filing sponsorship of second spouse

[beandippy2000 0]

Hi everyone, nice to meet you all here. My name is Janelle & I'm a US citizen looking for some advice.

In 2007, met & I married a Colombian & sponsored him for his green card, which was granted in early 2008. I filed for divorce in 2009, he still got his green card with conditions lifted; he is living and working in my town. In retrospect, I suspect he just married me for a green card and stayed with me just long enough to make it appear like a legitimate marriage. During the divorce process, I sent a letter stating my beliefs to USCIS, but I never received a response.

In May, I met a Mexican who told me he was out of status. I chose to date him anyway, and he recently proposed. He is a much better fit for me than the Colombian was and I feel very good about our future together.

He entered the US in 2000 on a 10-year visa (they do exist, apparently!). He returned to Mexico in 2004 or 2005 for a short visit and then returned to Ohio, where he's been ever since; his brothers & sister are here; one brother just got his green card. His visa expired in 2010 and he is out of status because he stayed here since the prior visit to MX. He was married briefly in 2009-2010 but his ex did not sponsor him for his papers when they were married.

My question is, am I eligible to sponsor him for residency, or am I not eligible because I sponsored the Colombian? And do we have a legitimate case or will it be subject to a lot of scrutiny due to our histories and the timing? He is not pushing for marriage or sponsorship at all...we were thinking maybe of a ceremony next summer. He has no criminal record but has been working under the table during the time that he's been here and is very good at staying under the radar. Would he have any other timely options to adjust his status? Will the fact that he is working illegally hurt our case?

Thanks for any input you can provide.

Best,

Janelle

[Barbara J 115]

Hi everyone, nice to meet you all here. My name is Janelle & I'm a US citizen looking for some advice.

In 2007, met & I married a Colombian & sponsored him for his green card, which was granted in early 2008. I filed for divorce in 2009, he still got his green card with conditions lifted; he is living and working in my town. In retrospect, I suspect he just married me for a green card and stayed with me just long enough to make it appear like a legitimate marriage. During the divorce process, I sent a letter stating my beliefs to USCIS, but I never received a response.

In May, I met a Mexican who told me he was out of status. I chose to date him anyway, and he recently proposed. He is a much better fit for me than the Colombian was and I feel very good about our future together.

He entered the US in 2000 on a 10-year visa (they do exist, apparently!). He returned to Mexico in 2004 or 2005 for a short visit and then returned to Ohio, where he's been ever since; his brothers & sister are here; one brother just got his green card. His visa expired in 2010 and he is out of status because he stayed here since the prior visit to MX. He was married briefly in 2009-2010 but his ex did not sponsor him for his papers when they were married.

My question is, am I eligible to sponsor him for residency, or am I not eligible because I sponsored the Colombian? And do we have a legitimate case or will it be subject to a lot of scrutiny due to our histories and the timing? He is not pushing for marriage or sponsorship at all...we were thinking maybe of a ceremony next summer. He has no criminal record but has been working under the table during the time that he's been here and is very good at staying under the radar. Would he have any other timely options to adjust his status? Will the fact that he is working illegally hurt our case?

Thanks for any input you can provide.

Best,

Janelle

You have answered your own questions with your statement of working illegally out of status and how do you expect him to adjust status he is not here on working visa? tourist visa expired so you would have to marry him to sponsor him. I am sure someone will correct me if I am wrong and people with more experience in this will chime in but to be honest I would run a mile. If you stay with this guy I would get an immigration lawyer cause you are so going to need one.

[beandippy2000 0]

Hi everyone, nice to meet you all here. My name is Janelle & I'm a US citizen looking for some advice.

In 2007, met & I married a Colombian & sponsored him for his green card, which was granted in early 2008. I filed for divorce in 2009, he still got his green card with conditions lifted; he is living and working in my town. In retrospect, I suspect he just married me for a green card and stayed with me just long enough to make it appear like a legitimate marriage. During the divorce process, I sent a letter stating my beliefs to USCIS, but I never received a response.

In May, I met a Mexican who told me he was out of status. I chose to date him anyway, and he recently proposed. He is a much better fit for me than the Colombian was and I feel very good about our future together.

He entered the US in 2000 on a 10-year visa (they do exist, apparently!). He returned to Mexico in 2004 or 2005 for a short visit and then returned to Ohio, where he's been ever since; his brothers & sister are here; one brother just got his green card. His visa expired in 2010 and he is out of status because he stayed here since the prior visit to MX. He was married briefly in 2009-2010 but his ex did not sponsor him for his papers when they were married.

My question is, am I eligible to sponsor him for residency, or am I not eligible because I sponsored the Colombian? And do we have a legitimate case or will it be subject to a lot of scrutiny due to our histories and the timing? He is not pushing for marriage or sponsorship at all...we were thinking maybe of a ceremony next summer. He has no criminal record but has been working under the table during the time that he's been here and is very good at staying under the radar. Would he have any other timely options to adjust his status? Will the fact that he is working illegally hurt our case?

Thanks for any input you can provide.

Best,

Janelle

[beandippy2000 0]

My Colombian ex was also working illegally and it was not an issue in that case. But he had only been in the US for 3 years, as opposed to 11, like my fiance.

