Save Your USCIS Notices!

Clients often consult with me to continue an immigration petition that they have already started, or more often, provide
representation once the process has gone awry.
Arguably one of the most important documents in the immigration petition process is the I-797 Notices. These are the
fancy green-tinted mailings from USCIS with "United States of America" printed across the top. It is critically important that
you save all of these!
It is not uncommon for USCIS to drag out its processing for months longer than expected. In this situation, the I-797 is your
protection from USCIS' mistakes.

This document is even more important if you filed a petition without a lawyer, or changed lawyers after filing. When a client
comes to see me, the first pieces of information I need are (1) what was filed?, and (2) what is the status of the filing? The
I-797 is necessary for your attorney to follow up on the status of your filing (and correct mistakes, if needed).

A lost or misplaced I-797 is expensive to replace. A duplicate notice can be obtained using Form I-824, but the fee is
$405.
Ideally, you should save all correspondences from the government, along with photocopies of your submitted filings. But
at the very least, save all of your I-797 notices in a safe place. I advise all of my clients to keep a scanned electronic copy in
addition to the hardcopy.