eastindia
05-14 04:15 PM
It is time to pass the DREAM Act.
purgan
11-11 10:32 AM
Randell,
Congratulations on getting the attention of the Times, and your tireless efforts in spreading word of the broken legal immigration system.
===
New York Times
Immigration, a Love Story
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/12/fashion/12green.html
WHEN Kenneth Harrell Jr., an Assemblies of God minister in South Carolina, invited Gricelda Molina to join his Spanish ministry in 2000, it didn’t take him long to realize he had found the woman he had been waiting for. On the telephone and during romantic strolls they talked about their goals, their commitment to God and how many children each would like to have. Six months flew by, and he asked her to marry him.
“She’s a beautiful woman with a beautiful spirit, very gentle, very sincere,” Mr. Harrell said. But Ms. Molina, a factory worker, was also an undocumented immigrant from Honduras, who had crossed into the United States twice, having once been deported. Mr. Harrell, the pastor of Airport Assembly of God church in West Columbia, said he was not too concerned. “Whatever came, we would walk through this path together,” he said.
Mr. Harrell and Ms. Molina, both 35, married in 2001, in a large wedding attended by family from both sides and blessed by pastors in English and Spanish. But the Harrells no longer live together, not because of divorce, but because Mrs. Harrell, now the mother of two sons and four months pregnant with their third child, has been deported. She had applied for legal residency, or a green card, with her new husband as her sponsor, Mr. Harrell said, but she was sent back to Honduras 20 months ago because of her illegal entries and told she would have to wait 10 years to try again.
“Illegals are pouring over the border,” said Mr. Harrell, who has visited his family five times. “We meet them, we fall in love with them, we marry them. And then the government tears your family apart, and they take no responsibility for letting them in, in the first place.”
Falling in love and marching toward marriage is not always easy, but a particular brand of heartache and hardship can await when one of the partners is in this country illegally. The uncertainty of such a union has only been heightened by the national debate over illegal immigration. Whether the new Democratic leadership in Congress will help people like the Harrells remains to be seen.
It is hard to quantify how many people find themselves in Mr. Harrell’s situation, but with stepped-up enforcement in recent years, deportations have increased, and so have fears of losing a loved one in that way. (There were 168,310 removals in 2005, compared with 108,000 in 2000, immigration officials said.)
And that is only one byproduct of love between two people with such uneven places in society, immigration lawyers say. Many relationships strain under the financial burden of hiring lawyers for what can turn into years of visiting government offices, producing pictures, tax records and other evidence of a legitimate marriage in the quest for legalization. And while instances of immigrants faking love for a green card are in the minority, according to immigration officials, some couples feel pressure to marry before they are ready, hoping that marriage will prevent a loved one’s deportation.
Raul Godinez, an immigration lawyer in Los Angeles, said: “I ask people, ‘How much do you love this person? Because immigration is going to test your marriage.’ If you don’t feel it’s going to be a strong marriage, I wouldn’t do it.”
Many people may still believe that obtaining legal status through marriage is easy, because of periodic reports of marriage scams. In a three-year investigation called Operation Newlywed Game, immigration and customs enforcement agents caught more than 40 suspects in California for allegedly orchestrating sham marriages between hundreds of Chinese or Vietnamese nationals and United States citizens. But such fraud occurs in only a minority of cases, federal officials said.
In reality, immigration lawyers said, marrying a citizen does not automatically entitle the spouse to a green card and is only the first step in a long bureaucratic journey. The lawyers noted that changes in the law in the last five years have made this legalization path increasingly difficult, one worth choosing only if true love is at stake. (Other routes include sponsorship by immediate family members or an employer.)
The Harrells said they had no idea how difficult it could be and were shocked when Mrs. Harrell’s application for permanent residence was turned down, leaving them only 12 days to prepare for her departure. In that time, Mr. Harrell said, they decided that the children, now 4 and 3, would go with her. So Mr. Harrell obtained passports for them, and the church held a farewell service.
“It was very traumatic,” he said. “Our whole world was crashing around us.”
In Yoro, in north central Honduras, where Mrs. Harrell and the children live with her parents, she said the older boy constantly asks for his father, begging, “Let’s go to my papa’s house.” She has coped with her own dejection, too. “I know how much work he has over there,” she said by telephone. “He needs his wife.”
But even in the best of circumstances, when an immigrant enters the country legally, couples may have to rearrange their lives and defer their dreams.
Paola Emery, a jewelry designer, and her husband, Randall Emery, a computer consultant in Philadelphia, said they delayed having children and buying a house for the nearly four years it took the government to complete a background check for Mrs. Emery, who had entered the country from Colombia with a tourist visa and applied for permanent residency after they married in 2002.
