HOW WE ENDED UP IN DEPORTATION PROCEEDINGS

[nancyk 0]

One can adjust status from an H1B upon marriage to a US citizen.

This story is hogwash. Some significant detail is missing...

That would be based on the assumption that there was not a very well meaning person who filed for the incorrect immigration

benefit on your behalf PRIOR to your marriage to US Citizen.

[Fandango 1,440]

One can adjust status from an H1B upon marriage to a US citizen.

This story is hogwash. Some significant detail is missing...

That would be based on the assumption that there was not a very well meaning person who filed for the incorrect immigration

benefit on your behalf PRIOR to your marriage to US Citizen.

you could have still rectified the situation before he was forcibly deported

[diadromous mermaid 36]

My husband originally came here LEGALLY on an H1b VISA to play professional Hockey, in Sep 1998. We have been married 5 years.

And then the story changes:

What happened in this case prior to our meeting was very well meaning friends of the team he was playing for filed a form with then INS which had to do with tourism and not employement. At the time he did not speak or write English. Forms were filed on his behalf without the proper fee's, signatures etc. I am sure none of this was malicious. For those who know and understand what happens when you accumulate over a year out of status it ends up being a 10 year bar to re-entry. There is no going back and filing the correct form now.

How exactly did that H1B that he came here on in September of 1998 turn into a tourist visa?

Ban on re-entry? That only applies if he left. As long as he stayed here upon marrying you, you guys still could have filed the I-130/I-485. He just could not have left until after he adjusted status. An overstay - even of a year or more - does not bar anyone from adjusting status upon marriage to a USC. Besides, if he came on an H1B (which is typically good for 3 years) in Sept 1998, then he would have been in status until Sept 2001. Seeing that you claim to be married to this guy for the past 5 years, you would have had to have gotten married in, well, 2001. How does one fit more than a year of unlawful presence into this time-span?

There's something still missing here...

From what she's explained, he came here as a professional athlete and those who represented him since he spoke no English at the time filed the paperwork.

Imagine this on the flip side - suppose an American athlete wanted to play professionally in China, but didn't speak any dialect of Chinese. Suppose he lives and plays professionally there for several years, meets a woman there, falls in love and gets married. Then somewhere along the process, he finds out that his representatives didn't file the proper paperwork with the Chinese Government and consequently he was considered a fugitive, facing jail time. Would we all be saying 'tough titty?'

You're missing something, too. If he came on an H1B visa as the OP claimed, then I don't care what paperwork someone allegedly misfiled. You don't get past the POE on an H1B you don't have. If he entered legally on an H1B then the paperwork was filed correctly for that one as he would otherwise not have had it to present to ther officer at the POE. Hence, he wouldn't have legally entered on it which he allegedly did.

But let's assume for a minute that the original H1B claim of the OP was bogus and the guy came on a tourist visa with some sort of "commitment" from his pals to get him an H1B down the road. Then he would have worked illegally and overstayed and yet, as long as he entered legally on any visa or even a visa waiver, he could have adjusted status based on a bona fide marriage to a USC. People do that all the time.

The story is BS. There is some significant piece of information missing here.

I'm not inclined to think the story is bogus, but there are a number of details missing in order to assess the current situation properly. I agree, Reinhard, he'd need an employment offer in order to enter on an H1B, but there are critical requirements to maintain that status. It is quite possible to extend H1B status for a period of 6 years, but the alien claims to have entered the USA in 1998, some 8 years ago, married 5 years ago, which would suggest to me one of two issues. Either the first H1B extension was not properly filed, in which case the H1B status might have elapsed, or the alien did not continue to work for the entity that petitioned him. As for the B1/B2 issue, I don't find that unusual, either.

If he was terminated (there's no reference to that, but it is feasible), there would be a requirement for him to leave the USA. He might have attempted to file for change of status to something like B2 (visitor) or B1(business) visa until he found a new job. Indeed, I am inclined to wonder if lack of work might be the root of his out of status time. The regulations call for an employer that cannot continue to provide full-time employment to bench the employee. During this non-productive time the employer is required to continue to pay the H1B. This requirement ceases once the employee is terminated. But, as far as my understanding goes, until the employer contacts USCIS to advise that employment has terminated, the employer is to pay the H1B as if working. Upon notice of termination, USCIS would then revoke the H1B status. In such an event, if a former H1B employee receives severance salary payments or is paid without reporting to work he or she is not actually in valid status. Further an employee who remains in the US after termination of the H1B status, without extending or changing his/her status is in violatoin.

[kitkat1 5]

One can adjust status from an H1B upon marriage to a US citizen.

This story is hogwash. Some significant detail is missing...

That would be based on the assumption that there was not a very well meaning person who filed for the incorrect immigration

benefit on your behalf PRIOR to your marriage to US Citizen.

There's your mistake - having a "well meaning" person file the papers for you. It's unfortunate, but that's the root of your problem - not the non-existent laws you cite.

[Fandango 1,440]

btw, I've been meaning to say....I read the first post again and I gotta say, the first words - in caps no less - are NON-HISPANIC MAN BEING DEPORTED so I say balls to the whole 'sarcastic' thing

[Dr_LHA 3]

Either we're not getting the whole story here, or the OP was the recipient of some extremely poor advise. From what was posted it seems like the OP was under the impression that because of a Visa violation (i.e. overstaying an H-1B), her husband would be banned from the country for 10 years. This is true. However they also seem to have the mistaken belief that this would stop him getting a green card.

Being married to a USC forgives almost everything except entering without inspection. With the information presented here it's hard to understand why the OP didn't just file for a green card for her husband after they got married. So unless there's something not being mentioned, it seems like a very tragic case of misinformation.

