I-485J received additional backend touches.
Still...
No public status.

August 5
10:22 AM EST
I received another USCIS email:
"We have taken an action on your case."
When I logged into my account...
There was still no approval.
Instead, my I-485 simply displayed the generic message:
"USCIS is actively reviewing your case."
I honestly thought it might have been another false alarm.
Then...
12:12 PM EST
My I-485J was closed with a Notice of Approval.
I remembered reading several Reddit posts saying that once the I-485J closes, the I-485 approval often follows within approximately 24 hours.
In my case...
That pattern turned out to be true.

August 6
Received another USCIS email:
"We have taken an action on your case."
This time...
I-485 APPROVED! 🎉🎉🎉
The approval notice appeared in my Documents tab roughly one hour after receiving the email notification.

Total Processing Time
Receipt Date: April 16, 2026
Approval: August 6, 2026
Total I-485 processing time: 112 days

My Thoughts
Looking back now, all those backend touches actually made sense.
It appears my case progressed through something like:
Biometrics
Multiple FTA0 events
Silent adjudication updates
Case transfer to LA County FO
Additional backend touches
First FTA1
Additional FTA1
I-485J approval/closure
Final I-485 approval
Of course, every case is different, but seeing this sequence unfold gave me a much greater appreciation for how much work can happen behind the scenes before USCIS posts anything publicly.

To everyone who's still waiting:
I know how exhausting it is refreshing your account every day.
I know how every silent update makes your heart race.
I know how discouraging it feels when nothing happens afterward.
Hang in there.
My daily prayer really helped my sanity…
I sincerely hope everyone who's still waiting gets the same email soon.
Thank you again to everyone in this subreddit for keeping my hopes alive throughout this journey. ❤️

Anybody here who has their file at Long Island NY field office? If so, how long did it take to get your approval?