Georgia Immigration Legal Questions

Generally, a naturalized U.S. citizen may sponsor a parent for immigration in the Immediate Relative visa category, and this is true regardless of the use of different surnames. As you may expect, it will be necessary to provide documentary evidence of the relationship and additional scrutiny may be applied when there is a complication about surnames. It would be wise for you and your mother to consult with an immigration attorney who, after learning all of the relevant information, could advise about eligibilities, options, and strategies to attain your goals, and who then could offer legal representation in the often complex application process. Some immigration law firms, including mine, offer legal services on a "flat fee" basis so that a client will know the total expense from the very beginning, and a few immigration law firms, including mine, offer an initial consultation free of charge.... Read More

When a foreign national who entered the U.S. lawfully and with inspection (such as with a student visa) becomes married to a U.S. citizen, the couple may succeed in a marriage-based adjustment of status application process even if the foreign national spouse has stopped going to school and no longer is in valid F-1 nonimmigrant status. If the U.S. citizen now has documentable evidence of an income sufficient to meet the Affidavit of Support requirements, it will be unnecessary to have a joint sponsor. If the U.S. citizen does not now have sufficient documentable income, then a joint sponsor indeed will be needed. It would be wise for you and your husband to consult with an immigration attorney who, after learning all of the relevant information, could advise about eligibilities, options, and strategies to attain your goals, and who then could offer legal representation in the often complex application process. Some immigration law firms, including mine, offer legal services on a "flat fee" basis so that a client will know the total expense from the very beginning, and a few immigration law firms, including mine, offer an initial consultation free of charge.... Read More

A U.S. Citizen lawfully may sponsor a spouse in a marriage-based adjustment of status application process regardless of whether he previously was successful in sponsoring a previous spouse, whom he divorced. The process can be complicated, however, because the USCIS can be expected to apply a heightened level of scrutiny to determine that both marriages had been bona fide. Generally that requires a strong set of documentary evidence showing that the U.S. citizen lived in a bona fide previous marriage notwithstanding that it ultimately ended in divorce, as well as a strong set of documentary evidence about the second marriage. There really is no substitute for you and your wife to consult with an immigration attorney who, after learning all of the relevant information, including information about available documentary evidence, could advise about eligibilities, options and strategies to attain your goals, and who then could offer legal representation in the often complex application process.... Read More

According to the June 2017 Visa Bulletin issued by the U.S. Department of State, visas are now available in the family-based F4 visa category (for siblings of U.S. citizens) for foreign nationals of most nationalities who have a Priority Date in 2004 or earlier. While that may appear to indicate approximately three more years until a visa is available and your sister could go forward with consular processing, in fact, priority dates progress and retrogress irregularly, and it could take significantly longer than three more years for a visa to become available. Some immigration law firms, including mine, offer legal services on a "flat fee" basis so that a client will know the total expense from the very beginning, and a few immigration law firms, including mine, offer an initial consultation free of charge.... Read More

Immigration ramifications of criminal matters are among the most complex areas of immigration law. Offenses officially designated as misdemeanors can be treated by the USCIS as felonies and non-conviction dispositions (such as pretrial diversion following a nolo contendere plea, where the elements of the offense are acknowledged) can be treated by the USCIS as a conviction. Although the two traffic incidents you mentioned generally will not stand in the way of eligibility for naturalization, both will need to be revealed to the USCIS in a naturalization petition (and the USCIS would be aware of them through security background checks anyway). Even for just two relatively minor traffic offenses, some immigration officers will require full sets of court-certified disposition documents. It would be wise for you to consult with an immigration attorney who, after learning all of the relevant information, could advise about eligibilities, options, and strategies to attain your goal of naturalization, and who then could offer legal representation in the often complex application process. Some immigration law firms, including mine, offer legal services on a "flat fee" basis so that a client will know the total expense from the very beginning, and a few immigration law firms, including mine, offer an initial consultation free of charge.... Read More

