Obtaining Visa for a Spouse of US Citizen

[Dean_De 61]

Hi,

I have a question if anybody can give me enlightenment here. This is not for me but for a friend.

So, my friend had been married to his wife for 6 years now but had never filed for a spouse visa since his wife wasn't ready yet ( family reason - she can not bring her child from previous marriage to the US since the father doesn't allow him to live permanently in the US. now that her child is of legal age, she is now decided to move in the US). As far as I understand she visits my friend here through the Visa Waiver Program.

Question: What is the best possible way for her to live legally and permanently here in the US. Do they need to still apply an I-130 for her and she has to be in France for that? Of can they just apply a visa or green card while she is here in the US?

Thank you!

[p-ana 933]

File a i130 petition for the wife, she will go through consular processing. It will take around a year.

Coming to the us with a tourist visa, vwp/esta with the intention to stay and ajust status is immigration fraud. She will still be able to visit.

I'm not sure about her child, but I believe he/she can be petitioned by the usc, also filing i130, if the marriage took place before the child's 18 birthday.

[Boiler 46,144]

How old is the 'child'?

[Hypnos 6,578]

And are the alien and child currently in the US?

[Dean_De 61]

How old is the 'child'?

20 or over 20 I think

And are the alien and child currently in the US?

They come back and forth the US within the allowed time for them to stay in the US ( Well atleast the Mom, the son Visits only for summer only for about a month each year

Edited June 13, 2016 by Dean_De

[Dean_De 61]

File a i130 petition for the wife, she will go through consular processing. It will take around a year.

Coming to the us with a tourist visa, vwp/esta with the intention to stay and ajust status is immigration fraud. She will still be able to visit.

I'm not sure about her child, but I believe he/she can be petitioned by the usc, also filing i130, if the marriage took place before the child's 18 birthday.

Well, for sure this is not the case. Her wife had been coming back and forth the US for about 6 years or so now. what they are trying to see is if there's a way for them to just file I-130 while here and file for adjustment of status too without going back to her country.

I know I have a friend who was here opn a different visa ( work Visa ) who married a USC and it didn't look like she went home when they filed for her permanent residency. Still waiting for her response but I would like to get some information here too.

[Hypnos 6,578]

That's not an answer to the question "are they in the US right now".

[p-ana 933]

Well, for sure this is not the case. Her wife had been coming back and forth the US for about 6 years or so now. what they are trying to see is if there's a way for them to just file I-130 while here and file for adjustment of status too without going back to her country.

I know I have a friend who was here opn a different visa ( work Visa ) who married a USC and it didn't look like she went home when they filed for her permanent residency. Still waiting for her response but I would like to get some information here too.

That's a different situation. As stated, she can't come with a non immigrant visa with the intention to stay and adjust status. It's fraud. She can still visit.

[JFH 12,191]

I know I have a friend who was here opn a different visa ( work Visa ) who married a USC and it didn't look like she went home when they filed for her permanent residency. Still waiting for her response but I would like to get some information here too.

Totally different scenario. The "friend" came into the country with the intention to work. Nothing else. During his work he met someone and married and adjusted. That could not be foreseen when he arrived as he hadn't even met the person yet. He did not arrive with the intention of living with his wife.

Coming as a tourist with the intention of staying is fraud.

[Dean_De 61]

That's not an answer to the question "are they in the US right now".

She was just here recently for 3 weeks. So at this time no.

[Dean_De 61]

Totally different scenario. The "friend" came into the country with the intention to work. Nothing else. During his work he met someone and married and adjusted

. That could not be foreseen when he arrived as he hadn't even met the person yet. He did not arrive with the intention of living with his wife.

Concurrent Filing

Concurrent filing is when an immigrant petition and the adjustment application (application for a green card, Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status) are filed at the same time and mailed together with all the required filing fees and supporting documentation to the same filing location.

Who can file concurrently?

Concurrent filing is allowed in the following instances:

Immediate relatives of U.S. citizens living in the United States

https://www.uscis.gov/green-card/green-card-processes-and-procedures/concurrent-filing

[p-ana 933]

Immediate relatives of U.S. citizens LIVING in the United States.

If the person lives here currently, that could be done. But the wife is not living here. If she enters the us with her tourist visa or vwp/esta with the intention to stay and adjust it is fraud.

Edited June 13, 2016 by p-ana

[Dean_De 61]

I also found this info from Nolo

How the Immigrant's Mode of Entry Affects Eligibility to Adjust Status

If the immigrant entered the U.S. with permission, such as with a visa (and with the intent to stay temporarily, not to misuse the visa by applying for a green card), he or she entered the country legally. Thats true even if the person stayed beyond the visa expiration date. The road to a green card should be reasonably smooth; the immigrant should (if he or she wants to) be able to stay in the U.S. for the entire application process, which will likely take about a year. The usual ways people enter legally are:

with a visa (a tourist, student, or temporary worker visa, for example)

with a border crossing card (a special pass allowing regular entries)

under the Visa Waiver Program (where citizens of certain countries are allowed to enter the U.S. as tourists by showing their passport, without first obtaining an entry visa).

[Ryan H 3,834]

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Edited June 13, 2016 by Ryan H