Marry Now or Keep Waiting and Hoping

[w8inglongtime 29]

A great point indeed, however US Immigration policy is what it is. That is why I offered advice to the OP to contact a competent immigration attorney straight away.

Suggesting someone see an attorney is always the best advice but we all try to contribute our bits and pieces and at the end, someone comes up with the best ideas. I certainly did not mean to construct my initial sentence that way.

[William33 110]

Suggesting someone see an attorney is always the best advice but we all try to contribute our bits and pieces and at the end, someone comes up with the best ideas. I certainly did not mean to construct my initial sentence that way.

Thanks for the clarification.

VJ Moderation Team.

[Scalpel 14]

How did the wife come from Nigeria un-documented. Visa were always required for entry into the Us via airplane/ship. Did she cross over from the Canada border. Was she a stow-away on an airplane or ship. Something doesn't sound logical to me.

First of all, I have never said she was from Nigeria, did I? (***Trying to maintain anonymity on this forum isn't working*** - Me thinking out loud)

Anyway, you asked for it so here goes:

My wife's aunt who lives here dangled the promise of a better life in America before her sister back in their home country and easily won the release of her niece. This aunt who needed cheap domestic labor, handed her niece a US passport (belonging to one of her children) and brought her niece to the US. And once she arrived, she was subjected to all kinds of abuse (physical, verbal, sexual, financial) including being a slave to her aunt's family and a nanny to her aunt's children until she was 19 when she ran away. My wife essentially was a victim of child-trafficking.

[Scalpel 14]

I'm glad my protest was reviewed and one of the mods had the good sense to reopen this thread.

[Scalpel 14]

First of all, I have never said she was from Nigeria, did I? (***Trying to maintain anonymity on this forum isn't working*** - Me thinking out loud)

Anyway, you asked for it so here goes:

My wife's aunt who lives here dangled the promise of a better life in America before her sister back in their home country and easily won the release of her niece. This aunt who needed cheap domestic labor, handed her niece a US passport (belonging to one of her children) and brought her niece to the US. And once she arrived, she was subjected to all kinds of abuse (physical, verbal, sexual, financial) including being a slave to her aunt's family and a nanny to her aunt's children until she was 19 when she ran away. My wife essentially was a victim of child-trafficking.

Anyway, I double-checked with my wife and she corrected me that the passport she was handed wasn't a US passport but one with a green card stamped on one of its pages. I apologize for that inadvertent misinformation.

[belinda63 3,038]

There is somewhere a law granting abused/trafficked persons a special visa to remain in the US. I don't know much about it but maybe you could look it up and see if it applies, although the need for proof would be great.

As to the "leaving under the radar" it has been done by others successfully BUT we are forgetting an important point here, except Scalple did catch it. The immigration forms ask for your prior employment and addresses therefore she would either have to LIE on the forms which is illegal or she would have to admit to being in the US illegally and thus incur the automatic ban. AND if she has any sort of paper trail at all, such as applying for a job that used E-Verify, applying for a driver's license, social security card, etc. she would eventually be caught.

Thus I suggest, as heavy as it makes my heart, that she voluntarily leave the country and you apply for the CR-1. At least this way you can plan ahead for the separation rather than her risking being caught and deported.

Good Luck.

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

First of all, I have never said she was from Nigeria, did I? (***Trying to maintain anonymity on this forum isn't working*** - Me thinking out loud)

Anyway, you asked for it so here goes:

My wife's aunt who lives here dangled the promise of a better life in America before her sister back in their home country and easily won the release of her niece. This aunt who needed cheap domestic labor, handed her niece a US passport (belonging to one of her children) and brought her niece to the US. And once she arrived, she was subjected to all kinds of abuse (physical, verbal, sexual, financial) including being a slave to her aunt's family and a nanny to her aunt's children until she was 19 when she ran away. My wife essentially was a victim of child-trafficking.

You had previously selected Nigeria in your profile.

Your situation is complicated. She can't adjust status because of the unlawful entry. She may be subject to a misrepresentation ban because of the use of fraudulent documents. She's also subject to an unlawful presence ban.

If she can prove the statements you made above, then her situation may qualify as a severe form of human trafficking under 22 USC 7102, and she may be eligible to avoid the unlawful presence ban under INA 212(a)(9)(B)(i). However, the ban doesn't kick in until she leaves the US, and she can't adjust status because of the unlawful entry. Her unlawful entry doesn't become lawful just because she was suckered by her aunt. She used a fraudulent passport, so she wasn't lawfully admitted.

