CASE: Marriage-Based Adjustment of Status

NATIONALITY: Chinese                                                                                                        

LOCATION: Ohio

Our client is from China who came to the U.S. on a F-1 student visa. Later, she changed her status from F-1 to H-1B and has worked for her employer for the last two years. In May 2017, our client married her current U.S. citizen husband.  She retained our office on May 9, 2017 for her green card application.  Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 Petition and I-485 Adjustment of Status Application on May 19, 2017.  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. On August 29, 2017, our client was interviewed at the Cleveland, Ohio USCIS office. Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu from our office also accompanied our clients as well. Eventually, on the same day of the interview, her green card application was approved.

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CASE: H-1B Visa Petition

PETITIONER:  Dental Clinic

BENEFICIARY: Korean Dentist in Cleveland, OH

Our client is a dental clinic located in Cleveland, Ohio.  They contacted our office in early March of this year to seek legal assistance for a possible H-1B petition for their foreign employee.

The beneficiary obtained his Doctor of Dental Medicine in the United States. Moreover, she is a licensed dentist in the state of Ohio. The proffered position for the Beneficiary was an associate dentist which we argued qualified as a specialty occupation.

Upon retention, our office prepared and eventually filed the H-1B visa petition with various supporting documents on March 31, 2017 via regular processing. This H-1B petition was selected after the lottery.  Eventually, our client’s H-1B application was approved on August 29, 2017.

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CASE:   I-601A Hardship Waiver of Inadmissibility

APPLICANT / BENEFICIARY: Mexican

LOCATION: Cleveland, Ohio

Our client came to the United States from Mexico in June 2004 without inspection and admission. He married his U.S. citizen wife in September 2011. They have two U.S. citizen children together.  His U.S. Citizen wife filed an I-130 petition for him on December 16, 2014. This I-130 petition was approved on June 22, 2015.

Our client cannot file for adjustment of status due to his ground of inadmissibility. He needs a waiver of inadmissibility to become a green card holder. Moreover, our client was placed in removal proceedings, but with our office’s assistance, his removal proceeding was administratively closed in October 2015 to file a provisional waiver application.

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 suffers 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 Mexico 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 Mexico, 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 March 9, 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 his wife if he is removed from the United States.

Eventually, his I-601A waiver was approved on August 8, 2017. Now, he can file packet 3 and 4 here in the United States, and would go to Mexico shortly to get his immigrant visa.

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CASE: H-1B Visa Petition

PETITIONER:  Mental Health and Welfare Agency for children

BENEFICIARY: Taiwanese Outpatient Services Clinician in Columbus OH

Our client is a comprehensive children’s mental health and child welfare agency in Columbus, OH.  They contacted our office in later February of this year to seek legal assistance for a possible H-1B petition for their foreign employee.

The beneficiary obtained her Master of Science in Social Administration in the United States. The proffered position for the Beneficiary is an Outpatient Services Clinician which clearly qualifies as a specialty occupation.

Upon retention, our office prepared and eventually filed the H-1B visa petition with various supporting documents on March 31, 2017 via regular processing service. This H-1B petition was selected after the lottery. Our client’s H-1B application was approved on August 19, 2017 without any Request for Evidence (RFE).

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CASE: I-484 (Adjustment of Status) I-140 Schedule A / Old Priority Date Retention

EMPLOYER: Nursing / Rehabilitation Center

BENEFICIARY: Filipina

LOCATION: Houston, TX

Our client’s beneficiary is a registered nurse from the Philippines licensed in the state of Texas. She came to the United States in 2013 and now she holds an F-1 student status. Her prospective employer was willing to petition her for a third-preference employment immigrant visa petition (I-140). Our client also has an approved EB-3 I-140 petition with a priority date of March 2012.

Since she is a registered nurse, 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 Professional Nurses is included in Schedule A.

