WHY
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If you are receiving your green card due to a family immigration petition, marriage, or the entrepreneurs and investors program then there will initially be conditions upon your permanent residence status.
For marriage-based green cards, your status is conditional until you prove that you did not enter the marriage solely to receive an immigration benefit. This means at the end of the two-year period you have to show that you’re still married to the same US citizen or lawful permanent resident.
If you are an immigrant with children who received a green card after you married their step-parent then your children will also have conditional status contingent upon the continuation of your marriage.
To remove conditions you’d file a Form I-751.
Investors are merely affirming that they’ve met the two-year residence requirements. They can get an adjustment of status with an I-485 if they live in the United States already or a DS-260 form with a US Consulate or US Embassy if they are not.
Can I work while waiting for conditional status to be removed?
As long as you file your forms on time you should be able to continue working as normal. For example permanent resident filing form I-751 will have their status extended for another two years just for filing their application properly.
The government may need all that time just to get the conditions removed, but you will remain legally capable of continuing to live and work in the United States.
How do I check the status of my petition?
You can check your status online by using the USCIS case status page. You will need a copy of your receipt number.
Will I need another interview?
It depends. In many cases the government will require an additional interview. Your immigration attorney may attend this interview with you, and can certainly prepare you for it in a way that will help you improve your chances of success.
How can I appeal a decision?
Your attorney can help you through the process. If your petition is unsuccessful you may receive a Notice to Appear and the government may begin removal proceedings. Your attorney will need to help you begin the cancellation of removal process.
See also:
What is a Notice of Intent to Revoke?
How Much Does an Immigration Lawyer Cost?
While USCIS can and does approve some green card petitions without an interview, most green cards will require them, as will adjustment of status cases. The immigration process takes long enough that it can be intensely frustrating—and scary—to get a letter saying that your interview has been postponed.
Fortunately, a cancelled or rescheduled interview isn’t always a bad thing. Sometimes it’s just the nature of the beast: USCIS is backlogged and overwhelmed with cases, and nothing in the process moves fast. At other times, the cancellation is cause for concern.
There are usually three reasons why an interview gets cancelled.
If you started your immigration case in one state and then moved to another state then your file, or parts of your file, might not have arrived at the local office yet. They may still be coordinating with the other field office to get all of your details in front of them.
They’ve also been known to do weird things like scheduling interviews on federal holidays, only to cancel it later when they notice the mistake. Remember that the people working at these offices are just people, and they are not perfect.
USCIS is understaffed just about like everyone else, and sometimes they just don’t have enough personnel to conduct the interview or to cover your case.
Sometimes your case officer calls in sick as well, which is of course a normal, human thing to have happen.
Sometimes officers start reading through your file or existing application and discover that they want to look into your case a little bit more. They’ve seen something that has given them cause for concern.
If you think this is the reason why your appointment has been cancelled, then you should reach out to an immigration attorney if you don’t have one already. You might want a lawyer to look at your case to figure out what’s worrying USCIS so that you can shore up your case and so you can be ready to meet any objections or concerns that the immigration attorney might have.
Often your rescheduling or cancellation interview will tell you what the issue is. Read the letter carefully for guidance on what to do. At times there’s little to do but to wait. Sometimes USCIS will get around to sending you a new letter with a new interview date.
If you’re not sure what your case status is or whether it’s in danger, reach out to Hykel Law today. We can help you make sense of your immigration case and take the steps you need to take to bring it to a positive conclusion.
See also:
What Does It Mean to Get a Second USCIS Interview?
Can You Move During Your Immigration Case?
What Is a Notice of Intent to Revoke?
Of course, like any US Immigration process, it’s not easy to do. If you want to give your parents their best chance at coming to live with you in the United States, your best bet is to work directly with an immigration attorney who can help you navigate the details of their specific case.
Here’s the process, in broad terms.
You’ll need to include copies of certain documents:
The petition will go to the consulate at your parent’s home country. They’ll have to fill ou their own paperwork and documents as well, including DS-261 and DS-260. They will also have to pay their filing fees and get a medical exam.
If your parents are already in the United States they must be in the United States legally in order to apply. In this case they would file a I-485, adjustment of status, form.
Do not bring your parents in under a tourist visa with the intent of filing for an adjustment of status later, however, as this will tell USCIS that they misrepresented the purpose of their visa when they filed for it.
This is the Affidavit of Support.
