Use actual case progress and each person’s eligibility and travel documents. A school deadline does not establish a Gold Card approval or admission date.
Build a family plan around verified milestones
The official process remains subject to vetting, eligibility and visa availability. Once immigrant visas are involved, follow their actual validity and entry instructions, including the principal entering before or with derivative family members. Do not begin U.S. work or assume residence because the household has paid or reserved housing.
Choose reversible commitments while the case is pending: month-to-month housing where possible, school enrolment deadlines noted rather than assumed, and employment notice given only when a step is actually complete. Assess EB-1 or EB-2 eligibility first, read the current official terms second, obtain a licensed U.S. immigration attorney's view on admissibility third, and consider the nonrefundable processing fee only after those three steps. Decide in advance which budget absorbs a change of plan, because the two behave differently under pressure: the school’s terms may permit a deferral that preserves the deposit, while a nonrefundable processing payment stays spent whatever the family decides next.