Possible AOS from B2?

[Journeyer 17]

I just got off the phone with one immigration lawyer, and am currently talking to another via email. I know this is going to come as a shock to most here judging by what I have been hearing for the most part, but the first lawyer that I talked to, and immigration is his only area of practice, was for her to stay here and AOS. I told him all about the incident with immigration and her only having a month here and he still advised AOS. I am going to his office for a more in depth consultation on Wed, maybe...

[Boiler 45,516]

I have a feeling you may be pleasantly surprised after your meeting with the Lawyer.

Obviously I am not surprised.

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

I just got off the phone with one immigration lawyer, and am currently talking to another via email. I know this is going to come as a shock to most here judging by what I have been hearing for the most part, but the first lawyer that I talked to, and immigration is his only area of practice, was for her to stay here and AOS. I told him all about the incident with immigration and her only having a month here and he still advised AOS. I am going to his office for a more in depth consultation on Wed, maybe...

Not surprised at all. Ask the lawyer how certain they are that the AOS will be approved, on a scale of 1 to 10 or as a percentage. If they seem pretty confident then ask if they'll work on contingency - you pay only if you're approved.

[Journeyer 17]

Obviously I am not surprised.

I didn't think that you would be, but I think you are the exception. But, I am still skeptical about AOS, and also my wife is very scared due to the bad experience with the IO. Just not sure it is worth it for her to stay here if she has to worry about that all of the time.

[SunDrop 59]

I just got off the phone with one immigration lawyer, and am currently talking to another via email. I know this is going to come as a shock to most here judging by what I have been hearing for the most part, but the first lawyer that I talked to, and immigration is his only area of practice, was for her to stay here and AOS. I told him all about the incident with immigration and her only having a month here and he still advised AOS. I am going to his office for a more in depth consultation on Wed, maybe...

Congrats on your wedding!

You're going to get a lot of nay-sayers to lawyers advising/ processing for you. I'm not a nay-sayer because I believe everyone needs to make up their own minds about whether they can navigate these waters themselves. But, I am going to say this: Keep in mind that a lawyer, until you retain them, is mainly interested in soliciting your business. They cannot be 100% certain of an outcome. If the outcome is not as you expected (and in this case, it could be a case of denial on the grounds of material misrepresentation) then you will seek legal counsel, at further cost. They don't care if you're separated for years and potentially life.

An AOS is not usually complicated, but does require copious quantities of form-filling. I knew a couple who were told that adjusting from a seasonal work visa was a nightmare and they absolutely needed legal counsel to manage it. $7000 and a short-lived marriage later....

I would also get in touch with the offices of Laurel Scott. She deals exclusively with waivers. She would be one of the best placed people to advise you in her extensive experience whether AOS from B-2s are mostly successful at the moment (there seems to be a tide of change from VWPs, so I'd be cautious) and also on your individual situation and whether she believes your wife was being set up for a material misrepresentation situation. She's not going to wave you through yes-saying, because you're not the kind of client she's interested in.

I guess what I'm saying is get advice from people who are experienced in all perspectives of your situation. The laymen who see lots of different scenarios, the lawyer who processes lots as pro-forma and the lawyer who unravels lots of messes.

Edited December 27, 2010 by SunDrop

[Journeyer 17]

Not surprised at all. Ask the lawyer how certain they are that the AOS will be approved, on a scale of 1 to 10 or as a percentage. If they seem pretty confident then ask if they'll work on contingency - you pay only if you're approved.

Well, that is probably a long shot, but I can try. His fee is pretty reasonable compared to the other person I talked to, who by the way, advised to do the CR-1... go figure. I was hoping that talking to actual immigration lawyers would clear some of the confusion, but I see that is not the case now.

[Journeyer 17]

Congrats on your wedding!

You're going to get a lot of nay-sayers to lawyers advising/ processing for you. I'm not a nay-sayer because I believe everyone needs to make up their own minds about whether they can navigate these waters themselves. But, I am going to say this: Keep in mind that a lawyer, until you retain them, is mainly interested in soliciting your business. They cannot be 100% certain of an outcome. If the outcome is not as you expected (and in this case, it could be a case of denial on the grounds of material misrepresentation) then you will seek legal counsel, at further cost. They don't care if you're separated for years and potentially life.

An AOS is not usually complicated, but does require copious quantities of form-filling. I knew a couple who were told that adjusting from a seasonal work visa was a nightmare and they absolutely needed legal counsel to manage it. $7000 and a short-lived marriage later....

