90 day time limit

[KayDeeCee 4,893]

Texas - you need to apply before your 90 days is up.

No, he does not need to file before the I-94 expires. There is no set limit for filing AOS. Lots of people go a few weeks or months past their I-94 expiration date. He is perfectly fine waiting until his wife gets her next paycheck.

[Enigma11561 336]

No, you don't. The requirement is to MARRY within the 90 day period.

The reason most people file immediately after marriage is for the convenience factor. The sooner you get your EAD/AP/green card then the sooner you can work, get your driving licence sorted and start building a history of your relationship from marriage ready for the RoC 2 years down the line. The majority of us want to get it mailed in so we can live without worrying about USCIS for a couple of years-ish.

Many people don't even get their marriage certificate for a couple of months after marriage, so filing within 90 days would be impossible. USCIS understands that these things happen, people who have just got married tend to be short on ready cash and life happens.

OP, just get yourself straight and gather your paperwork. Once you are ready, file the AoS. Don't be confused by the above posts that aren't relevant to your situation.

This is the best advise I have read here. And accurate. And this is what most people do. Get married within 90 days and file for AOS as soon as possible, without going crazy, after.

[VanessaTony 3,567]

Just to address this I-130 issue.

AOS will NOT be denied if you don't file an I-130. That is NOT the issue. The issue is you've been married long enough for a 10 year card, and failure to file the I-130 usually results in a 2 year card (so filing the I-130 makes sense). USCIS cannot deny you for filing AOS "late" because there's no deadline, they CAN however follow the letter of the law that says they only get a 2 year card. So it's recommended to file the I-130 if filing 2 years after marriage to get the 10 year card (plus it's around the same price and/or cheaper than ROC so totally makes sense).

OP - there is no deadline to file AOS but as you have read it can cause issue if you wait too long. Waiting till the next pay is fine

[Deputy Purple 1,294]

If a I-485 is approved after 2 years without an I-130, the IO is following the law. The law states a K-1 entrant adjusts to a conditional PR. To say it is impossible is incorrect. There is proof on this forum that this has and can happen. If you can show the proof of the other possibilities, it would be helpful. Jim (whose posts you are basing this information on) has stated that he cannot find them anymore. I believe him that they exist, but it would be better to find them.

First I never said it was impossible...

Second the two sections of the law contradict each other and that is the problem.

One section says that AOS based on K-1 can only be issued a conditional greencard. The other section says that if the alien has been married to the USC for 2 years then they get a 10 year greencard.Therein lies the crux of the situation. If they are issued a conditional greencard whilst married over 2 years to a USC then the IO is not following the law. On the flip side in order to issue an unconditional greencard the IO needs to have an approved I-130.

So I'll add this little thought, I-130 is cheaper than ROC by about $250 and you don't need to deal with USCIS again until you want to naturalize or need to renew your 10 year greencard so what's the harm?

I've searched for the threads about this catch-22 and can't find them either but why is it such an issue if you remember them also? It's not like you're saying you haven't seen them.

Now tell me is my logic on this really flawed? Can you say what I've said are possible outcomes are actually impossible?

[garfield529 47]

Why is this post going off on a tangent, when the OP asked a simple question about waiting until the next paycheck....

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

Guys,

I've tried looking for that particular case several times. The forum's search function is no help, and every Google advanced search I've tried comes up with thousands of potential hits. I just can't narrow the search terms down well enough to find it without wading through thousands of topics. Part of the problem is that many people's signatures contain phrases that produce a search hit.

Anyway, this is what I do remember about it. The topic was posted more than a year ago. The OP had entered with a K1 and married within 90 days. They waited more than two years before filing their AOS. They ultimately filed an I-485, but did not file an I-130. The I-485 was denied, and the denial notice indicated there was no petition on which they could base their adjustment of status. The notice further instructed them to refile with an I-130. Several people in that thread (including me) presumed that their I-485 had been denied at the discretion of the IO because they had waited more than two years to file, and the IO was unwilling to approved based on the prior I-129F.

As Bob pointed out, there is an apparent conflict in the law. Because we've seen VJ members whose cases have gone either way, it's probably reasonably safe to assume that the IO has some discretion here. In any case, it seems to me that it would make sense to submit an I-130 if the marriage is more than two years old, regardless of whether the alien would otherwise be eligible to adjust based on the I-129F. They'll get a 10 year green card, and get to skip removal of conditions.

Edited August 6, 2011 by JimVaPhuong