CASE: I-485 Adjustment of Status based on approved I-360 Petition

NATIONALITY: Kenyan

LOCATION: Willoughby, OH

Our Kenyan client came to the U.S. in February 2005 with a J-2 visa. He married his U.S. citizen wife in December 2014. In December 2019, he contacted our office to seek legal representation for his I-360 petition. According to his story, our client’s marital life was tough and he eventually was abused by his spouse.  With his story and other evidence, our office determined that he would be eligible for I-360 self-petition as a spouse of an abusive U.S. citizen.

Our client experienced domestic violence and spousal abuse during his marriage. His wife physically and mentally abused our client throughout the years. Thus, we prepared and filed his I-360 petition, which included numerous exhibits and a detailed brief to the USCIS Vermont Service Center on January 24, 2020. 

Eventually, on April 4, 2022, the USCIS Vermont Service Center approved our client’s I-360 petition. While his I-360 petition was pending, our firm prepared and filed the Adjustment of Status Application on March 17, 2020.  Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices, fingerprint appointment, and work permits all came on time. Prior to the interview, we thoroughly prepared our clients via conference all. On July 14, 2022, our client was interviewed at the Cleveland, OH USCIS.  Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu accompanied our client as well. Eventually, on the same day of the interview, the USCIS approved our client’s adjustment of status application and issued a green card.

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CASE: N-400 (Citizenship / Naturalization)

APPLICANT: Kenyan

LOCATION: Columbus, OH

Our client contacted us in September 2020 to seek legal representation for her naturalization application. She came to the United States from Kenya and obtained her green card in October 2013.

Her N-400 application was filed on September 15, 2020 with all supporting documents. Prior to her citizenship interview, our office prepared her via conference calls.  On April 4, 2022, our client appeared at the Columbus, OH USCIS office for her naturalization interview. Our client answered all questions correctly and passed her naturalization interview. On June 2, 2022, her application was approved. Her oath taking is scheduled in which she will become a naturalized U.S. Citizen.

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CASE: Marriage-Based Adjustment of Status

NATIONALITY: Kenyan                                                                                

LOCATION: Fowlerville, MI

Our client is from Kenya who came to the U.S. on a B-2 visitor’s visa in November 2015. Since then, she has remained in the United States.  In January 2021, our client married her U.S. citizen husband. She retained our office on June 7, 2021 for her green card application.  Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 Petition and I-485 Adjustment of Status Application on June 30, 2021.  Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices and fingerprint appointment all came on time. Prior to the interview, we thoroughly prepared our clients at our office via conference calls. On January 26, 2022, our client was interviewed at the Detroit, MI USCIS office. Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu, Esq. accompanied our clients as well. On February 5, 2022, her green card application was approved.

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CASE: I-130 (Petition for Parent) and Adjustment of Status
CLIENT: Kenyan
LOCATION: Ashland, OH

Our client retained us to petition his father who came to the U.S. from Kenya. Our client is a US citizen by birth and his father came to the United States in 2003 as a F-1 visa holder. He contacted our office in February of 2021. He retained our office on February 26, 2021.  

Once retained, our firm prepared and filed I-130 Immigrant Visa Petition and the I-485 Adjustment of Status Application on March 23, 2021.  Everything went smoothly and the receipt notice, fingerprint appointment, and work permits all came on time. Prior to the interview, we thoroughly prepared our clients as well. On November 19, 2021, our client’s father was interviewed at the Cleveland, Ohio USCIS office.  Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu, Esq. from our office also accompanied our clients. Eventually, on the same day of the interview, the  adjustment of status application was approved.

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CASE: I-140 (EB-2 Category) / Schedule A / Premium Processing

EMPLOYER: Physicians’ Office

BENEFICIARY: Kenyan Nurse Practitioner

LOCATION: Houston, TX

Our client is a family nurse practitioner. Her prospective employer was willing to petition her for a second-preference employment immigrant visa petition (I-140). Since she is a family nurse practitioner, she is eligible for “Schedule A” classification.