Mrs. Emery, 27, said lawyers advised them it was not wise for her to risk trouble by visiting her close-knit family in Colombia and then trying to re-enter this country. She said she was absent through weddings, illnesses and even the kidnapping and rescue of an uncle.
“I felt like I was in jail,” Mrs. Emery said.
Officials with the Citizenship and Immigration Services in the Homeland Security Department say that delays lasting years are rare, but some immigration lawyers say they see clients who wait three to four years for security clearance. Mrs. Emery and her husband, 34, sued Homeland Security over the delays, and she was finally cleared last May. By then Mr. Emery had helped form American Families United, a group of citizens who have sponsored immediate family members for immigration, and which advocates immigration-law change to keep families together. Immigration Services officials say they are not out to impede love or immigration. Nearly 260,000 spouses of citizens received permanent residency through marriage last year, out of 1.1 million people who became permanent residents, according to the Immigration Services office. “The goal is to give people who are eligible the benefit,” said Marie T. Sebrechts, its spokeswoman in Southern California. She said the agency does not comment on individual cases.
When a legal immigrant is sponsored by an American spouse, she said, the green card can be obtained in as little as six months. But with complications like an illegal entry, laws are not that benevolent, Ms. Sebrechts said. In those cases, the immigrant usually must return to the home country and wait 3 to 10 years to apply for residency, though waivers are sometimes granted.
Such obstacles are far from the minds of couples when they meet. And for some, so is the idea to question whether the beloved feels equally in love with them.
Sharyn T. Sooho, a divorce lawyer and a founder of divorcenet.com, a Web site for divorcing couples, said she has represented American spouses who realized too late that the person they married was more interested in a green card than in living happily ever after. “They feel conflicted, used and abused,” she said. “It’s a quick marriage, and suddenly the person who was so sweet is turning into a nightmare.”
But more often, said Carlina Tapia-Ruano, the president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, couples marry before they are ready because “there’s fear that if you don’t do this, somebody is going to get deported.”
Krystal Rivera, 18, a college student in Los Angeles, and her boyfriend fall into this group. Ms. Rivera is set on marrying in April 2008, even as she worries that it may put too much pressure on the relationship.
“I never wanted to follow the Hispanic ritual of getting married early,” said Ms. Rivera, a native of Los Angeles whose parents emigrated from Mexico.
She said she fell in love at 13 with a Mexican-born boy who sang in the church choir with her. “He started poking me, and I said ‘Stop it!’ ” she remembered.
Ms. Rivera is still in love with the boy, now 19, who was brought into the country illegally by his mother when he was 12. He goes to college and wants to become a teacher, while she hopes to become a doctor.
But for those plans to work, Ms. Rivera said, she needs to help him legalize his status. She said she has witnessed his frustration as he dealt with employers who didn’t pay what they owed him or struggled to find better jobs than his current one as a line cook. Because of his illegal status, he is unable to get a driver’s license or visit the brothers he left in Mexico. “We want to be normal,” Ms. Rivera said.
The Harrells, too, have decided to take charge. After months of exploring how to reunite the family and spending thousands of dollars on lawyers, Mr. Harrell has decided to leave his small congregation, sell his house and join his wife in Honduras. He will be a missionary for his church for a fraction of the $40,000 a year he makes as a minister.
Congratulations on getting the attention of the Times, and your tireless efforts in spreading word of the broken legal immigration system.
===
New York Times
Immigration, a Love Story
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/12/fashion/12green.html
WHEN Kenneth Harrell Jr., an Assemblies of God minister in South Carolina, invited Gricelda Molina to join his Spanish ministry in 2000, it didn’t take him long to realize he had found the woman he had been waiting for. On the telephone and during romantic strolls they talked about their goals, their commitment to God and how many children each would like to have. Six months flew by, and he asked her to marry him.
“She’s a beautiful woman with a beautiful spirit, very gentle, very sincere,” Mr. Harrell said. But Ms. Molina, a factory worker, was also an undocumented immigrant from Honduras, who had crossed into the United States twice, having once been deported. Mr. Harrell, the pastor of Airport Assembly of God church in West Columbia, said he was not too concerned. “Whatever came, we would walk through this path together,” he said.
Mr. Harrell and Ms. Molina, both 35, married in 2001, in a large wedding attended by family from both sides and blessed by pastors in English and Spanish. But the Harrells no longer live together, not because of divorce, but because Mrs. Harrell, now the mother of two sons and four months pregnant with their third child, has been deported. She had applied for legal residency, or a green card, with her new husband as her sponsor, Mr. Harrell said, but she was sent back to Honduras 20 months ago because of her illegal entries and told she would have to wait 10 years to try again.
