CASE: Marriage-Based Adjustment of Status
CLIENT: British
LOCATION: Alexandria, VA

Our client came to the United States in February 2011 with a B-2 visitor visa from the United Kingdom.  In August 2011, he married a U.S. Citizen and retained our office on September 19, 2011 for the petition and adjustment of status application.  Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 Petition and Adjustment of Status Application on September 22, 2011.  Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices, fingerprint appointment, work permit, and advance parole all came on time. There was no Request for Evidence.  Prior to the interview, we prepared our clients. On December 15, 2011, our client was interviewed at the Fairfax, VA USCIS Field Office.  On December 16, 2011, his green card application was approved.

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CASE: Adjustment of Status / J-1 Waiver
NATIONALITY: Philippines                                                                                                       �
LOCATION: Seattle, WA

Our client came from the Philippines on a J-1 Visa three years ago. However, upon completion of her J-1 program, she remained in the United States.  According to her DS-2019, she was subject to the two-year foreign residency requirement.   At the end of last year, she got married to her U.S. citizen husband and later on consulted with our firm for her adjustment of status (obtaining a green card). If someone is subject to the two-year foreign residency requirement, he or she cannot get a green card in the United States until he or she fulfills the requirement or obtains a waiver.

Our client asked us to help her obtain a waiver of the two-year foreign residency requirement.  Upon retention, our office promptly prepared a waiver request through a No Objection Statement (NOS) from the Philippine Embassy in the United States.

On January 18, 2011 the J-1 Waiver Application (Form DS-3035) was filed to the Department of State.  We also sent a request to the Washington State Government to get authentication for the necessary documents.  Later, these authenticated documents and No Objection Application (for the Philippine Government) were sent to the Philippine Consulate General for further authentication.  On March 8, 2011, the Consulate office in San Francisco sent our client’s materials to the Waiver Review Committee in Manila, Philippines.  Then, the Waiver Review Committee forwarded the materials and favorable recommendation to the Philippine Embassy in D.C. which eventually issued a No Objection Statement.  Throughout the process, we asked these government agencies to recommend a waiver for our client based on the fact that our client was eligible to adjust if she obtains a waiver.

On April 27, 2011, the Waiver Review Division issued a favorable recommendation based on the No Objection statement.  Eventually, on May 16, 2011, the USCIS issued an I-612 approval notice for the waiver.

Once the waiver was issued, our office filed the I-130 Petition and I-485Adjustment of Status Application on May 18, 2011.  Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices, fingerprint appointment, and work permits all came on time.  We thoroughly prepared our clients prior to the interview.   On August 17, 2011, our client was interviewed at the Seattle USCIS Field office.  Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu accompanied them at the interview as well. The Petitioner and Respondent were separated, but were prepared to answer questions and did well. Although the interview process was intensive and the USCIS went through further investigation for our client’s eligibility, on October 18, 2011, her green card application was finally approved.

From having the two-year foreign residency requirement, our firm effectively helped her get a J-1 waiver before she adjusted her status.  She did not have to go to the Philippines for 2 years before she got her permanent residency in the United States. She’s now a green card holder.

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Case: I-130/I-485
Issue: Visa Waiver Overstay
Applicant/Beneficiary – Argentinean
Location: Columbus, Ohio

Our client entered the United States in 2001 from Argentina under the visa waiver program.  When he entered the United States, he was a minor and came with his parents.  As a Visa Waiver Entrant, he was only authorized to remain in the United States for 90 days. However, he has remained in the United States ever since.

Several years later, he married his U.S. citizen wife on March 25, 2011. One main issue in his green card application through marriage was the fact that he came to the United States under the visa waiver program.   As our office wrote in our previous success story with a similar issue,  under the visa waiver program, citizens of certain countries can enter the U.S. for 90 days without a visa with the condition that the visitor waives his or her right to contest removal (other than on the basis of asylum).  The “no-contest” provision of the Visa Waiver Program is fundamental; if someone could enter under the VWP and then contest removability, it would defeat the whole purpose of the Program which is to make it easy for certain nationals to come to the United States to visit and then leave without all the red-tape involved in visa issuance.

Our office filed the I-130 Petition and I-485 Adjustment of Status Application on July 21, 2010.  Our office requested the CIS to exercise favorable discretion in granting adjustment of status despite the filing date falling beyond the expiration of the visa waiver. Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices, the fingerprint appointment, and the work permit all came on time. There was no Request for Evidence.  Prior to the interview, we thoroughly prepared our clients. On October 14, 2011, our client was interviewed at the Columbus, Ohio USCIS Field Office.  We accompanied them at the interview as well.  Despite the visa waiver / overstay issue, the USCIS officer approved his green card application on the same day.  Now, our client is a green card holder.

