CASE: I-130 and Consular Processing (Immigrant Visa)

CLIENT: US Citizen Petitioner Son; Chinese Beneficiary Parents in China

LOCATION: Petitioner: Ohio; Beneficiary: China

I-130 FILED: June 9, 2017

I-130 APPROVED: December 5, 2017

IV APPROVED: September 26, 2018

Our client retained us to bring his parents over from China. He was born and raised in China, but was naturalized in the United States.

On June 9, 2017, our firm filed the I-130 Petitions to the CIS. There were no Requests for Evidence throughout the pendency of the petition. On December 5, 2017, the I-130 Petitions were approved. We then started the immigrant visa processing phase of trying to get his parents over to the United States.

On May 3, 2018, we filed the immigrant visa packets to the National Visa Center who in turn forwarded our client’s materials to the U.S. Consulate in Guangzhou, China. An interview notice was set for our client’s parents at the U.S. Consulate in Guangzhou, and we prepared them for their interview. On September 26, 2018, the U.S. Consulate in Guangzhou, China approved and issued their immigrant visa.

With the approved immigrant visa, our client’s parents can come to the United States immediately, and they will get their green cards within two months of entry.

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CASE: I-130 and Consular Processing (Immigrant Visa) – Parent-Petition
CLIENT: US Citizen Petitioner Son; Armenian Beneficiary Parents in Armenia
LOCATION: Petitioner: Cleveland, OH; Beneficiary: Armenia

Our client retained us to bring his parents from Armenia to the United States.  He was born and raised in Armenia, but was naturalized in the United States. He filed the I-130 Petitions to the USCIS and it was approved before he retained our office.  He retained our office on June 21, 2018 for the immigrant visa processing phase of trying to get his parents over to the United States.

Once retained, we filed the immigrant visa packets to the National Visa Center on August 8, 2018, who in turn forwarded our clients’ materials to the U.S. Embassy in Yerevan, Armenia. An interview notice was set for the client at the US Embassy in Yerevan, and we prepared them for the interview. On October 2, 2018, the interview was conducted.  Eventually, after the interview, the U.S. Embassy in Yerevan, Armenia approved and issued their immigrant visas on October 3, 2018.

With the approved immigrant visa, our client’s parents can come to the United States immediately, and they will get their green cards within two months of entry.

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CASE: I-130 and Consular Processing (Immigrant Visa)

CLIENT: US Citizen Petitioner Son; Cameroonian Beneficiary Father in Cameroon

LOCATION: Petitioner: Texas; Beneficiary: Cameroon

I-130 FILED: July 28, 2016

I-130 APPROVED: May 16, 2017

IV APPROVED: May 16, 2018

Our client retained us to bring his father over from Cameroon. He was born and raised in Cameroon, but was naturalized in the United States.

On July 28, 2016, our firm filed the I-130 Petition to the CIS. There were no Requests for Evidence throughout the pendency of the petition. On May 16, 2017, the I-130 Petition was approved. We then started the immigrant visa processing phase of trying to get his father over to the United States.

On January 19, 2018, we filed the immigrant visa packet to the National Visa Center who in turn forwarded our client’s materials to the U.S. Embassy in Yaoundé, Cameroon. An interview notice was set for our client’s father at the U.S. Embassy in Yaoundé, Cameroon, and we prepared him for his interview. On May 16, 2018, the U.S. Embassy in Yaoundé, Cameroon approved and issued his immigrant visa.

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CASE: I-130 and Consular Processing (Immigrant Visa) – Marriage-Petition

Our client is a professor in South Korea and he used to be a permanent resident of the U.S. He abandoned his permanent residency in 1993 when he got a tenured professorship in South Korea. Later, his wife became a naturalized U.S. citizen and she wanted to file an I-130 petition for our client. Our client contacted and retained our office on August 31, 2017.

Once retained, our office prepared and filed the I-130 petition for our client to the USCIS on September 12, 2017. After the I-130 petition was filed, everything went smoothly, there were no requests for evidence, and the receipt notice came on time. The I-130 Petition was approved on April 16, 2018.

Then, we filed the immigrant visa packets to the National Visa Center on July 9, 2018, who in turn forwarded our client’s materials to the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, South Korea. An interview notice was set for the client at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, and we prepared him for the interview. On September 10, 2018, the interview was conducted.  The interview went well and after the interview, the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, South Korea approved and issued his immigrant visa.

With the approved Immigrant Visa, our client can come to the United States immediately, and he will get his green card within two months of entry.