“Illegals are pouring over the border,” said Mr. Harrell, who has visited his family five times. “We meet them, we fall in love with them, we marry them. And then the government tears your family apart, and they take no responsibility for letting them in, in the first place.”
Falling in love and marching toward marriage is not always easy, but a particular brand of heartache and hardship can await when one of the partners is in this country illegally. The uncertainty of such a union has only been heightened by the national debate over illegal immigration. Whether the new Democratic leadership in Congress will help people like the Harrells remains to be seen.
It is hard to quantify how many people find themselves in Mr. Harrell’s situation, but with stepped-up enforcement in recent years, deportations have increased, and so have fears of losing a loved one in that way. (There were 168,310 removals in 2005, compared with 108,000 in 2000, immigration officials said.)
And that is only one byproduct of love between two people with such uneven places in society, immigration lawyers say. Many relationships strain under the financial burden of hiring lawyers for what can turn into years of visiting government offices, producing pictures, tax records and other evidence of a legitimate marriage in the quest for legalization. And while instances of immigrants faking love for a green card are in the minority, according to immigration officials, some couples feel pressure to marry before they are ready, hoping that marriage will prevent a loved one’s deportation.
Raul Godinez, an immigration lawyer in Los Angeles, said: “I ask people, ‘How much do you love this person? Because immigration is going to test your marriage.’ If you don’t feel it’s going to be a strong marriage, I wouldn’t do it.”
Many people may still believe that obtaining legal status through marriage is easy, because of periodic reports of marriage scams. In a three-year investigation called Operation Newlywed Game, immigration and customs enforcement agents caught more than 40 suspects in California for allegedly orchestrating sham marriages between hundreds of Chinese or Vietnamese nationals and United States citizens. But such fraud occurs in only a minority of cases, federal officials said.
In reality, immigration lawyers said, marrying a citizen does not automatically entitle the spouse to a green card and is only the first step in a long bureaucratic journey. The lawyers noted that changes in the law in the last five years have made this legalization path increasingly difficult, one worth choosing only if true love is at stake. (Other routes include sponsorship by immediate family members or an employer.)
The Harrells said they had no idea how difficult it could be and were shocked when Mrs. Harrell’s application for permanent residence was turned down, leaving them only 12 days to prepare for her departure. In that time, Mr. Harrell said, they decided that the children, now 4 and 3, would go with her. So Mr. Harrell obtained passports for them, and the church held a farewell service.
“It was very traumatic,” he said. “Our whole world was crashing around us.”
In Yoro, in north central Honduras, where Mrs. Harrell and the children live with her parents, she said the older boy constantly asks for his father, begging, “Let’s go to my papa’s house.” She has coped with her own dejection, too. “I know how much work he has over there,” she said by telephone. “He needs his wife.”
But even in the best of circumstances, when an immigrant enters the country legally, couples may have to rearrange their lives and defer their dreams.
Paola Emery, a jewelry designer, and her husband, Randall Emery, a computer consultant in Philadelphia, said they delayed having children and buying a house for the nearly four years it took the government to complete a background check for Mrs. Emery, who had entered the country from Colombia with a tourist visa and applied for permanent residency after they married in 2002.
Mrs. Emery, 27, said lawyers advised them it was not wise for her to risk trouble by visiting her close-knit family in Colombia and then trying to re-enter this country. She said she was absent through weddings, illnesses and even the kidnapping and rescue of an uncle.
“I felt like I was in jail,” Mrs. Emery said.
Officials with the Citizenship and Immigration Services in the Homeland Security Department say that delays lasting years are rare, but some immigration lawyers say they see clients who wait three to four years for security clearance. Mrs. Emery and her husband, 34, sued Homeland Security over the delays, and she was finally cleared last May. By then Mr. Emery had helped form American Families United, a group of citizens who have sponsored immediate family members for immigration, and which advocates immigration-law change to keep families together. Immigration Services officials say they are not out to impede love or immigration. Nearly 260,000 spouses of citizens received permanent residency through marriage last year, out of 1.1 million people who became permanent residents, according to the Immigration Services office. “The goal is to give people who are eligible the benefit,” said Marie T. Sebrechts, its spokeswoman in Southern California. She said the agency does not comment on individual cases.
When a legal immigrant is sponsored by an American spouse, she said, the green card can be obtained in as little as six months. But with complications like an illegal entry, laws are not that benevolent, Ms. Sebrechts said. In those cases, the immigrant usually must return to the home country and wait 3 to 10 years to apply for residency, though waivers are sometimes granted.
Such obstacles are far from the minds of couples when they meet. And for some, so is the idea to question whether the beloved feels equally in love with them.
