CASE: Marriage-Based Adjustment of Status
NATIONALITY: Malaysian
LOCATION: Boston, MA

Our client is from Malaysia who came to the U.S. on a L-1 visa. In October 2016, our client married his current U.S. citizen wife. He retained our office on November 8, 2016 for his green card application. Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 Petition and I-485 Adjustment of Status Application on November 22, 2016. 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 May 8, 2017, our client was interviewed at the Boston Massachusetts USCIS office. Eventually, on the same day of his interview, his green card application was approved.

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CASE: Marriage-Based Adjustment of Status

NATIONALITY: Nigerian                                                                                                        

LOCATION: Cleveland, Ohio

Our client is from Nigeria who came to the U.S. on a B-2 visitor’s visa in June 2015. Since then, he has remained in the United States after his authorized stay period expired.  In January 2016, our client married his current U.S. citizen wife.  He retained our office in October 2016 for his green card application.  Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 Petition and I-485 Adjustment of Status Application on December 20, 2016.  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 April 17, 2017, our client was interviewed at Cleveland Ohio USCIS office. Attorney JP Sarmiento from our office also accompanied our clients as well. Eventually, on May 3, 2017, his green card application was approved.

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CASE: I-485 Adjustment of Status Based on Approved I-140 (EB-2)
EMPLOYER: Sales Leads Provider in Omaha Nebraska
BENEFICIARY: Nepali Senior Software Developer – Web Application

Our client is from Nepal, who is currently working in the United States as a Senior Software Developer under F-1 (OPT) status. His current employer was willing to do an immigration petition for him, second-preference. Our client has a Master of Management Information Systems degree in the United States. After talking to our client, our firm concluded that his employer can petition him as a Senior Software Developer – Web Application. Based on our client’s educational, professional and work background, our office determined that he is clearly 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 29, 2015, the prevailing wage request was filed.  After we obtained Prevailing Wage determination, our office filed the job order on December 11, 2015.  On March 9, 2016, we promptly filed PERM.  Eventually, on June 23, 2016, the PERM Labor Certification was approved – an EB2 position for the Nepali beneficiary.

We then proceeded with the I-140 Petition filing. We submitted the “ability to pay” letter for the I-140 petition application. We included the job offer letter, employer’s tax records, and other necessary supporting documents.

The I-140 Petition was filed on July 26, 2016 via premium processing service. Eventually, on August 8, 2016, the I-140 EB2 Petition for our Nepalese client was approved without any Request for Evidence (RFE).

When we filed his I-140, our office concurrently filed an I-485 adjustment of status application for his green card. However, on March 29, 2017, the USCIS issued Request for Evidence (RFE) and asked our client to submit the document to demonstrate his authorized employment. Our office filed Response to RFE immediately.  Eventually, on May 3, 2017, his I-485 adjustment of status application was approved by the USCIS. Now, our client is a green card holder.

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CASE: N-400 (Citizenship / Naturalization)

APPLICANT: Filipino

LOCATION: Cleveland, OH

Our client contacted us in January 2017 to seek legal representation for his naturalization and citizenship N-400 application. He came to the United States from the Philippines and obtained his green card in August 2019.

Once retained, his N-400 application was filed on February 6, 2017 with all supporting documents. Prior to his citizenship interview, our office prepared him at our office.  On April 27, 2017, our client appeared at the Cleveland, OH USCIS office for his naturalization interview. Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu accompanied our client as well. Our client answered all questions correctly and passed his naturalization and citizenship interview. Eventually, his application was approved on May 5, 2017. His oath taking is scheduled in which he will become a naturalized U.S. Citizen.

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CASE: I-140 / National Interest Waiver

CLIENT: Korean

LOCATION: Akron, OH

Our client contacted us in October 2015 about the possibility of doing a National Interest Waiver self-petition. He is a researcher from South Korea and he is an exceptional researcher and scientist in the field of polymer engineering

His significant contributions have placed him at the pinnacle of his field of endeavor. Throughout his research career, our client has discovered new ways to synthesize polystyrene/silica composite particles which was highly evaluated by reviewers of various journals and by colleagues and experts in the field. Our client developed and applied two new methods which allow polymer-particle/silica-particle composited can be fabricated without any surface modification.

Upon review of his credentials and qualifications, our office determined that he was qualified for the National Interest Waiver (NIW) category. Being qualified for NIW is beneficial since you would not need an employer nor family member to petition for you for green card purposes. You’d be eligible for a self-petition and unless you are from China or India, in which case you’d still have to wait for priority dates to be current, you would be eligible to apply for adjustment of status (green card) immediately without any lag in priority dates.

As a primer, NIW applicants must have a master’s or higher degree. The landmark immigration case that discusses the standards for NIWs is Matter of New York State Department of Transportation, 22 I&N Dec. 215 (Comm.1998). This case held that the qualifying applicant must show the following elements in his or her I-140 NIW petition: First, it must be shown that the alien seeks employment in an area of substantial intrinsic merit. Next, it must be shown that the proposed benefit will be national in scope. Finally, the petitioner seeking the waiver must establish that the alien will serve the national interest to a substantially greater degree than would an available U. S. worker having the same minimum qualifications. (When we filed this case, Matter of Dhanasar, 26 I&N Dec. 884 (AAO 2016) was not issued yet. Thus, we still filed our client’s NIW under NYSDOT standard.)

