CASE: I-129F Fiancé Petition and Fiancé Visa
PETITIONER: US Citizen in Cleveland, OH
BENEFICIARY: Guyanese
PETITION FILED: May 21, 2012
VISA APPROVED: October 11, 2012

Our client, a US Citizen Petitioner, met her Guyanese fiancé in Barbados last year. A few months after she came back to the States, she retained our firm to get a visa for her fiancé.

We informed her of all supporting documents we would need, helped her and her fiancé draft a letter in support of the fiancé petition, and filed the petition on May 21, 2012.

On August 17, 2012, the I-129F fiancé petition was approved. Our client’s fiancé was then scheduled for a fiancé immigrant visa interview in early October 2012 at the US Embassy in Georgetown, Guyana. We prepared all forms and supporting documents for his interview and sent them by international mail to Guyana. He was also prepared prior to the interview.

On October 11, 2012, our client passed his fiancé visa interview. He would be reunited with our client in the U.S. soon and would get married within 90 days of his entry. From there he can apply for his green card.

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CASE: Asylum in Immigration Court
CLIENT: Cameroonian
LOCATION: Cleveland Immigration Court

Our Cameroonian client came to the United States on an F-1 visa in December 2011. She was persecuted and harmed in Cameroon based on her political opinion and political activism, so within one year of her entry, she filed an asylum application (Asylum, Withholding of Removal, and relief under the CAT) to the USCIS.

She was interviewed at the Asylum Office in Chicago, but her case was referred to an immigration judge in July 2012. The Notice to Appear was issued and our client was placed in removal proceedings. The USCIS thought that our client’s testimony was different from that of her written statement.

After the case was referred to the Immigration Court, our client contacted our office in late July of 2012, and eventually retained our office on July 30, 2012.

Our client was scared to go back home to Cameroon, fearing that she will be persecuted based on her political opinion and her past participation with human rights activist groups. While our client was a college student in Cameroon, she became a human rights activist involved in educating and informing fellow students on campus about their basic fundamental rights. Our client organized some student movement activities, joined student marches against government’s actions and participated in political activities. As a result, she was arrested and detained multiple times by the Cameroonian police and has experienced harm and mistreatments in numerous occasions.

We helped her supplement her asylum application and represented her in immigration court hearings. We also asked her to provide supporting documents corroborating her claim, some of which were a letter from her parents, colleagues and friends in Cameroon, Cameroonian medical documents of our client’s injury, and her membership certification with the different human rights organizations. Our firm also did some research on articles related to her claim, and the type of persecution she will experience in Cameroon if sent back.

Our client’s individual hearing was scheduled on October 19, 2012 at the Cleveland Immigration Court. Attorney Sung Hee Yu from our firm prepared her extensively twice, both of which lasted several hours. He also represented our client at her Individual Hearing.

During the hearing, our client testified credibly as to her past persecution in Cameroon and likelihood of future persecution. After the hearing, the Immigration Judge granted asylum relief for our client. She is now an asylee who will get her work permit in two weeks and will be eligible to apply for permanent residency in one year.

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CASE: I-140 / National Interest Waiver

NATIONALITY: Korean

LOCATION: Ohio

Our South Korean client came to the U.S. on a J-1 Visa in August 2008.  He was here for a NASA research fellowship, but his J-1 program made him subject to the two-year foreign residence requirement.  He retained our office for his J-1 waiver, I-140 National Interest Waiver Classification (NIW) and I-485 Adjustment of Status applications.

We got his J-1 waiver approved on February 6, 2012, details of which are in a previous success story. Afterwards, we started working on his NIW application. Our client is a researcher and scientist in the field of Aerospace Science and Engineering, and is currently working as a research specialist at NASA.  Upon review of his credentials and qualifications, our office determined that he was qualified for the National Interest Waiver (NIW) category. The NIW is beneficial because one would not need an employer nor family member to petition for you.

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.

Our office prepared a 19-page brief for our client’s NIW filing. We asked our client to obtain 10 or more letters of recommendation.  Our office also included his publication records, presentation records, and conference materials.  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 64 exhibits (Exhibit A to LLL).  Our office filed his I-140(NIW) petition to the USCIS on April 6, 2012.  On September 7, 2012, the USCIS approved his I-140 petition without any Requests for Evidence.