Generally, immigration authorities will recognize a marriage as valid if it is deemed valid under the laws of the jurisdiction where the marriage takes place. Many states have laws restricting marriages between people who are closely related to each other. You and your fiance should consult with a domestic relations attorney in the state where you live about the legality for you and your fiance to become married, and if it is lawful there, then you should be able to succeed with a K1 visa application so that he may come to the United States and become married to you within the required time; then you and he may proceed with an adjustment of status application by which he would seek to become a Lawful Permanent Resident (get a "Green Card"). Of course, there are many more details about you and your fiance that can determine immigration eligibility. It would be wise for you and your fiance to consult with an immigration attorney who, after learning all of the relevant information, could advise about eligibilities, options, and strategies to attain your goals, and who then could offer legal representation in the often complex application process. Some immigration law firms, including mine, offer legal services on a "flat fee" basis so that a client will know the total expense from the very beginning, and a few immigration law firms, including mine, offer an initial consultation free of charge.... Read More

Although not completely clear from your question, I presume that your husband is a U.S. citizen, and that you entered the U.S. lawfully and with inspection. If that is true, then your husband could sponsor you in a marriage-based adjustment of status application in the Immediate Relative visa category, and this is true regardless of whether you already may have taken steps to have your passport and other documents reflect your married name. Of course, there are many other details with an impact upon eligibility for adjustment of status. It would be wise for you and your husband to consult with an immigration attorney who, after learning all of the relevant information, could advise about eligibilities, options and strategies to attain your goals, and who then could offer legal representation in the often complex application process.... Read More

Generally a beneficiary of an immigration application must be in lawful nonimmigrant status in order to be eligible to apply to adjust status in the U.S. to become a Lawful Permanent Resident (to get a "Green Card'). An exception to this requirement exists for spouses of U.S. citizens who entered the U.S. lawfully and with inspection and then overstayed their visas. Of course, there are many other details that have an impact upon immigration eligibility. It would be wise for you and your husband to consult with an immigration attorney who, after learning all of the relevant information, could advise about eligibilities, options and strategies to attain your goals, and who then could offer legal representation in the often complex application process.... Read More

The immigration-related ramifications of criminal matters is among the most complex areas of immigration law. In some instances the USCIS may treat a misdemeanor as a felony and may treat a case dismissal as a conviction (that generally happens when a dismissal follows acknowledgement of the elements of an offense as part of a pre-trial diversion or similar process). In any event, it will be necessary to disclose the arrest and provide court-certified copies of a full set of disposition documents (or proper evidence that no such documents still exist). Especially since a theft offense can have very harsh immigration-related consequences, it would be a mistake to proceed with a naturalization case without consultation with an immigration attorney who, after learning all of the relevant information and seeing the court disposition documents, could advise about eligibilities, options and strategies to attain your goals, and who then could offer legal representation in the often complex application process.... Read More

Regrettably, there is no visa category by which a U.S. citizen may sponsor a nephew or niece to attain immigration benefits. If your nephew is under age 16 it may be possible for you to legally adopt him and then sponsor him for immigration benefits, otherwise your nephew would need to explore other family relationships or employment opportunities to find a way to become eligible for an immigration application.... Read More

Regrettably, there is no visa category by which a Permanent Resident my sponsor a fiance, and so other options would need to be explored. That may include, for example, any employment-based immigration applications for which your fiance may qualify, your application to become a naturalized citizen at the earliest possible time so that you then may sponsor her for immigration as a fiance of a U.S. citizen, becoming married in India and then applying for her in the family-based F2A visa category, etc. . There really is no substitute for you and your fiance to consult with an immigration attorney who, after learning all of the relevant information, could advise about eligibilities, options and strategies to attain your goals, and who then could offer legal representation in the often complex application process.... Read More

The immigration consequences of criminal matters is among the most complex topics in immigration law. There really is no substitute for you to obtain court-certified copies of full sets of disposition documents for each criminal arrest (or to obtain appropriate letters from court clerks explaining why no such records still exist) and to consult with an immigration attorney who, after learning all of the relevant information, could advise about naturalization eligibility, and who then could offer legal representation in the often complex application process.... Read More

In a marriage-based adjustment of status application, generally if the U.S. citizen spouse does not have sufficient documentable income to meet the Affidavit of Support requirements then it is necessary to have a joint sponsor, and that joint sponsor may be any U.S. citizen or Permanent Resident (including the brother of the beneficiary) who has sufficient documentable income and who is willing to assume the obligations contemplated in the Affidavit of Support. Both Affidavits of Support should be filed as supporting documents with the Adjustment of Status application. This is just one of the issues that can be significantly more complex than it appears just from reading the immigration forms, the USCIS website and the immigration regulations. It would be wise for you and your spouse to consult with an immigration attorney who, after learning all of the relevant information, could advise about eligibilities, options and strategies to attain your goals, and who then could offer legal representation in the often complex application process.... Read More

