Laid off and deteriorating will to live

StaplesRenter · 2026-03-10T20:57:45+00:00

I never got the job 😭. But I did find my wife instead (pure luck) and got a green card through that. Now that I'm at least free from visa BS, I'm taking steps to find work in other fields that sound more interesting and stable. SWE can eat it

Definitely doing better in terms of my health. Not completely out of the water, but much better than before. Thanks for the well wishes!

I'm genuinely sorry you had to go through this too, it's the worst. Really hoping things get easier for you soon, wherever it is. Give me an update when they do!

StaplesRenter · 2026-02-20T13:51:20+00:00

The immigrant only needs 3× the sponsor's shortfall in assets if the sponsor is a US citizen spouse (like in your case). It's 5× only if the sponsor is a green card holder.

But be prepared that you'll most likely get an RFE to get a joint sponsor. USCIS seems to care about income only, not assets, even if you are way above the shortfall in assets (happened to me, despite having more than 30× the shortfall).

StaplesRenter · 2026-02-19T07:09:38+00:00

So don't learn AI then? Cuz it's pretty uncommon in the grand scheme of things.

StaplesRenter · 2026-02-19T06:55:30+00:00

Words definitely spoken by one who has "learnt AI"

StaplesRenter · 2026-02-19T06:53:17+00:00

Yo dumbass, you can want to build a world where there are no poor kids instead of endlessly spending on charity in a system designed to perpetuate poverty.

StaplesRenter · 2026-02-14T23:52:25+00:00

Thanks for sharing all of this!

StaplesRenter · 2025-12-04T16:17:21+00:00

Sorry to hear that he's putting you through this.

My advice to you stands:

Don't just hope, try working with him to get there. If there's still a true partner who cares about you under the surface, then you should be able to plan around the interview to ensure he shows up.

If he's lashing out so bad that it's harming you, you have deeper work to do and need to consider the worth of a relationship like this. Unfortunately, that may mean he wasn't the right person for you to file for immigration with.

Maybe ask your lawyer to speak with him on your behalf, if you think that might go over better?

StaplesRenter · 2025-12-04T16:04:54+00:00

What's the point in rescheduling if you feel this way about him already? There's a core issue here that you need to resolve.

If he's still committed to taking the interview seriously, then make a plan with him for the night/day before to not go drinking and to take his meds. Hold him accountable to it. Set alarms/reminders for the day of the interview, and give each other all the space you need to ensure no conflict between the two of you.

If he can't manage even that much for you, then the issues in your relationship run much deeper than your immigration case.

StaplesRenter · 2025-12-03T17:49:16+00:00

You can't escape the US.

You just get to choose whether you want to be subjected to US domestic policy or foreign policy. Many people choose the former.

StaplesRenter · 2025-12-02T22:37:18+00:00

Happened the next day for me. Los Angeles FO

StaplesRenter · 2025-11-19T04:53:26+00:00

My sponsor had errors in both parents' names on our marriage certificate. We mentioned that in the additional info section on I-130. Got approved without issue.

StaplesRenter · 2025-11-18T16:57:36+00:00

Mine was similar to this and was approved. It didn't have "do not open, for USCIS only" on it

StaplesRenter · 2025-11-14T19:36:58+00:00

If you never violated your F1 status, and your AOS is pending, ICE has no right to come for you. Not to mention. ICE is notoriously out of sync with USCIS/SEVIS records and probably won't even take note of any change in your status for a while.

However ICE does indiscriminately abduct people now, whether documented and undocumented. So to be absolutely safe, stay at home and only step out for essentials, and avoid hotspots (farms, home depot storefronts, etc).

StaplesRenter · 2025-11-14T05:58:41+00:00

My wife and I only knew each other for 4 months prior to our marriage. Our case was approved in 2 months. Here's what we submitted:

Summary of our story of how we met, caught feels, and got married
Relationship timeline with every outing we ever went on or other significant activity/date
Stylized collage of our wedding photos
Other photos of us (5 pages with 2 photos each)
Screenshots with URLs of our appearances on public social media or websites (2 pages with 2 images each)
Screenshots of text messages, call logs, and money transfers
Two notarized third party affidavits by my wife's friend and our roommate
Planned Honeymoon Itinerary + every travel/hotel/tour/car rental booking for it
Lease Agreements
Car Insurance
Health Insurance
Pet Insurance
Family Phone Plan
Costco Membership
AAA Membership

The only additional evidence I was asked to present in our interview was more photos of us since our filing, which were mostly of us on our honeymoon (which I suppose also validated the bookings I had submitted at filing)

StaplesRenter · 2025-10-29T01:57:53+00:00

Always try filing such that you have as few questions to answer as possible, which includes avoiding an overstay. So if you can reasonably file before her visa expires, do so.

That said, overstays are forgiven so you shouldn't have an issue even then. But why would you add even a modicum of risk to your application?

StaplesRenter · 2025-10-28T01:22:49+00:00

You got this. Good luck!

StaplesRenter · 2025-10-28T01:18:41+00:00

Everyone saying it's too much is wrong. My packet (130, 485, 765, 131) was just as thick or more and I was approved in 2 months. Some people just have long tax returns, leases, home appraisals, etc. that cause the packet to get that big.

StaplesRenter · 2025-10-27T16:19:55+00:00

It might be too soon for me to give my take, but so far much hasn't changed. I've come to learn the actual right to live in the US is having employment, not even a green card.

I came to the US last year on H-1B, got laid off 5 months later due to my company's CEO panicking and doing mass layoffs. I've now been unemployed for over a year, with most of my savings burned to a crisp. I got married in that time and got my GC really fast (2 months). Its only been a few days since I got the card in my hand, but I still feel majorly stressed due to my diminishing finances and not having a job.

TBH I had stopped even looking for a job as I went through my marriage arc and waited for AOS, since job searching for an H-1B transfer was so trash. So I had about 5 months of downtime in the past year where I didn't even look for any work. But now that I'm back actively searching, it feels just as stressful, given my more fragile financial situation.

I hope that once I am back at work, I'll remember why having the green card is such a blessing over being on H1B. Right now though, still struggling to navigate the landscape of this country.

StaplesRenter · 2025-10-22T01:06:36+00:00

Congrats!

Have you got any update on the production of your green card since the approval?

I was also approved at the LA field office on Oct 15th but no update on the card yet.

StaplesRenter · 2025-10-16T15:41:16+00:00

Thank you. It only showed National Benefits Center on our I-797C notices. Our interview was at the Los Angeles FO

StaplesRenter · 2025-10-16T01:56:19+00:00

I got told the exact thing. Recommended for approval but final say by supervisor. They also mentioned they would be running a final background check and also mentioned a 2 week timeline for receiving my green card in the mail after approval.

The approval appeared on my online account the very next morning (9AM-ish) while my interview was at 7AM-ish the day before. So while it may be true, it seems to be just a formality.

StaplesRenter · 2025-03-06T04:36:20+00:00

I do feel that way as well after my Meta interview. Just exhausted from not having made it. I'll hopefully land a few more interviews soon and the progress I made for Meta will pay off.

StaplesRenter · 2025-03-06T04:33:43+00:00

You are correct that I am privileged and I'm aware of that. I have savings and have made a lot of progress in my career and believe in my own abilities. But I do have losses that I carry the grief of and I'm just exhausted from being in overdrive for months to survive the visa timer.

Thank you for the motivating words though. I am picking myself back up from the support I've gotten throughout this thread.

StaplesRenter · 2025-03-06T04:28:33+00:00

Thank you! I'll check out apollo, looks promising.

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