Maintaining F1 Status after Filing for and having received I-485 receipt.

[pmady]

Hello All:

 

My wife is legally in the USA on a F1 visa. I have a green card. We have applied for my wife's I-485, EAD and AP when the processing dates for F2A category just became current in August 2013. We have already received the 485 receipt (Aug-06-2013) and have received the biometric appointment letter (Sept-03 2013).

 

She has been in school since 2008 and is almost done with her undergraduate degree (she has about 7 classes left). She definitely plans to work towards completing her undergraduate degree.

 

Money is really tight for us now, and we have read on this forum and elsewhere online that on receiving her 485 receipt her F1 status is no longer valid. But nothing is conclusively stated anywhere. 

 

I have some questions:

1. Is it true that her F1 status is void now given how she has filed for 485? 
   
2. Does my wife have the burden to maintain her full course load of 12 credits required by F1 status? (We were planning on taking two credits this semester and spreading out the classes depending our financial situation)
   
3. Do we need to show the receipt notice to the school admins so that they can note that in the SEVIS database? 
   

Thanks very much for your time.

 

 

 

[Belle]

1. No. But there are some restrictions, like no more entering on F1 and possibly, no more extentions through COS.

2. No.

3. I don't believe so.

[pmady]

Thank you so much Belle.