This document affirms that you are going to help your parents meet their physical and financial needs whale they get on their feet here in the United States. You have to meet federal income requirements for the form to be valid, which means you’ll have to send copies of US tax returns to prove your income and household size. If there are currently 3 people living in your household, you will have to make at least $25,975 to file this affidavit.
This affidavit is a contract between yourself and the United States Government. It says that you will financially support your family member until they either become a United States Citizen or can be credited with 40 quarters of work.
Financial support means food, clothing, housing, medical care, and anything else your parents need to live. If at any point your parents reach out for public benefits such as food stamps, Medicaid, SSI, TANF, or CHIP then you will have to repay those benefits to those agencies.
If you are unwilling or unable to sign this form your parents will not be eligible for green cards and will be unable to come to the United States.
The entire process of bringing your relatives over can be nerve wracking, especially if you’re bringing them over because they are elders in need of care. Working with an immigration attorney is one of the best ways to ensure the process goes smoothly.
Hykel Law is an experienced firm who has helped many individuals in your situation. Reach out to us to get the help you need today.
See also:
Is My Family Member Eligible for Immigration
5 Steps to a Smoother Immigration Process
This week the Biden Administration announced that it was calling a halt to work-site raids. The focus of Homeland Security’s attention has now shifted to “unscrupulous employers who exploit unauthorized workers, conduct illegal activities, or impose unsafe working conditions.“
The policy reversal is thought to be a result of labor shortages in the United States. Ending work-site raids means US employers can keep people on the job.
According to a DHS memo published on 10/12, “Our worksite enforcement efforts can have a significant impact on the well-being of individuals and the fairness of the labor market. Our accomplishments in this area make clear that we can maximize the impact of our efforts by focusing on unscrupulous employers who exploit the vulnerability of undocumented workers. These employers engage in illegal acts ranging from the payment of substandard wages to imposing unsafe working conditions and facilitating human trafficking and child exploitation.”
The same memo noted that unscrupulous employers create an unfair labor market that disadvantages competitors who abide by the laws. This in turn is meant to reduce the demand for undocumented employees.
ICE is currently focused on border crossings, aggravated felons, and national security threats. There has been a significant drop in deportations under Biden’s leadership.
Does that mean it is safe for you to report labor site violations as an undocumented worker?
The memo does offer some promising thoughts. For example, DHS is making plans to offer consideration of deferred action to whistleblowers, or to offer continued presence, parole, or other available relief “for noncitizens who are witnesses to, or victims of, abusive and exploitative labor practices. In addition, these plans should provide for the assistance noncitizen victims and witnesses need to participate actively in the investigations.”
The victim of criminal activity U visa may be a pathway for some who have been exploited by particularly unscrupulous employers. The U Visa does offer a path to a green card.
Speaking to an immigration lawyer to receive protection or to evaluate your chances of negotiating for a U Visa may be one pathway for you to shift your status and change your life for the better. Speaking to an attorney can also help protect you in the event that you do choose to report labor violations. Keep in mind that as of this writing the DHS memo represents a policy direction and that direct plans are not yet in place. The memo only calls for an end to the work-site raids and “requests prosecutorial direction.”
If you’re ready to consult with an immigration attorney to review your options, reach out to Hykel Law today.
See also:
What Are Your Options When You’re Undocumented?
How Much Does an Immigration Lawyer Cost?
On October 6, 2021 the next visa lottery will open for the 2023 year. It will remain open until Tuesday, November 9, but it’s a good idea to enter early if you plan to. There is a great deal of demand to enter this program and the website has been known to crash.
The program is officially known as the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program. It’s a program that allows up to 55,000 eligible immigrants from countries who send fewer immigrants to the United States to enter a lottery for the chance to be awarded a green card.
If your entry is selected, it is one of the easiest ways to attain permanent residence status in the United States.
First, you must be a native of one of the approved countries. There are some exceptions. For example you can claim your spouse’s country of birth if you’re both named on the selected entry and are issued visas, and then enter the US at the same time. If your parents weren’t born in the country you’re a native of now and they weren’t LPRs in that country then you might claim the country of birth of one of your parents if they are from an eligible country.
You must meet certain education and work experience requirements. That means you must have at least a high school education or two years of work experience within the past five years in an occupation that requires at least two years of training or experience to perform.
You must possess a valid, unexpired passport. There are three exemptions to this requirement: exemptions for individuals who are stateless, exemptions for nationals of a Communist-controlled country whose government will not give them a passports, and those who receive a waiver.