Also, under 8 CFR 204.5(e):

“Retention of section 203(b)(1), (2), or (3) priority date. A petition approved on behalf of an alien under sections 203(b)(1), (2), or (3) of the Act accords the alien the priority date of the approved petition for any subsequently filed petition for any classification under sections 203(b)(1), (2), or (3) of the Act for which the alien may qualify. In the event that the alien is the beneficiary of multiple petitions under sections 203(b)(1), (2), or (3) of the Act, the alien shall be entitled to the earliest priority date. A petition revoked under sections 204(e) or 205 of the Act will not confer a priority date, nor will any priority date be established as a result of a denied petition. A priority date is not transferable to another alien.”

As mentioned above, our client’s approved I-140 petition was not denied, was actually approved, and was never revoked at any point. Thus, by virtue of 8 CFR 204.5(e), this succeeding I-140 Petition by our client’s prospective employer for our client is entitled to the previous priority date.

Our client has a nursing degree and has several years of related experience. Our firm told her that her potential employer can petition her as a Registered Nurse under the schedule A category. Our office was retained on November 17, 2014 and started on her Prevailing Wage Request.

We filed the I-140 application on April 29, 2015 via regular processing. We also concurrently filed her I-485 adjustment of status since EB-3 priority date for our client was current at the time of her I-485 filing. We included the job offer letter, the notice of filing, her previous I-140 approval notice, and other necessary supporting documents. Later, on May 13, 2015, our client upgraded her I-140 processing from regular to premium processing.   

However, the USCIS issued a Request for Evidence (RFE) for our client’s degree evaluation document. Our office filed Response to RFE on May 29, 2015. Eventually, on June 2, 2015, the I-140 was approved and it retained our client’s old priority date.  

Then, we proceeded with our client’s I-485 adjustment of status application. We prepared and file our client’s adjustment of status application along with supporting documents to USCIS on April 28, 2015.

However, the priority date of Eb-3 category for the Philippines national backlogged. Our client had to wait until the priority date becomes current. In March 2017, her priority date becomes current. Eventually, our client’s adjustment application was approved by the USCIS on August 15, 2017.  After a long wait, our client is finally a green card holder.

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

CLIENT: Honduran

LOCATION: Cincinnati, OH

Our client came from Honduras with B-2 visitor’s visa in 2010. She has remained in the United States after her authorized stay period expired.

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.

Our client and her current U.S. citizen spouse, decided to get married in December 2016. Our client contacted our office and retained us on February 15, 2017 for her I-130 petition and I-485 adjustment of status application. She also has a minor child from Honduras and retained our office for her daughter’s case as well. Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 petition and I-485 adjustment of status application, together with all necessary supporting documents, on March 28, 2017. 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 August 17, 2017, our clients appeared at USCIS Cincinnati Field Office for the interview. The interview went well and our client and her daughter’s green card applications were approved on the same day.

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CASE:   Immigrant Visa / I-601A Hardship Waiver of Inadmissibility

APPLICANT / BENEFICIARY: Chinese

LOCATION: Cleveland, OH / Guangzhou, China (Visa Interview)

Our client came to the United States from China in March 2001 without inspection and admission. She made an illegal entry and was inadmissible. She applied for Asylum and Withholding of Removal, and she was granted Withholding of Removal. She married her U.S. citizen husband in 2006 and has U.S. citizen children together.

Through our office, she applied for a Motion to Reopen and the Cleveland Immigration Court granted our Motion and reopened our client’s case in 2015. Once reopened, with our office’s assistance, her removal proceedings were administratively closed in November 2015 to file a provisional waiver application. Her U.S. Citizen husband filed an I-130 petition for our client, and this I-130 petition was approved in 2009.

However, our client cannot file her adjustment of status application due to her ground of inadmissibility. She needed a waiver of inadmissibility to become a green card holder. 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

The USCIS announced of new policy called 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 and before they depart for their immigrant visa interviews at a U.S. embassy or consulate abroad.

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. Thus, our client would like to apply so called I-601A provisional waiver.