Sharyn T. Sooho, a divorce lawyer and a founder of divorcenet.com, a Web site for divorcing couples, said she has represented American spouses who realized too late that the person they married was more interested in a green card than in living happily ever after. “They feel conflicted, used and abused,” she said. “It’s a quick marriage, and suddenly the person who was so sweet is turning into a nightmare.”
But more often, said Carlina Tapia-Ruano, the president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, couples marry before they are ready because “there’s fear that if you don’t do this, somebody is going to get deported.”
Krystal Rivera, 18, a college student in Los Angeles, and her boyfriend fall into this group. Ms. Rivera is set on marrying in April 2008, even as she worries that it may put too much pressure on the relationship.
“I never wanted to follow the Hispanic ritual of getting married early,” said Ms. Rivera, a native of Los Angeles whose parents emigrated from Mexico.
She said she fell in love at 13 with a Mexican-born boy who sang in the church choir with her. “He started poking me, and I said ‘Stop it!’ ” she remembered.
Ms. Rivera is still in love with the boy, now 19, who was brought into the country illegally by his mother when he was 12. He goes to college and wants to become a teacher, while she hopes to become a doctor.
But for those plans to work, Ms. Rivera said, she needs to help him legalize his status. She said she has witnessed his frustration as he dealt with employers who didn’t pay what they owed him or struggled to find better jobs than his current one as a line cook. Because of his illegal status, he is unable to get a driver’s license or visit the brothers he left in Mexico. “We want to be normal,” Ms. Rivera said.
The Harrells, too, have decided to take charge. After months of exploring how to reunite the family and spending thousands of dollars on lawyers, Mr. Harrell has decided to leave his small congregation, sell his house and join his wife in Honduras. He will be a missionary for his church for a fraction of the $40,000 a year he makes as a minister.
moe
02-04 11:26 AM
hi everyone..i try to long sotry short.i came here 2001 with b1 then i stay since date.. 2004 my employer apply for gc. so far i got my i 140 approved notice about about 1 year ago..
but law we have to wait.they my lawyer said we have wait mayby long time.. my case date is april 2006 ..
Q1-do i have rigth to work here now?
Q2-do i have to wait realy long time?
Q3- can i do anything for waiting time shorter?
MY lawyer is good man but i can even talk to him when i need
but law we have to wait.they my lawyer said we have wait mayby long time.. my case date is april 2006 ..
Q1-do i have rigth to work here now?
Q2-do i have to wait realy long time?
Q3- can i do anything for waiting time shorter?
MY lawyer is good man but i can even talk to him when i need
leoindiano
08-28 04:36 PM
You contributed 600:confused: for what?
For different initiatives. Did you see my join date? I joined in the first month when it is founded. Not a big deal...I am not even sure why i have to prove and tell these stories....last post....
For different initiatives. Did you see my join date? I joined in the first month when it is founded. Not a big deal...I am not even sure why i have to prove and tell these stories....last post....
more...
chanduv23
04-21 04:27 PM
Well, if your H1B is based on approved 140 (post 6 years), even that gets invalidated when your 485 is denied due to revocation of I-140.
According to my lawyer, you can very well work on EAD if your 485 is denied because of USCIS's wrongful decision like not looking at AC21 law, July fiasco PD confusion etc ..if you want to be extra conservative here, u can wait till your MTR is filed and you get a receipt notice to start working again.
Thats a "positive view" by an attorney. Some Attorneys use the conservative approach. As such, it is an ambigious call.
Adjustment of Status means "you are in the US" and adjusting status. Now when a decision comes from USCIS - it may be "right" or "wrong". In 99% of cases, the decisions are right. 1 % cases where employer revoked 140 or July fiasco confusion or other stuff can be attributed to "wrong" decisions. Thats why a denial letter states that one has to apply for MTR if their decision was not right and asks for "new facts" that they missed. Ability to file for MTR means, you are showing USCIS that you are indeed eligible to adjust status. All this is within the law.
But the irony is - when one's 485 gets denied and MTR is in progress, one cannnot renew EAD or AP because the 485 has been flagged as "denied".
Now, if one files for MTR and leaves the country - it means this person has given up and the MTR will not get processed any further and 485 decision is final - and if the decision was wrongful - it means the person as actually obliged to a wrongful denial.
So what is the status when one files MTR? It is not defined.
Thats exactly why I said " An Attorney will be able to explain"
My personal suggestion - "Don't stress". If your 485 gets wrongfully denied, MTRs take usually few weeks to 3 months or so.
According to my lawyer, you can very well work on EAD if your 485 is denied because of USCIS's wrongful decision like not looking at AC21 law, July fiasco PD confusion etc ..if you want to be extra conservative here, u can wait till your MTR is filed and you get a receipt notice to start working again.