You must also meet all of the normal entry requirements for the United States. For example you can’t have a criminal record. You can’t be a member of a terrorist or organized crime organization. You must not have committed any human rights violations in the past. You must not have broken United States immigration law in the past. You can also be found ineligible if you misrepresent any part of your application.
Entries are selected at random.
You can apply at dvprogram.state.gov. Applying is free. When you apply you’ll receive a DS-260 confirmation page. Keep a copy of that page for your records as you’ll need it to finish the process. It will contain a unique confirmation number that will let you check back into the website for your application status as early as May 8, 2022.
The “Entrant Status Check” button is the way that you’ll see whether your entry has been selected or not. It will offer specific instructions on what you ought to do next. You will not receive a notice in the mail.
You must have a valid passport to apply. You’ll also need recent photographs of yourself, your spouse, and your children.
You’ll be assigned an interview with a USCIS officer. The award page will tell you what to bring. You will often have to get an exam, and you will have to pay visa fees at that time.
Once you have your visa you will travel to the United States and request permission to enter. If you’re already in the United States then you can adjust your current legal immigration status to LPR status.
Get the instructions for the program here. You’ll find the list of eligible countries on page 18 of the document.
If you need a passport waiver or are already a legal immigrant who will have to apply for an adjustment of status then having an attorney to help you is a very good idea.
In addition, if you are not selected for the lottery then working with an immigration attorney might help you discover other legal pathways you can use to become a legal permanent resident of the United States.
See also:
Is My Family Member Eligible for Immigration?
3 Immigration Mistakes to Avoid
If you are looking at a long-term visa like a work visa or a study visa, or are attempting to become a permanent resident of the United States, then you’ve got to be ready for some costs. The process is not free.
Here are some of the most common costs so you can plan in advance.
Every form comes with fees, as well as fees for fingerprinting. These fees can be around $300 to $500.
You can get an exact figure for the fees that you’ll file using the USCIS Fee Calculator. Remember this will be per form and per application, which means if you’re trying to bring multiple family members over at the same time, including minor children, you’ll need to pay fees for each of them.
I-130 sponsors must sign an affidavit of support, which is a legally enforceable contract stating that the sponsor will take responsibility for the financial care and wellbeing of the person they ares sponsoring until that person becomes a US citizen or has worked in the United States for 10 years.
While you don’t have to pay any additional money you will have to show that your household income is equal to or higher than 125% of the US poverty level for your household size. You can find the most recent chart here.
Petition fees are different from filing fees. Petition fees are usually petitions for I-130 petitions, asylum fees, and more. These fees vary. A I-129 petition for a non-immigrant worker is $460, whereas an I-130 petition is $535. An I-140 can be as much as $700.
Some of these are employer petitions. That is, your employer generally pays them if you are a foreign worker who is being offered a job.
At the moment immigrants are being asked to receive medical check-ups, Covid-19 tests, Covid-19 vaccinations and other vaccinations depending on what they have already received in their home countries.
These costs, of course, depend on medical costs in your home nation and should if at all possible be completed before you leave your country’s borders.
These are the costs that tend to cause immigrants the most fear, but we try to remind individuals that they tend to save money by working with an attorney. The reason is that failed petitions can lead to immigration litigation, which can cost over $10,000 to resolve and which is far less certain than just getting the petition prepared correctly the first time.
In most cases, most immigration attorneys like Renee Hykel of Hykel Law do prepare flat fee schedules for most routine services, and can discuss the exact costs for your specific case.
Nothing worth having is ever free, but if you’re prepared you can absorb the costs of immigration and successfully achieve your dreams of coming to the United States of America.
See also:
How to Appeal a US Visa Denial
How Much Does an Immigration Lawyer Cost?
5 Steps to a Smoother Immigration Process
Section 1326 is the section of immigration law stating that it is a felony to re-enter the United States after deportation. Under this law:
“Any alien deported pursuant to section 1252(h)(2) of this title who enters, attempts to enter, or is at any time found in the United States (unless the Attorney General has expressly consented to such alien’s reentry) shall be incarcerated for the remainder of the sentence of imprisonment which was pending at the time of deportation without any reduction for parole or supervised release. Such alien shall be subject to such other penalties relating to the reentry of deported aliens as may be available under this section or any other provision of law.”
This week, Judge Miranda Du, a federal district court judge in Nevada, struck down the law while dismissing a case against Gustavo Carrillo-Lopez, indicted last summer for violating section 1326.
