EAD Pending for more than 120 days - Please help

[YSM]

My current EAD has been expired and the Renewal Application is pending for more than 120 days.

we opened 3 service tickets in total and response to first ticket was

"huge volumes of applications have been received"  and

response to second ticket was

 "initial records shows that there has been ordered a denial notice and file is currently being reviewed by an higher officer before final decision is made"

and after that we didn't receive any further update from USCIS.

We approached congressman also but of no use.. Any further suggestions about what we can do to expedite the processing of the application.

 

Please help!!

[jairichi]

Unfortunately you cannot expedite the process. You need to contact USCIS again.

[pontevecchio]

Contact your FEDERAL SENATORS Office and talk to the person dealing with Immigration.

[YSM]

Sure I will try the option of meeting federal senator and see if that can help. Thanks for the suggestion..

[cnu_ind]

Ysm,

 

Try with infopass appointment option. I am having similar problem except my case is approved but did not received card till now. Next week i have appointment with local USCIS office. i will let you know outcome.

 

good luck.

[mgm1451]

Sure I will try the option of meeting federal senator and see if that can help. Thanks for the suggestion..

I had a similar issue. This is what happened. 

- I mailed my EAD/AP application to USCIS on Oct 30, 2014.

- My EAD/AP application was received by USCIS Nebraska on Nov 3, 2014. 

- I waited until Jan 20, 2015 (75 days completed) and then created a service request by calling NCSC (1800-375-5283).

- I received no response for a week.

- Contacted local Congressman (You can google 'contact congressman' and give your Zip code, it will tell you the office address and also each Congressman has his/her site. You can either reach them by submitting a message on their 'Contact Us' page which will email them or by calling the listed phone number).

- Congressman's office asked me to bring a letter from Employer stating that I will lose my Job if I don't get my EAD on time. 

- I work for a big Fortune 50 company. Got the letter from HR and gave a copy to Congressman office and also my EAD / AP receipt numbers.

- Congressman's office contacted USCIS on my behalf to inquire about my case.

- They received a response from USCIS on 01/28 stating that my application will be forwarded to a Supervisory officer at NSC for consideration. The officer will review the case and grant the permission to expedite it. If 'expedite request' is approved, then the case will be assigned to an adjudicating officer.

- I followed up with Congressman's office on 02/02, but they responded saying that they have to wait until 14 days before they can inquire again with USCIS. 

- On 02/03, I contacted one of the Senator's office (again google 'contact senator' and use Zip code, you will see 2 Senator's office for each constituency). 

- I gave my employer letter again to Senator's office and requested them to inquire my case on my behalf.

- Senator's office updated me after 2 days that they placed an inquiry on my case. 

- I also faxed my employer letter and EAD/AP receipt to (402)219-6171 quoting the service request number that I created earlier. 

- On 02/03, I also called NCSC again and created another service request stating that my EAD application is pending over 90 days and asked them to expedite my case. After multiple attempts with various Level-1 representatives, I also had them connect me to a Level-2 Immigration officer. He was able to check the latest update on my case which is the same as what my Congressman's office told me (Case was forwarded to a Supervisory NSC officer for consideration). But, Level-2 told me that all I can do is to wait to hear back from them and they cannot do anything about my case. It was kind of useless, but atleast I got a confirmation from them about my latest case status.

- On 02/11, I received an update from USCIS stating 'Case Approved'.

- I waited for 1 week to receive the EAD card, but I didn't receive the card yet and my current EAD expires on 02/25. 

- On 02/18, I called NCSC again and asked them to create a service request stating 'Card not received'.

- On 02/19, received another email/text update from USCIS that my Card is mailed out and USPS picked up my mail (no tracking number was given).

- On 02/21, received the final email/text update that the card was delivered to me. I checked my post box, and there it was!!!!! Whew!!!

 

It was quite an ordeal for me this past 110 days. I applied well ahead of time without knowing that it will be delayed this long. The last time I applied for EAD renewal in 2013, I received the card in 3 weeks time. This time it was a grueling experience. 

 

I still don't know which specific action of mine (whether contacting the Congressman's office, Senator's office, multiple Service requests, Faxing the documents etc.,) made this happen in the end. My belief is that contacting Congressman's office was probably the best thing I did.

 

Please do the following steps to stay ahead of the game.

- Apply EAD/AP well ahead of time (you have 120 days to apply). 

- On the 76th day, contact NCSC and create a service request stating that the EAD is pending for over 75 days.

- Contact local Congressman with a letter from your Employer stating that you will lose your job if your EAD is not renewed on time. 

- Contact Senator and do the same.

- If the EAD is pending over 90 days, contact NCSC again and create an expedited service request.

- Try contacting Level-2 officer for the latest update on your case because they have more visibility into your case.

- Try faxing the employer letter and EAD receipt with a cover letter to the Service center and quote the Service request number.

 

I know it is a very very frustrating experience. My understanding is that USCIS has an overwhelming number of EAD cases to work on and they are probably short-staffed. But, if we keep persistent and can justify why we need an EAD on time (employer letter), I think they do consider it and approve the EAD. In my case, I consider myself lucky, as I got the EAD card 4 days before expiry. And, thank goodness, I applied around 110 days before. If I snoozed and applied late, then I would have lost my job and pay and my company has to rehire. Not to mention the aggravation it causes to my employer as well as me. 

 

I thank everyone on all those forums who dedicate some time amidst their busy schedule and answer questions to people like me. Hopefully I can do a small part in answering some of your questions which can be of some help. Thanks