Student visa to permanent resident ?

[pannyzero 0]

Hello,

My name is Panika and I am new to Visa Journey. I am from Thailand and have been in the US studying English for 8 months. My boyfriend (U.S. Citizen) asked me to marry him and I am going to be applying for Adjustment of Status (AOS).

My US Student Visa is valid for 5 years as long as I am studying, but I graduated from my English program on 12/21/08. If I am not studying, the Student Visa requires I leave the US within 60 days. That would be on 2/19/08. What does this deadline mean exactly? Do we have to marry by then, or file the paperwork, or how firm is this date?

Thanks,

Panika

[waitingbee 0]

Hello,

My name is Panika and I am new to Visa Journey. I am from Thailand and have been in the US studying English for 8 months. My boyfriend (U.S. Citizen) asked me to marry him and I am going to be applying for Adjustment of Status (AOS).

My US Student Visa is valid for 5 years as long as I am studying, but I graduated from my English program on 12/21/08. If I am not studying, the Student Visa requires I leave the US within 60 days. That would be on 2/19/08. What does this deadline mean exactly? Do we have to marry by then, or file the paperwork, or how firm is this date?

Thanks,

Panika

Hi, this is just my thoughts. Do not overstay your visa, you want to make things as painless as possible for the long road ahead. If you want to adjust your status you will have to be married. Since you did not enter the US with the intent to marry, but to study, you should be fine and be able to avoid the K1 route. I personally left the country and went the K1 route, but know others who got married on their F1s and are now in AOS (all is fine according to their immigration lawyers advice, they did not overstay). If you marry by 2/19/08 and file paperwork you should be fine. Good luck to you!

[ladywhite 0]

Hi Panika:

If you don't mind me asking, what kind of visa are you holding right now, the one you said is valid for 5 years? What have you been doing since your English program was over? Have you been waiting on being admitted into a graduate program somewhere?

To my knowledge from my research and a lot of reading from VJ, you may get married and then file AOS to adjust your startus as soon as possible, perferably before your grace period is over (2/19/08). The best thing to do is to get married before that date. If you happened to file AOS later than that date for some reason(meaning you overstay your visa), your overstay would be forgiven because of your marrying a US citizen.

Your adjusting status from your student visa (I assume it is an F-1) won't be considered a visa fraud because you originally entered the US with no intention of getting married and staying. I had a few friends who were in the exact same situation as you and adjusted their status successfully without help from an attorney.

I saw your immigration status on VJ is "AOS (pending)." What does that mean? Did you already marry and file AOS?

To play it safe, spend more time looking online and do more reseach. A free consulation with an immigrant attorney would be benificial too. But, keep in mind, many attorneys are not as knowledgeable as some of the VJ members here. Many attorneys don't know what they are talking about. SO, don't believe them 100%.

And if you are here on a different type of visa (not an F-1 but a J-1 for example), you may have more to consider and be cautious about your decision/actions.

With the best of luck.

Ladywhite

[pannyzero 0]

Hello and Thank you so much for your replies and useful information ,

I have F1 visa for student, and the expiration date in VISA(which is in my passport) is 08 April 2012. Well, My English class just ended on Dec/20/2007. First, I though I would study more,but my plan has been changed after my boyfriend's proposal. Right now, I'm considering finding a job here because I want to help by boyfriend financially and be independent. (I got Bachelor degree in mechanical engineering and master degree in Industrial engineering from Thailand) I might attend to a university to earn more degree but it is a future plan.

To be honest, my "AOS (pending)." that you saw means nothing. When I registered to be a member for VJ, I was not sure what status I should choose so I just chose it randomly.

BTW, I would like to ask you more questions about I-864 form.

It seems like my boyfriend must copy his taxes payment for being my sponsor but he has just worked for only 1 year(when he was student, he had student loan and some small jobs that was not good for his financial profile but he already graduated on Dec 2006 and have a good job now). So he will get taxes payment document on Fab that I think it's kinda late. Should we wait until his 2007 taxes payment document or not? Or If we attach only 2004 and 2005 taxes payment which are not good, what will happen?

