CASE: Marriage-Based Adjustment of Status
CLIENT: Nigerian
LOCATION: Lithonia, GA 

Our client is from Nigeria who came to the U.S. on a J-1 Visa in October 2018 to pursue his student internship in New Mexico.  After he finished his J-1 program, he remained in the United States. In April 2018, our client married his current U.S. citizen wife. However, he will not be able to adjust his status unless he gets a waiver of the 2-year foreign residency program.  When he came to the United States in 2018, his program was subject to the 2-year foreign residency program. 

Thereafter, our office promptly prepared for filing a waiver request through a No Objection Statement (NOS) from the Nigerian Embassy in the United States. Every country’s Embassy maintains different procedures and policies with regard to the J-1 No Objection Statement waiver.  Our office promptly contacted the Nigerian 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, and a letter of reason for obtaining J-1 waiver.  

On April 18, 2019, the J-1 Waiver (Form DS-3035) Application was filed to the Department of State.  We also sent a request to the Nigerian Embassy to issue a No Objection Statement and recommend this waiver based on the fact that our client is eligible to adjust based on his marriage to U.S. citizen spouse. 

Eventually, the Nigerian Embassy issued a No Objection Statement for our client, and sent this letter to the State Department’s Waiver Review Division.  On June 28, 2019, the Waiver Review Division issued a favorable recommendation based on the No Objection statement. On July 30, 2019, the USCIS issued an I-612 approval notice for the waiver of our client’s two-year foreign residency requirement. 

Once his J-1 waiver was approved, he retained our office on July 31, 2019 for his adjustment of status application.  Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 Petition and Adjustment of Status Application on September 19, 2019.  Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices, the fingerprint appointment, and the work permit all came on time. Prior to the interview, we thoroughly prepared our client via conference calls. On January 21, 2020, our client was interviewed at the Atlanta, Georgia USCIS Field Office. Eventually, on January 24, 2020, his green card application was approved. 

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

 CLIENT: US Citizen Petitioner Son; Pakistani Beneficiary Parents in Pakistan

 LOCATION: Petitioner: Ohio; Beneficiary: Pakistan

 I-130 FILED: March 9, 2018

 I-130 APPROVED: October 18, 2018

 IV APPROVED: January 13, 2020

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

On March 9, 2018, our firm filed the I-130 Petitions to the CIS. There were no Requests for Evidence throughout the pendency of the petition. On October 18, 2018, 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 July 3, 2019, 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 parents at the U.S. Embassy in Pakistan, and we prepared them for their interview. On January 13, 2020, the U.S. Embassy in Pakistan 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: Marriage-Based Adjustment of Status
CLIENT: Zambian
LOCATION: Cheverly, MD 

Our client came to the United States in June 2001 with a J-1 Exchange Visitor visa from Zambia.  His J-1 visa was not subject to the two-year foreign residency requirement, so he could apply for adjustment of status in the United States without a waiver. After his J-1 program was completed, he remained in the United States.

He married a U.S. Citizen in February 2012 and retained our office on January 19, 2018 for his adjustment of status application.  Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 Petition and Adjustment of Status Application on February 2, 2018.  Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices, the fingerprint appointment, and the work permit all came on time. Prior to the interview, we thoroughly prepared our client via conference calls. On November 19, 2018, our client was interviewed at the Baltimore, Maryland USCIS Field Office.

Though their interview went well, our client’s case remained pending without any Request for Evidence. Nevertheless, on December 30, 2019, the USCIS issued Request for Evidence for our client to submit his new I-693 medical record. Our client filed his response to RFE on January 7, 2020. Eventually, on January 14, 2020, his green card application was approved. 

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CASE: Adjustment of Status (F-4 I-130)

CLIENT: British

LOCATION: Brentwood, CA

Our client came to the United States from the United Kingdom as a visa waiver visitor in April 2019. She came to the United States to visit her husband who got his green card based on his U.S. citizen sibling’s petition. Thus, our client was also eligible to file an adjustment of status application as a derivative beneficiary of the approved I-130 petition for her husband. 

She contacted our office for the eligibility of her adjustment status, and after the consultation, she retained our office on April 9, 2019 for her green card application.  Our firm prepared and filed the Adjustment of Status Application on April 18, 2019. 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 calls. On January 17, 2020, our client was interviewed at Fresno, California USCIS office. Eventually, on the same day of the interview, her green card application was approved.

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CASE: I-751 / Waiver of the Joint Waiver Requirement
APPLICANT: Nigerian
LOCATION: Elyria, OH

Our client contacted our office in October of 2018 regarding his potential I-751 filing. He is from Nigeria and married a U.S. citizen in February 2017. Through his marriage with a U.S. citizen spouse, he obtained a 2-year conditional green card in October of 2017. Therefore, his conditional residency terminated in October 2019.

Unfortunately, during their marriage, our client and his ex-wife went through struggles. Therefore, they lived separately and their divorce was finalized in October 2018. Thus, our client could not file I-751 application jointly with his ex-wife. After the consultation, we advised that we can help him file the I-751 application with a waiver of the joint filing requirement. 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 October 31, 2018, our office filed the I-751 application with various supporting documents to demonstrate our client’s bona fide marriage with his ex-wife. Once the application was filed, the fingerprint notice was issued two weeks later. However, the USCIS issued the Request for Evidence (RFE) to demonstrate the bona fideness of our client’s marriage with his ex-wife. We filed an extensive Response to RFE to the USCIS with more bona fide marital documents on November 20, 2019.  

