# Green card - how long did it take after fingerprinting?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/green-card-how-long-did-it-take-after-fingerprinting/194239>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [August 10, 2003, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/green-card-how-long-did-it-take-after-fingerprinting/194239 "2003-08-10T19:27:28Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\
**Post date:** [August 10, 2003, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/green-card-how-long-did-it-take-after-fingerprinting/194239/1 "2003-08-10T19:27:28Z")

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I’m going through the slow process of getting a green card - coming up to 5 years in the process so far, including labor certification. In April, I was called in to be fingerprinted for sending to the FBI. Do any dopers have recent experience of getting a green card, and if so, how long after the fingerprinting did it take?

Yes, I know the INS (or whatever they call themselves now) will give a total estimated timescale on their web-site, but they give a very wide range and they only cover start-to-end. I’m trying to work out if I can judge how long left based on the fingerprint milestone.

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**Author:** ![Eva\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Eva\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eva_Luna)\
**Post date:** [August 10, 2003, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/green-card-how-long-did-it-take-after-fingerprinting/194239/2 "2003-08-10T20:10:55Z")

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What jurisdiction are you in, and when did you submit the I-485?

The BCIS has been monkeying around with what point in the process they request fingerprints, because for a while they were requesting them too early on and the clearances would expire by the time the rest of the application was adjudicated, and they’d have to re-do the fingerprints. So times have been fluctuating a lot, but in general it shouldn’t be more than a few months more for you.

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**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\
**Post date:** [August 10, 2003, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/green-card-how-long-did-it-take-after-fingerprinting/194239/3 "2003-08-10T20:14:18Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by Eva Luna \*  
> \*\*What jurisdiction are you in, and when did you submit the I-485?  
> \*\*

Texas. March 2002.

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**Author:** ![Eva\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Eva\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eva_Luna)\
**Post date:** [August 10, 2003, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/green-card-how-long-did-it-take-after-fingerprinting/194239/4 "2003-08-10T20:45:22Z")

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I’ll have to ask around at work tomorrow; most of my stuff is filed in Nebraska.

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**Author:** ![InternetLegend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/internetlegend/32/13154_2.png) [@InternetLegend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InternetLegend)\
**Post date:** [August 10, 2003, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/green-card-how-long-did-it-take-after-fingerprinting/194239/5 "2003-08-10T23:37:05Z")

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My sister applied for a new green card 16 months ago, just before her old one expired. She still hasn’t heard back.