Had a great experience at the USICS office, trying to change my wife's immigration status to…read morepermanent resident. It is located in the Waterfront Plaza, which is mostly occupied by HPU facilities.
I read so much about how the parking is expensive and they don't provide validation, so I just asked my mom to drop us off. From my experience, if you follow google maps, and you're coming from Waikiki side, it's best to approach Mauka to Makai (Mountain to the Ocean) That way, you can pull on the side in front of a staircase with "Star Advertiser" written on the side of the building. You'll walk through the hallway out to the parking garage. Continue straight and you'll eventually reach the security office/courtyard.
There are various small businesses in the plaza, so it's nice to kill some time if you come early, or as others mentioned, buy something to eat so that you can validate your parking.
Our interview for permanent resident status change was located on the 5th floor. You'll need to have your I-797 (Interview notice/notice of action), as well as your ID's ready. Going through the security check is much more relaxed than the airport. You'll check in at the desk right next to the security, then wait in the room until you are called.
After almost two years from the start of the K1 Fiance Visa, we were finally having her interview. Naturally, we were a little nervous, not knowing what to expect. However, if you're looking at the Honolulu's USICS office's Yelp because you are also a little worried about your interview, my advice is to just relax. When an interviewer came to the waiting room to call each couple in, they were all friendly and welcoming. My wife isn't fluent in English, but the immigration officer spoke in a way that she could understand. We were even thinking about possibly hiring an interpreter just in case, because the I797 said we can have an interpreter available by phone. However, we took a chance, and not only was my wife able to complete the interview without one, but the officer even said they would be able to call one if needed. So please don't waste money on a third party company! Of course, this was in February 2022, so you can call the office just to be sure when it is time for your interview.
As for the interview questions, we pretty much just went over the I-485 form to confirm that everything is accurate, and add anything that may have changed, such as a newly acquired SSN. Hardest part was the 80 questions portion of the application, where they have to ask your spouse if you are a terrorist or plan to harm the USA lol. As for my turn, I was just asked simple relationship questions, such as: When did you get engaged? Have you met each others' families? What do you think about her parents? What do they think about you? Where/how did you first meet? What was your last argument about?
We didn't hire an attorney and I'm glad we didn't. I understand everyone's situation is different, but in this case, we would have wasted the money. We got approved at the end of the interview and the conditional Green Card will arrive in the mail 2-4 weeks later. After 3 months, you'll apply to remove the conditional status in order to get your 10 year Green Card. If you're reading this and have any questions, send me a message and I'd be happy to answer any questions. Otherwise, relax and good luck on your interview!