AOS/GC - Application

[Bang2xg 0]

Hello All,

I have a question about filing for my wife's GC and some of the forms.

Some background information ---> My wife and I met two years ago (2007) while living in Berlin. At the time we met I was finishing up my last semester abroad and looking to start work in Berlin and she was looking to start university there as well. As fate would have it I was denied working visas for two jobs and she was denied entry into university because of a late application and grades in Latin. So a year after we met and had our troubles in Deutschland, we both decided it would be best to pack our bags and head to the US together and try and start a life here. We arrived in August of 2008 eager to make a new beginning. I started looking for full-time employment as soon as I arrived, with no luck :-( but my wife, however, was admited to university. My wife entered the US on a B-2 Visitor Visa and had to change status to F-1 which seemed easy enough. We also made sure before we left Berlin that her Visitor Visa had a "special" notation which read "prospective college student" since we still weren't sure where she would attend school. USCIS denied her application because she would have been out of status in the time between the expiration of her I-94 and the university's program start date. For us this meant she had 30 days to leave the country and go back to Albania, naturally something that neither of us wanted. Prior to the bad news we had spoken about marriage and kids etc. but felt it was too soon and had no real base on which to begin a family and thought we'd give it a few years. In light of the decision from USCIS we to decided to married a lot sooner than we both expected and I'm now stuck with the task of filling out these confusing and sometimes contradictory forms.

Any thoughts on what the process might look like or how long it will take? I've heard 5 months, 6 months, 7-10 months etc. Will we be red flagged for getting married soon after she was denied? (We did however obtain our marriage license well before we found out about the decision.)

I have the following questions about forms I-130, I-485 and I-864/A.

Form I-130 section C. #17 Information about your relative (continued) List husband/wife and all children of your relative

Do I list myself as her husband? I was under the impression that my name and DOB go on that line but I wasn't sure as a lawyer told me that her name and DOB should be there instead.

Form I-130 Section C. #22 Your relative is in the US and will apply for AOS to that of LPR at the USCIS office in?

Do I put down Chicago, IL? As per the forms instructions those who reside in New Jersey should file at the Chicago office. Again, this lawyer told me to put New York, NY instead.

Form I-485 Part 2 - I am applying for adjustment of status to permanent resident because:

Do I check box "A" because I am filling the I-485 along with my I-130 petition? Lawyer told me that I should check box "H" and put Spouse of a USC but for some reason that doesnt seem right.

Forms I-864 and I-864A

As noted above, I'm still not employed full-time and therefore have no income. I haven't worked in a full-time capacity for about 2 years, living strictly on savings. I did not file taxes for 2008 and we have been living with my parents since we arrived. So they have offered to sponsor my wife in the meantime. I understand that because I am petitioning for my wife I have to file an I-864 no matter what. But which form (I-864 or I-864A) should they fill out? We live in the same household, but they obviously no longer claim me as a dependent on their taxes. They also file taxes jointly.

Any help on these few questions would be much appreciated. If I haven't made myself clear please reply or PM me. Thank you.

JD

[BabyBlueSusie 1]

Hello All,

I have a question about filing for my wife's GC and some of the forms.

Some background information ---> My wife and I met two years ago (2007) while living in Berlin. At the time we met I was finishing up my last semester abroad and looking to start work in Berlin and she was looking to start university there as well. As fate would have it I was denied working visas for two jobs and she was denied entry into university because of a late application and grades in Latin. So a year after we met and had our troubles in Deutschland, we both decided it would be best to pack our bags and head to the US together and try and start a life here. We arrived in August of 2008 eager to make a new beginning. I started looking for full-time employment as soon as I arrived, with no luck :-( but my wife, however, was admited to university. My wife entered the US on a B-2 Visitor Visa and had to change status to F-1 which seemed easy enough. We also made sure before we left Berlin that her Visitor Visa had a "special" notation which read "prospective college student" since we still weren't sure where she would attend school. USCIS denied her application because she would have been out of status in the time between the expiration of her I-94 and the university's program start date. For us this meant she had 30 days to leave the country and go back to Albania, naturally something that neither of us wanted. Prior to the bad news we had spoken about marriage and kids etc. but felt it was too soon and had no real base on which to begin a family and thought we'd give it a few years. In light of the decision from USCIS we to decided to married a lot sooner than we both expected and I'm now stuck with the task of filling out these confusing and sometimes contradictory forms.

Any thoughts on what the process might look like or how long it will take? I've heard 5 months, 6 months, 7-10 months etc. Will we be red flagged for getting married soon after she was denied? (We did however obtain our marriage license well before we found out about the decision.)

I have the following questions about forms I-130, I-485 and I-864/A.

