One Governmental Waiting Game Down, One to Go

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We were supposed to receive an instructional letter and receipt from USCIS regarding the removal of the conditions on Fabrice's permanent resident status.  According to their site, said document was mailed on January 6.

 Since we hadn't heard anything about Fabrice's green card which expires on Sunday, except an appointment notice for his photo and fingerprints, so I called immigration yesterday, who told me to have Fabrice make an appointment at the local office ASAP. He went there yesterday.

He was granted the authorization to remain in the US another year, so now he can renew his driver's license, but that his green card will definitely NOT be "renewed" for ten years, like most people's are.

He was all nervous and his legs were shaking when she said that. She then asked him if he'd be interested in working for our government. He thought it was a trick question. This is actually the second time the State Department has asked him to work for them. They did something similar, scaring him out of his wits, at the US Consulate in Paris.

So he explained that he was hoping to apply for naturalization after the requisite 3 years. To which she told him that she was making an exception in his file, allowing him to apply for naturalization 90 days earlier than he was supposed to, on October 31, 2010, to be exact. She explained that the year extension allowing him to remain in the US and work here legally until January 24, 2011, will run out and his green card authorization would thus be granted after he is given US citizenship. So his green card won't be renewed because she is of the belief, that, so long as he doesn't get arrested for anything here, he will be granted US citizenship before the processing of the green card renewal is complete!!!

Then she told him not to just apply to be a police officer in a US city, but to apply to work for a federal agency. Like I said, the personnel at the US embassy in Paris, after explaining his rights and responsibilities in marrying an American, especially one with dual citizenship already, had asked him to apply to work for them, but he didn't pass their English test. His English is a lot better now, so I don't think that'll be a problem.... See More

Now, financially, we still might have to go back to France. It depends on if I get my job or not, but Fabrice is very excited and very relieved.

To top it off, the immigration officer told him, "Here there are no problems, only solutions." Can you believe that??!!!

First she was all cold and formal, asking him all kinds of questions while paging down in his file online. She explained that immigrants are ranked according to country of origin and potential risk, from 1 to 10, with 10 being the worst. Fabrice is a 1. We don't even have to go in for an interview! We didn't have to do an interview in Paris, either, although we had a great chat with the woman who would have done the interview had one been necessary!

Now we have to wait on my thing, which I am honestly NOT expecting to get. Then we decide whether Fabrice can convince me to stay here with our current circumstances, or not. He wants to stay until he gets his citizenship, but somehow that seems like a very long time to stay put with the way things are right now. We shall see, though.

At least he has too many jobs for the time being, and doesn't have to leave the country by Monday!