US citizen Petitioning my wife who was out of status when she was in H1B. What to do ?
Hi, I m a US citizen. we got stuck in a few questions. If you could help us out , it would be great.
1. We re applying for both I130 and I485. Can we submit both on the same day ? We noticed that we can't submit I485 online. We have to mail it to USCIS.
2. Since she was out of status since 2009 till 2015 (lost status during 2008 recession) , will it impact the decision.?
3. In I485 form, Part 9. Question No 76. asks :
" Since April 1, 1997, have you been unlowfully present in the US ? You were unlawfully present in the United State if you were present in the US after the expiration of the period of stay authorized by the DHS Secretary or were present in the US without being admitted or paroled. "
Do we say "YES" ?
Thank you for your help.
USCIS have made drastic change in form i-485 recently after trump took office and nobody understands the reason why ??
I am 100 percent sure that you will recieve rfe’s OR your wife be called for consular processing
Earlier there used to be an option for those who married US spouse would erase the overstay automatically. Now they have removed that and made it really difficult to achieve greencard for all catogaries.
USCIS is planning to interview each and everyone for all catogories and trying to delay everything .
ice will entrap and deport
Do yourself a massive favor and grab complete immigration history via FOIA before you file. You can snag your wife's records here: https://www.uscis.gov/records/request-records-through-the-freedom-of-information-act-or-privacy-act and then click on Step #4.
And if you're even a little bit unsure about anything, talk to an immigration lawyer. It's worth the peace of mind.
Best of luck with everything, OP! 👍
Thank you Sql_Server for the positive info.
We have been living together for the last 10 years and have all those immigration documents saved with us.
Our only concern is that in (76) we found online that some said she didnt accrued unlawful presence. So question (76) is "No" even though she stayed here after H1B overstay ?
And another concern is should we send both i130 and i485 together in MAILor file i130 first ONLINE and then in a few weeks send i485 with the receipt received from the USCIS ?
Thank you
Out of status for 8 years and applying greencard via US spouse in this time. YOU are DOOMED .
Jayaaa ji, My advice for you is to connect with a good immigration lawyer. It seems like she had a lot of unlawful presence which can trigger a ban. Unless you are a practicing attorney, it is very difficult to understand the intricacies of the legal system. DO NOT answer NO if you're not sure about unlawful presence. If you lie in the application, then it will create more headache for the future. Spend some money and hire an experienced immigration attorney.
Last edited: 21-Apr-25 03:53 PM
Being out of status for such a long period is a red flag. If your wife's case is denied, she might be get detained and deported. Better that your wife self deport to Nepal and file the petition. Always hire a lawyer.
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