We are planning to get an attorney, but I'm looking for advice so I can have an intelligent conversation when we do. The last attorney just wanted us to rush & get married & file because she wanted.

I've learned my lesson...shop around before choosing attorneys & husbands

oops, forgot to add...our attorney wanted our $$.

[ceadsearc 516]

You can sponsor him. Your case will be more heavily scrutinized since you've sponsored someone before but you can do it. Unless your ex is a USC now you are still on the hook for the I-864 you filed for him so make sure you include him when calculating your household size.

Working illegally is generally overlooked for spouses of USCs. If your fiancé claimed to be a USC or used someone else's social, though, you'll have problems.

The one thing I am confused about is how he came and left in 2004. Ten year visas DO exist, but that doesn't mean you can stay 10 years. It means you can come and go over the course of 10 years as a tourist. The length allowed is determined at POE and is generally 6 months max. Even with an extension you're looking at a year. But it sounds like he was here for 4 years, left, and returned. How did he leave and return? How much time was he given each time? Do you have record of this?

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

You misunderstand what a 10-year visa is. That means it is valid for 10 years for trips... coming and going. Each stay can be a maximum of 6 months. It is not a visa to live in the US for 10 years.

He was here for 5 years 2000-2005 illegally which means he has a 10-year ban. I am unsure how he was allowed back in to the country in 2005 - he should have been denied at the border. That makes me wonder if he entered illegally - jumped a fence.

Illegal work can be forgiven for spouses of US Citizens, but if he stole a SSNumber of made one up or claimed to be a USC, that is not forgiven.

He was already married. I wonder if the wife refused to file for a GC and that is why he left her.

You have already been scammed for one greencard. Are you sure this isn't another? There are a lot of red flags.

If you're sure it's legit, then you will have added scrutiny. Also, if he jumped a fence this last time (because he should have been denied at the border for overstaying) then he cannot adjust status period.

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

My Colombian ex was also working illegally and it was not an issue in that case. But he had only been in the US for 3 years, as opposed to 11, like my fiance.

We are planning to get an attorney, but I'm looking for advice so I can have an intelligent conversation when we do. The last attorney just wanted us to rush & get married & file because she wanted.

I've learned my lesson...shop around before choosing attorneys & husbands

oops, forgot to add...our attorney wanted our $$.

There are very few visas that allow for a continuous stay of 10 years. Your fiance likely has a B2 visitor's visa. While the visa itself is good for 10 years, a single visit cannot be longer than 1 year by law. The length of each visit is determined by CBP when the alien enters the US, and they rarely approve anything more than 6 months for a B2, and often approve less time. There should be an I-94 form in his passport that was stamped by CBP the last time he entered the US. The stamp would indicate how long he was allowed to stay in the US.

Once again, just for emphasis - the I-94 determines how long he can legally remain in the US. The visa doesn't determine this.

How me managed to stay for 4 or 5 years, return to Mexico, and then reenter the US is a mystery to me. An overstay of more than 180 days automatically results in a 3 year ban from the US. An overstay of more than a year automatically results in a ban of 10 years. The ban should have begun the day he left the US to return to Mexico. I'm really surprised they allowed him to reenter. Maybe they didn't know he'd previously been in the US for more than 4 years. Maybe they simply made a mistake. Maybe he didn't enter through a regular border crossing, and simply walked across the border.

You really need to pin him down on this. If he should have gotten a ban when he left the US then he won't be able to adjust status without an I-601 waiver. If he didn't enter the US through a border checkpoint then he's not eligible to adjust status - dead stop.

[belinda63 3,038]

Question. He may have a 10 year visa (tourist I assume) but that does not mean he can come the the US for 10 years in one visit. It appears he overstayed his tourist visa by several years then left and then returned. So my question here would be did he pass through a border crossing when he re-entered, in other words was he inspected? It is possible he was just sent through but I find it hard to believe he lived here for several years on a tourist visa, left for several months, and then was allowed to enter the US again. Maybe I am wrong.

Marriage to a US citizen will result in any unlawful work and overstay to be forgiven. Has he been paying taxes on his income? Has he been using a false social security number?

The sponsoring of the other immigrant will need to be included on the affidavit of support as you are still liable for him. This would give you a household of three, if no children (you, the first immigrant, and the new immigrant).

[Ban Hammer 13,352]

duplicate topics have been merged.

please do not make multiple topics on the same subject.

[beandippy2000 0]

Thank you all for the replies.

He & I both know that he can only for 6 months, despite the 10-year visa. I am not sure how he was let back in in 2004/2005 without scrutiny. But I have seen the visa & the stamps in his passport, he did not just jump over a fence. His parents did the same thing, they were here for 2-3 years, then left and came back. Each time they have travelled, they take documents of their property in Mexico and letters of support from family in the US.

He & the ex were on/off for 8 years. He says if he just wanted a green card, he would have married her or someone else a long time ago. He paid her rent and supported her kids, and she asked him to get married. He didn't think she was "the one" but he agreed. He thought if they got married, she would sponsor him in return for of all the support he had given her over the years, but she refused. The same problems they'd been having for years crept up again, he filed for divorce. She didn't even show up at the hearing (this info is all public record, I looked it up on-line & his story checks out).

