CASE: I-130 / I-485

NATIONALITY: Philippines

LOCATION: Bronx, New York

Our client came from the Philippines on a J-1 in April 2015 to work as a visiting research fellow. Based on her DS-2019, she was subject to the two-year foreign residency requirement.

In November 2016, she got married to her U.S. citizen husband and later on consulted with our firm for her J-1 visa waiver prior to applying for adjustment of status. 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.

Upon retention, our office promptly prepared a waiver request through a No Objection Statement (NOS) from the Philippine Embassy in the United States and eventually the EVP in the Philippines.

On December 23, 2016, the J-1 Waiver Application (Form DS-3035) was filed to the Department of State.  We also sent a request to the New York State Government to get authentication for the necessary documents.  Later, these authenticated documents and No Objection Application (for the Philippines Government) were sent to the Philippines Consulate General in New York for further authentication.  On February 23, 2017, our office 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. who eventually issued a No Objection Statement. On July 6, 2017, the Waiver Review Division issued a favorable recommendation based on the No Objection statement.  Eventually, on July 25, 2017, the USCIS issued an I-612 approval notice for the waiver.

Once her J-1 waiver was approved, our client retained our office again for her adjustment of status application. Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 Petition and Adjustment of Status Application on August 29, 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 through conference calls. On April 11, 2019, our client was interviewed at the New York, NY USCIS office.  The interview went well, and eventually, on April 22, 2019, her green card application was approved.

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CASE: I-140 / National Interest Waiver

CLIENT: Korean

LOCATION: Columbus, OH

Our client contacted us about the possibility of doing a National Interest Waiver self-petition. She is a post-doctorate researcher from South Korea and she is an exceptional researcher and scientist in the field of cancer biology and biomedical research.

Our client’s significant contributions have placed her at the pinnacle of her field. She has developed several animal models for breast cancer and pancreatic cancer focusing on the Brca1/2 and Palb2 genes. Individuals carrying mutations in these genes are highly predisposed to breast and pancreatic cancer. Specifically, by using her mouse models, she studied Palb2 pancreatic tumor pathology, characterizing differences and similarities of such cancers caused by Brca1/2 or Palb2 mutations and determined therapeutic effects of different chemotherapy drugs on these model mouse tumors. Our client’s experimental results provided important clues concerning treatment for human cancers initiated due to Brca1/2 or Palb2 mutations. Moreover, her research works were highly evaluated by reviewers of various journals and by colleagues and experts in the field.

Upon review of his credentials and qualifications, our office determined that he was definitely 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. While we prepared his case, the AAO set the new standards for NIW cases in Matter of Dhanasar, 26 I&N Dec. 884 (AAO 2016). Under the new standard, the petitioner must demonstrate that the foreign national’s proposed endeavor has both substantial merit and national importance. Next, it must be shown that he or she is well positioned to advance the proposed endeavor. Finally, the petitioner seeking the waiver needs to demonstrate that, on balance, it would be beneficial to the United States to waive the job offer and labor certification requirements. Id.

Our office prepared a 21-page brief for our client’s NIW filing. Our client also obtained 7 letters of recommendation from his colleagues and internationally-recognized researchers. Our office also included her publication records, presentation records, and conference materials in the NIW application. We demonstrated that our client is one of the few elite researchers who have made significant and substantial contributions to her field of endeavor, that she is well positioned to advance the proposed endeavor, and it would be beneficial to the United States to waive the requirements of a job offer and thus of a labor certification for our client.

Our office filed her I-140(NIW) petition to the USCIS Nebraska Service Center on September 25, 2018. Eventually, on April 16, 2019, the USCIS approved her I-140 petition without any Requests for Evidence.  She can file her adjustment of status application now since her priority date is current.

