Any tips or advice and where to go from here

[Sean84 0]

Hi all, i came about this site while searching google for any ideas and tips. First ill give you a little background.

I am a UK Citizen, born and raised. I met my fiancee in the UK where she lived with a UK visa for 5 years. We worked together and started dating and got on really well.

Her mum moved back to the US to be with my fiancee's grandad, who is quite ill. So we came out on Visa waiver in september last year for 3 months. At the end of the 3 months period i went back to the UK and she stayed in the US to be with her family and she had a part time job to help with little bit of extra money.

I then returned to the US before christmas so we can spend xmas together and new year, and we then decided to stay for the maximum 3 months again under visa waiver.

We have since decided to marry in the US so her family can be part of the wedding. We have date set marriage license etc and are due to get married soon. We spoke to a lawyer for immigration about how to go about getting a visa for me to stay in the US.

They explained that since we are getting married, it is one of the only exceptions to get a change of status on a visa waiver, and that as long as we file the paperwork before the 3 month period, and it gets accepted then i will be able to stay in the US and not have to go back to the UK while it processes.

We are going to be going through the lawyer for the process and pay the extra lawyer fee's to make sure everything is done correctly but does this information seem correct? I dont want to do anything that will ruin my chances of moving to the US.

anyone have any tips or know how we can go about this?

just want to hear from people who have been through some of the processes and not just take the word of a lawyer who i know is just after a bunch of money

[Brother Hesekiel 2,236]

If you plan traveling to the US, getting married, and then adjust status from visitor to resident, you would be committing visa fraud which could result in a lifetime ban.

In practice, intent usually does not become an issue at AOS, as it is difficult to prove.

Any lawyer who gives you such advice is not trustworthy. Don't walk, run away from this shady guy.

[Sean84 0]

Well im already in the US at the moment. We didnt intend on getting married here as we were engaged in the UK. Its only because of her family situation that we had to come out here in the first place. I am still currently employed but have been given a 9 month unpaid leave due to long service with the company i am with.

The lawyers i got the information from are http://www.reinalaw.com/

they seemed quite legitimate and have a number of offices which one is right opposite the Immigration office in Houston.

What would be your advice?

we are already getting married here in a couple weeks so her grandparents can be at the wedding. But my Visa Waiver expires on March 11th

I would really like to have to not go back to the UK but obviously do this all legally

[Dakine 26]

Lawyer is a bit incorrect as you don't have to file to adjust status before the 90 days.

Main thing is you HAVE to have entered the US with ZERO intentions of marrying in the US and staying.

You said you were engaged in the UK so that may be difficult to back up.

If I were you I'd marry. Go home and go thru the normal CR-1 process.

NOTHING to worry about then.

Just my 2 cents!

No need a lawyer as the CR-1 process is easy.

Edited February 12, 2010 by Dakine

[Sean84 0]

but is it impossible to do it the way the lawyer said to? and is it right that if i file the paperwork and it gets accepted, i dont have to leave after my 90 days? cause if thats wrong i dont want to get my hopes up

[Anh map 2,098]

Do some reading here in VJ. Specifically the Guides (top of the page) where you will see your scenario (Adjusting Status) laid out quite simply.

Attorneys can be helpful if you do not feel comfortable filling in forms and mailing documents. All the information for the forms will come from you and your (soon to be) spouse.

Read through VJ and decide if you are comfortable with the process. This is a DIY site with lots of folks from the UK that have done the same thing.

Best of luck.

Welcome to VJ

[Damian&Kelly 16]

I think you can prove you're intention of you're visit wasn't to marry and stay because you say you still have a job in the UK. If you could prove that at the time of the AOS interview then it shows you had no intention to marry but the situation with your fiancee's sick grandparents made marriage essential at this time.

I wouldn't advise you do this, but I am yet to see anyone get denied for doing so. Maybe I'm wrong but many I see who come over on the VWP and even plan on marrying and adjusting status come out the end with a Green Card. It is illegal and no lawyer should be advising you to do this as well! So I wouldn't trust that lawyer. And not to mention every process I've seen that a lawyer was involved, the process seemed a lot more stressful and some time longer and quite a bit more money.

Just keep in mind if you file AOS, even before the 90 days, you can't leave the US until Green Card is in hand or the Advanced parole.

[SunDrop 59]

Maybe I'm wrong but many I see who come over on the VWP and even plan on marrying and adjusting status come out the end with a Green Card. It is illegal and no lawyer should be advising you to do this as well! So I wouldn't trust that lawyer.

The bit in bold is illegal.

It's not illegal to enter with the intent of returning, and decide to get married and adjust status. The lawyer has not misadvised them BUT it doesn't sound like they've advised them of the full picture.

IF you do this and they decide that you DID enter the US with the intent of marrying and adjusting, you could incur a lifetime ban. The problem is that you are at the mercy of a process that is rarely if ever 100% clear. You think that 2 and 2 is 4, ask for confirmation that they get the same result and are only ever told "maybe, maybe not. We'll decide on the day." Every single case is individual.

What else do you have apart from the job that ties you to the UK? Where do you live in the UK - rented, owned, parents? Is your job with a large company or have you known the owner since junior school? Do you have anything in your past that could make you less desirable as an immigrant (Any involvement with the police, such as drink-driving, cautions for anything?) Have you ever overstayed on a Visa/ VWP?

