QUESTION
My undocumented fiance had to leave the country due to a family emergency, will he be able to come back?
Asked on Mar 31st, 2013 on Immigration - California
More details to this question:
We were planning our wedding when my fiance had to leave due to his father being deathly ill. He never had any legal troubles, always paid taxes and worked very hard to support me and my family. My father has cancer and will be starting chemo soon and my youngest son is autistic and is not handling him being gone very well. I have talked to one attorney who told me a fiance visa is not a viable option and that I will need to go down to Mexico, marry him to possibly bring him back. I need to know how long this may possibly take as well as how a waiver for illegal presence works and how long that may take. Will it matter that he was a good (albeit undocumented) citizen while he was here? Does it matter that he left voluntarily? Will these factors increase the odds of a waiver being approved? Is a K3 better than a CR1? What is the best option in this case? What’s the time frame we may be looking at before our family is reunited again?
2 ANSWERS
If he was in the US unlawfully for more than a year before he went back to Mexico, he will be barred from reentry for a period of 10 years unless he can prove extreme hardship to a US citizen spouse, which is fairly difficult to do in most cases.
Answered on Apr 10th, 2013 at 8:31 PM
Immigration and Naturalization Attorney serving San Francisco, CA
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It sounds like you have the basis for an extreme hardship waiver. Under no circumstances should he attempt to enter the US at this time. First you MUST have a full consult with a competent immigration attorney in your area to review his facts, to identify any issues and to then evaluate your case for a waiver. All factors mentioned below matter, has not having a criminal record really helps. Also not having any history of any drug use, ever. It is possible to apply for him as a fiancee- I have done this successfully. Cases are sometimes stronger when you are married but that is not required. Processing times are all over the place the process may be anywhere from 1-2 years at this point.
Answered on Apr 01st, 2013 at 9:29 PM