Now, she could go to her home country, wherever that happens to be, and make her case to have the unlawful presence ban waived because she was a victim of severe human trafficking. Even if it's approved they may still find she has a misrepresentation ban for using the fraudulent passport, in which case she'd still need a hardship waiver to overcome the ban. The unlawful presence ban can also be overcome with a hardship waiver, and since the proof of hardship is the same regardless of which inadmissibility is being waived, it wouldn't make much sense to pursue the human trafficking waiver. It would only add extra months to the consular process, and the hardship waiver is more straightforward.

I know this has already been said (multiple times) but a good immigration lawyer is definitely called for here, one who specializes in I-601 waivers.

[Brother Hesekiel 2,236]

The way I understand this case now, she did not enter without inspection but via misrepresentation, using another person's passport and visa or Green Card? [The pass with a Green Card stamp in it I have problems with.]

Any way I look at it, the only way this alien could be legalized is to leave the US and apply for a CR-1 visa in Nigeria. The petition would be denied and the I-601 waiver would be denied also.

At this point I would find the old passport and all paperwork pertaining to her arrival and perhaps school and contact Laurel Scott for an initial consultation.

Frankly, even if the passport wasn't a US one (which would result as a fraudulent claim of US citizenship in the child's behalf [= lifetime ban]) but a Nigerian one, is it still material misrepresentation (= lifetime ban).

That also would kill the eligibility for the DREAM Act, which, if it passes, will have a lower cut-off date than age 35 anyway (as this is the main objection to it at this time).

"Sneaking out" and claiming wouldn't work either, for various reasons as there is a paper trail and two children.

This clearly is a case for Laurel Scott.

[Boiler 45,525]

There may be the possibility of an in country waiver.

Edited December 19, 2010 by Boiler

[carla1 4]

This is obviously a political "hot button" topic.

Please be understanding that people on this site are often frustrated because of the long waits involved with going through the process legally.

Having said that, there should be no blame attached to your wife as she entered the country as a minor.

The best advice that anyone could give you is to get a knowledgeable attorney and proceed carefully.

Good Luck!

Carla

2/1980 – foreign exchange student to Santiago Chile

3/80 – Met Daniel at school

4/80 – we became high school sweethearts

2/81 – returned to the USA, Daniel arrived late at the airport to say goodbye

1981 – 2009 - Life happens. We both married others and divorced

7/23/2009 – Daniel found me via classmates.com

9/18/09 – Traveled to Chile to spend time with Daniel

10/09 – engaged!!

11/10/09 – returned to the USA

1/10 – Daniel began gathering his paperwork to start the K1

2/10 – earthquake in Chile delays everything

3/10 – went to Chile for less than a week

6/10 – received Daniels paperwork, started preparing K1

7/10 – K1 refused due to typo

8/12/10 – received NOA1!!

[Krikit 1,164]

Claiming US citizenship, even if you are a child, is a lifetime bar. Here is the blog of a couple who had the same type circumstance. The blogger is a member of VJ but I've forgotten what her VJ name is for the moment. If you scroll down you'll see a link to their story in the Chicago Tribune.

Link

As this is not an AOS Process, I am going to move your thread to the General Immigration Discussion. I wish you all the best.

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

There may be the possibility of an in country waiver.

Only for the inadmissibilities - unlawful presence and fraud. She still can't adjust status because she was not lawfully admitted, so there would be no point in filing an in-country I-601.

[ATPEACE 43]

There are still too many missing variables to this story, but the link that Kirk has posted in his post will give the OP and his family the issues they will be up against.

Good luck in moving forward.

[Boiler 45,525]

Only for the inadmissibilities - unlawful presence and fraud. She still can't adjust status because she was not lawfully admitted, so there would be no point in filing an in-country I-601.

She was inspected.

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

She was inspected.

She's not an EWI, but she was not lawfully admitted or paroled. Her admission was unlawful because she used a fraudulent passport.

INA 101(13)(A):

The terms "admission" and "admitted" mean, with respect to an alien, the lawful entry of the alien into the United States after inspection and authorization by an immigration officer.

She must have entered lawfully AND been inspected and authorized by an immigration officer in order to qualify as being "admitted".