Help filing I-130 for widowed parent

[mengo76 0]

Hi, I'm helping my wife (who is a citizen now) file an I-130 for her father (who is widowed). I have a few questions about the form and would appreciate any help.

Item C.8: Since he is widowed, is the date and place of "current marriage" blank?

Item C.11/12: So if "current marriage" is blank, should his deceased wife be in "prior wives", and is there a "date marriage ended" even though there was no divorce?

Item C.22: Adjustment of status if relative is in the US: He currently has a tourist visa and has been here twice already, and already has tickets to come in August. Should we wait to file this form when he comes and get adjustment of status? How long does that take? Is it legal to do that with a tourist visa? I once heard (when I was preparing to file for my wife) that it is considered "visa fraud" because the person came into the US with "intent to immigrate" using a non-immigrant visa... If that's true, I don't understand under which circumstances you would be in the US and be eligible for this process.

Item D.1: We're planning to file for my wife's brother, but aren't ready, and probably won;t do it for another month or two. Do I have to mention that here?

Thanks for your help

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

Item C.8: Since he is widowed, is the date and place of "current marriage" blank?

Yes.

Item C.11/12: So if "current marriage" is blank, should his deceased wife be in "prior wives", and is there a "date marriage ended" even though there was no divorce?

Deceased wife is prior marriage. Date marriage ended is the date she died.

Item C.22: Adjustment of status if relative is in the US: He currently has a tourist visa and has been here twice already, and already has tickets to come in August. Should we wait to file this form when he comes and get adjustment of status? How long does that take? Is it legal to do that with a tourist visa? I once heard (when I was preparing to file for my wife) that it is considered "visa fraud" because the person came into the US with "intent to immigrate" using a non-immigrant visa... If that's true, I don't understand under which circumstances you would be in the US and be eligible for this process.

It's called preconceived intent, and yes - it's illegal. The circumstances where someone would be eligible for this is if they entered with a non-immigrant visa that specifically allows for immigrant intent, such as a K1, K3, or H1B, or if their circumstances changed after arriving in the US and it would be needlessly bureaucratic to force them to return to their home country for an immigrant visa interview.

In reality, USCIS can't deny adjustment of status solely on the basis of preconceived intent, but it does cause them to look more carefully for a reason to deny. Since adjustment of status is a discretionary benefit it's best not to take the risk.

Item D.1: We're planning to file for my wife's brother, but aren't ready, and probably won;t do it for another month or two. Do I have to mention that here?

No. It's not relevant.

[mengo76 0]

Thanks Jim! A few more questions for you or anyone else:

Item C.14: If we end up filing the I-130 after my father in law arrives for his 2 month visit here, if we say that he is currently in the U.S. will it have any effect on his application? Positive or negative? Will they think that we will try to go for AOS even if we don't state it in C.22?

Item C.20: Is the name and address in native alphabet only for mailing purposes? Because mail addressed in English is delivered correctly in Bangladesh, so would I still need to fill that out?