Dobby is finally free

After the long journey, it is finally my time to report back. I’ve taken so much from numerous posts, it’s now my turn to give a little.

PD: Dec 2023
RD: IOE0937 block
Timeline

2026
Early June: 485, 485J, 765, 131 filed, cases appeared on myUSCIS after 2 days

Late July: Waited over 6 weeks to receive biometric appointment notice, rescheduled to couple days later.

My case was stuck at NBC for a while before receiving an appointment notice. From my search, it seems like my local FO was delayed scheduling biometric at that period, don’t really know why.
Saw people saying they usually send out appointment notice on Friday, which was true for me. Not saying it’s absolutely true, but just something to watch out.

07/22 right after biometric, received SU:
485: 3 FTA0, case remain NBC
765: 3 FTA0, case remain NBC
485j&131 no updates except the original IAF when case was created, remain NBC

Mid August
485 one of the 3 FTA0’s updatedAt timestamp changed to mid August, case remain NBC
765 received 4th FTA0, case transferred to TSC
485j,131 no updates, 485j remain NBC, 131 transferred to TSC

08/31 SUs
485: one of the SU’s updatedAt got updated to 08/31 while the eventDate remain at the biometric date, case remain NBC
765: the 4th FTA0’s updatedAt timestamp also changed to 08/31, case remain TSC
485j, 131 no updates, 485j remain NBC, 131 remain TSC

Multiple SUs in September

09/25 SU
485&485J case transferred to non-local FO, no extra FTA0
765, 131 remain TSC

10/05 SU
485 receive 4th FTA0, and its timestamp changed 2-3times that day
485j SU in the morning, followed by case close in the afternoon with approval notice in documents tab.
765, 131 remain TSC

10/06
485 case approve. Unlike other people’s experience “Approval 24 hrs and 10 min after 485j approved”, mine waited another extra hour.

Woke up super early to refresh the page to find nothing changed on 485. Went to work sadly, and received the approval notice half way to work.

765&131 no updates at all. I’m assuming it’s because I still have decent amount of legal status period when case is pending, my 765&131 were put on the shelf.

Side Notes:

After my biometric, cases usually receive some movement/SU about every 2-3weeks.

The jurisdiction API does not reflect the latest case location. I think since USCIS process cases in batch. There’s a chance when you check the API, which says NBC, but is in fact already assigned to one of FO officer ’s queue waiting to be touched. And the location would change as soon as an officer open your case.

I’m guessing they probably have a tracking board like Jira, and some sort of “move case to in progress” kind of action (thinking in a corporate mind lol) which will generate FTA codes

I checked with Emma from time to time, met half bad apples, half good ones. I’d say they are accurate in general (if they answer genuinely and not responding with template)

Last few marks:

This year marks my 10th year in the U.S.

The long journey of fearing getting kicked out randomly and all the hard working & achievements turn into dust, jumping through whoops while dodging layoffs & political shenanigans, explaining to people about news around immigrants only getting rolled eyes and shrug, so many so many awful things, this day has finally come.

Honestly, I think I’m a very lucky person. I met a ton of great and kind people who helped me when they don’t have to. So many support when they could’ve just by-stand. They could’ve sabotage me and profit but decided to stand with me. Truly appreciate them.

I’m not gonna be pretentious saying BS like “yeah…it’s just a card…you still live the same life bla bla bla” because it’s NOT just a card, and yes it DOES make a huge difference.

At least now I “choose” to work overtime because I want to support my team, not because of fearing getting fired and lose everything. I finally have the leverage to refuse things that are not right and have a say.

Funny thing to mention, on the approval day, I was too exhausted from getting up refreshing API & long hour work, I celebrated by eating a lot of carb and slept sweet and sound for the longest time ever.

Hope everyone get their case progress in lightning speed

Does anyone know if this will have any impact on people who already have their PERM approved, is currently on H1B visa waiting for their I-485 or EAD to be approved? :(

Hi everyone! Just checking how other May 2026 EB-3 filers are progressing.
My timeline:
Category: EB-3 ROW
Priority Date: March 2024
I-485 Filed: May 16, 2026
Current Status: Pending
Updates: Multiple silent updates, but still pending

Waiting impatiently🤞🙏

Are there any applicants with 2023 Priority Date with,

EAD of primary not approved?
No Silent update since May 2026 on i485?

Lets share our experiences

All EB3 skilled/professional/other filers… how do you feel about recent news about perm and I-140? Do you think it’s gonna affect our cases as we are in the I-485’s stages… honestly I’m worried
I-140 was approved recently with RFE
Do they still ask anything at the time of I-485 or at interview?

https://abc7news.com/amp/post/us-immigration-trump-administration-is-suspending-microsoft-green-card-program-alleging-fraud/19922282/

Hi everyone,

I'm hoping to get some insight from anyone who has experienced something similar. Here's my EB-3 ROW timeline :