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CASE: Adjustment of Status / 245(i)
CLIENT: Chinese
LOCATION: Columbus, Ohio

Section 245(i) of the INA allows certain foreign nationals to become permanent residents of the United States despite entering without inspection (EWI). Immigrants are barred from adjusting their status if they entered the United States without first being inspected and admitted by a Customs and Border Patrol officer and if they have either failed to maintain lawful status or been unlawfully employed in the country, with certain exceptions. Section 245(i) was first added to law in 1994 to allow certain people who otherwise would not be eligible to adjust their status to be able to do so upon payment of a $1,000 fine.

Four years later, on January 14, 1998, Congress phased Section 245(i) out of law. Immigrants and their families who had already begun the process of changing their status under Section 245(i) by January 14, 1998 were grandfathered into the section’s benefits. However, this left thousands of otherwise qualified persons who had not begun the process unable to adjust status in the United States. They could not return to their countries to begin the legal process of obtaining their permanent residency in the United States also without being subject to either a three- or a 10-year bar upon returning to the United States.

On December 21, 2000, Congress extended the qualifying date for Section 245(i) benefits to April 30, 2001. This law allowed immigrants who had labor certifications or visa petitions filed on their behalf between 1998 and April 30, 2001, to qualify for adjustment of status. Those who were beneficiaries of petitions filed prior to January 14, 1998 could still adjust despite an EWI record, and those people do not have to meet the December 2000 physical presence requirement.

Our clients came from China and had approved I-130 petitions (F-4 category) filed by our client’s U.S. Citizen brother in 1987.  Now that their son (over 21 years old) is a U.S. Citizen, we also filed an I-130 petitioned by their son on their behalf.  However, they have an EWI (Entry without Inspection and Admission) record in 2008. Since our clients are beneficiaries of an approved I-130 F4 petition filed in 1987, they can still adjust status through INA § 245(i) despite their entry issue. Also, since the F-4 petition was filed before January 14, 1998, physical presence in December 2000 was not required.

Our office was retained on May 23, 2011. We prepared and filed the Adjustment of Status Application with Form I-485 Supplement A on July 9, 2011.  Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices, the fingerprint appointment, and the work permit all came on time. There was no Request for Evidence.  Prior to the interview, we thoroughly prepared our clients with our Chinese speaking staff.   On October 11, 2011, our client was interviewed at the Columbus, Ohio USCIS office.  We accompanied them at the interview as well. Prior to the interview, we submitted a brief pertaining to the INA § 245(i) issue, including documents evidencing the fact that an I-130 was filed in 1987. The petition and green card applications were approved on the same day.

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CASE:  Adjustment of Status, I-601 Hardship Waiver of Inadmissibility

APPLICANT / BENEFICIARY: From Grenada

LOCATION: New York, NY

Our client entered the U.S. in 2000 as a tourist.  Later, she married to U.S. citizen husband and her husband filed an I-130 petition for her and she concurrently filed an I-485 adjustment of status application in 2010.  Our client also filed an I-601 hardship waiver application with her adjustment of status with the help of her previous immigration lawyer.  She needed to file an I-601 waiver because she was found inadmissible due to her previous immigration law violation.

In 1992, our client tried to come to the United States from Canada with someone else’s passport.  She encountered the border patrol officer and the officer denied her entry.  As a result of her this, she was found to be inadmissible pursuant to Section 212(a)(6)(C)(i) of the INA.  (Any alien who, by fraud or willfully misrepresenting a material fact, seeks to procure a visa, other documentation, or admission into the United States or other benefit provided under this Act is inadmissible).

In 2010, her green card application was denied due to this fraud, and because the I-601 that should have waived the fraud inadmissibility was denied.  The denial pointed out that there was not enough hardship to meet the standards for the I-601 waiver application. She filed an appeal to AAO and this was denied as well.

Our client contacted our office in January 2011 to pursue her I-601 waiver once again. She was not yet in removal proceedings so she re-filed her green card application. Our firm thoroughly analyzed why her previous I-601 waiver application was denied.  Based on her story and surrounding circumstances (hardship to her U.S. citizen husband if she is deported), our office determined that she has a good chance to win I-601 application as long as it is extensively prepared.  Our client already re-filed her I-485 adjustment of status application, but she sought legal assistance from our office for her I-601 waiver.  Eventually, she retained our office on February 8, 2011.

If someone is found to be inadmissible under Section 212(a)(6)(C)(i) of the INA, INA Section 212(i) provides for a discretionary waiver of the fraud or misrepresentation 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 Section 212(i)(l).  In addition to the equities presented, the USCIS may consider the nature of the fraud or misrepresentation.

