Iowa Immigration Legal Questions

It is a very good idea to seek TPS for Nepal if you are eligible. TPS does not prevent you from maintaining your F1 status provided you do work within the requirements of the CPT/OPT even if you obtain EAD based on TPS. TPS is a humanitarian program which can also serve as a valid nonimmigrant status for purposes of Change of Status and Adjustment of Status. It can run in parallel with any other nonimmigrant status including F1.    For more information please see below: http://myattorneyusa.com/immigration-law-and-practice/nonimmigrant-visas/special-programs/temporary-protected-status-tps... Read Answer

You should say "yes" to question 23 in the N-400 form. Traffic law violations are generally not looked at to determine good moral character. On the other hand, if you say "no", and U.S.C.I.S. discovers that you have not told the truth, and if it is not timely retracted, you would certainly be looked upon as a person lacking good moral character and not be eligible to file for naturalization again until five years has passed. 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 Answer

U.S.C.I.S. officers almost uniformly wish original certified dispositions of criminal offenses. If you are in another state and cannot go down to the courthouse yourself and require dispositions in a short time period, you may wish to contact a local attorney in New York who can obtain the dispositions for you. 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 Answer

The Obama program, Deferred Action for Parental Accountability (DAPA) contemplates putting qualified applicants in a deferred action status for 3 years with work authorization. It does not contemplate having the people obtain green cards. Such would probably be up to Congress to pass such legislation.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 Answer

There is no basis upon which someone can immigrate based upon a child who is a US citizen unless that child is 21 years of age. The law allowing babies and children who were born in the US to apply for their parents was abolished in 1976. Your son's grandma can make a visa application explaining the reasons for which she wishes to come to the States and explaining why the visit will be temporary only.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 Answer

Thank you for your question.  If your husband was actually deported, and not allowed to voluntarily depart the U.S., and the only reason for his deportation was that he overstayed, he will have to wait 10 years from his departure to reapply at the embassy.  Now that you are married, you can start the process by filing the I-130 with USCIS and then wait until the ten years have elapsed before applying at the embassy.   You should contact an experienced immigration attorney to review the facts of your case to make sure that no other obstacles lie ahead. Good luck!... Read Answer

All relevant questions on form I-130 must be answered, and it is certainly a relevant question as to whether your friend received his green card through marriage.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 Answer

As there are no particulars to your girlfriend's background, it is impossible to state whether a fiancée visa is the last resort. There are other types of nonimmigrant and immigrant visas available if your girlfriend qualifies. There are visas like F-1 student, H-1B worker with specialized knowledge, etc., in the nonimmigrant categories and in the immigrant categories, visas such as EB-5 immigrant investor, EB-2 advanced degreed or exceptional ability individuals, and EB-3 professional workers or those requiring two years of experience to do the offered jobs.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 Answer

One has to be a US citizen to petition for siblings.  Your wife will need to become a citizen and then she can petition for her brother and his family to immigrate to the US.  However, there is a quota on the number of visas issued to siblings of US citizens, so there is a very long wait to get a visa (over ten years).... Read Answer

There is nothing you can do to help.  Any applicant for a non-immigrant visa, like a visitor visa, must show sufficiently strong ties to their country of residence to convince the interviewing officer that they will return at the end of their trip.  Young, single individuals without employment are rarely given visitor visas because of this.  Since you cannot create a tie to the home country, you can't help overcome the consulate's objection.  The best advice for your friend to re-apply when she has stable employment and would be able to point to the loss of her job if she didn't return.... Read Answer

Since your girlfriend has not yet immigrated to the States, you may be able to marry and go to the green card interview together. I note that the late stage of your marriage may cause some concern to a consular officer as to whether it is bona fide or whether it is merely a marriage of convenience to get you your green card. A large concern may also be the timing since the processing must be complete and visa lottery winners enter the US by September 30th. 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 Answer

Were you issued a notice to appear in immigration court?  Your US citizen child cannot help you at this point.  You will either need to return or marry a US citizen.  If you are being placed in removal proceedings, asylum is an option for you but will be hard to prove as you already recognize.... Read Answer

By asking the question of when they will call you, I will assume that you have made an affirmative application for asylum and that you are not under removal proceedings at present. Normally an interview notice follows very quickly after the fingerprinting notice. You should obtain an interview notice within the next one – three months. An employment authorization document is given when an individual makes an application on form I-765 after the asylum application has been in existence for 150 days without being denied. Kindly note that periods of time which elapse due to you or your attorney's request for extension or delay will stop the running of the number of days.  ... Read Answer

Lawyers cannot provide answers to someone who is already represented by an attorney without a release from that attorney or some evidence you have terminated the attorney-client relationship.  This is a rule for our profession.  Many cases take years to adjudicate, and an attorney cannot speed up that process.... Read Answer

Hello. You can process/file for his fiance visa if you two have met at least one time in the past 2 years. http://www.ksvisalaw.com/Immigration-Law/Family-Immigration/Fianc-e-K-1-and-K-3-visas.aspx This will allow him to enter the US for 90 days, marry you and then file for his initial green card. The process may take about 6 months in the US and then a few more for his consulate interview. If you have any further questions, feel free to email anytime: harun@ksvisalaw.com ... Read Answer

In summary, if you are a US citizen, then the usual way for your boyfriend to come here to marry you would be for him to apply for a K-1 fiance visa.  The process begins by your filing form I-129F (it can be downloaded from the uscis.gov website) with all required attachments and filing fee (see the instructions for the form).  Once the petitioin gets approved, it would be forwarded to the US State Department and your boyfriend would apply for the K-1 visa at the US consulate in his country.... Read Answer

There is a visa avaiable for a fiancé, the K-1, if he intends to come to the US to marry you. It involves the filing of the I-129F petition with USCIS. After that is approved, he applies for the K-1 visa at the US Embassy and after arriving in the US and getting married, applies for permanent residency. The State Department has created a very detail oriented page to find out everything you need to know about the K-1 visa process (http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/types/types_2994.html). The process can take 8-10 months (or longer). However, keep in mind that as a basic requirement, you have to have seen your fiancé within the last 2 years to be able to file the initial petition.... Read Answer

An individual who is here in the United States under a tourist visa and marries a U. S. citizen will generally be allowed to adjust status to permanent residence in the U. S. upon the sponsorship of the U. S. citizen provided that the marriage is bona fide, the tourist did not enter the U. S. with a fraudulent purpose, and he or she does not have any disabilities such as problems with law enforcement or Immigration. 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 Answer

Thank you for your inquiry. If your marriage took place after you were approved for permanent residency, you may need to sponsor your wife under the family based 2A preference.  See: http://www.travel.state.gov/visa/bulletin/bulletin_5779.html http://www.familytousa.com/family-preference-categories/ The first step in the process would be the I-130 filing.  Once the priority date for the case became current, the second step in the process would be either immigrant visa processing through the U.S. Consulate in her home country or adjustment of status from within the U.S. (if she were legally present in the U.S. at that time.) You may find some general info on the process at: http://www.familytousa.com/i-130-filings/ http://www.familytousa.com/immigrant-visa-processingconsu/ Every case is different and factually unique.  You should consider consulting with an immigration attorney to advise on a case specific strategy for your matter. Regards, Andrew M. Wilson, Esq. Serotte Reich Wilson, LLP www.srwlawyers.com awilson@srwlawyers.com      ... Read Answer