Eventually, on January 8, 2020, the USCIS approved our request for the removal of conditions on his permanent resident status without even an interview. Now, he has his ten-year green card.

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CASE: Marriage-Based Adjustment of Status

CLIENT: Nigerian

LOCATION: Garfield Heights, OH

Our client came to the United States from Nigeria on an F-1 student’s visa in January 2015. He married a U.S. Citizen in August 2019 and retained our office on August 30, 2019 for his green card application.  Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 Petition and I-485 Adjustment of Status Application on October 7, 2019. 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 January 16, 2020, our client was interviewed at the Cleveland, Ohio USCIS office. Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu, Esq. from our office accompanied our clients as well. Eventually, on the same day of the interview, his green card application was approved.

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CASE: I-751

APPLICANT: Indian

LOCATION: Lancaster, SC

Our client contacted our office in May of 2019 regarding his I-751 application.

He is from India and he married a U.S. citizen in December 2016. Through his marriage, he obtained a 2-year conditional green card in June of 2017.  His conditional residency terminated in June 2019.

To comply with immigration requirements, our client and his wife had to file an I-751 Joint Petition to Remove Conditions. He retained our office on May 29, 2019, and our office prepared an I-751 application for our client with other supplemental exhibits.

On May 31, 2019, our office filed an I-751 application to the USCIS with multiple affidavits from his friends and family members, joint bank statements, joint taxes, utility bills, insurance policies, and photos of our client and his wife to demonstrate the bona fideness of their marriage.

Once the application was filed, the fingerprint notice was issued two weeks later. There was no RFE issuance or interview request for our client’s I-751 application. As a result, on January 9, 2020, the USCIS approved our client’s I-751 application and our client received his 10-year green card which removed the conditions.

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CASE: I-751

APPLICANT: Estonian

LOCATION: Girard, OH

Our client contacted our office in January of 2019 regarding his I-751 application.

He is from Estonia and he married a U.S. citizen in January 2017. Through his marriage, he obtained a 2-year conditional green card in April of 2017.  His conditional residency terminated in April 2019.

To comply with immigration requirements, our client and his wife had to file an I-751 Joint Petition to Remove Conditions. He retained our office on January 16, 2019, and our office prepared an I-751 application for our client with other supplemental exhibits.

On February 5, 2019, our office filed an I-751 application to the USCIS with multiple affidavits from his friends and family members, joint bank statements, joint taxes, utility bills, insurance policies, and photos of our client and his wife to demonstrate the bona fideness of their marriage.

Once the application was filed, the fingerprint notice was issued two weeks later. There was no RFE issuance or interview request for our client’s I-751 application. As a result, on January 8, 2020, the USCIS approved our client’s I-751 application and our client received his 10-year green card which removed the conditions.

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CASE: Marriage-Based Green Card (Same Sex Marriage Case)

CLIENT: Filipino

LOCATION: San Jose, CA

Our client came to the United States from the Philippines with a J-1 exchange visitor’s visa. With our firm’s legal assistance, he got his J-1 waiver for his two-year foreign residency requirement.  In June 2018, he married his U.S. Citizen same-sex spouse in Idaho.

On June 26, 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court held that restricting U.S. federal interpretation of “marriage” and “spouse” to apply only to heterosexual unions, by Section 3 of the defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), is unconstitutional under the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment. United States v. Windsor, 570 U.S. ___ (2013). After Windsor decision, the USCIS implemented a new policy that the USCIS officer must review immigration via petitions filed on behalf of a same-sex spouse in the same manner as those filed on behalf of an opposite-sex spouse. As long as a same-sex couple is married in a U.S. state that recognizes same-sex marriage, their marriage shall be considered a valid marriage under the immigration law. 

They married in Idaho where the same-sex marriage is recognized. Our client contacted our office and retained us in January 2019 for his I-130 petition and I-485 adjustment of status application. Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 petition and I-485 adjustment of status application, together with all necessary supporting documents, on February 1, 2019. 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 calls. On January 13, 2020, our client was interviewed at the Santa Clara, California USCIS office. The interview went well and his green card application was approved on the same day.

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CASE: I-751

APPLICANT: Nigerian

LOCATION: Cleveland, OH

Our client contacted our office in August of 2018 regarding his I-751 application.

He is from Nigeria and he married a U.S. citizen in March 2016. Through his marriage, he obtained a 2-year conditional green card in January of 2017.  His conditional residency terminated in January 2019.

To comply with immigration requirements, our client and his wife had to file an I-751 Joint Petition to Remove Conditions. He retained our office on August 22, 2018, and our office prepared an I-751 application for our client with other supplemental exhibits.

On October 16, 2018, our office filed an I-751 application to the USCIS with multiple affidavits from his friends and family members, joint bank statements, joint taxes, utility bills, insurance policies, and photos of our client and his wife to demonstrate the bona fideness of their marriage.

Once the application was filed, the fingerprint notice was issued two weeks later. However, the USCIS issued the Request for Evidence (RFE) to demonstrate the bona fideness of our client’s marriage with his wife. We filed an extensive Response to RFE to the USCIS with more bona fide marital documents on November 19, 2019.  

As a result, on January 6, 2020, the USCIS approved our client’s I-751 application and our client received his 10-year green card which removed the conditions.

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