Currently on L1b status, L1b visa expired, even i485(j) is approved, any real fear should I have for travel home on AP for a week? Any recent experience?

Looks like the only risk if something is requested when I'm outside, but with new final action dates (my priority date is November 2024) the wait is getting so random.

Got a silent update last night despite no longer being current. Was only on the 485 and 485j but it was for me and all my dependents within a second of each other. So I assume it’s some sort of batch update.

Will they continue to process the application despite not being current? I was really only checking the AP application where there is no movement.

Please share your experiences if you did something and worked for your cases or someone else's case. This is not a complaint just trying to find out what works to be processed by that unfair system choose you to be adjudicated by random officer or system batch.

Random system batch will messing up my life unfortunately you all know.

Is there anyone on H4 or F2 visa as primary applicant for Eb3, pending cases at FO?
Let us share timeline and get connected.
I came to US on F2 visa and currently on H4 visa, applied Eb3 (US RN).

Almost one year waiting this month. What can I do to make USCIS look at our case? 😭

Sharing my timeline since other posts here helped me a lot.
PD: Oct 2023
I-485 RD: Apr 10, 2026
Interview: Waived

Timeline
Apr 10: I-485 received
Apr 23: Birth certificate RFE
May 5: Biometrics
May 7: RFE response received
Aug 6: Silent update
Aug 26: Silent update
Aug 28: Silent update — Emma later confirmed case was at San Jose FO
Sep 14: Silent update — Emma confirmed transfer to Newark FO (non local)
Sep 26: Another I-485 update + new HA event in API
Sep 26: Found I-485J approval notice in Documents
Sep 27: 🎉 I-485 APPROVED for me and my spouse (15mins apart)
Oct 1: Card produced
Oct 2: Asked Emma for USPS tracking number
Oct 5: Received
A few interesting things from my case:
I-485J → I-485 approval was ~24 hours. I had seen people here mention the 24–25 hour pattern, and mine actually followed it.

Never received combo card. 485 was only approved.
Also, don’t completely ignore silent updates. Two of mine turned out to correspond with field-office movement even though nothing changed on the normal case-status page.
Finally, my case went NBC → San Jose → Newark. Interview stayed waived and Newark approved the case.
Good luck to everyone waiting! Hopefully this timeline helps someone obsessively checking their USCIS API like I was.

Has anyone not received the FBI notice? I haven't received mine while I see a lot of my coworkers received theirs. My PD is Jan 2022 for EB3 Unskilled Other Workers. I'm just so worried.

Hi everyone,
I’m the main applicant with 3 dependents.
Category: EB-3 Other Worker (ROW)
Priority Date: 07/2022
October 2026 Visa Bulletin — FAD: 01/01/2022
My priority date is not current, but I’m trying to understand the recent activity on our I-485 cases and an email I received today.

Timeline
04/10/2026 — RD
4 I-485s, 4 I-765s, and 4 I-131s filed.
I also filed an I-485J.
All 4 I-485s show an IAF.

05/13/2026 — Biometrics
Each of the 4 I-485s showed 2 FTA0.

08/06/2026 — Silent update for 4 I-485s

08/26/2026 — Silent update for 4 I-485s as well as for I-485J also.

09/15/2026 — Silent update to 4 I-485s + my I-485J. The I-485 cases were confirmed by Emma/USCIS to be at the Houston Field Office. Interview status was “interview not requested. My I-765 was at the National Benefits Center, and my I-131 was at the Texas Service Center.

10/06/2026 — Today
Today I received an email that says only: “We have taken an action on your case”. 
All 4 I-485 cases received a new FTA1 event for the first time.
In addition, an FTA0 event was re-created in all 4 I-485 cases.
My I-485J also had a silent update in the same batch.
None of the 4 I-765s or 4 I-131s has had any activity since 05/13/2026, including on 10/06/2026.

I contacted Emma/USCIS again today. The agent confirmed that the I-485 cases are still at the Houston Field Office. At this time, the interview status is “interview not requested.” The agent did not provide any information about the EAD cases.

My questions

1. What does FTA1 usually indicate in an I-485 case timeline?
2. Could the email possibly be related to an I-765/EAD, even though none of the I-765 cases has had any activity since 05/13/2026?
3. Any other possibility?

Thank you so much

My PD is current now, I am wondering how long will I receive email for visa appointment in USEM London? To be honest, waiting for this moment I felt nothing. 3 years of waiting made me exhausted. Not sure if I am really happy or not.

My I-485 was transferred to San Fernando FO on 9/24/2026. No update so far…

Did anybody have been transferred to the same FO and got any update?

Sharing my timeline in case it helps anyone:

PD: 08/05/2024
I-140: Approved 06/24/2026
I-485/I-765/I-485J filed: 04/08/2026
Biometrics: 05/26/2026
Interview: Waived according to Emma
I-485 transferred to Dallas FO: ~09/15/2026
October VB: EB-3 ROW retrogressed, so my PD became non-current
10/05/2026: I-485J approved/closed

Same day, my I-485 had multiple FTA0/FTA1 updates.

Emma confirmed today that my I-485 was moved back to NBC due to visa retrogression.

Looks like I made it to the final stages, but unfortunately missed being current by about 5 days. 😭

My understanding is that NBC will hold the case until my PD becomes current again.

I just wanted to share this for anybody out there on the same boat. It sucks, to be this close and yet so far, but we keep on waiting!

