AOS from F1 - need some advises

[jasandalan 0]

Hi all,

My husband and I just got married last week. We are preparing the package on our own.

My husband is 24 yrs old. I'm 22 yrs old.

This is our timeline:

07/2009 - We met at a friend's birthday party

08/2009 - We got together (bf/gf)

10/2010 - We asked his parents permission for us to get married. They opposed. We put off the marriage.

08/2011 - We got married despite his parents' objection.

I have a few concerns and hope to get some advises/suggestions/thoughts from everyone.

My inlaws are Chinese but lived in Vietnam. My husband was born in Vietnam and lived there until when he was 12 yrs old. Then his family moved here.

I was born and raised in Vietnam. I came here in 2006 for an exchange student program with J1 visa, then changed to F1 visa and went to college. I still have 1 more year to go till I graduate.

His parents are traditional Chinese parents. They think:

1. He's too young (in their opinion) to have a family

2. He financially can't take care of 2 families (his own and ours)

3. I'm not Chinese and can't speak their language. (They can communicate perfectly fine in Vietnamese w me tho)

Those are the reasons why they were/are against our marriage, which my husband thinks are completely ridiculous.

My husband loves me and assure me that he just needs to prove to his parents that I'm the only person he loves, then eventually, they will accept our marriage.

We got married at a clerk-recorder office, with his siblings, cousins, my relatives, and our close friends attending. We had a small dinner the same day to celebrate.

Even though our marriage is real, would it be a big red flag if his parents opposed to it? How would the USCIS look at this?

Should we get a lawyer? What can the lawyer do?

How much does it usually cost to hire one?

Another issue that I have is regarding my F1 status. When I consult an acquaintant of mine who is a lawyer, he told me that I will not loose my F1 status when I apply for AOS. And in the worst case that AOS does not go through, I can go back to being an F1 (as long as I maitain my F1 requirements w the school, aka 12 units/quarter) Is this true?

If I cannot go back to F1 in the case of a denied AOS, what would be my status? What should I do? Again, I'm thinking for the worst scenario here.

I really appreciate your helps!

Jasmine

[Little_My 464]

Welcome to VJ!

In terms of your husband's parents objecting to your marriage, it shouldn't be an issue with your AOS if there aren't any other big red flags, and assuming you don't need them as co-sponsors to meet the financial requirements of AOS. They don't really need to be involved in the process at all, if you don't want them to be. Some people provide affidavits from parents as evidence of a bonafide marriage, but those are not required. I don't see why them not supporting your decision to marry would really play any major role in the AOS - unless you'd need them financially.

Personally, I don't see any need to obtain a lawyer because of this situation with his parents. I don't see what a lawyer could do to change that, and beyond filing your paperwork for you, there isn't that much they can do in any case to facilitate the process. Lawyers are usually needed with especially complicated cases or with waivers, and I don't think there's anything particularly complicated with your case - seems like a pretty straightforward AOS from F1.

Regarding your F1 status, I am not 100% sure what happens to it if your GC was denied..Once you file AOS, you stop being an F1 and enter a new period of authorized stay, which continues until you have a decision on your green card application. I'm not sure if the previous status would be reinstated if the GC petition was rejected - somehow I'd think it would not be, as F1 is a non-immigrant visa and once you've filed for AOS, non-immigrant intent is impossible to show anymore. But don't take my word for it, maybe someone else here will have more concrete facts about this issue..

Good luck with your process,hope all goes smoothly for you!