Establishing Lawful Presence

[Donna & Paul 4]

Paul entered the U.S. on July 6, 2012. We married August 11, 2012 and filed for AOS on September 14 along with the I765 and I131. His I-94 expires on October 3, 2012. I have questions as he will be technically out of status until AOS is complete:

Does the EAD establish lawful presence in the U.S.?

Is lawful presence only established once the AOS is complete and he has his green card in hand?

The reason I'm asking is because he'd like to get his CDL in the state of Georgia. The driver's license he obtained when he got here expires with his I-94 on the the 3rd of October. I've contacted the DMV here to ask what the procedure is for obtaining his CDL and this was the reply I got:

As long as he has paperwork allowing him to be in this country he can test to

get his CDL - however the CDL will only be issued with an expiration date not to

exceed what is on his I94 or other authorized documentation allowing lawful

presence in the US if that date is less than five years.

[MlovesW 7]

My understanding is that he is not eligible for an extension on his DL until He receives his green card. Then he gets a new license although I think it is only good for two years as that is the expiration of his initial green card.

Side note, it's interesting my husband entered two days before yours an we got married around the same time..

Edited October 1, 2012 by MlovesW

[moosemilk 0]

I used EAD to obtain DL in MN, license dated to expire same time as EAD but should have GC by then.

[Donna & Paul 4]

In my state(GA) the acceptable proofs of lawful presence include an I766 card plus unexpired foreign passport. Is the EAD an I766 card?

[Darnell 8,478]

ead PULLS a lot of weight.

Any expectation on when it'll show up ?

[Donna & Paul 4]

@MlovesW,

I checked out your timeline and our timelines are quite similar.

@ Darnell,

He has his biometrics appointment on the 10th of October, so I'm thinking maybe mid to late November.

[moosemilk 0]

Thats the same requirement as MN, just had to show EAD which is 765 and passport, I think 766 is just a series number for documents.

[natalieblake 0]

we had this same issue too. once you submit the aos documents, it voids whatever visa he came in with and goes to pending aos status (or something like that). once james got his ead, he got a social security card but we found out he really can't do anything with it except apply for a job (build credit etc.). we tried to get a drivers license but they said he will need to get another one once he gets his green card so we just decided to wait since we already had an interview appointment.

good luck!

[moosemilk 0]

Not quite true re DL and EAD, you just have to renew once you get GC, however some people have a long wait from EAD approval to GC approval so if you want to drive use EAD.

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

In my state(GA) the acceptable proofs of lawful presence include an I766 card plus unexpired foreign passport. Is the EAD an I766 card?

Yes I-766 is the document number for the EAD card.

A K1s lawful presence is shown various ways--

I-94: 90 days

I-766 (EAD card): 1 year from issue

Form I-551 (Green Card) : 2 years from issue

Each state sets their driving requirements, but most have the license expire when the document showing lawful presence expires.

[Donna & Paul 4]

Thanks a bunch, guys. Up until I met Paul I had no need to know all of this stuff and it's sometimes like pulling eye teeth getting an answer from local agencies. When we wanted to get him a driver's license after he got here he went to the local DMV office here and they gave him a robotic answer as to what he needed to do complete with a piece of paper showing what proofs of residency he needed for....a U.S. Citizen. So he called the Atlanta headquarters where he was told he'd have to start from ground zero and get a learner's permit. We went back out to the local DMV to get the learner's permit and they gave him a full driver's license expiring with his I-94. We've been trying since he got here to figure out this whole CDL thing since that's what he did back in England and we're figuring that's his easiest "in" for a job here in the States.

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

Thanks a bunch, guys. Up until I met Paul I had no need to know all of this stuff and it's sometimes like pulling eye teeth getting an answer from local agencies. When we wanted to get him a driver's license after he got here he went to the local DMV office here and they gave him a robotic answer as to what he needed to do complete with a piece of paper showing what proofs of residency he needed for....a U.S. Citizen. So he called the Atlanta headquarters where he was told he'd have to start from ground zero and get a learner's permit. We went back out to the local DMV to get the learner's permit and they gave him a full driver's license expiring with his I-94. We've been trying since he got here to figure out this whole CDL thing since that's what he did back in England and we're figuring that's his easiest "in" for a job here in the States.

Here's a little info that might help it make sense. For just about every non-immigrant visa to the US like student, clergy, work, etc, the time to stay is longer than 90 days and can often be extended.

A K1 is in limbo for those first months. Status and visa is expired but okay to remain while you wait on the stuff that allows you to be an LPR. However, there is no document a K1 can show anybody (ie cops, DMV, Social Security) that says you have lawful presence past 90 days. K1s are rare compared to all the other visa holders who generally don't have this problem. You're like a hybrid between non-immigrant and immigrant, yet lack some benefits of both. The office workers probably don't understand K1 and thus can't offere much help to explain their policies to you. You are in limbo and you just wait it out.

Before the federal government put pressure on the states about issuing driver licenses, a person whose credentials were expiring in a week could get a drivers license issued for a standard number of years---like maybe six in some states. So Mr. Illegal had six years to use his DL as identification along with his fake SSN and he appears just as legal as a native born USC. So as part of the plan to crack down on illegals, states have adopted stricter rules that expire the DL when lawful presence expires. It's the K1 restrictions that create that period where you are basically stuck waiting on credentials. But hey, you don't have a long distance relationship while you wait. To avoid the limbo people should get the CR1 visa and wait in separate countries while the whole lawful presence paperwork processes.

[Donna & Paul 4]

There are so many different types of visas I can see why local agencies would have a hard time keeping up. I understand the need for the DL to expire with immigration credentials. It's just a bit frustrating not to be able to get answers. Anyway, it appears that Paul will be in "limbo" in my state for around a month to a month and a half which really isn't too bad. It could be much worse. Some folks AoS takes upwards to a year and their states require them to have the actual green card to apply for a license. It was just odd for us to get basically three different answers from the same agency because they weren't actually taking time to listen to the question.

[bigdog 376]

There are so many different types of visas I can see why local agencies would have a hard time keeping up. I understand the need for the DL to expire with immigration credentials. It's just a bit frustrating not to be able to get answers. Anyway, it appears that Paul will be in "limbo" in my state for around a month to a month and a half which really isn't too bad. It could be much worse. Some folks AoS takes upwards to a year and their states require them to have the actual green card to apply for a license. It was just odd for us to get basically three different answers from the same agency because they weren't actually taking time to listen to the question.

Go in person, with an application filled out and see what they do. Your I797 should extend dates for 1 year (good in AZ). Good Luck.

federal Enhanced DL requirements started an new ball game with licenses and ID.

[hnubno 9]

the DMV in WI allow my husband to get a permit and DL with his EAD. his DL expires in a year tho (not based on I-94) so we will have to renew it in a years time with his greencard. each state handles this differently tho.