The Department of Labor (DOL) maintains a schedule of occupations in its regulations, Schedule A included, for which the individual permanent labor certification procedure is not required. The schedule of pre-certified occupations is referred to as Schedule A, and is included in DOL regulations at 20 CFR 656.10. Based on an occupation’s inclusion on Schedule A, an employer may file an immigrant visa petition (I-140) directly with the (USCIS) without first going to the DOL for a labor certification. Usually, prior to filing I-140 petitions (EB-2 or EB-3 category), the employer must file a Labor Certification to the Department of Labor. However, for Schedule A cases, the employer does not have to go through the labor certification process. The position of Nurse Practitioner is included in Schedule A.

Our client has a Bachelors and Masters degree in nursing and is a certified Nurse Practitioner. Our office was retained on March 16, 2020 and we filed the Prevailing Wage Determination immediately.

We filed the I-140 application on September 25, 2020 via premium processing. We included the job offer letter, the notice of filing, employment letter, and other necessary supporting documents. In our cover brief, we included the “ability to pay” argument and why nurse practitioners must fall under the Schedule A designation.  Eventually, on October 14, 2020, the USCIS Texas Service Center approved her EB-2 I-140 petition without a Request for Evidence (RFE). 

Our client retained us again for her adjustment of status application. However, our office was informed that our client’s OPT was expired and she had continuously worked for her employer without the DHS’ authorization. Thus, she worked without authorization and overstayed her visa status. 

Section 245(k) of the Immigration and Nationality Act can render the normal bars to adjustment of status found in section 245(c)(2), (c)(7), and (c)(8) inapplicable to certain employment-based adjustment of status applicants who, since their last lawful admission to the United States have not, for an aggregate period of more than 180 days: 

1. Failed to maintain, continuously, a lawful status; 
2. Engaged in unauthorized employment; or 
3. Otherwise violated the terms and conditions of his or her admission

INA §245(k). 

An eligible derivative of an alien may benefit from section 245(k) in his or her own right if he or she has failed to maintain continuously a lawful status, worked without authorization, or otherwise violated the terms and conditions of his or her admission for an aggregate of 180 days or less pursuant to a lawful admission. 

(See page 2, Neufeld Memorandum July 14, 2008, “Applicability of section 245(k) to Certain Employment-Based Adjustment of Status Applications filed under Section 245(a). 

Our client has not accrued over 180 days of “failure to maintain lawful status” nor over 180 days of “unauthorized employment”, and as such, she was still eligible to adjust status based on the I-485 filing through INA 245(k).

As mentioned above, our office filed an I-485 adjustment of status application for our client on December 22, 2020. Our office also submitted a detailed cover brief and explained why our client is still eligible for the adjustment of status through the INA 245K subsection despite her overstay and unauthorized employment.  Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices and fingerprint appointment came on time. Eventually, on November 1, 2021, her adjustment of status application was approved by the USCIS without an interview. 

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CASE: I-130 (Petitions for Parent) and Adjustment of Status
CLIENT: Kenyan
LOCATION: Arlington, VA

Our client retained us to petition for his father who came to the U.S. from Kenya. Our client is US citizen by birth and his father came to the United States in 2003 as a G-4 visa holder. He contacted our office in January of 2021 and discussed with us a possible I-130 petition and I-485 Adjustment of Status application for his father. He retained our office on January 31, 2021. 

Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 Immigrant Visa Petition and I-485 Adjustment of Status Application on March 4, 2021.  Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices, fingerprint appointment, and work permits all came on time. On October 12, 2021, the USCIS approved our client’s father’s adjustment of status application.

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CASE: I-130 (Petitions for Parent) and Adjustment of Status
CLIENT: Kenyan
LOCATION: Ashland, OH

Our client retained us to petition his mother who came to the U.S. from Kenya. Our client is a US citizen by birth and his mother came to the United States in 2003 as an F-2 visa holder. He contacted our office in August of 2020. He retained us on August 7, 2020. 

Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 Immigrant Visa Petition and the I-485 Adjustment of Status Application on October 1, 2020.  Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices, fingerprint appointment, and work permits all came on time. Prior to the interview, we thoroughly prepared our clients as well. On June 24, 2021, our client’s mother was interviewed at the Cleveland, Ohio USCIS office.  Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu, Esq. from our office also accompanied our clients. On the same day of the interview, our client’s mother’s adjustment of status application was approved.