Thats a "positive view" by an attorney. Some Attorneys use the conservative approach. As such, it is an ambigious call.
Adjustment of Status means "you are in the US" and adjusting status. Now when a decision comes from USCIS - it may be "right" or "wrong". In 99% of cases, the decisions are right. 1 % cases where employer revoked 140 or July fiasco confusion or other stuff can be attributed to "wrong" decisions. Thats why a denial letter states that one has to apply for MTR if their decision was not right and asks for "new facts" that they missed. Ability to file for MTR means, you are showing USCIS that you are indeed eligible to adjust status. All this is within the law.
But the irony is - when one's 485 gets denied and MTR is in progress, one cannnot renew EAD or AP because the 485 has been flagged as "denied".
Now, if one files for MTR and leaves the country - it means this person has given up and the MTR will not get processed any further and 485 decision is final - and if the decision was wrongful - it means the person as actually obliged to a wrongful denial.
So what is the status when one files MTR? It is not defined.
Thats exactly why I said " An Attorney will be able to explain"
My personal suggestion - "Don't stress". If your 485 gets wrongfully denied, MTRs take usually few weeks to 3 months or so.
rajpatelemail
12-09 01:32 AM
I second that...
Red dots will not matter (even 100000000 reds do not pull hair), butthat filthy language hurts.
If real person who commented it is visible, then it shd be ok, so that we can deal with that fella.
When sush a system is in place, people may not leave filthy comments i guess.
Anonymous nature of this dotting business leading to the real culture/pshyco attitiude of those dotmongers.
Red dots will not matter (even 100000000 reds do not pull hair), butthat filthy language hurts.
If real person who commented it is visible, then it shd be ok, so that we can deal with that fella.
When sush a system is in place, people may not leave filthy comments i guess.
Anonymous nature of this dotting business leading to the real culture/pshyco attitiude of those dotmongers.
more...
unitednations
02-22 02:12 PM
To all Experts/Gurus, please advice on this issue.
I hold a H-1B status as well as I-485 Adjustment of Status Pending.
I am the primary applicant in this Eb-2 petition PD July 2006. I am with the same employer for the past four years and they are the sponsor of the green card petition as well.
I have got admit to PhD in EECS at MIT (Top program in US) and would like to pursue that option.
1. Can i continue full time PhD on my I-485 pending visa status? The PhD will be a natural progression of my current research job with my employer.
2. Do i need to change to a F-1 Visa? From what i understand, I think one cannot change from I-485 to F-1.
3. From what i understand, i can keep my I-485 pending status while doing full time study provided i have an offer from my current employer/other employer willing to hire me upon approval of the I-485. Is this correct?
4. Regarding the procedure to do this, do i need to get an offer in writing from my current employer/future employer before i start the full time study? Or do i need to get this written offer from the employer if and when i receive an RFE from USCIS?
5. Do i need to proactively invoke AC21 for doing this and let USCIS know?
6. How long do i need to stay with the employer once my I-485 is approved? I hear 6 months as a good period.
7. If the I-485 gets approved in the middle of a semester, how soon do i need to start working for the employer?
8. Any other creative ideas to sail through this like keep engagement with current employer say by consulting few hours a week etc.?
9. Do i have any realistic chance of I-485 approval before September 2009? From the recent infopass, i was told that name check, FP check, background check are done but my FP have expired. I was told that i will receive a FP notice but i don't know when.
These might have already been discussed in previous threads, but i would appreciate response from experts/gurus.
Thanks.
You can't change from 485 status to F-1 within the country. You can only change from non immigrant to another non immigrant visa within the country.
If you wanted to get on F-1; you would have to go for visa stamping and re-enter on F-1. However, consulate probably wouldn't give you F-1 since you have shown immigrant intent. Even if they somehow gave it to you; then uscis would deny your 485 eventually by entering on F-1 visa.
You can go full time to school while 485 is pending. You just have to be able to demonstrate that you have a permanent full time job waiting for you upon greencard approval (ie., AC21).
There was a legal case from a long time ago; where a person was getting sponsored for a particular position and he went to school full time for a totally irrelevant occupation to what he was getting sponsored for (he went to school to be a dentist). USCIS denied his case saying that they didn't believe his intent to go into the job since he was being trained/educated in a totally different field.
Long story short; was that it went to court and the candidate won...
If you want to put up with the inevitable hassles from uscis that you may get over doing this then go ahead. At the end you should prevail but USCIS likes for you to go through a bumpy road
I hold a H-1B status as well as I-485 Adjustment of Status Pending.
I am the primary applicant in this Eb-2 petition PD July 2006. I am with the same employer for the past four years and they are the sponsor of the green card petition as well.