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-601 application had a good chance since our client’s U.S. Citizen husband suffers from chronic severe pain in his bone muscles due to an past incident in which he was shot in the leg. In the I-601 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 needs consistent and continuous physical therapy to help deal with his pain. Also, it would be extremely difficult for him to get the same level of physical therapy and satisfactory access to medical services in Grenada in case he joins our client there.  Our office also included the U.S. Department of State Travel Advisory Section for Grenada to highlight the extremely poor medical services in Grenada.

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 Grenada, and that her LPR daughter and her husband will face extreme financial and emotional difficulties if she is removed.

In April 2011, our client had her second I-485 adjustment of status interview in New York.  On April 7, 2011, the CIS NY office requested our client to submit an amended extreme hardship statement and supporting documents for her I-601 waiver application.  On April 22, 2011, our client submitted our I-601 waiver application which included the brief in support, her husband’s medical records, and other documents that demonstrated hardship to her husband if she is removed from the United States.

Her I-601 waiver and I-485 green card application were approved on September 14, 2011. She is finally a green card holder and her inadmissibility has been completely waived.

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CASE: Bond Redetermination Hearing
APPLICANT: Chinese
LOCATION: Florence, AZ

A family relative of a Chinese individual detained in Florence, Arizona contacted our office at the end of August.  This Chinese client tried to enter the United States without valid documents and was incarcerated by immigration officers. He was given a credible fear interview which he eventually passed.

Prior to retention, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement already set a very high bond amount. Our client wished to have that reduced so we filed a motion for bond redetermination with the Florence, Arizona Immigration Court.  Despite being in jail in Florence, we communicated with him and gathered as much information regarding his relief, equities, criminal record, family ties, and financial ability to post bond. We contacted our client’s several relatives and friends in Atlanta, Georgia. We also gathered supporting documents from those relatives, from proof of their status and residence, to bank statements and tax returns.

On September 1, 2011, we represented our client for his Florence Arizona Immigration Court bond hearing. At oral arguments, we explained that our client was eligible for asylum relief, passed his credible fear interview, 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 contended that his lack of criminal record, 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 reduced.  The Judge took our arguments and evidence into consideration and reduced the bond amount in half. Our client’s relative has thereafter posted bond and he is now out of detention to pursue his asylum claim.

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CASE: Asylum
CLIENT: Saudi Arabian
LOCATION: Dallas / Houston

Our client retained us on June 2011 to help him with his asylum case. He is from Saudi Arabia living in Dallas Texas. He is scared to go back home to Saudi Arabia, fearing that he will be persecuted on account of his social group.

We helped him prepare his asylum application, going over several drafts until his claim was as detailed as possible. Names, addresses, dates, and all possible issues relevant to his asylum claim were addressed. We also asked him to provide supporting documents corroborating his claim, some of which were letters from Saudi Arabia and friends from other states who were part of his social group. Our firm also did some research on articles pertaining to his particular claim, and the type of persecution that members of his social group suffer in Saudi Arabia.

The asylum application was filed in August 5, 2011. On August 7, 2011, the CIS issued an interview notice for his asylum case, scheduled for August 29, 2011 in Houston, Texas. Prior to his interview, our office prepared him thoroughly for his case, going over practice interviews by phone to make sure he is able to address questions the asylum officer would ask. On August 29, 2011, we accompanied our client at his interview in Houston Texas. The interview went well and our client was able to answer all questions accordingly. There were no requests for evidence prior to nor after the interview. Everything went smoothly.

On September 8, 2011, the CIS in Houston approved our client’s asylum case. He is now an asylee and will be eligible to apply for permanent resident status in one year. He also would obtain his work permit in about two weeks.

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CASE: Change of Status from J-1 to B-2 Visitor
NATIONALITY: Filipino (Philippines)
LOCATION: Ohio

Our client is a Filipino national who came to the U.S. on a J-1 Visa. She consulted with our firm a few weeks before the expiration of her J-1 status. She wanted to continue to stay in the United States for a few more months to visit her relatives and see what her options were. We explained to her that CIS has been more stringent on Visitor status applications. We also explained that a Change of Status from a J-1 is even harder than an Visitor extension application. Upon retention, we asked her to prepare a statement on her plans after the expiration of her J-1 program. We asked her to provide as much detail as possible as we reviewed her drafts several times. We made sure all addresses, contact information, and dates on her statements were complete and accurate. We made sure all her plans were supported by corroborating evidence as exhibits to the application to avoid a possible Request for Evidence by the CIS. Letters from family and friends all over the country were obtained, as well as financial and employment documents from the Philippines. We filed the Application and in a few weeks, her change of status to B-2 visitor was approved with no Requests for Evidence.

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