Significantly more information is needed in order to provide a legal analysis of ways your spouse may be able to attain immigration benefits. This includes, for example, information about your own immigration status (Are you a U.S. citizen? Are you a Permanent Resident? Do you have some other status?); information about your husband (How and when did he enter the U.S. What is his current immigration status? What immigration-related applications ever before have been filed by or for him?); Etc. To determine the appropriate steps that now should be taken, and to answer your question about the length of time for the process, there really is no substitute for you and your spouse consulting with an immigration attorney. That attorney, after learning all of the relevant information, could advise about eligibilities, options and strategies to attain your goals and the time likely to be needed to complete the process, and who then could offer legal representation in the often complex application process.... Read More

Although not entire clear from your question, I presume that you are a U.S. citizen and that you are interested in sponsoring your fiance to come to the U.S. to become married to you within the required time, and then to sponsor her for the adjustment of status application process by which she would seek to become a Lawful Permanent Resident (to get a "Green Card"). If that is correct, then be aware that a U.S. citizen's own criminal background generally is irrelevant in the application process, and so your DUIs and drug possession charge should not stand in the way of sponsoring your fiance for immigration benefits. Of course, many other details have an impact upon immigration eligibility. Beyond that, the application process can be far more complex than it might appear just from reviewing the immigration forms, reading the immigration regulations and reading the USCIS website. It would be wise for you and your fiance to consult with an immigration attorney who, after learning all of the relevant information, could advise about eligibilities, options and strategies to attain your goals, and who then could offer legal representation in the often complex application process.... Read More

Generally, the USCIS filing fee for a Petition for Relative Alien is $420 and the USCIS filing fee for an Application for Adjustment of Status is $1,140. Beyond those fees, the beneficiary will need to pay a fee to the designated civil surgeon who prepares the required Report of Medical Examination and Vaccination Record. The foregoing contemplates a U.S. citizen age 21 or older sponsoring a parent who is in the U.S. for the adjustment of status application process to become a Lawful Permanent Resident (to get a "Green Card"). The application forms as well as the required supporting documents for the adjustment of status process can be significantly more complex than they appear. Errors or insufficient supporting documentation can cause delays or even more harsh consequences. It would be wise for you and your father to consult with an immigration attorney who, after learning all of the relevant information, could advise about eligibilities, options and strategies to attain your goals, and who then could offer legal representation in the application process.... Read More

In the marriage-based adjustment of status application process, generally a wife may select to use her legal last name or to adopt her husband's last name as her own. This is true regardless of whether the wife may have used her husband's last name prior to commencing the application process and all of the existing records reflect the wife's old last name. It would be wise for you and your husband to consult with an immigration attorney who, after learning all of the relevant information, could advise about eligibilities, options and strategies to attain your goals, and who then could offer legal representation in the often complex application process.... Read More

In connection with a marriage-based adjustment of status application in the Immediate Relative visa category generally an applicant should file a Form I-765 (and, if eligible, a Form I-131) despite having an EAD associated with an F1 and despite having applied for OPT. Regardless of your job, your U.S. citizen spouse will need to serve as a "sponsor" with the filing of an Affidavit of Support. Of course, there are many more details about the application and required supporting documents. It would be wise for you and your fiance to consult with an immigration attorney who, after learning all of the relevant information, could advise about eligibilities, options and strategies to attain your goals, and who then could offer legal representation in the often complex application process.... Read More

There are advantages and disadvantages for each of the options you mentioned, beyond what can be discussed in a response that is just a few sentences long. Beyond that, there are legal issues relating to timing: a visitor's visa is exclusively for someone entering the U.S. with "nonimmigrant intent," i.e., an intention to remain temporarily in the U.S. and then depart. It is not lawful to enter with a visitor's visa with the intention of becoming married and then applying to remain permanently as a Permanent Resident (with a "Green Card"). Misuse of a visitor's visa can constitute visa fraud, with very serious immigration-related consequences. Nonetheless, it can be lawful to enter with nonimmigrant intent, and later have a change of mind and decide to become married and apply for Permanent Residency. There really is no substitute for your daughter and the man she is considering marrying to consult with an immigration attorney who, after learning all of the relevant information, could advise about eligibilities, options and strategies to attain the couple's goals, and who then could offer legal representation in the often complex application process.... Read More