I have got admit to PhD in EECS at MIT (Top program in US) and would like to pursue that option.
1. Can i continue full time PhD on my I-485 pending visa status? The PhD will be a natural progression of my current research job with my employer.
2. Do i need to change to a F-1 Visa? From what i understand, I think one cannot change from I-485 to F-1.
3. From what i understand, i can keep my I-485 pending status while doing full time study provided i have an offer from my current employer/other employer willing to hire me upon approval of the I-485. Is this correct?
4. Regarding the procedure to do this, do i need to get an offer in writing from my current employer/future employer before i start the full time study? Or do i need to get this written offer from the employer if and when i receive an RFE from USCIS?
5. Do i need to proactively invoke AC21 for doing this and let USCIS know?
6. How long do i need to stay with the employer once my I-485 is approved? I hear 6 months as a good period.
7. If the I-485 gets approved in the middle of a semester, how soon do i need to start working for the employer?
8. Any other creative ideas to sail through this like keep engagement with current employer say by consulting few hours a week etc.?
9. Do i have any realistic chance of I-485 approval before September 2009? From the recent infopass, i was told that name check, FP check, background check are done but my FP have expired. I was told that i will receive a FP notice but i don't know when.
These might have already been discussed in previous threads, but i would appreciate response from experts/gurus.
Thanks.
You can't change from 485 status to F-1 within the country. You can only change from non immigrant to another non immigrant visa within the country.
If you wanted to get on F-1; you would have to go for visa stamping and re-enter on F-1. However, consulate probably wouldn't give you F-1 since you have shown immigrant intent. Even if they somehow gave it to you; then uscis would deny your 485 eventually by entering on F-1 visa.
You can go full time to school while 485 is pending. You just have to be able to demonstrate that you have a permanent full time job waiting for you upon greencard approval (ie., AC21).
There was a legal case from a long time ago; where a person was getting sponsored for a particular position and he went to school full time for a totally irrelevant occupation to what he was getting sponsored for (he went to school to be a dentist). USCIS denied his case saying that they didn't believe his intent to go into the job since he was being trained/educated in a totally different field.
Long story short; was that it went to court and the candidate won...
If you want to put up with the inevitable hassles from uscis that you may get over doing this then go ahead. At the end you should prevail but USCIS likes for you to go through a bumpy road
sanam9696
07-20 07:16 PM
Thanks everyone for replying.
However, the opinions seems to be conflicting. Is there a place where I can verify precisely what the law says?
I have not stayed outside the US for more than 3 months since 2002. Does this exempt me from the cap?
I need to be sure, otherwise, I would have to apply for a H1-B right now with a consultant who is ready to sponsor me.
I'm quite reluctant to do this because the work involved with the consultant is not in my field and does not allow for good long term prospects. Plus there might be contractual obligations.
Please advice.
Thanks very much,
Sick with worry.
Few months back I had a talk with a immigration lawyer retained by my school and he informed me that H1-F1-H1 is not part of the quota..even I was under the same impression as you..but lawyer firmly confirmed the above fact...so u r pretty safe..
However, the opinions seems to be conflicting. Is there a place where I can verify precisely what the law says?
I have not stayed outside the US for more than 3 months since 2002. Does this exempt me from the cap?
I need to be sure, otherwise, I would have to apply for a H1-B right now with a consultant who is ready to sponsor me.
I'm quite reluctant to do this because the work involved with the consultant is not in my field and does not allow for good long term prospects. Plus there might be contractual obligations.
Please advice.
Thanks very much,
Sick with worry.
Few months back I had a talk with a immigration lawyer retained by my school and he informed me that H1-F1-H1 is not part of the quota..even I was under the same impression as you..but lawyer firmly confirmed the above fact...so u r pretty safe..
more...
binadh
07-12 01:06 PM
May be someone from NY can start calling/writing clintons office. Help us or return that $$$$.
As per this report Indian-Americans raise $2Million. Can we get some help from her to raise our issues?
source: http://www.nysun.com/article/57238
If you think this thread is useless, CORE please close this thread.
As per this report Indian-Americans raise $2Million. Can we get some help from her to raise our issues?
source: http://www.nysun.com/article/57238
If you think this thread is useless, CORE please close this thread.
desi485
09-16 02:30 PM
There is no risk. I recently traveled and came back on AP and I changed jobs and no longer work with sponsoring employer.
There is always a nut case if you are not lucky and will probably cause some grief, but will not stop you from entering US.
I myself have travelled using AP and the experience was plesant. Also I have not heard about anybody who was NOT ALLOWED to re-enter with a valid AP in hand. Very rare few ppl reported rude treatment but still they were finally allowed. Hopefully, you should have a trouble free - stress free experience. Good Luck!
