Question about filing for a K3

[The_Dude 1,142]

A colleague of mine at work was asking me about immigration filings for his daughter. She has been married for 2 years, but her husband who is 22, has been in the U.S. illegally since he was 9 years old. Will she even be able to file?

[payxibka 10,045]

A colleague of mine at work was asking me about immigration filings for his daughter. She has been married for 2 years, but her husband who is 22, has been in the U.S. illegally since he was 9 years old. Will she even be able to file?

How did her husband arrive in the USA and what makes him "illegal"

[The_Dude 1,142]

How did her husband arrive in the USA and what makes him "illegal"

He came to the U.S. with his family when he was 9 years old. Neither his family, nor him ever applied for legal immigration.

[payxibka 10,045]

He came to the U.S. with his family when he was 9 years old. Neither his family, nor him ever applied for legal immigration.

legal border crossing or did they "sneak" across? From what country?

Edited January 8, 2010 by payxibka

[The_Dude 1,142]

legal border crossing or did they "sneak" across? From what country?

I asked him that and he says he is unsure, but would tend to believe that they just crossed at the border and never went back.

[payxibka 10,045]

I asked him that and he says he is unsure, but would tend to believe that they just crossed at the border and never went back.

but can he prove it? Without proof of legal entry, then they might be facing an uphill battle to try and legalize his status from within the USA. I would guess a visit to a qualified/competent immigration attorney is in the future...

[Lia792 5]

From what I have read, you only begin to build up illegal presence after the 18th birthday. I think that he would be given a 10-year ban which might or might not be eligible for a waiver. I don't know what the benefits are of doing a K-3 in that circumstance. Most people agree that the IR-1 would be faster and you don't need a K-3 if the IR-1 would take the same amount of time and cost less. The K-3 was only invented as a sort of addition to the IR-1 so that people could have their relatives in the US sooner while the wait for the IR-1 to process, but it no longer functions noticeably quicker. There are some people that are not eligible for visas and those include people that used fraud such as presenting themselves as American citizens when they were not or have some sort of criminal record, etc. However, even the most difficult case seems to possible when there is evidence of great hardship on the part of the American spouse. They need to do a lot of research before they act. Lawyers are a good idea, but in terms of filing the papers, there are various forums for waiver people. Good luck!

[payxibka 10,045]

ban kicks in only if the alien departs.... as long as the alien remains in the USA there is no ban... the alien may have an overstay, which is forgivable if they are able to find a path to legalized status without a departure or illegal presence (EWI) which has not yet been determined.

Any kind of visa (K-3 or IR) will require a departure from the USA.... but the alien should stay put until they know what they should do

Edited January 8, 2010 by payxibka

[BRB 6]

My understanding is that if he is in the country more than one year after his 18th birthday he can be banned for 10 years from getting a visa. If he worked and did not file or pay income taxes that could also be a problem. A wavier seems to be the best option if it is even possible to get one.