Supposed to get an RFE, instead I got another interview notice. Hi, I'm Jim Hacking, immigration lawyer, practicing law throughout the United States at our offices in St. Louis, San Diego, and Washington DC. One of our YouTube viewers noticed that he was supposed to be getting a request for evidence. And instead he got a second interview notice and he wanted to know what's up with that.
So this fellow had a immigration interview, and at the end of the immigration interview, the officer said, "I'm going to send you a request for evidence." Now, longtime viewers of the show know that requests for evidence means that a USCS officer feels that there is information in support of an application that is missing and they want to get that from the applicant before they make their final decision. So, when you go to an interview, usually you're going to either get it approved, denied, or delayed. And if it's delayed, you might get a request for evidence, and that can be anything. It could be an updated medical, it could be new evidence, additional evidence. It could be tax records. All kinds of things can be encompassed in a request for evidence.
And so this applicant was planning on receiving a request for evidence. Now you never want to receive a request for evidence. It just means your case is being slowed down some more, and it means that there's a chance that your case might get might not get approved if you don't provide us with the information or the documentation that they're asking for. But even less than a request for evidence, you don't want to get a second interview notice. As I said, many times on this YouTube channel, nothing good ever happens at a second green card interview.
So it is better to get a request for evidence, but I suppose that it might be better in another way to get that second interview notice, because they're going to ask you about whatever it is they think are missing and that they would have put into the request for evidence. But requests for evidence are nice and concise. It's only asking for documents and I never like it when my clients are talking at the immigration office, I'd much rather have them have a request for evidence than a second interview notice.
The problem with the second interview notice is you don't know where it's going to go. The officer can take it in any direction, and it's not just limited to the request for evidence or a second interview. So if I had my druthers, if I got to pick, if I had the selection between a request for evidence or a second interview, I would opt for a request for evidence every single time. If nothing else, if you hire a lawyer, the lawyer can frame their request for evidence response, and you're going to be a much better position to have your case approved.
Hope this makes sense. Hope that you don't get a request for evidence. And I hope that you don't get a second interview notice. But if you do, and you need our help, give us a call (314) 961-8200. Email us at [email protected]. Join us in our Facebook group, which is called Immigrant Home. We'd love to have you in there. People are asking and answering questions every single day. And, of course, we have our YouTube channel, which we update every day with a new video, and on Tuesdays and Thursdays, we're live in the YouTube channel and in that Facebook group, answering as many of your immigration law related questions as possible. Thanks a lot and have a great day.
