I130 Confusion

[Griffon76 0]

I've gotten all the forms I thought I needed to get my husband's Visa Journey started and showed all of it to a friend of mine (she started her VJ a few years ago and has recently gone thru the Citizenship ceremony). The list of forms I have ready are:

I485 - AOS application

G325a - Biographic info

I693 - Medical Exam

I864 - Affidavit of Support

I785 - EAD

I131 - AP application

She then informed me that I was missing the I130 form (petition for alien relative). My husband entered back in May '06 from Canada (visitor) with the intention of going back and filing K1 when his divorce was final. We decided to have him stay and get the divorce rolling and get married when he had the divorce decree in hand (which was just last month and within the 180 days) I was surprised that I missed the info about filing the petition for alien relative and was just checking to see if she is correct. Do I send this with the I485 and all the other documents together or do I send this by itself? or at all? She also mentioned that she thought we could go in person and file this (I believe we go to the Norfolk office) Can anyone set me straight?

Thanks in advance for your help!

[YuAndDan 153]

Depends on which approach you are taking, If you are now married, then two correct visas are availble, K-3, and CR-1 they involve foreign returning to home country and waiting for an interview at the consulate.

Other approach is to file for AOS in the states which can be tricky and yes an I-130 needs to be filed as part of the process.

I want to marry my fiance/fiancee who is here in the US on a visa,

Can I marry him/her here in the U.S, and if I do, will he/she be sent back to his/her home country until the I-130 is approved??

If your fiance/fiancee is currently in the U.S legally on any type of visa other than the J-1 visa (the J-1 requires a waiver), and you are a U.S citizen, then you CAN marry him/her, and he/she will NOT be sent back to his/her home country unless the marriage took place while the spouse was under deportation or if your fiance/fiancee came to the US on a tourist visa with the intent of immigration and marriage. (This is considered immigration fraud.)

However, you must immediately file your I-130 along with forms I-485 and I-765. Please note that the USCIS has a new filing policy. You can read it here. As this new policy rolls out some applicants may still file at their local office. If your fiance/fiancee DID come to the US on a tourist visa with the intent of immigration and marriage, and you are not yet married, then he/she should return to his/her home abroad, and the K-1 visa should be filed instead of the I-130 to avoid a denial or deportation.

If you are already married, and your spouse came to the US on a tourist visa with the intent of immigration and marriage, then he/she should return to his/her home abroad, and the I-130 should be filed with the relative outside of the U.S to avoid deportation or denial. (Better safe than sorry)

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...mp;page=i130faq

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...p;page=otheraos

Since you are starting out it is recommended

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...amp;page=guides

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...mp;page=compare

[ChristinaM 0]

There is nothing particularly tricky about filing from inside the US, with the caveat that you need to be able to prove that your now husband had no immigrant intent on entry should you be asked. Many visitors who undergo the AOS do not even get asked about it, but it is something to be aware of. It is just as "proper" a route as any other, from the position you are in.

Yes, you do need to file the I-130 - this is the basis on which he will be deemed eligible to adjust status. Yes, you file it concurrent with everything else. No, you can no longer file as a walkin. Everything now has to go to the Chicago lockbox.

I was going to point you at the USCIS website, but they're just redoing it so it's a bit of a mess right now. If you want to wade through the site, it's www.uscis.gov -> Permanent Resident (Green Card) -> How Do I become an LPR While in the US? (I suck at hyperlinks )

Good luck!

[Griffon76 0]

Thanks for the info! I have read and re-read a LOT of these guides (those that pertained to me) and I somehow missed the part about filing the I130 in all the confusion of paperwork! (I've got a stack of paperwork in a file pertaining to everything we are sending)

LOL I'm a nervous wreck and not because we did anything wrong but hoping that what we show as proof that we did not intend to marry on his last visit is enough. One...he was not legally divorced when he entered (we knew it would not be for months until he was and the fact that the proceedings were just started a week prior to his coming here) and two...he had made arrangements to live with a relative in Montreal (where his interview for the K1 visa would take place) when he returned to wait for the interview date. All of his belongings are in storage and we had intended to get it out when his K1 visa was approved and I came to help him drive his car back. One of the things that helped in the decision to marry sooner is his house, that was put up for sale in Feb '06 sold in 2 days! We thought since the house across the street was still on the market after 6 months, that we would have plenty of time while the K1 visa was being processed. He had some money to live on while he would be in Montreal but now the house was gone and he would be spending longer than we thought with the relatives.

What kind of (physical) proof can I show for these things? Or would they take our word for it when we explain the situation? The other thing is we did not start planning our wedding until a few months into his visit and put it together in a short amount of time. Because of that, not all relatives and friends could come and had a fairly small wedding. Maybe a note from the Innkeeper where we had the ceremony and reception showing when we actually booked with them? A letter from his relatives in Montreal?

I guess that is the only thing worrying me about all this. Both of us are always concerned with being totally honest about everything and doing things the RIGHT way and not having any doubts about who we are or what we are about. Hence, worrying about having to PROVE our intentions. Am I just over worrying myself about this?