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CASE: I-130 and Consular Processing
CLIENT: US Citizen Petitioner; Filipino Beneficiary
LOCATION: Petitioner: New Mexico; Beneficiary: Manila, Philippines

Our client is a U.S. citizen who married a Filipina lady in New Mexico in 2015. As our previous success story shows, our client’s Filipina wife got her green card through our office’s legal assistance in November 2015.  

Our client’s wife has a son in the Philippines.  Thus, after his wife got her green card, our client decided to petition for his step-son in the Philippines for an immigrant visa. He contacted our office again in November 2015 and retained our office to help bring his step-son to the States.  It is important to note that an alien cannot adjust his or her status (get a green card) outside the U.S. by filing an I-130 and I-485 simultaneously. Since the client’s step-son was not in the United States, our office promptly filed the I-130 petition to the USCIS first on December 13, 2016.

After the I-130 was filed, everything went smoothly and the receipt notices came on time. The I-130 Petition was approved by the USCIS on December 1, 2017. After the I-130 approval, we filed the immigrant visa packets to the National Visa Center on January 8, 2018, who in turn forwarded the client’s materials to the U.S. Embassy in Manila, Philippines. An interview notice was set for the client’s step-son. On March 19, 2018, the beneficiary went to his interview in Manila. Eventually, on April 16, 2018, the U.S. Embassy in the Philippines approved and issued his immigrant visa.

With the approved Immigrant visa, our client’s step-son can come to the United States immediately, and he will get his green card.

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CASE: Consular Processing (Immigrant Visa)

CLIENT: US Citizen Petitioner Daughter; Mexican Beneficiary Mother in Mexico

LOCATION: Petitioner: Cleveland, OH; Beneficiary: Ciudad Juarez, Mexico

IV APPROVED: April 9, 2018.

Our U.S. Citizen client retained us to bring her mother over from Mexico. She retained our office in February 2017, and our office prepared and filed the I-130 petition for her mother on April 11, 2017. This I-130 Petition was approved by the USCIS on September 20, 2017. Once the I-130 petition was approved, we then started the immigrant visa processing phase of trying to get her mother over to the United States.

On November 7, 2017, we filed the immigrant visa packets to the National Visa Center who in turn forwarded our client’s materials to the U.S. Consulate General in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. An interview notice was set for our client’s mother at the U.S. Consulate General in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, and we prepared her for her interview.  She did her interview on April 4, 2018, and the U.S. Consulate General approved and issued her immigrant visa.

With the approved immigrant visa, our client’s mother can come to the United States immediately, and she will get her green card within two months of entry.

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CASE: Consular Processing (Immigrant Visa)

CLIENT: US Citizen Petitioner Wife; Pakistani Beneficiary Husband in Pakistan

LOCATION: Petitioner: Pennsylvania; Beneficiary: Islamabad, Pakistan

IV APPROVED: August 15, 2017.

Our U.S. Citizen client retained us to bring her husband over from Pakistan. She retained our office in January 2017, and our office prepared and filed the I-130 petition for her husband on March 16, 2017. This I-130 Petition was approved by the USCIS on August 15, 2017. Once the I-130 petition was approved, we then started the immigrant visa processing phase of trying to get her husband over to the United States.

On October 10, 2017, we filed the immigrant visa packets to the National Visa Center who in turn forwarded our client’s materials to the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad, Pakistan. An interview notice was set for our client’s husband at the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad, Pakistan, and we prepared him for his interview.  He did his interview on January 8, 2018. Eventually, on March 10, 2018, the U.S. Embassy approved and issued his immigrant visa.

With the approved immigrant visa, our client’s husband can come to the United States immediately, and he will get his green card within two months of entry.

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CASE: Consular Processing (Immigrant Visa)

CLIENT: US Citizen Petitioner Wife; Mexican Beneficiary Husband in Mexico

LOCATION: Petitioner: Cleveland, OH; Beneficiary: Ciudad Juarez, Mexico

IV APPROVED: February 9, 2018.

Our U.S. Citizen client retained us to bring her husband over from Mexico. She retained our office in February 2017, and our office prepared and filed the I-130 petition for her husband on March 1, 2017. This I-130 Petition was approved by the USCIS on August 7, 2017. After the I-130 petition was approved, we started the immigrant visa processing phase of trying to get her husband over to the United States.

On September 7, 2017, we filed the immigrant visa packets to the National Visa Center who in turn forwarded our client’s materials to the U.S. Consulate General in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. An interview notice was set for our client’s husband at the U.S. Consulate General in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, and we prepared him for his interview.  He did his interview on February 9, 2018, and the U.S. Consulate General approved and issued his immigrant visa.