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CASE: Adjustment of Status at Removal Proceeding
CLIENT: Gabonese
LOCATION: Cleveland, OH

Our client came to the United States in July 2011 with a B-2 visitor’s visa from Gabon.  Later, she filed for asylum and her asylum application was denied by the immigration judge in Cleveland. She filed a BIA appeal and the BIA remanded her case in 2016.  She married a U.S. Citizen in October 2017. Our client’s husband filed an I-130 petition on behalf of our client, and this I-130 petition was approved by the USCIS Cincinnati Field Office in August 2018. However, she also applied for adjustment of status and this was administratively closed due to removal proceedings.  Our client contacted our office to seek legal representation.

Our client retained us on November 16, 2018. Thereafter, our office prepared and filed the I-485 Adjustment of Status Application and other supporting documents to the Cleveland Immigration Court at her Master Calendar hearing on December 11, 2018. We withdrew our client’s asylum case as well.   

On April 12, 2019, Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu represented our client’s at her Individual Hearing for adjustment of status at the Cleveland Immigration Court.  After the hearing, the Immigration Judge granted our client’s adjustment of status relief. Our client’s removal proceeding is terminated simultaneously. Now, our client becomes a green card holder.    

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CASE: I-751

APPLICANT: Kenyan

LOCATION: Cleveland, OH

Our client contacted our office in May of 2017 regarding her I-751 application.

She is from Kenya and she married a U.S. citizen in November 2013. Through her marriage, she obtained a 2-year conditional green card in August of 2015.  Her conditional residency terminated in August 2017.

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, and our office prepared an I-751 application for our client with other supplemental exhibits.

On July 17, 2017, our office filed an I-751 application to the USCIS with multiple affidavits from her friends and family members, joint bank statements, joint taxes, utility bills, insurance policies, 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. However, the USCIS issued the Request for Evidence (RFE) to demonstrate the bona fideness of our client’s marriage with her husband. We filed an extensive Response to RFE to the USCIS with more bona fide marital documents on February 13, 2019.  

As a result, on April 4, 2019, the USCIS approved our client’s I-751 application and our client received her 10-year green card which removed the conditions.

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CASE: Marriage-Based Adjustment of Status

NATIONALITY: Indian                                                                                                       

LOCATION: Cleveland, OH

Our Indian client came to the U.S. on an H-1B visa. In September 2018, our client married his current U.S. citizen wife.  He retained our office for his green card application. Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 Petition and I-485 Adjustment of Status Application on October 18, 2018. 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 April 5, 2019, our client was interviewed at the Cleveland Ohio USCIS office. Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu from our office accompanied our clients. On the same day, April 5, 2019, his green card application was approved.

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CASE: Fiancé Visa

PETITIONER: US Citizen in Cleveland, OH

BENEFICIARY: Slovakian

PETITION FILED: August 13, 2018

PETITION APPROVED: January 23, 2019

K-1 VISA APPROVED: March 14, 2019

Our client, a US Citizen Petitioner, met his fiancée in March 2018.  They started their relationship, and spent time together in Slovakia. They got engaged and our client decided to file a fiancé petition for his fiancée.  He retained our firm to file a fiancé petition for her on July 31, 2018.

After retention, we informed our client about the necessary supporting documents to demonstrate the bona fide nature of their relationship. We helped him and his fiancée draft letters in support of the fiancé petition, and we filed the petition on August 13, 2018.

On January 23, 2019, the I-129F fiancé petition was approved. On March 14, 2019, our client’s fiancée appeared at the U.S. Embassy in Bratislava, Slovakia for her K-1 visa interview. The interview went well, and after the interview, the U.S. Embassy issued her K-1 visa.

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CASE: I-751 / Waiver of the Joint Waiver Requirement

APPLICANT: Filipina

LOCATION: Ohio

Our client contacted our office in June 2017 regarding her potential I-751 filing. She came to the United States from the Philippines and she married a U.S. Citizen (her ex-husband) in June 2015.

Through her marriage, she was able to obtain a 2-year conditional green card in November of 2015. Thus, her conditional residency terminated in November 2017.

Unfortunately, their marriage ended in May 2016. Our client experienced a lot of difficulties during her marriage with her ex-husband. Thus, our client could not file the I-751 application jointly with her ex-husband.

Once retained, 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. We focused on the supporting documents that she can show and helped her draft an extensive affidavit about their marriage, and why it ended the way it did.