There is always a nut case if you are not lucky and will probably cause some grief, but will not stop you from entering US.
I myself have travelled using AP and the experience was plesant. Also I have not heard about anybody who was NOT ALLOWED to re-enter with a valid AP in hand. Very rare few ppl reported rude treatment but still they were finally allowed. Hopefully, you should have a trouble free - stress free experience. Good Luck!
more...
kaisersose
07-11 06:09 PM
As long as you are employed, and company is paying you decent salary (atleast salary mentioned on the L/C) you are fine, you must be employed at time of RFE/NOID etc..
To be more accurate, there should be a bonafide offer of employment at the time of RFE/NOID. It can be an offer to start at a later date (as late as GC approval) and does not have to be current.
To be more accurate, there should be a bonafide offer of employment at the time of RFE/NOID. It can be an offer to start at a later date (as late as GC approval) and does not have to be current.
new2perm
05-28 06:33 PM
I am a July 2007 filer and he expects an RFE for employment verification on my case.
more...
bidhanc
05-11 12:50 PM
Hi,
I called npr at the "media relations" number and spoke to a Representative.
He gave me the TALK number as mentioned above.
Bidhan
I called npr at the "media relations" number and spoke to a Representative.
He gave me the TALK number as mentioned above.
Bidhan
rajas
05-31 10:18 AM
I know that there has been several discussions regardigng this topic.One thing I never knew was that once your 6 year H1 Limit is over and say you got H1 extension for 3 more years based on approved I140, now for some reason if your 485 is denied your h1 will be denied too!!! so H1 is not a back up to EAD in this scenario...some lawyers have this opinion!!!!
So EAD/H1 discussion important only for those who have not reached 6 year limit
Any comments!!!!
So EAD/H1 discussion important only for those who have not reached 6 year limit
Any comments!!!!
more...
bekugc
04-08 06:07 PM
EB3, PD = Apr 2003
by the way on - http://immigrationvoice.org/index.php?option=com_tracker&Itemid=63
sort by PD is sorting on alphabet of the month rather than year...so to get all the EB3 in 03 you may have to look in all the pages.
by the way on - http://immigrationvoice.org/index.php?option=com_tracker&Itemid=63
sort by PD is sorting on alphabet of the month rather than year...so to get all the EB3 in 03 you may have to look in all the pages.
GCBy3000
09-25 02:33 PM
If this is derivative, then how come H1 obtained should be counted towards H4. H1 is standalone and should not be counted.
Again, my wife is on H4 for 6 years and I did not get into 485 stage. Now she wants to go to India and come back after a one year break. If she comes back after a year on new H1, it would be fine for her. If she come back on H4, can she get a H1 after one year?
Any idea, whether this is possible?
I'm not a lawyer, but my assumption would be that this is cannot be changed by an USCIS memo. Why? Because H4 is simply a derivative status which means that it obeys all the rules pertinent to the primary beneficiary's status plus additional restrictions imposed to the particular classification by law. H status is restricted to 6 year continuous presence in the US.
It would be helpful to find the definition of a derivative status; INA does not provide such definition, but I'm sure they wouldn't be using these words loosely without a proper definition.
So my guess would be is that the answer to the question of "decoupling" H4 and H1b time will boil down to the answer to another question: what really defines a derivative status.
Again, my wife is on H4 for 6 years and I did not get into 485 stage. Now she wants to go to India and come back after a one year break. If she comes back after a year on new H1, it would be fine for her. If she come back on H4, can she get a H1 after one year?
Any idea, whether this is possible?
I'm not a lawyer, but my assumption would be that this is cannot be changed by an USCIS memo. Why? Because H4 is simply a derivative status which means that it obeys all the rules pertinent to the primary beneficiary's status plus additional restrictions imposed to the particular classification by law. H status is restricted to 6 year continuous presence in the US.
It would be helpful to find the definition of a derivative status; INA does not provide such definition, but I'm sure they wouldn't be using these words loosely without a proper definition.
So my guess would be is that the answer to the question of "decoupling" H4 and H1b time will boil down to the answer to another question: what really defines a derivative status.
more...
extra_mint
09-15 01:11 PM
Congratulations ....
wow !!! freedom when your wife is in India ....go to strip bar and have fun:) you need to enjoy
wow !!! freedom when your wife is in India ....go to strip bar and have fun:) you need to enjoy
smisachu
12-05 11:12 PM
I asked my attorney the following question. His reply is in caps:
Q) Is it true that I can enter US on AP and still retain my H1 if I declare at port of entry that I would like to use my H1? I would like to retain and use my H1.