Form I-130 section C. #17 Information about your relative (continued) List husband/wife and all children of your relative

Do I list myself as her husband? I was under the impression that my name and DOB go on that line but I wasn't sure as a lawyer told me that her name and DOB should be there instead.

Form I-130 Section C. #22 Your relative is in the US and will apply for AOS to that of LPR at the USCIS office in?

Do I put down Chicago, IL? As per the forms instructions those who reside in New Jersey should file at the Chicago office. Again, this lawyer told me to put New York, NY instead.

Form I-485 Part 2 - I am applying for adjustment of status to permanent resident because:

Do I check box "A" because I am filling the I-485 along with my I-130 petition? Lawyer told me that I should check box "H" and put Spouse of a USC but for some reason that doesnt seem right.

Forms I-864 and I-864A

As noted above, I'm still not employed full-time and therefore have no income. I haven't worked in a full-time capacity for about 2 years, living strictly on savings. I did not file taxes for 2008 and we have been living with my parents since we arrived. So they have offered to sponsor my wife in the meantime. I understand that because I am petitioning for my wife I have to file an I-864 no matter what. But which form (I-864 or I-864A) should they fill out? We live in the same household, but they obviously no longer claim me as a dependent on their taxes. They also file taxes jointly.

Any help on these few questions would be much appreciated. If I haven't made myself clear please reply or PM me. Thank you.

JD

I am sorry for your past harships, and that I don't really have any good answers for you. I hope someone else is able to help you.

I think for most people, the process of applying for a fiance or spouse visa takes somewhere between 6 months to 1 year, depending on an infinite amount of variables. I encourage you to read the 'Guides' section on this website, as there is a wealth of information on there. For me and my former fiance (now husband), the entire process, from initial application to approval after the interview in Tirana, took about 9 months.

On another note, if you live in NYC, you should feel free to contact me when your wife does come to the USA. My husband knows many Albanians in Brooklyn, and can help her if she is looking to network. I have learned that this can help TREMENDOUSLY with the adjustment period.

Good luck to you!

[Killer_Clown_2009 0]

Hi, we did the same process 2 1/2 years ago. This is what I can suggest.

Check out the sample form on VJ:

http://www.visajourney.com/examples/INS-Form-I-130.pdf

C #17: On the sample, it shows that your name goes on C #17 (seems correct to me, and that's how mine was filled out). The instructions seem pretty clear that C #17 is asking for information about the alien's relatives. So in your case, you would be the alien's spouse.

Section C #22: Put your local USCIS district office (like Boston, MA) - my I -130 went to chicago, but my local district office was Boston, MA, so that was what we put in that box. (Some people may have put Chicago and it might have worked for them, but I believe your local office is the correct one to put, as you more than likely will be going there to have your AOS adjudicated).

I-485 Part 2: I checked off A, I believe A to be the correct answer, however I believe some people did put H and that worked too.

I can't say for sure why I checked A, but I am pretty certain I had a reliable source that indicated A was correct. Even though the I-130 was not yet approved, it was the basis for applying for AOS and it just made sense to check that box.

I am not saying my answers are rock solid (and it seems your lawyer thinks differently), but based on my own research at the time, they seemed to be correct and I did not have any issues due to incorrectly filling out either application.

Hope this helps.

Edited May 31, 2009 by Killer_Clown_2009

[Bang2xg 0]

Hi, we did the same process 2 1/2 years ago. This is what I can suggest.

Check out the sample form on VJ:

http://www.visajourney.com/examples/INS-Form-I-130.pdf

C #17: On the sample, it shows that your name goes on C #17 (seems correct to me, and that's how mine was filled out). The instructions seem pretty clear that C #17 is asking for information about the alien's relatives. So in your case, you would be the alien's spouse.

Section C #22: Put your local USCIS district office (like Boston, MA) - my I -130 went to chicago, but my local district office was Boston, MA, so that was what we put in that box. (Some people may have put Chicago and it might have worked for them, but I believe your local office is the correct one to put, as you more than likely will be going there to have your AOS adjudicated).

I-485 Part 2: I checked off A, I believe A to be the correct answer, however I believe some people did put H and that worked too.

I can't say for sure why I checked A, but I am pretty certain I had a reliable source that indicated A was correct. Even though the I-130 was not yet approved, it was the basis for applying for AOS and it just made sense to check that box.

I am not saying my answers are rock solid (and it seems your lawyer thinks differently), but based on my own research at the time, they seemed to be correct and I did not have any issues due to incorrectly filling out either application.

Hope this helps.

Finally, some feedback. I agree, I think I'm going to stick to this way as well. Seems right to me. Thanks a million Killer, greatly appreciated.

Tak care.