[nancyk 0]

I bet the $1000 or so that should have been spent to adjust status sure seems like small change at this point.

I don't know if you are familiar with the expression "the horse has already left the barn". I will not assume you are

stupid or dull or a racist if you give me the same benefit of the doubt. If the situation was as simple as spending a

grand to adjust his status we would have done so. Very well meaning but misguided folks had "helped" him with

his paperwork and there is no unscrewing it.

She said in her statement that the only thing her husband did wrong ws not knowing how to navigate the red tape. She is the USC. She should have been the one driving the bus...

I will not assume you are stupid or dull if you give me the same benefit of the doubt. Very well meaning but misguided folks had "helped" him with his paperwork and there is no unscrewing it.

[nancyk 0]

You can't go and cry now because you didn't take care of business in the 5 YEARS you have been married! Tell us the rest of the story.....Why didn't you adjust his status like everybody else does?

Our situation you cannot adjust his status while he is in US. Also once he lives US he has to remain outside US for 10 years. I am not crying, or looking for sympathy. There is a large number of people in our situation and not every marriage is easy to adjust or wrapped up in a neat little bow.

[rebeccajo 14]

Nancy, why are you coming in here being so insulting? I know you have gotten some less than perfectly polite responses but you sort of started it you know with your 'sarcasm' that was patently unclear.

If you want to get anything out of this discussion that might be of some use to you, I'd suggest you ratchet down your attitude a notch or two...

[ceriserose 1]

I bet the $1000 or so that should have been spent to adjust status sure seems like small change at this point.

I don't know if you are familiar with the expression "the horse has already left the barn". I will not assume you are

stupid or dull or a racist if you give me the same benefit of the doubt. If the situation was as simple as spending a

grand to adjust his status we would have done so. Very well meaning but misguided folks had "helped" him with

his paperwork and there is no unscrewing it.

She said in her statement that the only thing her husband did wrong ws not knowing how to navigate the red tape. She is the USC. She should have been the one driving the bus...

I will not assume you are stupid or dull if you give me the same benefit of the doubt. Very well meaning but misguided folks had "helped" him with his paperwork and there is no unscrewing it.

I think what might be ambiguous to folks here is the disparity between the timeframes of the misguided people who tried to help him, your wedding dates and the deportation order.

While it's perfectly within your rights to not divulge details like this on this message board to total strangers, can you at least acknowledge that, as presented, it's a little odd when pieced together how the problem lies entirely with "those" people who didn't help so well. As there is allowance for adjustment of status provided in such cases as you've described, regardless of what went on before your marriage with regard to your husband's paperwork, what you did or didn't do paperwork-wise and the choices you made also had an impact on his status.

In short, it's really hard for a lot of us to understand that if you knew he was out of status, why on earth you didn't have a free legal consult with an immigration attorney, or do whatever you had to, in order to get his paperwork settled. As you put it, there may be no unscrewing it now, but, depending on your timeframes, you may have had ample time to unscrew it before.

Best of luck to you.

[payxibka 10,047]

I will not assume you are stupid or dull if you give me the same benefit of the doubt. Very well meaning but misguided folks had "helped" him with his paperwork and there is no unscrewing it.

Your attitude and responses strike me as being very childish. So I will respond in a similar manner. "Sticks and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me". Na na na na na na.......

[pj1959us 0]

Rather than reply to the posts that only continue the emotionally-charged aspect, can you address the inquiry from those that are requesting more detail into your husband's situation. There may be solutions that can be offered if more details are known surrounding your predicament.

Did your husband enter the US on an H1B? A tourist visa? Did he have some sort of other visa with which he entered the US? How long was the visa for? If on an H1B visa, was his employment terminated in some way, as mentioned in another post? Was there a previous removal order that was ignored?

If you can outline the situation there are some very knowledgable on this board that might actually give you some assistance. You came to this board for a reason....let those that are willing to help, help.

[nancyk 0]

btw, I've been meaning to say....I read the first post again and I gotta say, the first words - in caps no less - are NON-HISPANIC MAN BEING DEPORTED so I say balls to the whole 'sarcastic' thing

Think whatever you want. My ex-husband is hispanic which coincidently makes my 2 children hispanic. My grandchild is "Roberto Louis JR." My sister-in-law is second generation from Mexico and my best friend is as well. I am sorry you are

not able to comprehend Sarcasm. I think its an interesting point our society is in when as folks learn of our situation they

get quiet, lean in towards me and say things like... "I don't know why they are bothering you...there are so many "OTHER" people here.

[rebeccajo 14]

Nancy, it sounds as if this provision would have worked for you .......

What if I am granted voluntary departure but I don't leave the U.S. as instructed?

Any person who is granted voluntary departure is subject to civil penalties if he or she fails voluntarily to depart the United States within the time period specified INA §240B(d) (2003). The person may be subject to a monetary fine, and he or she is barred, for ten years, from being granted cancellation of removal, adjustment of status, change of status, registry, and voluntary departure.

While there is a cancellation of removal remedy available, there are certain requirements. INA § 240A allows certain permanent residents to make an application for the cancellation of removal proceedings. In order to qualify for this provision, an individual must establish that he or she is an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence for not less than five years, has resided in the USA for 7 years after having been admitted in any status, and has not been convicted of an aggravated felony.

[Traviesa 0]

I mean absolutely no disrespect, because I know everyone is very well-meaning, but the details being asked of Nancy's case don't really mean squat at this point. Once you are deported, you're deported. Like Nancy said, there's no fixing it now. The way I see it, it doesn't matter what happened in the past-what's done is done, and her only possible course of action for the future is to file the I-130, and file the I-212 and I-601 Waivers at his interview. I mentioned this already but she kind of overlooked it...I guess that's what I get for trying to be helpful instead of controversial...