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CASE: Adjustment of Status at Removal Proceeding
CLIENT: Kenyan
LOCATION: Centennial, CO (USCIS) / Denver, CO (EOIR)

Our client came to the United States in December 2001 on a J-2 visa from Kenya. Since then he has remained in the United States. He failed to maintain his non-immigrant status at some point and was placed in removal proceedings. His Adjustment of Status was not initially approved because he was subject to the two year foreign residency requirement. 

He retained our office in 2016 to get his J-2 waiver. Our office represented him on his case and he successfully got his J-2 waiver in July 2016. Thereafter, he retained our office for representation in his removal proceedings. 

He married a U.S. Citizen in September 2017.  Our client’s wife filed an I-130 petition for him and this I-130 petition was approved by the USCIS Centennial Field Office in April 2019. Once the I-130 petition is approved, our office prepared and filed the I-485 Adjustment of Status Application, pre-hearing memorandum, and other supporting documents to the Denver Immigration Court.

On May 5, 2021, Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu represented our client’s at his Individual Hearing for adjustment of status at the Denver Immigration Court.  After the hearing, the Immigration Judge granted our client’s adjustment of status relief.  Our client’s removal proceeding is terminated simultaneously. Now, our client is a green card holder. 

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CASE: J-1 Waiver of Two-Year Foreign Residency Requirement, No Objection Statement 

NATIONALITY: Kenyan                                                                                                        

LOCATION: Somerset, NJ

Our client is from Kenya who came to the U.S. on a J-1 Visa in June 2019 to work as a camp counselor.  After she finished her J-1 program, she remained in the United States. In October 2020, our client married her current U.S. Citizen husband.  However, she was subject to the 2-year foreign residency requirement. She had to get a waiver first. 

She retained our office on November 2, 2020. Thereafter, our office prepared a waiver request through the No Objection Statement (NOS) from the Kenyan Embassy. Every country’s Embassy maintains different procedures on the J-1 No Objection Statement waiver.  Our office contacted the Kenyan Embassy in D.C. to pursue the waiver for our client.  The Embassy requested several documents including a statement of reason for the waiver, the clearance letter from J-1 program sponsor, Clearance certificate from HELB and KSCE in Kenya, and a letter of reason for obtaining the J-1 waiver.  

On November 10, 2020, the J-1 Waiver (Form DS-3035) Application was filed to the Department of State.  We also sent a request to the Kenyan Embassy to issue a No Objection Statement and recommend this waiver based on the fact that our client is eligible to adjust based on her marriage to her spouse. 

Eventually, the Kenyan Embassy issued a No Objection Statement for our client and sent this letter to the State Department’s Waiver Review Division.  On February 25, 2021, the Waiver Review Division issued a favorable recommendation based on the No Objection statement. On March 16, 2021, the USCIS issued an I-612 approval notice for the waiver. Now, our client can file an I-485 adjustment of status application along with her husband’s I-130 petition.

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CASE: I-751 / Waiver of the Joint Waiver Requirement
APPLICANT: Kenyan
LOCATION: Somerset, NJ

Our client contacted our office in May of 2018 regarding I-751 application.  She is from Kenya and she married a U.S. citizen in June 2015. Through her marriage, she obtained a 2-year conditional green card in October of 2016. Her conditional residency terminated in October 2018. 

Unfortunately, during their marriage, our client and her ex-husband went through struggles. Therefore, they started to live separately and their divorce proceeding was initiated. Thus, our client could not proceed with the I-751 joint filing with her ex-husband. So we requested a waiver because our client entered into the marriage in good faith, but the marriage was terminated through divorce or annulment before they can file a joint petition.

On June 7, 2018, our office filed the I-751 application with various supporting documents (over 30 exhibits and an affidavit over 6 pages) to demonstrate our client’s bona fide marriage with her ex-husband). 

In July 2019, the USCIS issued a Request for Evidence (RFE), requesting more bona fide marital evidence with her ex-husband. Our office prepared and filed the Response to RFE on July 15, 2019.  

In January 2021, the USCIS scheduled an I-751 interview for our client. Prior to the interview, our office thoroughly prepared our client via conference calls about potential issues at the interview. On February 24, 2021, our client was interviewed for her I-751 application at the USCIS Mount Laurel, NJ Field Office. The interview was very extensive and the officer questioned her a lot about the nature of her marriage with her ex-husband.  Nevertheless, the USCIS approved her I-751 application on February 25, 2021. Now, she has her ten-year green card.

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