Regards,

Panika

[eau_xplain 2]

Hello and Thank you so much for your replies and useful information ,

I have F1 visa for student, and the expiration date in VISA(which is in my passport) is 08 April 2012. Well, My English class just ended on Dec/20/2007. First, I though I would study more,but my plan has been changed after my boyfriend's proposal. Right now, I'm considering finding a job here because I want to help by boyfriend financially and be independent. (I got Bachelor degree in mechanical engineering and master degree in Industrial engineering from Thailand) I might attend to a university to earn more degree but it is a future plan.

To be honest, my "AOS (pending)." that you saw means nothing. When I registered to be a member for VJ, I was not sure what status I should choose so I just chose it randomly.

BTW, I would like to ask you more questions about I-864 form.

It seems like my boyfriend must copy his taxes payment for being my sponsor but he has just worked for only 1 year(when he was student, he had student loan and some small jobs that was not good for his financial profile but he already graduated on Dec 2006 and have a good job now). So he will get taxes payment document on Fab that I think it's kinda late. Should we wait until his 2007 taxes payment document or not? Or If we attach only 2004 and 2005 taxes payment which are not good, what will happen?

Regards,

Panika

For the I-864, you will need the most recent tax transcript or ITR. If his income does not meet or exceed 125% of poverty level, you need to find a co-sponsor. Do not submit an old supporting document that does not meet USCIS criteria as your application will be rejected and returned to you.

[bryan45876 0]

Hello,

A couple of questions about the order of forms. I am the US citizen, and pannyzero is my wife.

1) Do I file the I-130 and I-485 at the same time? The I-485 says to submit the approval of I-130 along with it?

2) Does the medical exam, I-864, need to be done before filing the AOS (I-485), or only before the interview? Also, we need to have the full medical exam because she came to the US on a student visa, and did not have any type of exam in Thailand.

3) Does the Affidavit of Support, I-864EZ, need to be filed along with AOS (I-485) or only completed before the interview?

Thanks.

[jcspgc2622 0]

Hey, i'm in a similar situation, i'm a f-1 student which it grants me five years. I go to a community college here and me and my us citizen boyfriend are thinking about getting married this year. Will my boyfriend have to have a medical exam too? How much does a full medical exam usually cost? And since we don't have much money/property together, what would we need to do? Thank you very much-!

[sikora 0]

Hello,

A couple of questions about the order of forms. I am the US citizen, and pannyzero is my wife.

1) Do I file the I-130 and I-485 at the same time? The I-485 says to submit the approval of I-130 along with it?

2) Does the medical exam, I-864, need to be done before filing the AOS (I-485), or only before the interview? Also, we need to have the full medical exam because she came to the US on a student visa, and did not have any type of exam in Thailand.

3) Does the Affidavit of Support, I-864EZ, need to be filed along with AOS (I-485) or only completed before the interview?

Thanks.

Hi, I am also an F-1 student who is filing for an adjustment. To answer your questions:

1). Yes, you file the I-130 and I-485 together. On the I-485 for Part 2. Application type you should select option (a). Based on my understanding, the I-130 filed along with the I-485 would represent the "...relative...visa petition filed with this application that will give you an immediately available visa number, if approved."

2.) The medical exam should be done before the interview. It should be submitted (in a sealed envelope from the doctor) with the other forms that comprise your AOS application.

3.) The affidavit of support also goes along with your application.

[sikora 0]

Hey, i'm in a similar situation, i'm a f-1 student which it grants me five years. I go to a community college here and me and my us citizen boyfriend are thinking about getting married this year. Will my boyfriend have to have a medical exam too? How much does a full medical exam usually cost? And since we don't have much money/property together, what would we need to do? Thank you very much-!

If your boyfriend is the US Citizen then no, he does not need a medical exam. The medical exam cost varies from doctor to doctor. I would recommend that you budget about $250 for the exam. Please use this link to find a USCIS approved doctor to perform your medical exam:

https://egov.uscis.gov/crisgwi/go?action=of...office_type=CIV

[pannyzero 0]

Hello,

A couple of questions about the order of forms. I am the US citizen, and pannyzero is my wife.

1) Do I file the I-130 and I-485 at the same time? The I-485 says to submit the approval of I-130 along with it?

2) Does the medical exam, I-864, need to be done before filing the AOS (I-485), or only before the interview? Also, we need to have the full medical exam because she came to the US on a student visa, and did not have any type of exam in Thailand.