With the approved immigrant visa, our client’s husband can come to the United States immediately, and he will get his green card within two months of entry.

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CASE: I-130 and Consular Processing (Immigrant Visa) – Marriage-Petition

Our client is a Lawful Permanent Resident (Green card holder) from the Philippines. He got his green card through family petition; however, his wife and children did not get the green cards back then. In August 2015, he retained our office to bring his wife and two children to the States via consular processing. Once retained, our office filed the I-130 petition on October 22, 2015 and this petition was approved by the USCIS on August 5, 2016.

Once the priority date became current, we filed the immigrant visa packets to the National Visa Center on March 7, 2017, who in turn forwarded our clients’ materials to the U.S. Embassy in Manila, Philippines. An interview notice was set for the client at the US Embassy in Manila, and we prepared them for the interview. On November 20, 2017, the interview was conducted.  Eventually, after the interview, the U.S. Embassy in Manila, Philippines approved and issued their immigrant visas.

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CASE:   I-601A Provisional Unlawful Presence Hardship Waiver of Inadmissibility

APPLICANT / BENEFICIARY: Chinese

LOCATION: Cleveland, Ohio

Our client came to the United States from China in October 1999 without inspection and admission. He married his U.S. citizen wife in 2010. They have two U.S. citizen children together.  His U.S. Citizen wife filed an I-130 petition for him on August 26, 2016. This I-130 petition was approved on December 8, 2016.

Our client cannot file for adjustment of status application due to his ground of inadmissibility. He needed a waiver of inadmissibility to become a green card holder. Moreover, our client was placed in removal proceedings and he has a final order of removal in absentia. Nevertheless, his I-212 (permission to reapply for admission into the United States) was approved on July 21, 2017.

Under current law, immediate relatives of U.S. citizens who are not eligible to adjust status in the United States must travel abroad and obtain an immigrant visa. Individuals who have accrued more than 180 days of unlawful presence while in the United States must obtain a waiver of inadmissibility to overcome the unlawful presence bars under section 212(a)(9)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act before they can return to the United States.

In 2013, the USCIS announced of new policy called the provisional unlawful presence waiver. Beginning March 4, 2013, certain immigrant visa applicants who are spouses, children and parents of U.S. citizens (immediate relatives) can apply for provisional unlawful presence waivers before they leave the United States. The provisional unlawful presence waiver process allows individuals, who only need a waiver of inadmissibility for unlawful presence, to apply for a waiver in the United States.

The new process is expected to shorten the time U.S. citizens are separated from their immediate relatives while those family members are obtaining immigrant visas to become lawful permanent residents of the United States.

INA § 212(i) provides for a discretionary waiver of the entry without inspection inadmissibility ground. To qualify for the waiver, the alien must establish that his or her US Citizen spouse would suffer extreme hardship if the alien were denied admission. INA § 212(i)(1). In addition to the equities presented, the USCIS may consider the nature of the inadmissibility ground.

There is a seminal BIA case that deals with this waiver.  In Matter of Cervantes, 22 I & N Dec. 560 (BIA 1999), the BIA identified the factors to be considered in determining whether a qualifying relative would suffer extreme hardship if the alien were denied admission.  Those factors include: the presence of LPR or USC family ties both within and outside the United States; the conditions in the country to which the qualifying relative would relocate and the extent of the qualifying relative’s ties to that country; the financial impact of departure from the United States; and significant conditions of health, particularly when tied to the unavailability of suitable medical care in the country to which the qualifying relative would relocate.

Our client’s I-601A application had a good chance since our client’s U.S. Citizen wife suffer from a great degree of medical hardship. In the I-601A brief and supporting documents, our office included extensive medical reports of his wife.  We argued that if he was removed from the United States, extreme hardship to his wife is clearly foreseeable and evident.  His wife has ongoing medical hardships and she would not be able to take care of her own needs and the bulk of their family chores, most importantly taking care of their children. Also, it would be extremely difficult for her to get the same level of therapy and satisfactory access to medical services in China in case she joins our client there.

In our brief, we also argued that our client and his wife have maintained strong family ties in the United States, that his wife will have difficulty in finding the same level of employment in China, that our client has good employment in the United States, and that his U.S. citizen child and his wife will face extreme financial and emotional difficulties if he is removed.

On August 21, 2017, we filed the I-601A waiver application which included the brief in support, his wife’s extensive medical examination records, and other documents that demonstrated hardship to her husband if she is removed from the United States. Eventually, without any RFE, her I-601A waiver was approved on December 19, 2017. Now, he can file packet 3 and 4 here in the United States, and would go to China shortly to get his immigrant visa.

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