Our office prepared a 20-page brief for our client’s NIW filing. Our client also obtained 6 letters of recommendation from his colleagues and internationally-recognized scientists. Our office also included his publication records, presentation records, and conference materials in the NIW application. We demonstrated the intrinsic merit of our client’s research in the United States, the national scope of his research, and asserted that our client would serve the national interest to a substantially greater degree than would an available U.S. worker having the same minimum qualifications. His NIW application contained 36 exhibits (Exhibit A to JJ).

Our office filed his I-140(NIW) petition to the USCIS Nebraska Service Center on February 2, 2016. Eventually, on April 28, 2017, the USCIS approved his I-140 petition without any Requests for Evidence.  When we filed his I-140, he concurrently filed his I-485 adjustment of status application. His adjustment of status application will be approved soon as well.

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CASE: EB-3 Green Card Approval Based on Approved I-140 (EB-3)

EMPLOYER: Engineering Company

BENEFICIARY: Taiwanese Radio Frequency Identification Engineer

LOCATION: Columbus, OH

Our client is currently working as a Radio Frequency Identification Engineer (RFID) whose current employer was willing to petition him for a third-preference petition (I-140).  Our client has a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in a related field and work experience as well. He has been working for his current employer under an H-1B status. Based on our client’s educational, professional and work background, our office determined that he is clearly eligible for EB-3 classification for his I-140 petition.  Our client eventually retained us in March 2015.

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 the PERM application could be filed at least 60 days from the job posting date or 30 days from the last ad. Within a week from our retention, the prevailing wage request was filed.  After we obtained the foreign degree evaluation report, our office filed the job order on August 31, 2015.  On November 11, 2015, we promptly filed PERM.

However, on April 14, 2016, the Department of Labor issued a request for audit. The DOL requested documents from Petitioner to determine whether the recruitment process was done properly. In response to the Audit request, our office prepared the response to Audit brief along with Employer’s declaration, notice of filing, and recruitment documentation on April 29, 2016.  

Eventually, on June 30, 2016, the PERM Labor Certification was approved – an EB3 position for the Taiwanese beneficiary. We then proceeded with the I-140 Petition filing. We submitted the “ability to pay” letter for the I-140 petition application. We included the job offer letter, employer’s tax records, and other necessary supporting documents. The I-140 petition was filed on August 22, 2016 via premium processing service. Eventually, on August 31, 2016, the I-140 EB-3 Petition for our Taiwanese client was approved without any Request for Evidence (RFE).

Once the I-140 petition was approved, our client retained our office again for his I-485 adjustment of status application. Our office filed an I-485 adjustment of status application for our client on November 7, 2016. Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices and fingerprint appointment came on time.

Eventually, on May 3, 2017, the USCIS Nebraska Service Center approved our client’s adjustment of status application. Now, he finally is a green card holder.

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CASE: Marriage-Based Adjustment of Status

NATIONALITY: Peruvian                                                                                                        

LOCATION: Cleveland, OH
Our client is from Peru who came to the U.S. on a B-2 visitor’s visa in September 2016.  In December 2016, our client married his current U.S. citizen wife.  He retained our office in December 2016 for his green card application.  Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 Petition and I-485 Adjustment of Status Application on December 20 2016.  Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices, fingerprint appointment, and work permit all came on time. Prior to the interview, we thoroughly prepared our clients at our office as well. On April 3, 2017, our client was interviewed at the Cleveland Ohio USCIS office. Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu from our office accompanied our clients. Eventually, on April 21, 2017, his green card application was approved.

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CASE: Marriage-Based Adjustment of Status

NATIONALITY: Filipina                                                                                                        

LOCATION: Cleveland, Ohio

Our client is from the Philippines who came to the U.S. on a B-2 visitor’s visa in December 2015. Since then, she has remained in the United States after her authorized stay period expired.  In December 2016, our client married her current U.S. citizen husband.  She retained our office in December 2016 for her green card application.  Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 Petition and I-485 Adjustment of Status Application on January 11, 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 April 13, 2017, our client was interviewed at Cleveland Ohio USCIS office. Attorney JP Sarmiento 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: I-751

APPLICANT: Chinese

LOCATION: Cleveland, OH

Our client contacted our office in May of 2016 regarding her I-751 application.

She is from China and she married a U.S. citizen in February 2014. Through her marriage, she obtained a 2-year conditional green card in August of 2014. Our office helped her in the green card process.  Her conditional residency terminated in August 2016.

To comply with immigration requirements, our client and her husband had to file an I-751 Joint Petition to Remove Conditions. She retained our office on May 16, 2016, and our office prepared an I-751 application for our client with supporting documents.

On June 3, 2016, our office filed an I-751 application to the USCIS with multiple affidavits from her friends and family members, joint bank statements, utility bills, joint leasing documents, and photos of our client and her husband to demonstrate the bona fideness of their marriage.

Once the application was filed, the fingerprint notice was issued two weeks later. Eventually, on April 13, 2017, the USCIS approved our client’s I-751 application without any Request for Evidence (RFE).

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

NATIONALITY: Kenyan                                                                                                        

LOCATION: Colorado

Our client is from Kenya who came to the U.S. on a J-1 Visa in February 2016 to work at a non-profit organization in the U.S.  His program sponsor was willing to sponsor our client longer if he can change his non-immigrant status. However, he will not be able to change his status unless he gets a waiver of the 2-year foreign residency requirement.  When he came to the United States in 2016, his program made him 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 Kenyan 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 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 J-1 waiver. 

On March 16, 2017, 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 change his status if he gets the waiver.

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 April 14, 2017, the Waiver Review Division issued a favorable recommendation based on the No Objection statement. On April 24, 2017, the USCIS issued an I-612 approval notice for the waiver of our client’s two-year foreign residency requirement. Now, our client can change his status.  

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