US Immigration from Ukraine

Hi all!

Looking for some advise and/or help here.

I filed two I-130 petitions for my dad and my mom, both residing in Sumy, Ukraine (a city directly bordering Russia and located only about 20 miles from active combat front line).

The city where my parents live are under drone or missile attacks almost every single day.

On June 3, 2025 there was a Russian strike on downtown Sumy that killed 4 and injured 29 people (its all over the world news).

My parents were going about their daily life running their errands in downtown Sumy at the time when the attack occurred. They were almost killed in this strike! They were only 700 meters / 0.45 miles away from the impact when it occurred.

This is not an isolated attack, this happens almost daily.

City is in range of Russian close range artillery.

Just two months ago there was an even bigger strike which even US Government and United Nations condemned:

US Department of State https://www.state.gov/palm-sunday-attack-on-sumy/
United Nations https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/04/1162196

I submitted 8 page long statement from myself in which I included links to news articles, photos of damages and strikes on the city, link to US Govt and UN publishing about strikes on this specific city where my parents live.

I also included maps, Google Earth images showing measured distance from frontline to the city - which proofs that city is in a range of close range artillery.

I also included references to Institute for the Study of War (Washington DC based American nonprofit research group that provides research and analysis of modern armed conflicts) where they publish daily updates showing Russian advances near Sumy city.

I included proof of evacuation orders by Ukrainian Govt in Sumy Region, etc. There was even a Russian drone strike on an evacuation bus near Sumy city killing 9 few days ago (I included that too).

Expedite Request I placed over the phone on 6/4. They told me that I will be getting a phone call in the next 10 days.

But I never got a phone call and today I received an email stating: "Your expedite request will not be submitted. We can not grant your request for expedited processing."

I am a bit confused here because it says "Your expedite request will not be submitted". Does that mean a rejection of a request ? Or they do not even allow me to submit it !?

Even the United States Government (U.S. Department of State) considers the whole country of Ukraine as a nation that is very dangerous according to its Level 4 Travel Advisory (Do Not Travel). Level 4 Travel Advisory for Ukraine by the US Government also means that there are life-threatening risks. So, I am a bit confused how can USCIS not agree with with U.S. Department of State determination !?

Overall, can someone please share any ideas why this could be ?

Clearly there is life threatening danger for anybody physically located in Ukraine.

Am I doing something wrong ? I just don't understand how such request can be rejected.

I have also seen many posts of other I-130 / I-129 expedite requests being approved based on war in Ukraine just after a phone request with USCIS by some applicants (in some cases I see some data points that USCIS approved such requests with no evidence provided on the same day).

Any ideas, insights are helpful! Please help!

Maybe I have missed something critical in the evidence ?

I am open to a lawyer as well if anyone have done this successfully and connect me with one approved good lawyer.

Thank you.

@Boiler @TBoneTX @MiOm @texastincup @gregcrs2 @O&R @keystringzz @Lonny&Kris @Natafaith @Cschaef25 @chivaschivas @Mrs:D @OldUser @Edward and Jaycel @Traveler101 @aaron2020 @Kineo @Austin&Olga @Cclemonds27

Can someone

Hello, I passed the citizenship exam on May 12,was waiting for the oath letter, today I received "Oath Ceremony Cancelled". Please tell me if anyone has been in a similar situation?

Hello, my mom is Ukrainian, and she recently got a 10-year tourist visa. I became a US citizen 4 years ago. My husband is a U.S. citizen by birth, and we recently had a child together. Married 7 years. My mom got the visa to see us finally, I am curious what are recent experiences at customs in the airports, what questions are being asked.

My mom speaks limited English, so I was considering giving her a letter written for me that explains her address and her return dates. Do I need other evidence? Does she need any bank statements or any other way to prove she has funds? She will be staying for 2 months. Can I write a letter stating that I will provide her with food and lodging during his stay? I want to ensure she is not sent home at the airport due to some minor mistake. Never know what to expect these days.

Thanks!

Hi all!

I would like to ask for some inputs here to help me understand I-130 process fully. So, I am planning to submit I-130 for both of my parents.
What documents do I need at each stage and how the process works ?

So far I gathered the following, please correct me if I am wrong or if I missed something:

Step 1: Submit I-130 online
Documents needed: my birth certificate + my passport or naturalization certificate, and parents proof of address.
What can be used as a proof of parents address ? Does it need to be translated and notarized ? Any other documents required at this stage ?

Step 2: After I130 approval - NVC stage where we submit DS260 for visa processing (we are doing consular outside USA)
Documents required: parents birth certificates, passports, police records, marriage certificate.
Did I miss anything ? Does it need to be translated and notarized ? Any other documents required at this stage ?

Step 3: Visa Received, Parents arrival to the US
Question: to my understanding these are IR-5 visas, yeah ? So, upon entry we will need to apply for adjustment of status for them, correct ? Or since IR-5 visa is an immigrant visa there is no AOS involved ? I am not clear on this step here.

At what stage do I need to submit I864 for each of them ?

Is there a post on this forum maybe breaking down a whole process step by step ?

Thank you in advance!

My wife finally has an interview in poland for her daughter but it seems to be asking for a ds-160 which is not for immigrant visa. What is going on?

On the travel.state.gov site for WRW-Warsaw when I click on "Register" it takes me to ustraveldocs.com where i am to choose a "Visa Category".

When I do that for "Immigrant Visa" it opens a popup "Important Notices" which says;

"New Requirement for Visa Interviews: Starting May 1, 2025, all visa applicants must bring a DS-160 visa application form with a confirmation/barcode number (starting with AA) that matches the one used to make their appointment online.

I thought the DS-160 was only for K1 and temporary visa'a?