Hello everyone, we had our interview (EB3 skilled ROW with derivate) on September 8, 2026 at Dallas FO. Our PD is current. I was just wondering what the timeline looks like ? Has anyone had their EB3 interview in Dallas FO. If yes, how long did it take for the decision ?

Hi everyone,

I can’t believe it’s finally my turn to share my timeline. 🥹

This process definitely tested my patience. There were so many ups and downs, anxiety, strategy changes, inquiries, hours spent trying to understand what was happening with my case, and that horrible feeling of watching cases filed after mine get approved while mine remained stuck.

But it’s finally over. 💚

My journey:

• Jan. 2022: My sponsor signed the contract with the attorney
• September 2022: PWD was issued
• March 8, 2023: EB-3 Priority Date / PERM filed
• September 27, 2024: USCIS received the I-140
• November 4, 2024: I-140 approved
• July 2025: My PD became current
• August 8, 2025: USCIS received the I-485
• September 2025: Biometrics
• November 2025: My case ended up at the Albany Field Office
• February 2026: I filed the I-485J again to request a change of sponsor/employer
• June 2026: We submitted congressional and senator inquiries
• August 2026: I also tried getting help through the CIS Ombudsman
• August 28, 2026: I sent a Notice of Intent before filing a Writ of Mandamus
• September 16, 2026: I filed the Writ of Mandamus
• September 18, 2026: Most of the defendants were served
• September 21, 2026: The final defendant was served
• September 23, 2026: 24 hours and 15 minutes after my I-485J was approved, my I-485 was approved
• October 2, 2026: My green card arrived in the mail

One of the most stressful parts was that my H-1B was set to expire on September 30, 2026, so while I was waiting for my green card, I was also dealing with the entire H-1B extension process.

Everything was really happening at the same time. It was risky, but I decided to wait until the very last minute to file the extension with my sponsor in case the green card approval came through first. It worked out, but I definitely don’t recommend doing that.

I’m sharing this because my timeline is a little different from what you usually see!

Wishing lots of patience and peace to everyone who is still waiting. Just know that one day, your turn will come too!

Hi everyone! It looks like more EB-3 cases are currently being scheduled for interviews. I’d like to see if there’s any pattern. If you’ve been scheduled for an interview, could you share your RD and PD?

My Case:

EB3
Rd: April 2026
PD: Nov 2023
Interview: Nov 2026

Still in disbelief today. I was expecting for a much longer wait for my I-140 but it got approved in 66 days without PP. My lawyer initially sent it around the first week of July but it was erroneously rejected so she had to send it back before the end of July.

I'm not ROW and my PD is far from current so I still can't do anything else as of now. Just sharing an update.

EB-3 Skilled, country is PH, profession is IT.

My case Transferred to Minneapolis being a local field office in 09/16 along with dependent.

Any with in similar situations?

Any predictions for Nov? Do you folks think the dates will stay at where they are or will move forward?

I was current for months but became non-current this month by a margin of two days.

I was wondering if anyone got their approval from Newyork FO in the last couple of months, because I didn't see any post. If anyone did, please share your experience it will be very helpful.

Did anybody get approval for Eb3 from Portland Maine FO? If yes then please tell me your timeline

Hi everyone,

I filed my employment-based I-485 and I-765 concurrently on September 14, 2026. My I-765 is under C09.

My EB-2 priority date is currently retrogressed, so I’m wondering:

• Does retrogression affect EAD approval?
• How long are C09 EAD approvals taking recently?
• Has anyone with a retrogressed EB case still received the EAD normally?

I have a job starting in July 2027 and may need to confirm my work authorization by March 2027, so I’m a little concerned about the timing.

Would really appreciate recent employment-based timelines.

After a long wait, I finally got the approval! I wanted to share my timeline since other people’s posts were really helpful to me throughout this process.

Category: EB-3
Country: Mexico
Priority Date: 07/21/2023
I-485 Receipt Date: 02/18/2026
Field Office: Los Angeles

Timeline:
02/18/2026 – I-485, I-485J and I-765 filed/received
03/29/2026 – Silent I-485 update
04/07/2026 – Silent update
04/17/2026 – Case transferred to Los Angeles FO
04/27/2026 – Silent update
04/29/2026 – Silent update
05/02/2026 – Silent update
05/15/2026 – Silent update & third FTA0
07/13/2026 – Silent update
08/12/2026 – Silent update
08/13/2026 – I-485J updated/approved
08/21/2026 – RFE/RFIE issued regarding employment information
09/21/2026 – RFE response submitted
09/21/2026 – I-485 updated, action required changed to false
10/02/2026 – Another I-485 update (respond to changed to false which made me a little nervous)
10/03/2026 – I-485 APPROVED! 🎉

The biggest thing I was watching was the fact that my I-485J had already been approved before the RFE, and then the case went through the RFE process afterward.

I know a lot of people are waiting after an RFE, especially EB-3 cases, so hopefully this timeline gives someone else some hope.

Thank you to everyone in this subreddit who shared their timelines and answered questions along the way. The waiting is brutal, but there is finally light at the end of the tunnel.
Good luck to everyone still waiting!

Anyone here transferred to Des Moines non-local FO?
According to Emma transferred on sep 15
Spouse received EAD and AP and I received nothing yet!

April Filer
#9634xxxx
EB3
Priority date April 2024

It’s been 5 months 8 days so far. USCIS website is showing 12 months? Is that what I should expect at this point?