If you want absolutely concrete certainty that you are proceeding in the safest, most legal way possible, then get married. File for a CR-1 visa as soon as you have your marriage certificate and return to the UK. You can stay in the US after your CR-1 is filed, but must leave when your I-94 expires. Tie up your affairs in the UK and plan to move back in the summer.

If your case is as simple as it sounds, you are literally flushing your dollars down the loo with a lawyer. All they're going to do for you is type the information YOU provide onto the forms, attach the evidence YOU provide and send it off using a mail service YOU can access. This is your petition, your life and only you have the same level of vested interest. Honestly, save your money and invest a little of your time instead reading the fab guides and picking the brains of members here. There is a priceless amount of knowledge and experience given here, and an empathy that no lawyer will ever provide.

Edited February 12, 2010 by SunDrop

[Rebecca Jo 1,962]

Lawyer is a bit incorrect as you don't have to file to adjust status before the 90 days.

Main thing is you HAVE to have entered the US with ZERO intentions of marrying in the US and staying.

You said you were engaged in the UK so that may be difficult to back up.

If I were you I'd marry. Go home and go thru the normal CR-1 process.

NOTHING to worry about then.

Just my 2 cents!

No need a lawyer as the CR-1 process is easy.

There's new information out there that suggests filing from within the 90 day window is indeed important for VWP adjustees. OP might want to ask their US counsel about BAYO v. NAPOLITANO.

[Rebecca Jo 1,962]

I don't understand a couple of things that occur around this community.

One of these things is the incessant urge of individuals to encourage a poster to go home and file from abroad. It ain't always necessary, you know. The US government allows for immigration via marriage to a US citizen from within its shores under certain criteria. If the criteria is met, then the case will likely go forward.

The second thing I don't get is the aversion to seeking a legal opinion from a qualified expert. It's especially helpful AND comforting in a case such as this. I'll qualify this opinion of mine though with the caveat that the expert needs to be that indeed - an EXPERT in family cases with a firm grip of the process as well as new case law.

DIY ain't for everybody.

[Trompe le Monde 1,107]

The bit in bold is illegal.

It's not illegal to enter with the intent of returning, and decide to get married and adjust status. The lawyer has not misadvised them BUT it doesn't sound like they've advised them of the full picture.

IF you do this and they decide that you DID enter the US with the intent of marrying and adjusting, you could incur a lifetime ban. The problem is that you are at the mercy of a process that is rarely if ever 100% clear. You think that 2 and 2 is 4, ask for confirmation that they get the same result and are only ever told "maybe, maybe not. We'll decide on the day." Every single case is individual.

What else do you have apart from the job that ties you to the UK? Where do you live in the UK - rented, owned, parents? Is your job with a large company or have you known the owner since junior school? Do you have anything in your past that could make you less desirable as an immigrant (Any involvement with the police, such as drink-driving, cautions for anything?) Have you ever overstayed on a Visa/ VWP?

If you want absolutely concrete certainty that you are proceeding in the safest, most legal way possible, then get married. File for a CR-1 visa as soon as you have your marriage certificate and return to the UK. You can stay in the US after your CR-1 is filed, but must leave when your I-94 expires. Tie up your affairs in the UK and plan to move back in the summer.

If your case is as simple as it sounds, you are literally flushing your dollars down the loo with a lawyer. All they're going to do for you is type the information YOU provide onto the forms, attach the evidence YOU provide and send it off using a mail service YOU can access. This is your petition, your life and only you have the same level of vested interest. Honestly, save your money and invest a little of your time instead reading the fab guides and picking the brains of members here. There is a priceless amount of knowledge and experience given here, and an empathy that no lawyer will ever provide.

Are you sure? Looks like scaremongering, as I have never read anything of the sort.

Has the OP returned to the UK? Sounds like he is still here. If there was no intent on the last entry, adjusting should not be an isse.

There is nothing wrong with consulting with a lawyer at the beginning of The Process, especially with the situation the OP has described. Let's find out of the OP is in the US before talking about lifetime bans that probably don't exist.

[elmcitymaven 9,712]

Moving from K3 to Adjustment of Status from Work, Student & Tourist Visas -- this is not a K3 issue.

Boy oh boy oh boy, two of these threads about AOS from VWP in two days which threaten to blow up (or indeed DO blow up, like yesterday). If you did not intend to immigrate and adjust status on your last entry to the US on the VWP, you are eligible to AOS from within the US. Even if you were engaged at the time you entered, as long as you had no intention to stay and adjust, you are eligible.

I refer you to Kathryn41's excellent post yesterday on this topic. http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...t&p=3708134

Please everyone -- can we just calm down about this topic? I know that some people have issues with the very fact that AOS from VWP (and B2 for that matter) exists as a viable route for some people, and think it is wrong, but just because you think it is wrong doesn't stop it from being law. I suggest we all have a lie down and a mug of cocoa now.

[StillThePrettiest 3]

but I had to wait more than a year to be with my hunny so no one else should be ALLOWED to have a shorter timeline it's not fair

[elmcitymaven 9,712]

but I had to wait more than a year to be with my hunny so no one else should be ALLOWED to have a shorter timeline it's not fair

Shut up, you. Insubordination will not be tolerated.

[StillThePrettiest 3]

but I sent EVERYTHING Special Delivery