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CASE: Visa Waiver Overstay Marriage Green Card
ISSUES: Visa Waiver Overstay, Age Gap, Previous Divorces
CLIENT: Hungarian
LOCATION: Cleveland Ohio

Our client came to the United States in November 2009 as a visa waiver entrant from Hungary.  He married a U.S. Citizen in January 2012 and retained our office on February 21, 2012 for his adjustment of status application They were hesitant at first because he was a visa waiver overstay, and cases they’ve seen on the internet on visa waiver overstays were not too good. Both of them also have previous divorces. They also have a big age gap. So they were concerned about their chances of winning.

We reviewed their supporting documents and listened to their story, of how they met and fell in love. We also explained and showed a recent CIS memorandum on visa waiver overstays, more of a FAQ memo, stating that adjustment applications based on marriage to a US Citizen for visa waiver overstays should be adjudicated. Prior to this memorandum the CIS were split, granting some visa waiver overstay adjustments while some issue denials resulting to deportation without a removal hearing (for visa waiver, you waiver your right to contest removability in Court).

Our firm then prepared and filed the I-130 Petition and I-485 Adjustment of Status Application on April 27, 2012.  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. On July 20, 2012, our client was interviewed at the Cleveland Ohio USCIS office accompanied by Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu. The visa waiver memorandum was once again presented to avoid any possible issues. Supporting documents of their bona fide relationship were also submitted. On September 6, 2012, his green card application was approved.

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CASE: PERM Labor Certification
EMPLOYER: Electric Immersion Heater Manufacturer
BENEFICIARY: Indian Management Analyst
LOCATION: Cleveland Ohio

The beneficiary is a management analyst from India, who is currently working at an electric immersion heater manufacturing company in Cleveland Ohio. The company / petitioner was willing to petition him for a green card, in the second-preference category (EB2).  Our client has an MBA degree and has worked for this company since April 2012. He has maintained his status as an H-1B visa holder in the United States.  After talking to our client, our firm advised that his potential employer can petition him as a Management Analyst. It is a Job Zone 4 position, which typically does not merit an EB2 finding by the Department of Labor, but we thought the position was complex enough to merit an argument. Based on our client’s educational, professional and working background as an engineer and management analyst, our office determined that he is clearly eligible for the EB-2 classification for his I-140 petition.

Prior to filing the PERM labor certification application, 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 Labor Certification 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.  On June 29, 2012, we filed the PERM labor certification application. Two months later, on August 30, 2012, the PERM labor certification was approved – an EB2 position for a Job Zone 4 Position – Management Analyst – without an audit!

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CASE: Motion to Reopen
CLIENT: Chinese
LOCATION: Cleveland, OH / Immigration Court: Detroit Immigration Court

Our client came to the United States on a valid B-2 visa from China in 2002.  Later, she changed her status to F-1 and remained in the United States. She filed an I-485 application as a derivative applicant of her ex-husband in 2007.  However, while the application was pending, our client and her ex-husband got separated.  Unfortunately, in 2008, her I-485 adjustment of status application was denied.   She never received the denial notice from the USCIS since she moved to a different city in Ohio before her case was denied.  Thus, our client never received the Notice to Appear and was not apprised of the fact that she was placed in removal proceedings.  Accordingly, the Detroit Immigration Court issued an in absentia order of removal for our client in August 2010.

In January 2012, our client was picked up by ICE officers.  She was surprised to find out that she was being held because she had a final order of removal and missed her hearing in August 2010.  She explained her situation, so she was not detained, and was placed on an order of supervision. Our client contacted our firm and eventually retained us in March 2012.  Once we were retained, we asked our client to check with her ex-husband or her relatives whether they received the Notice to Appear for her.  We told her that we have to reopen her case first before she can even apply for relief at the Immigration Court.

To rescind the final order, she has to get her case reopened. This is done through a Motion to Reopen filed with the Immigration Judge who gave the final order. Based on this Motion to Reopen, the Immigration Judge can rescind the in absentia order of removal if you are able to show that you did not receive notice of the hearing.

On July 31, 2012, our office filed the Motion to Reopen with the Detroit Immigration Court. Documentation of her address at the date of the final order, a detailed affidavit regarding her addresses and her circumstances around the final order date, documentation of the last address she provided to the immigration service prior to the final order date, and other supporting documents were submitted (20 exhibits). On August 16, 2012, the Detroit Immigration Court granted our motion and reopened our client’s case. Our client now does not have the final order of removal anymore and will seek asylum, withholding of removal and relief under the CAT with the Immigration Court.