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 husband suffers from great degree of psychological hardship. In the I-601A brief and supporting documents, our office included extensive medical reports of her husband.  We argued that if she was removed from the United States, extreme hardship to her husband is clearly foreseeable and evident.  Her husband has ongoing psychological hardship and he would not be able to take care of his own needs and the bulk of their family chores, most importantly taking care of their infant children. Also, it would be extremely difficult for him to get the same level of therapy and satisfactory access to medical services in China in case he joins our client there. 

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

On May 20, 2016, our client submitted our I-601A waiver application which included the brief in support, her husband’s extensive psychological examination records, and other documents that demonstrated hardship to her husband if she is removed from the United States. Eventually, her I-601A waiver was approved on November 16, 2016.

Once her I-601A waiver was approved, she retained our office again for her immigrant visa processing. Our office prepared and filed her immigrant visa application on May 17, 2017. Thereafter, the U.S. Consulate General in Guangzhou, China informed our office that they scheduled an immigrant visa interview for our client. Our client went back to China to appear at her interview on July 10, 2017. On July 10, 2017, our client appeared at her immigrant visa interview at the Consulate, and the Consulate officer approved her immigrant visa on the same day.

Now, our client can come back to the United States with an approved immigrant visa and she will get her green card in a mail within two months of her entry to the United States.  

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CASE: Marriage-Based Adjustment of Status

NATIONALITY: Finnish                                                                                                       

LOCATION: Cleveland, Ohio

Our client is from Finland who came to the U.S. on a F-1 students visa in 2015 to pursue her graduate studies. In April 2017, our client married her U.S. citizen husband.  She retained our office in May 2017 for her green card application.  Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 Petition and I-485 Adjustment of Status Application on May 22, 2017.  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 at our office as well. On August 15, 2017, our client was interviewed at the Cleveland Ohio USCIS office. Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu from our office accompanied our clients as well. Eventually, after the interview, her green card application was approved.

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CASE: PERM Labor Certification    
EMPLOYER:  Hydraulic Unit Manufacturing Company in Texas
BENEFICIARY: Filipino Hydraulic Power Unit Design and Installation Project Manager

Our client is from the Philippines. His prospective employer was willing to do an immigration petition for him, second-preference. Our client has a Bachelor’s degree in Maritime Transportation and has more than 5 years of work experience as a Hydraulic Equipment Installer / Operator. After talking to our client, our firm concluded that his employer can petition him as a Hydraulic Power Unit Design and Installation Project Manager. Based on our client’s educational, professional and work background, our office determined that he is eligible for EB-2 classification.

Prior to filing PERM, our firm prepared the prevailing wage request, job order, advertisements, internal job posting, recruitment report, and all other steps which are important pre-PERM filing. Take note that PERM could be filed at least 60 days from the job posting date or 30 days from the last ad. On September 12, 2016, the prevailing wage request was filed.  After we obtained Prevailing Wage determination, our office filed the job order on January 10, 2017.  On May 3, 2017, we promptly filed PERM.  Eventually, on August 11, 2017, the PERM Labor Certification was approved – an EB2 position for the Filipino beneficiary. Now our client can file the I-140 petition.

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CASE: I-360 Petition

NATIONALITY: Saudi Arabian

LOCATION: Ohio

Our client is from Saudi Arabia who came to the U.S. on an F-1 Visa in 2010.  She had a U.S. citizen husband who filed an I-130 petition for him. However, their relationship did not work out and they ended up in divorce.

In July 2016, she contacted our office to seek legal representation for her I-360 petition. According to her story, they had to get divorced because her husband was very abusive. With her story and other evidence, our office determined that she would be eligible for a VAWA I-360 self-petition as a spouse of abusive U.S. citizen.

Our client experienced domestic violence and spousal abuse during her marriage. Her husband physically and mentally abused our client throughout the years. Thus, we filed and prepared her I-360 petition, which included 14 exhibits and a detailed brief to the USCIS Vermont Service Center on August 11, 2016.  

Finally, on July 25, 2017, the USCIS Vermont Service Center approved our client’s I-360 petition. With the approved I-360, our client can file her I-485 adjustment of status application to the USCIS for her permanent residency.

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