I would also get in touch with the offices of Laurel Scott. She deals exclusively with waivers. She would be one of the best placed people to advise you in her extensive experience whether AOS from B-2s are mostly successful at the moment (there seems to be a tide of change from VWPs, so I'd be cautious) and also on your individual situation and whether she believes your wife was being set up for a material misrepresentation situation. She's not going to wave you through yes-saying, because you're not the kind of client she's interested in.

I guess what I'm saying is get advice from people who are experienced in all perspectives of your situation. The laymen who see lots of different scenarios, the lawyer who processes lots as pro-forma and the lawyer who unravels lots of messes.

Thanks.

I looked at the website of Laurel Scott and it appears that they charge $200 fee for any consultation.

So far talking to lawyers is only confusing me more. From what the first lawyer told me to the 2nd one I talked to today, I am more confused. From what I understand about what the 2nd lawyer told me, my wife is not eligible for AOS because we were talking about getting married before she came here, even though we had no preconceived intent to AOS but only to do CR-1, it would still be considered preconceived intent to immigrate and that would be that. So in their opinion, it is not about preconceived intent to AOS, but only to immigrate by any means, and that our only option is CR-1.

[Journeyer 17]

Thanks.

From what I understand about what the 2nd lawyer told me, my wife is not eligible for AOS because we were talking about getting married before she came here, even though we had no preconceived intent to AOS but only to do CR-1, it would still be considered preconceived intent to immigrate and that would be that. So in their opinion, it is not about preconceived intent to AOS, but only to immigrate by any means, and that our only option is CR-1.

Hmm, 2nd person I talked to mentioned above also just told me that if we married within 30 days of entry that preconceived intent is automatic and that it is part of the written law. I am not buying into that and assuming this person has no clue what they are talking about. On to the next prospect... I can see why so many here advise against hiring a lawyer, apparently you need to be very careful and do a little advance research before hiring one, at the very least.

[Boiler 45,516]

2nd one seems to be fairly ignorant, you could amuse yourself by asking for the legal reference.

No harm seeking a 3rd view.

[Journeyer 17]

2nd one seems to be fairly ignorant, you could amuse yourself by asking for the legal reference.

No harm seeking a 3rd view.

Yeah, when I got that 30 day line, I was like 'oh, I see, thanks, will let you know if I decide we need a lawyer',

Actually Boiler, I am on it right now! Waiting for 3rd prospect to call me back. This one was recommended by a friend of my wife. So at least this one comes with one reference, lol.

Our main concern right now is trying to find a way to navigate around that 30 day restriction they gave my wife. Maybe it is impossible, but probably cannot hurt to try. After that I guess it is AOS or CR-1, we shall see.

[Brother Hesekiel 2,236]

Truth being told, AOS from VWP without overstay -- that's the biggie -- is most likely being successful. What has been said here is that in case that it's not successful and overstay has occured, it gets really nasty from thereon. So you basically play Russian Roulette with a revolver that has 25 or so chambers and only 1 bullet in it. Most likely nothing will happen when you pull the trigger. But if something happens, it's going to be real mess.

Edited December 27, 2010 by Just Bob

[Journeyer 17]

Truth being told, AOS from VWP without overstay -- that's the biggie -- is most likely being successful. What has been said here is that in case that it's not successful and overstay has occured, it gets really nasty from thereon. So you basically play Russian Roulette with a revolver that has 25 or so chambers and only 1 bullet in it. Most likely nothing will happen when you pull the trigger. But if something happens, it's going to be real mess.

She's not here on a visa waiver, but on a B2 visa. At this point, as bad as we want to stay together, we are pretty scared about the possibility of denial because of her experience on entering this time. We are about 90% leaning towards CR-1 at this point.

[Boiler 45,516]

25 chamber, 4% issue?

I know there are no published figures but the only time I have seen the gun go off is where there have been distinct issues.

Of course you usually here of issues, whilst most adjust without a second thought (VWP now excepted)

There was an action in the WWI where a Vickers Machine Gun Company fired non stop for 24 hours, no idea how many bullets, but I would expect the odds to be nearer that.

[Vuvu zela 9]

The real issue here is that you unfortunately do not know what questions were asked to your wife, nor is she able to recall how she answered them.

This is important because as Jim put it, "she may have been given enough rope to hang herself", but there is no way to know.

You certainly want to avoid any material representation if you decide to go with AOS route!

Wish you the best!

[Journeyer 17]

Well, the 3rd lawyer I spoke with advised me against AOS, saying that the the incident at POE would most likely get it denied. Hmm, that is starting to scare me now, more than the prospect of being apart 6 - 10 months. Also told me that the CR-1 takes much longer than the K-1 and we should have gone that route, which is a little contrary to what I have been hearing here for the most part.