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CASE: N-400 (Citizenship / Naturalization w/ Rebuttable Presumption and Continuity of Residence Issues)
APPLICANT: Iranian
LOCATION: Cleveland, Ohio
ISSUES: Rebuttable Presumption / Continuous Residence

Our client contacted us in March 2012 to seek legal representation for his naturalization application. He came to the United States from Iran and obtained his green card through his U.S. Citizen son’s petition in March 2007. He retained our office for his naturalization application on March 23, 2012. The main issue of his naturalization case was two long, over six-month trips that he had within the past four years.

According to INA §316(b) and 8 C.F.R. §316.5.(c)(1)(i), an absence between 6 months and 1 year from the United States raises a rebuttable presumption that continuity of residence has been interrupted. That would be an issue in naturalization cases, where continuity of residence is essential. Applicants with this issue should rebut that presumption should they wish to apply.

Our client was out of the U.S. more than 180 days twice.  During these trips, he was in Iran, but he could not come back to the United States earlier due to his medical condition.  Our client intended to have temporary trips of less than six months in those two trips. However, due to his medical condition and related health issues, he could not come back to the United States before his trip due to the advice of his doctors.  Moreover, our client already had chronic high blood pressures and heart-diseases in the United States as well.

Our office drafted an argument which explained our client’s medical conditions and argued that he is otherwise eligible for naturalization despite his two long trips to Iran.  We included two notarized affidavits from our client and his U.S. Citizen son, and included our client’s medical records from Iran and the U.S.

The brief and his N-400 application were filed on April 12, 2012 with all necessary supporting documents. Our office prepared him for his interview, and also accompanied him on August 7, 2012 at the Cleveland CIS office. Our client answered all questions correctly and passed his citizenship interview. We emphasized the brief as well and his reasons for his long trips to Iran. His N-400 was approved after the interview. His oath taking is scheduled soon where he will become a U.S. Citizen.

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CASE: Immigration Bond Court Hearing / Release from Detention
APPLICANT: Guatemalan
LOCATION: Cleveland Immigration Court, Ohio

Our office was contacted in the middle of July regarding a Guatemalan who was recently picked up by the Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE) officers and detained in Ohio. He entered the United States without inspection in 2006.

Prior to retention, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement told us that they have a no bond issuance for our clients, because he was single, had a probation violation issue, has no family ties, and no permanent address. Our client wished to be released.

Upon retention, we filed a motion for bond redetermination with the Cleveland Immigration Court in Ohio. Our office communicated with our client and his U.S. resident relative in Cleveland, and gathered as much information regarding his relief, equities, family ties, and financial ability to post bond. We also gathered supporting documents from those relatives, from proof of their status and residence, to bank statements and tax returns.

On August 7, 2012, we represented our client at his Cleveland Immigration Court master calendar and bond hearings. For the Master Calendar hearing, we did pleadings and sought asylum relief. During the bond re-determination hearing, we explained to the Court that our client was not a flight risk, had established his residence upon release, had established his financial ability to post bond, and that he had ample family ties in the United States who submitted proof of their residence and immigration status. Our office explained that his designated address with contact information from his relative in the United States, ability to post bond, and eligibility for asylum relief clearly demonstrate that the bond should be set. At the end of the hearing, the Immigration Judge took our arguments into account and set the bond for our client at $7500.

Our client has been released, and he is now in the process of preparing his asylum application.

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CASE: N-400 (Citizenship / Naturalization)
APPLICANT: Ukrainian
LOCATION: Ohio

Our client contacted us in March 2012 to seek legal representation for her naturalization and citizenship N-400 application. She came to the United States from Ukraine and obtained her green card in 1993. She retained our office for her naturalization and citizenship N-400 application on March 28, 2012.

The naturalization and citizenship N-400 application was filed on April 12, 2012 with all supporting documents. Our office prepared her before her naturalization interview, and also accompanied her on July 31, 2012 at the Cleveland CIS office. Our client answered all questions correctly and passed her naturalization and citizenship N-400 interview. Eventually, her naturalization application was approved. Her oath taking will be scheduled soon in which she will become a naturalized U.S. Citizen.

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CASE: Marriage-Based Adjustment of Status
CLIENT: Ethiopian
LOCATION: Cleveland, OH

Our client came to the United States in August 2009 with an F-1 Student visa from Ethiopia.  She married a U.S. Citizen in December 2011 and retained our office on March 31, 2012 for her adjustment of status application.  Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 Petition and I-485 Adjustment of Status Application on April 13, 2012.  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. On July 24, 2012, our client was interviewed at the Cleveland, Ohio USCIS.  On July 26, 2012, her green card application was approved.

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