District of Columbia Immigration Legal Questions

You received conditional residence through your marriage based I-485 filing. The purpose of the I-751 if done through joint filing is to demonstrate to USCIS that the marriage is bona fide. Questions of employment before obtaining conditional residence are not the concentration here, and I doubt that there would be questions pertaining to it. Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee & Arthur Lee, Esqs.’ (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided herein by the Firm is general, and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.... Read More

The child does not obtain automatic US citizenship. A US citizen stepfather can sponsor his wife and his step child provided that both entered the United States with permission and the marriage occurred before the step child's 18th birthday. You sponsor both of them by filing an adjustment application to get their green cards. Once their green cards have been obtained, they can file for US citizenship three years later.... Read More

A tourist visa in the United States is not a working visa, and you cannot apply for working privileges in the US based on a tourist visa. Any work done in the US for an employer or most self-employment situations is considered unlawful. Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee & Arthur Lee, Esqs.’ (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided herein by the Firm is general, and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.... Read More

OK So if the stipend is required to be paid back then it is not really income but it is debt, and therefore there would be problems with showing that that would likely to be a recurring stable source of income in the future. Thus, it would most likely be that USCIS would require a joint sponsor.... Read More

Unfortunately, your husband is the lead and you are only in the position of the derivative. USCIS by law is not supposed to approve applications for derivatives where the principal has left the country. If you are able to apply for another visa status such as F-1 student and if that is approved, you may be able to stay independent of your husband. Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee, Esq.'s (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided herein by the Firm is general, and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.... Read More

I will assume for purposes of your question that you are not subject to a two-year home residence requirement by virtue of your J visa. If not and you wish to spend a little more time in the US, you could possibly make an application for B-2 visitor status. If longer-term, perhaps an application to become an F-1 student. If you have a baccalaureate degree or higher in a specialty occupation and an organization willing to sponsor you for an H-1B specialty occupation visa, that is also a possibility. To explore timing and all possible options, you should make an appointment with an immigration lawyer. Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee, Esq.'s (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided herein by the Firm is general, and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.  ... Read More

You are legally in compliance with selective service law and should be able to obtain verification from the agency that an individual who is in valid nonimmigrant status in the US at the age of 26 is not required to register for selective service. All other individuals including those who are illegal should register. Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee, Esq.'s (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided herein by the Firm is general, and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.    ... Read More

All visitors to the United States under visitors visas or visa waiver program should have nonimmigrant intent – that is, that they should not intend to stay in the country past their period of visit. In the event that a Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer has doubts on the score, it is the burden of the entrant to show sufficient ties to the home country to convince the officer that he or she will return. Any of the steps that you have outlined to show your nonimmigrant intent would be okay along with items such as bank account or personal or real property in the Czech Republic. Even without such proof, most CBP officers would not give you a hard time if you have not been abusive of the visa waiver program in the past. Also you may be lucky enough to be in the inspection line of an officer who is kind to visitors around Christmas time. In answer to your question of the repercussions if you travel to the US and are deported, you would be barred for five years if such occurred upon entry at the port of entry and for 10 years if you were admitted to the country, got yourself into trouble with the Department of Homeland Security later, and were ordered deported by an immigration court. Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee, Esq.'s (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided herein by the Firm is general, and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.  ... Read More

Your question is not a matter of immigration law but rather family law. You could file a court action seeking custody and/or visitation. The problem is that you will need to locate your child and former partner. To have jurisdiction in such cases, most courts require the child to live in the area where the case is filed. Your former partner will also need to be served. I encourage you to consult a family law attorney.... Read More

1. Your husband has a chance to obtain a visa but how much of a chance depends upon how much unlawful presence he accrued, whether he complied with his voluntary departure order, and the offenses for which he was issued administrative violations.  2. No, applying together will not increase his chances of obtaining a visa. Each visa application is adjudicating on its own merits. 3. Applying separately will not improve his chances of obtaining a visa. I encourage you and your husband to consult an attorney to assess his visa eligibility in more detail.... Read More

There is no way around this requirement. You need to either establish sufficient income and/or assets to meet the requirements or have a joint sponsor. You may want to expedite filing of your taxes if the income would be sufficient. You can read more about the public charge issue at http://myattorneyusa.com/public-charge.... Read More

Hello. Simple assault should not result in a ground of inadmissiblity for returning to the US, however to be certain I would need to see the court document. Please email or fax me your document and I'll advise you if your conviction will effect your opportunity for returning to the US.  Also provide me with your deportation paperwork.... Read More

You do risk triggering an unlawful presence bar when departing the country. However, more information is needed to determine if it will be an issue for you. There there are many organizations that provide pro bono services to those seeking U visas. I understand you have already been approved but they may be able to help you so you can travel outside the country.... Read More

Your new employer would need to file a Form I-129 on your behalf. You could not begin employment with the new employer until the petition is approved by USCIS. You will need to establish eligibility for an O-1 visa as if applying for the first time. You and your employer should consider working with an attorney to make sure the process is completed properly. ... Read More

Unfortunately tourists are not allowed to work in the US. Sorry. Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee, Esq.'s (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided herein by the Firm is general, and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.  ... Read More

In the situation in which you describe having requested an extension and not receiving a decision before the date requested has passed, it is a good idea to file an additional I-539 asking for a further period of extension and documenting the reasons for the request. The question of whether someone can stay after the requested date has passed without doing anything further is murky, but the better practice is to request the further extension if you intend to stay. Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee, Esq.'s (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided herein by the Firm is general, and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.... Read More

To take away your husband's naturalization would require U.S.C.I.S. to prove that his misrepresentation was material. In looking at the fact situation that you present, you believe that his misrepresentation was not material because he got his green card through his mom who won the DV lottery. You also state that your husband did not disclose his previous marriage on his green card application. Kindly note that a dependent child who immigrates under a parent must be both under the age of 21 and unmarried. You have not said whether your husband was divorced at the time that he immigrated to this country. Even if he was, a question to be explored would be whether the divorce was bona fide or only done for the purpose of allowing him to emigrate with his mother to the States. These are factors that you and your husband should consider. Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee, Esq.'s (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided herein by the Firm is general, and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.... Read More

It is up to you as to whether you wish to maintain F-1 status or just go through your husband's petition with the attendant I 765 employment authorization. The favorable factor of keeping F-1 status is that you may be able to use it as a backup in the event that anything goes wrong with your marriage case. Without it, you would be wholly dependent on your adjustment of status application to keep you legally in the country.Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee, Esq.'s (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided herein by the Firm is general, and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.  ... Read More

CPT is an integral part of the school curriculum giving credit to those who take it. Therefore it seems incongruous that CPT would extend further than the ending date of the semester. For work during the summer which does not give course credit but is related to the subjects that you are studying, pre-completion OPT would appear to be the more appropriate form of practical training. Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee, Esq.'s (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided herein by the Firm is general, and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.... Read More