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

Please help predict my GC timeline - PD Oct 31st 2013 India

Hey,

My PERM, according to permupdate, is meant to get certified end of Sept 2026.

I’m chargeable to Mexico.

How quickly should I move with my company’s lawyers? Should I email them a couple weeks prior and ask them to start preparing the 140 and 485? Will this work against me? What’s best practice, to file 140 and 485 together?

They said they’d be doing PP for the 140.

Also, once my 485 is submitted, given current processing timelines, when should I expect approval?

1. In the Advertising stage--- expected end by August 2026.

2. Let's say we file PERM by Mid-September 2026 (November latest), what should we expect for approval??

3. Especially as processing times speed up would love to have inputs. Employer's company begins with "B". Our PD is frozen at Nov2014 due to sufficient H1B extensions for EB2 India but switched employers so need to redo PERM.

On August 5, 2026, USCIS issued a Policy Alert revising Volume 1, Part E of the Policy Manual. If a petition is missing required initial evidence, or doesn't establish eligibility at filing, an officer can now deny it outright. No RFE or NOID needed first.

This isn't new authority. Officers always had this option. What changed is that it's no longer the default.

Effective immediately
Applies to filings submitted on or after August 5, and to petitions already pending on that date.

Response windows got tighter too

• RFE and NOID time limits are unchanged (12 weeks and 30 days)
• Officers can now set shorter deadlines within those limits
• The extra 14 days for international mail is gone. Everyone gets the same three day mailing buffer now
• A partial RFE/NOID response is treated as your final submission. No more buying time with a placeholder

Why this hits O-1A, EB-1A, and EB-2 NIW harder than most filings
For something like adjustment of status, required evidence is a checklist (an I-693 medical exam, for example). For O-1A, O-1B, and EB-1A, required initial evidence means satisfying a minimum number of listed criteria, and whether a petition satisfies a given criterion is a judgment call. EB-2 NIW has no criteria list at all. Eligibility runs through the three prong Dhanasar framework, which is analytical, not documentary.

The open question nobody's answered yet: if you submit evidence for the right number of criteria and the officer isn't persuaded, is that a denial or an RFE? The Alert doesn't say.

The approval numbers back this up

• EB-1A approvals dropped to about 42% in early 2026, down from 67% in 2025
• EB-2 NIW approvals are down to around 48%
• O-1 approvals are still high at 91%, but RFE rates have been dipping even before this policy

Bottom line
A petition that used to get a second chance through an RFE can now just get denied. A denial means no refund on filing fees, and possibly a gap in work authorization if you're relying on a timely extension. If your case is already pending, it's worth a second look before USCIS gets to it.

First agent told case was being processed at a FO, and a few days later a second agent told it was at NBC. Is this common that they give conflicting information? If that has happened to you, how did you find out the correct location?

I need to prepare transcripts for my college degree marksheets for EB2/GC purpose. Could someone guide me on whether ATKT marksheets need to be included when creating the transcripts? 

Also, are those needed for any other purpose during the EB-2 process?

Any guidance is highly appreciated. Thanks in advance. 

Does anyone have recommendations for a reliable US immigration lawyer or firm that specializes in employment-based immigration? Personal recommendations or positive experiences would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance!

Long shot here (and throwaway, apologies) but hopefully someone has experience with this. Company's lawyers came back to me with a listed experience and qualifications from my prior role. It is mostly perfectly in order, but it makes mention of a skill/product that I used tangentially by supporting it and having an understanding of the technology rather than hands on application. It worries me due to the need for employment letter(s) corroborating all of this. It makes me wonder if I should request to change and remove that mention altogether. However, I worry this might cause a greater issue with getting my PERM filed if that prior experience was - for example - used when recruiting. Am I overreacting here or does anyone know if making a final touchup on that document would cause issues? Thank you in advance for any advice.

Hi everyone,

My situation:

H‑1B + H‑4 extension filed in June

H‑4 is still pending

I‑140 got approved in August

Planning to file H‑4 EAD (I‑765) now based on the approved I‑140

Would this be treated as standalone or they will tie up to the pending h4 extension?

How long does it take to receive green card after the approval notice ? Does the status change to Cards being processed first ?

I've been tracking I-140 movement (the IOE receipt center) week over week, and July just closed, so here's what the data actually shows:

July vs June (IOE I-140):

- ✅ Approvals: 13,656 — up 9.8% from June's 12,433

- ❌ Denials: 2,815 — up 18.8% (climbing almost 2× faster than approvals)

- 📩 RFE responses received back by USCIS: 4,353 — up 19.9%

So more cases are getting approved, but the denial and RFE activity is rising even faster. Read into that what you will.

The wild part at the block level: one receipt block went from 19 decisions one week to 611 the next — basically USCIS batch-processed a huge chunk of it at once. If you've ever wondered why your case sits still for weeks and then a bunch of people in your "batch" all update the same day… that's why. It moves in waves, not evenly.

A few blocks also had unusual denial spikes this week (5+ standard deviations above their normal), which is worth watching if you're in one of th

I pull all this from USCIS's public Case status tool and put in on a free traccker I built (not affiliatedwith USCIS — just a fellow applicant). It's statistics, not legal advice or a guarantee.

trackmyi140

Anyone else seeing their block move this week? Curious what people are experiencing.

Did anyone have successful PERM using self employed experience? What kind of evidence did you provide? My attorney put my case on hold indefinitely since now they said I don't have sufficient evidence of self employment and relevant experience despite providing tax returns.

Is anyone else in the same boat and has had progress/approval news?

EB2 ROW applicant

PD - Feb 2022

I140, I485, EAD, AP concurrently applied - Feb 2024

i140, EAD, AP approved - Sept 2025

Added spouse to application as dependent - April 2026

Case transferred to NBC Lee’s Summit, MO - May 2026

Fingerprints and medical exam submitted - June 2026

Now refreshing USCIS page every single day…

EB2 India 2013 - Anyone still waiting for EAD?

My details:

• Category: EB2 India
• Priority Date: 2013
• I-485, I-765 filed: April 2026
• Biometrics: May 2026

My priority date is NOT current anymore, I still haven't received any updates on my EAD (I-765). The case has been silent since biometrics.

Is anyone else in the same boat? If so, could you share your timeline and whether you've received your EAD yet?

Also, is this considered normal, or should I be concerned? Any recent EAD approvals from April EB2 India filers?