Should I apply for Adjustment of Status or Not?

[agrabs 241]

Thanks for the help,

I have been reading a lot of your posts in other forums. I am contacted to work in Sweden for 8 months starting Sept 1st. If I go ahead with the AOS, then there is no way we will be able to make the green card interview. Usually it seems it takes about 4 months after you file. I don't know if my work would be considered a good enough reason to reschedule my wife's appointment. Even so, I doubt I would be able to hold off this interview until Christmas or even later. So it seems if I file I would be putting myself into a tough situation, or even a impossible one. I would love to keep this process going because we have done pretty much all of the work already. I just don't want to spend another $1070 dollars and never get my wife's green card. What would you do?

There is no way to know for sure if you will get an interview for her green card. Not all AOS from k1 receive an interview. If you do not get an interview it could take up to a year to get her green card. Many of us have been waiting 9 months or longer. Also, once you file the AOS, she will not be able to travel outside of the US until she gets her A/P EAD combo card. This can take up to 90 days after the biometrics is done. If you need to leave by Sept it is possible you may not have it by then.

I know you have already put a lot of time and money into the K1 and would like to continue the process, but, I personally found the AOS to be even more tedious than the k1 paper work.

If I were you I would not file AoS. Go the IR1 route when you are ready to move back here.

[Mogambi 96]

Agreed, pointless to AOS now. Move back to Sweden, work and live there. Come back to the US and visit on her waiver. But make sure she leaves before the I-94 expires around mid September.

Wait, get married in Sweden later, and then file IR-1 route.

If she files AOS now, you won't be here for the interview even, and with that short of time in the US, no chance they won't revoke the green card anyway, so it's pointless.

Sorry you were so misinformed, and wasted the fee for the K1 too!

[sib 7]

Ok, we have mid of June. EAD/Travel authorization can take up to 3 months, but you can get it faster also if there is a scheduled travel. When filling out the I-131 you are asked about the travel date. Put it in there and also make sure that you point it out in your cover letter that your wife would want to travel with you beginning of September (maybe attach flight documentation) to accompany you for a while. I would not put the information in that she will be attending dental school. So you don't lie but you don't offer more information than necessary!

Because your wife is from Sweden (a low fraud country) most likely you will not have an interview for AOS (my husband and I had one together at the embassy for the K-1 (I was in the country anyway so I went with him) and then never again (AOS, ROC)) and if you really have to you can reschedule, mentioning that you (the husband) is out of the country for work ...

The problem you might face is that Border Control giving you a hard time coming back after being more than 6 months out of the country. If you do that you normally should file for a Reentry Permit but there are a lot of people that are out of the country longer than 6 months and don't have problems. You and your wife might want to fly back to US during Christmas time or spring break to not be out for more than 6 months at a time. It is always easier to enter US with the US citizen together also!

The GC is to live in US and living in US means spending more time in US than outside, pretty simple but sometimes not that easy to accomplish.

I would get all paperwork for AOS ready immediately, very important are mingled finances, so get a joint checking account, saving account, IRA for your wife (you can do that even if she is not working, it is called spousal IRA), get the car you have registered here in US in both of your names, put her on the car insurance, have her get a US driver's license (having a out-of-state license it might be easy to convert!), put her as beneficiary on your IRA, life insurance, etc. This might take some time, but start now and even if you only can proof that you informed the bank, insurance company that will be enough.

Then send the complete paperwork with EAD/Travel authorization to USCIS (I think it is the lockbox in Chicago now). When your wife is taking the biometrics and if you can go with her and ask about the Travel authorization and how you can get that one faster because of the already scheduled travel ...

You have to make sure that you sign up for the email notification and have access to your stuff online and you need somebody looking after your mail while you are out of the country. If there is an invitation to the interview you need to react pretty quickly if you need it rescheduled.

Being in your situation I would try to get the GC now and maintain it. Because you have a house in US, you file US taxes (married!), etc. it is quite possible that you get away with it.

If Border control is giving you a hard time the 2nd or 3rd year and telling you that they will confiscate your wife's GC you then have to go the IR route.

This is one reason to get US citizenship especially when dual citizenship is allowed by the other country.

Wishing you luck.

Sib