I-130 Finally Approved!!! - October 2023 PD

After 16-months waiting we're finally approved! Since this community’s posts have been immensely helpful in looking at timelines and managing expectations throughout our process I wanted to continue the thread to give those Oct 2023 - Dec 2023 I-130 filers both hope and signs of progress.

  • 10/5/2023 Submitted standalone I-130 case online…
  • 10/7/2023 Assigned as the PD (Priority Date)
  • 2/3/2025 - Received email that they're actively reviewing our case
  • 2/4/2025: received I-130 approval

Other notes:

  • US Citizen filing on behalf of Colombian wife 
  • Filed online with help from an attorney 
    • Side note learned first three letters of case # mean your service center, and thus IOE means USCIS Electronic Immigration System (ELIS)

It’s a sigh of relief after 16 long months to finally see progress!!! Can't believe we're now getting antsy to receive the National Visa Center (NVC) welcome email to begin the next phase of this long journey, while also realizing in our mind we still have a ways to go (ugh).

Since this is my first reddit post also felt an extended rant is also necessary to say....

I stand with all you standalone i-130 filers who have been losing their minds as we’ve seen standalone I-130 timelines increase more than 50% from when we filed (10 months when first filed, approved 16 months later) and AOS cases prioritized over ours. I can only hope this backlog improves for the 2024 and now 2025 filers. 

This has certainly been a challenging process for many of us. I personally live in the states and with my wife being Colombian she hasn’t been able to once visit her future country/home. It’s delayed our plans to start a family together. She’s missed out on numerous life events (weddings, funerals, etc) as we wait and wait and wait. The unknowns of waiting made us question at times the very foundation of why we selected the I-130 over AOS options brought up by our lawyer. We thought that being 100% honest of our intentions should be what's rewarded in this society but learned the hard way governments often times prioritize policies for their own agenda.

The few positives: We've both learned incredible patience, maximize and appreciate our time together, stay present for each other, improved our communication, and I'd like to think some of these skills can help us once we are together....But I definitely don't need anymore patience lol!!

I’m also grateful to be in a position where i can visit her every couple of months, and we have explored 10 other countries who do allow Colombians visitors while we wait. I realize not everyone has this same opportunity and I especially feel for those less fortunate. Despite any frustrations all I truly want is to be with my wife when all the dust settles.. it's all any of us want, and the pain-staking patience will be worth it in the end.

Last but certainly not least - THANK YOU to all the USCIS case workers, immigration officers and employees. It must be a difficult job. Unless AI can somehow automate the process, your roles are essential for us to reunite with our loved ones. So thank you for your help in our journey.

God bless you all in the name of love, family, and community.