I think he is working using an ITIN that someone didn't check properly for work authorization. I worked in HR in a previous job and have seen firsthand how many HR folks don't know what documents to look for. He has been filing taxes since 2007, even paid back taxes for work prior to that.

He's an honest, decent, simple guy who just wants to live a quiet life & spend time with his family. He has dreams of opening his own car shop or construction business. I'm positive it's not a scam this time around. He told me that "if I was nervous about getting married again, we could just live together and see what happens with any immigration reform." We've been living together for about 2 months and we are very compatible.

He has a friend who is in the same situation -- entered legally in 2001 but stayed here 10 years without any criminal record, no US kids, no spouse. The friend hired an attorney and the attorney filed some type of paperwork to get him a work authorization, but no permanent residency. So his case is in kind of limbo. My fiance talked to an attorney to see if this is an option for him, but was told it would be about $10K in legal fees, which he & his family do not have.

Thanks again for the replies. I definitely want to consult an attorney but wanted to get more information before doing so.

CHARLES--I am sorry for the duplicate post. I am new here & realized I posted in the wrong cateogry & then couldn't figure out how to delete the original post. Sorry!

[beandippy2000 0]

Another question:

I hadn't thought about including the Colombian on the finacial thing. UGH. 2+ years we've been divorced & he is still giving me headaches.

his brother is a permanent resident by marriage. He works as a bartender & is going to school. Can his brother sponsor him & would it be possible for me to do the joint sponsorship?

If I am doing my math correctly, the Colombian ex has 1 more year til he can get begin to apply for citizenship; however, when we were married, he always said he never wanted it, because he was so proud to be 100% Colombian. In that case, I guess I have 6 more years of sponsorship liability for him. My divorce attorney also does immigration work. He said that if my ex ever filed for disability or unemployment and the gov came after me for repayment, we could challenge it in court, based on the documents that I submitted saying I believed it was marriage visa fraud. He filed something like this before & was successful.

[ceadsearc 516]

Even if he was inspected, he still should have received a ban so you will likely need a 601 waiver. It would be a good idea to consult an attorney about that.

As for the 864 - you are still the primary sponsor and you need to include the ex regardless of whether or not you can challenge things if he gets government benefits.

His brother can be a joint sponsor. He would need income at 125% of the poverty guidelines for his household and your fiancé.

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

Another question:

I hadn't thought about including the Colombian on the finacial thing. UGH. 2+ years we've been divorced & he is still giving me headaches.

his brother is a permanent resident by marriage. He works as a bartender & is going to school. Can his brother sponsor him & would it be possible for me to do the joint sponsorship?

If I am doing my math correctly, the Colombian ex has 1 more year til he can get begin to apply for citizenship; however, when we were married, he always said he never wanted it, because he was so proud to be 100% Colombian. In that case, I guess I have 6 more years of sponsorship liability for him. My divorce attorney also does immigration work. He said that if my ex ever filed for disability or unemployment and the gov came after me for repayment, we could challenge it in court, based on the documents that I submitted saying I believed it was marriage visa fraud. He filed something like this before & was successful.

Your lawyer is misleading you. Even if your ex-husband was involved in immigration fraud and you managed to prove it, there is no provision in the law for nullifying the affidavit of support on that basis. The only way to terminate the enforceability of the affidavit of support on that basis is if he were to actually LOSE his permanent resident status and leave the US. The affidavit of support is a binding contract that clearly states under what terms it will terminate. Immigration fraud is not one of those terms. USCIS will argue that you knew this when you signed the contract. A law suit would be extremely expensive, and you'd almost certainly lose. Your lawyer, on the other hand, will cash in because you'll have to pay him.

There have been cases here on VJ before where someone should have been denied entry for an overstay ban but they were admitted anyway, and USCIS discovered this during the AOS process. In one recent case they approved the AOS anyway, apparently because the alien (a Canadian) had entered and left the US several times since the overstay, been held in secondary inspection each time, and was still cleared for entry. The only thing I can guess in that case was that USCIS concluded that if CBP knew about the overstay and didn't implement a ban then they'd have to accept that he was lawfully admitted. There have been other cases where USCIS discovered the overstay and told them to submit an I-601 waiver request.

You are the petitioner, so you will always be the primary sponsor. You can have a joint sponsor if you don't meet the minimum income requirements. The joint sponsor must be a US citizen or permanent resident domiciled in the US. You have to submit proof of this with their affidavit of support.

[beandippy2000 0]

Isn't an I-601 where you have to show hardship? I'm healthy, I own my own home & I have a good job but I'm definitely not rich. No sick relatives or kids to care for, etc.

Or maybe I'm confused?

Gonna have to keep fingers crossed that the ex doesn't ever apply for gov't benefits for another couple of years. Ick. I feel like I've been misled by BOTH attorneys. Hope I can find a good one the next time around...

[milimelo 4,486]

Moving to AOS from tourist, student, work visa as there is no underlying family based visa involved (K1, K3).