U.S. immigration law permits a naturalized citizen age 21 or older to sponsor her parents for immigration benefits regardless of the legal steps by which the naturalized citizen attained her own immigration benefits. The current Republican administration cannot change that law - it only can be changed by legislative act of Congress. There is a strong need for Comprehensive Immigration Reform that would modernize and improve our nation's immigration laws and practices; there is no shortage of suggestions being discussed for fixing the U.S. immigration legal system; and some immigration restrictions favor reduction of ways for re-uniting families. Nonetheless, my crystal ball indicates that the type of restriction you mentioned is unlikely to become the law in this country.... Read More

Generally, a U.S. citizen may sponsor a spouse for immigration benefits, and when the spouse is abroad, the steps to take are known as "consular processing" in the Immediate Relative visa category. Generally, children born to a U.S. citizen mother automatically become U.S. citizens by birth, and this can be true regardless of whether their births were timely recorded abroad. Still, there are many additional details that determine immigration eligibilities, options and strategies. It would be wise for your family to consult with an immigration attorney who, after learning all of the relevant information, could provide advice about attaining your goals, and who then could offer legal representation in the often complex application process.... Read More

Significantly more information is needed in order to provide a legal analysis of whether you will be able to sponsor your father for immigration once you reach age 21 (the earliest point at which a U.S. citizen may sponsor a parent). This includes, for example, information about how and when your father entered the U.S., information about any immigration-related applications or actions ever taken by or about your father, etc., etc. Additionally, a DNA test may be needed to prove paternity. There really is no substitute for you and your father to consult with an immigration attorney who, after learning all of the relevant information, could advise about eligibilities, options and strategies to attain your goals, and who then could offer legal representation in the often complex application process.... Read More

A full legal analysis about your husband's eligibility for naturalization will depend upon the outcome of the criminal charges. Domestic violence indeed can stand in the way of naturalization eligibility and it even can have more harsh immigration-related consequences. It would have been wise to have engaged an immigration attorney at the time your husband first was arrested and also at the time your husband applied to become a naturalized citizen, so that the issue could be fully addressed at that point or points. Note that some criminal case dispositions that are not convictions in the criminal legal context still can be treated as convictions by the USCIS - that often turns on whether a defendant has admitted to the elements of the offense in connection with pretrial diversion or a similar disposition. There really is no substitute for consulting with an immigration attorney now. After learning all of the relevant information and seeing the court-certified disposition documents, an immigration attorney could advise about eligibility and about steps to take at this point - and that is true regardless of whether the criminal case already has been concluded.... Read More

A visitor's visa is for a foreign national who intends to enter the U.S. only temporarily and then depart incompliance with the visa. The filing of a marriage-based adjustment of status case soon after entering the U.S. on a visitor's visa may lead the USCIS to conclude that the foreign national committed visa fraud by using a visitor's visa despite intending to become married and remain in the U.S. permanently. Of course, it is possible for a foreign national to enter with "nonimmigrant intent" and later form the intention to become married and remain permanently. Additionally, when a U.S. citizen marries a foreign national who entered the U.S. lawfully and with inspection (such as with a visitor's visa), the couple can succeed with a marriage-based adjustment of status application process even if the foreign national spouse may have overstayed his/her initial visa. Of course, there are many additional considerations in determining immigration eligibilities, options and strategies. It would be wise for you and your man you may marry to consult with an immigration attorney who, after learning all of the relevant information about you and him, could advise about these issues and then could offer legal representation in the often complex application process.... Read More

Significantly more information is needed in order to provide a legal analysis of ways your fiance may be able to attain immigration benefits. This includes, for example, information about your own immigration status (Are you a U.S. citizen? Are you a Permanent Resident? Do you have some other status?); information about your fiance (Is she now located abroad? If not, how and when did she enter the U.S.? What is her current immigration status? What immigration-related applications every before have been filed by or for her?); Etc. There really is no substitute for you and your fiance to consult with an immigration attorney who, after learning all of the relevant information, could advise about eligibilities, options and strategies to attain your goals, and who then could offer legal representation in the often complex application process.... Read More