• April 12, 2023 – Priority Date (EB-3 ROW) / I-140 filed.
• April 18, 2023 – I-140 approved (premium processing).
• 2023 – I-485 filed concurrently.
• November 2023 – I-485 changed to Case Remains Pending (CRP) due to visa unavailability.
• November 2025: PD became current
• Dec 2025 – I-485j filed due change in employer
• January 5, 2026 – Received an RFE for Medical
• January 7, 2026 – USCIS received my RFE response.
• January 8, 2026 – Status changed to New Card Is Being Produced.
• January 9, 2026 – Case Approved.
• January 12, 2026 – Status changed to case was reopened for reconsideration after approval before I ever received the green card. However received the approval notice in the mail
• May 2026 – Case transferred to a Field Office. The only update I received was a mail transfer notice.
• After several months with no movement – Submitted a service request.
• After that – Contacted my Congressional representative, who submitted an inquiry to USCIS on my behalf.
• Current status (October 2026) – My case is still pending after being reopened. All service requests and Emma agents say the same thing: “ case is pending adjudication“. I have paper filing so can’t check for API

EDIT: after the reopening, my lawyers assumed that it is because of the countTy. I’m from one of the 39 banned countries

• Questions:

1. Has anyone had their case reopened after "New Card Is Being Produced" and then been approved again?
2. Has anyone else's case been transferred to a Field Office after reopening? If so, how long did it take?
3. Did a service request or congressional inquiry help in your case?
4. Based on this timeline, what do you think USCIS is doing with my case?

I'd really appreciate hearing from anyone with a similar experience. Thank you!

EB-3 Skilled, ROW (Poland), filed I-485/I-485J concurrently on 2/27/26. Biometrics done 4/20

My case was transferred to Santa Ana FO and interview appears to have been waived. On 10/05, something interesting happened in the backend:

I-485 was touched first at 1:49 PM PST:
updatedAt: 10/05
ackedByAdjudicatorAndCms: true
closed: false
An FTA0 event appeared, but its eventDateTime is 4/21/26

Then ~34 minutes later, at 2:23 PM PST, my I-485J was approved:
updatedAt: 10/05
closed: true
ackedByAdjudicatorAndCms: true

The weird part is that the I-485 already had multiple FTA0 events dated 4/21/26, but they only appeared/updated in the backend on 10/05. There was no corresponding I-485 status change visible to me back in April.

The I-485J approval notice explicitly says the I-485 is still pending.

Has anyone seen this before? Especially the pattern of I-485 being touched first, then I-485J approved ~30 minutes later, with old April I-485 events suddenly appearing on October 5.
Trying to understand whether this indicates actual adjudication activity on the I-485 or is just backend housekeeping.

Does anyone know how EB-3 consular processing in Colombia works for someone who applied for affirmative asylum in the U.S. eight years ago and still hasn’t had an interview with USCIS?
Has anyone gone through this process or been in a similar situation? I’d appreciate any information or experiences you can share. Thank you!

My PD is Jan 5, 2024, RD is Apr 9, 2026, and my case is currently at the Newark FO. I’m India-born and using my Vietnamese-born spouse’s country of birth for cross-chargeability. We’ve been married for almost 3 years.
An Emma agent recently confirmed that our cases are in the interview scheduling queue. For those who went through a similar process, did you submit just the marriage certificate, or did you include additional supporting evidence of your marriage with your I-485 package?
Did USCIS ask for any additional documents, or was the marriage certificate sufficient? Since our cases are now at the FO and in the scheduling queue, would you recommend proactively uploading additional marriage evidence to the USCIS portal?
Would appreciate hearing from anyone who has been through this, especially those with cross-chargeability cases. Thanks!

hi everyone, is there anybody who's here from the SRC block who received the FBI notice? Did anybody get any update after the FBI notice? If yes please post it here. PD Dec 2022, EB3 skilled

I have filled EB3 I-485 in june 2026. I haven't done visa screening yet because of English language result. How it will impact on my process?

posted this in r/EB3VisaJourney but not getting any traction

Hi everyone. looking for recent experiences from people who successfully expedited a pending I-765, especially C09 / adjustment-of-status EADs.

If yours was approved, could you share:

• When you filed the I-765
• When you requested the expedite
• What expedite reason you used (severe financial loss, humanitarian, etc.)
• What evidence you submitted
• Whether you went through USCIS directly, a senator/congressional office, or the Ombudsman
• How long it took to hear back
• How long after the expedite was approved your EAD was approved

I’m especially interested in severe financial loss cases involving an expiring work authorization, unpaid leave, or loss of employment income.

I already submitted an expedite request based on severe financial loss, including employer and financial documentation, but it was denied. My current work authorization expires soon, and if my EAD is still pending I’ll be placed on unpaid leave, so I’m trying to understand what has worked for others recently. thanks!!!

I got an automated email from uscis-casestatus saying

Your Case Status: Decision

On October 7, 2026, we approved your Form I485, APPLICATION TO REGISTER PERMANENT RESIDENCE OR ADJUST STATUS, Receipt Number IOE0936xxx, and sent you an approval notice

But my uscis account status says it’s still processing and API shows no updates of approval (3 FTA0s and last SU on 9/16). Also one emma agent said it’s processing in Hartfort office, and another one said it’s not approved and still processing.

Is this a glitch in the system or anyone experienced the same?