A)NO. YOU WOULD ENTER ON THE AP. THEN WHEN THE H-1B IS ABOUT TO EXPIRE, YOU WILL BE ABLE TO APPLY FOR AN H-1B EXTENSION. WHAT SEEMS TO BE A GREY AREA IS THE EXACT STATUS AFTER THE I-94 THAT IS ISSUED BASED ON THE AP EXPIRES, AND BEFORE THE H-1B IS READY TO BE RENEWED. YOU CAN'T TECHNICALLY APPLY FOR AN EXTENSION OF AN H-1B UNLESS IT IS WITHIN 6 MONTHS OF EXPIRING.
What is the feed back you guys have received from your legal counsels? Please share.
Hi,
I have my AP approved and H1B approved until 2010 but have an expired H1B
Visa and I plan to extend my H1B visa some time next year.
I am planning on some business trips and would like to re-enter US multiple times using my Advance parole. Any issues with this?
Once I re enter using AP, can I go back to India and apply for H1B visa extension based on the approved H1B.
Appreciate your responses on this.
Thanks,
Bitz
Q) Is it true that I can enter US on AP and still retain my H1 if I declare at port of entry that I would like to use my H1? I would like to retain and use my H1.
A)NO. YOU WOULD ENTER ON THE AP. THEN WHEN THE H-1B IS ABOUT TO EXPIRE, YOU WILL BE ABLE TO APPLY FOR AN H-1B EXTENSION. WHAT SEEMS TO BE A GREY AREA IS THE EXACT STATUS AFTER THE I-94 THAT IS ISSUED BASED ON THE AP EXPIRES, AND BEFORE THE H-1B IS READY TO BE RENEWED. YOU CAN'T TECHNICALLY APPLY FOR AN EXTENSION OF AN H-1B UNLESS IT IS WITHIN 6 MONTHS OF EXPIRING.
What is the feed back you guys have received from your legal counsels? Please share.
Hi,
I have my AP approved and H1B approved until 2010 but have an expired H1B
Visa and I plan to extend my H1B visa some time next year.
I am planning on some business trips and would like to re-enter US multiple times using my Advance parole. Any issues with this?
Once I re enter using AP, can I go back to India and apply for H1B visa extension based on the approved H1B.
Appreciate your responses on this.
Thanks,
Bitz
number30
02-26 10:13 PM
Thank you. I was going to reply to Dealsnet and state that, but you beat me to it.
On a side note, i was going to add that out of status itself does not determine the start of the clock, for the 3 and 10 year bans, .. that would be "unlawful stay" determined from the expiration of the date on the I-94 OR an administrative determination of unlawful stay based on when they discovered the out of status situation. However, for the above purposes [GC based on marriage], this point is moot.
Moreover 3/10 ban will apply only when someone is trying to re-enter US. That means if you stay in US until you get green card ban will never affect.
On a side note, i was going to add that out of status itself does not determine the start of the clock, for the 3 and 10 year bans, .. that would be "unlawful stay" determined from the expiration of the date on the I-94 OR an administrative determination of unlawful stay based on when they discovered the out of status situation. However, for the above purposes [GC based on marriage], this point is moot.
Moreover 3/10 ban will apply only when someone is trying to re-enter US. That means if you stay in US until you get green card ban will never affect.
jayram123
07-12 04:40 PM
We do not need new thread. Either close or change the title, please.
gimme Green!!
08-19 12:58 PM
Thanks Dealsnet!!
I did reply same questions from many people before.
Give me green.
See the linkhttp://immigrationvoice.org/forum/showthread.php?p=271903#post271903
About ADIT:
ADIT=Alien Documentation Identification & Telecommunication Systems.
Could mean biometrics not up to date or just stamp in passport.
Either way they will tell you what they want.
ADIT (I-551) stamping
�
Applicant appears at local USCIS for ADIT processing, as outlined in AOS approval letter. Applicant will not be scheduled for an ADIT appointment, ADIT processing is done by "walk-in" basis ONLY.
�
Once the applicant adjusts his/her status by completing ADIT processing, s/he is given the I-551 permanent resident stamp in his/her passport.
I did reply same questions from many people before.
Give me green.
See the linkhttp://immigrationvoice.org/forum/showthread.php?p=271903#post271903
About ADIT:
ADIT=Alien Documentation Identification & Telecommunication Systems.
Could mean biometrics not up to date or just stamp in passport.
Either way they will tell you what they want.
ADIT (I-551) stamping
�
Applicant appears at local USCIS for ADIT processing, as outlined in AOS approval letter. Applicant will not be scheduled for an ADIT appointment, ADIT processing is done by "walk-in" basis ONLY.
�
Once the applicant adjusts his/her status by completing ADIT processing, s/he is given the I-551 permanent resident stamp in his/her passport.
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