On July 17, 2017, our office filed the I-751 application with various supporting documents to demonstrate our client’s bona fide marriage with her ex-husband.  

In January 2019, the USCIS scheduled an I-751 interview for our client.

Prior to the interview, our office thoroughly prepared our client via conference calls and informed her of potential issues at the interview.

On January 31, 2019, our client was interviewed for her I-751 application at the USCIS Cincinnati, OH Field Office.  The interview was very extensive. Nevertheless, the USCIS approved our client’s I-751 application on March 28, 2019. Now, she has her ten-year green card.

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CASE: I-485 Adjustment of Status / I-140 (EB-2 Category) / Schedule A

APPLICANT: Korean Nurse Practitioner

LOCATION: Cleveland, Ohio

Our client is a certified nurse practitioner. Her current employer was willing to petition her for a second-preference employment immigrant visa petition (I-140). Since she was a certified nurse practitioner, she was 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 Nurse Practitioner is included in Schedule A.

Our client has a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in nursing and is a certified Nurse Practitioner. Our office was retained on August 1, 2017, and we filed the Prevailing Wage Determination immediately.

We filed the I-140 application on January 18, 2018 via premium processing. We included the job offer letter, the notice of filing, employment letter, and other necessary supporting documents. In our cover brief, we included the “ability to pay” argument and why nurse practitioners must fall under the Schedule A designation.  

However, on January 29, 2018, the USCIS Nebraska Service Center issued the Request for Evidence (RFE) for our client’s I-140 petition. The USCIS requested our client to submit her official transcript. Our office immediately filed Response to RFE with our client’s official transcript. Eventually, on February 8, 2018, the USCIS Nebraska Service Center approved her EB-2 I-140 petition.

Once the I-140 petition was approved, our client retained our office again for her I-485 adjustment of status application. Our office filed an I-485 adjustment of status application for our client on August 22, 2018. Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices and fingerprint appointment came on time.

Prior to the interview, we thoroughly prepared our client via conference call as well. On March 22, 2019, our client was interviewed at Cleveland Ohio USCIS office. Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu from our office also accompanied our client as well. Eventually, on March 27, 2019, her green card application was approved.

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CASE: Marriage-Based Adjustment of Status

NATIONALITY: Italian                                                                                                        

LOCATION: Cleveland, OH

Our client is from Italy who came to the U.S. on a B-2 visitor’s visa in April 2018. In August 2018, our client married his current U.S. citizen wife.  He retained our office on August 21, 2018 for his green card application. Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 Petition and I-485 Adjustment of Status Application on September 17, 2018. 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 March 22, 2019, our client was interviewed at the Cleveland Ohio USCIS office. Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu from our office accompanied our clients at their interview as well.  The interview went well and eventually his green card application was approved after the interview.

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Case: I-130/I-485
Applicant/Beneficiary – Korean
Location: Cleveland, OH

Our client entered the United States in June 2018 from South Korea under the visa waiver program. He came here to visit his U.S. citizen girlfriend (now his wife) during the summer. As a Visa Waiver Entrant, he was only authorized to remain in the United States only for 90 days.  

Later, in July of 2018, our client and his U.S. citizen girlfriend married in the United States. He contacted our office and retained our office on August 1, 2018.  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.

Since our client resided in Cleveland, Ohio, his application had a better chance compared to states under the 9th Circuit (see Momeni v. Chertoff).  However, it was quite foreseeable that the USCIS field office will exercise its discretion to deny his application because of his visa waiver entry.  

Nevertheless, our office filed the I-130 Petition and I-485 Adjustment of Status Application on August 7, 2018.  Our office requested the CIS to exercise favorable discretion in granting adjustment of status and argued that the application was filed before her authorized stay period was expired. 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 clients. On March 5, 2019, our client was interviewed at the Cleveland, Ohio USCIS Field Office. Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu accompanied them at the interview as well.  Despite the visa waiver issue, the USCIS officer approved her green card application on March 6, 2019.  Now, our client becomes a green card holder.

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