3) Does the Affidavit of Support, I-864EZ, need to be filed along with AOS (I-485) or only completed before the interview?

Thanks.

I'm preparing all these form now, so I'm so confused about how to do it properly. If someone could help us, I would really be appreciated.

[bryan45876 0]

Hello,

A couple of questions about the order of forms. I am the US citizen, and pannyzero is my wife.

1) Do I file the I-130 and I-485 at the same time? The I-485 says to submit the approval of I-130 along with it?

2) Does the medical exam, I-864, need to be done before filing the AOS (I-485), or only before the interview? Also, we need to have the full medical exam because she came to the US on a student visa, and did not have any type of exam in Thailand.

3) Does the Affidavit of Support, I-864EZ, need to be filed along with AOS (I-485) or only completed before the interview?

Thanks.

We had a civil ceremony today, 1/18/2008! However, I am still curious about the order/timing for filing the different forms?

[Minya's wife 25]

Once you get the certified copy of your marriage certificate, you make a copy of that, and mail it along w/ your I-485. You need that since you're applying for AOS based on marriage to a US citizen.

To answer your previous questions:

1) Do I file the I-130 and I-485 at the same time? The I-485 says to submit the approval of I-130 along with it?

I may be wrong here, and maybe someone will correct me, but since your wife is already here in the US, you only need to fill out the I-485.

2) Does the medical exam, I-864, need to be done before filing the AOS (I-485), or only before the interview? Also, we need to have the full medical exam because she came to the US on a student visa, and did not have any type of exam in Thailand.

The medical exam, I-864 needs to be done before filing, and it needs to be included w/ the I-485. You will need to have a full medical exam, since she did not have any medical exam in her home country. The medical has to be done by a qualified CIVIL SURGEON. YOu can find appropriate civil surgeons in the area you live by looking on www.uscis.gov Please be aware that immigration medical exams cost upwards of $250 and most places that perform this will want this sum up-front....insurance does not cover this.

In addition, please check the income requirements in order to qualify as the sponsor on the I-864, your income must be 125% of the federal poverty guidelines, for the size of your household. (If its just you and your wife, then your household is 2, but if you have children, or are a caretaker to a family member they count in figuring out the size of household.)

3) Does the Affidavit of Support, I-864EZ, need to be filed along with AOS (I-485) or only completed before the interview? The Affidavit of Support must be filed w/ the I-485 application.

Please read the instructions that accompany the I485 and I864 forms....they explain a lot about what is required.

Congratulations your marriage! Good luck!

-P

Edited January 19, 2008 by Paula&Minya

[bryan45876 0]

Thanks everyone for the help so far, I have two more questions. One about pannyzero's birth certificate and the second about her SSN.

1) Her real birth certificate is currently in Thailand, and we would like to file all of the AOS documents as soon as possible. I was thinking her family could take it to get it to get a certified translation, scan the original, scan the translation, email them to us, and then we could print them to include with the I-485 application. Is there any reason we need to have the original birth certificate or the original translation certificate here in the US, or will copies work?

2) Is there any reason or is it even possible for her to go and get a SSN before we receive EAD? She is currently here on an F-1 student visa and we had a civil ceremony last Friday. If she does qualify for a SSN, would it be in the old or new last name?

Thanks.

[rebeccajo 14]

Never send any original documents with petition filings. Save them for the interview.

Unless her F1 is work authorized (someone else probably knows if F1's are), she can't get a SS number till she has EAD or greencard.

[ladywhite 0]

Hello,

A couple of questions about the order of forms. I am the US citizen, and pannyzero is my wife.

1) Do I file the I-130 and I-485 at the same time? The I-485 says to submit the approval of I-130 along with it?

2) Does the medical exam, I-864, need to be done before filing the AOS (I-485), or only before the interview? Also, we need to have the full medical exam because she came to the US on a student visa, and did not have any type of exam in Thailand.

3) Does the Affidavit of Support, I-864EZ, need to be filed along with AOS (I-485) or only completed before the interview?

Thanks.

We had a civil ceremony today, 1/18/2008! However, I am still curious about the order/timing for filing the different forms?

Congratulations..

May you two have a happy married life together forever.