“The defense challenged section 1326’s constitutionality by presenting a case based on historical record and showcasing how racism is intertwined with the law’s origin story. Carrillo-Lopez establishes that racism and eugenics were present, motivating factors during Congressional conversations about the 1929 law, and previous failed immigration legislation.” –Insider.com.
Judge Du found the law to be in violation of the Equal Protection Clause.
“For a judge to find a law in violation of the Equal Protection clause—to find it essentially “too racist” to be constitutional—the victim of the law has to show one of two things. They have to prove that the law, as applied, treats one race fundamentally differently and worse than others (lawyers call this disparate impact) or they have to show that Congress passed the law with the intent to racially discriminate. Judge Du found that Section 1326 failed both tests with regards to Latinx immigrants.” –The Nation
The Justice Department is likely to appeal the ruling to the US Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit. This is the court that issues binding decisions on federal law. What you need to understand about that is that this means one judge’s decision does not instantly change the law.
If you or a loved one re-enter the United States after being deported, you can still be arrested and charged, in spite of this ruling. If you want to return to the United States it is wise to discuss your current options with an immigration attorney before attempting to cross the border.
See also:
What Are Your Options When You’re Undocumented?
5 Steps to A Smoother Immigration Process
What Happens When You Lose Your Job on an H-1B Visa?
Applying for a green card isn’t easy. It would be nice if you could go in, provide your documentation, have your interview, and get your card without incident.
Unfortunately, sometimes immigration officers don’t like what they see. When that happens, they might just issue a Notice of Intent to Deny…but they might call you in for a second interview, too.
The second interview means your immigration application is on shaky ground. It could represent a situation where:
In a few rare cases the immigration officer who handled your case has simply left the department and the new officer needs to see you before they can process your case. Most of the time, however, the second interview is indicative of a problem.
The STOKES interview is a I-130 second interview wherein each member of the couple is taken into a separate room and is questioned separately. The immigration officer will be looking for evidence that the couple is really married.
It’s harder emotionally and it’s harder physically as these are much longer and you won’t have your spouse with you for support.
Other second interviews may be conducted for virtually any reason. The immgiration officer has questions about your case and they require answers.
Gather all the evidence you can possibly find that you are eligible for your green card and for citizenship. Then, call your attorney immediately.
You want the extensive preparation your attorney can give you for these interviews. They can last for much longer…we’ve seen them last an entire day before. Your attorney can probably help you identify the issues that might exist and can help you prepare for them.
You also will want your attorney on hand to quash any questions the immigration attorney has no right to ask, and to guide you as much as possible through the process. In addition, having your attorney on hand can serve as a valuable source of emotional source: you’re not facing this scary second interview alone
Need help? Contact the Law Office of Renee Hykel today to get the help you deserve with any immigration issue you might be facing.
See also:
What is a Notice of Intent to Revoke?
5 Steps to a Smoother Immigration Process
Any time you apply for any type of visa there is a possibility you will be denied. This is even true for “B” class visitor’s visas.
Fortunately a denial isn’t always the end of the world. There are ways to appeal them.
When you get denied you will receive what is called a Visa Refusal Letter.
There are two types of visa denial letters no matter what type of visa you’ve applied for.
A 221(g) is the letter that’s sent out when your visa application was missing documentation that is required to process it. The 221(g) is color coded.
As you can see, in some cases you’re not even looking at a permanent denial if you receive a 221(g) letter.
A 214(b) letter is different. A 214(b) letter is the letter you receive when the immigration officer has decided that your application fails to meet the requirements for the type of visa that you’re applying for.
The letter should clearly outline what you need to do to fix the problem.
For example, let’s say you got a 214(b) letter because you applied for a B-1 visa. The immigration officer does not believe you intend to return home as your visa application suggests.
You can show that you have family members and friends in your home country, a job to return to, a home that you still own, and even plans that you’ve made such as tickets that you’ve bought to future events in your home country.
All of this provides evidence that you intend to leave the United States on time.
In most cases what you need to do is correct the issue or problem and demonstrate that you’ve done so, either by providing more evidence as requested or helping to build the case for why you meet the requirements of the visa you’re asking for.
In some cases you may have applied for the wrong type of visa, and may need to apply for a different one.
You vastly increase your chances of successfully appealing your visa denial if you work with an immgration attorney to correct the issues. If you haven’t started your visa application yet then working with an attorney is the best way to make sure that your efforts are successful.
See also:
How to Increase Your Chances of a US Visitor’s Visa Extension
We look forward to helping you with your immigration case. We have the experience, knowledge and staff to handle your matter swiftly. Reach out today to discuss your needs for representation.