Immigration questions/concerns

[MSSR 0]

Hello, 

 

Have some questions regarding the immigration process after overstaying a visitor's visa in the US.

 

Girlfriend drove into the US from Ontario in 2013 or 2014. She didn't receive a visa at the border but did receive a stamp after talking to border agents. 

 

She has lived with me since 2015 and she recently renewed her passport via mail.  We are wanting to know if there's anything we can do to get her legally able to drive/work in the US (if possible).

 

What are her rights in the US in general?

 

[Lemonslice 4,947]

Are you planning to get married?

[Georgia16 2,858]

If you get married then she can adjust her status through you and then she'll get a GC and can stay here legally.

 

http://www.visajourney.com/content/i130guide2

[Sidney and Dennis 40]

15 minutes ago, MSSR said:

And also file for her to get an itin (individual tax identification number) so whether she's working or not she can be on your tax return once you guys marry 

[Sunnyland 639]

Are you an USC?

[MSSR 0]

Thanks for the swift replies. I am a US citizen and we may get married down the road.

 

How hard is the adjustment process? Should I hire an immigration lawyer or is this something I can easily do myself?

 

Edit: I am a US citizen

Edited July 11, 2017 by MSSR

[Georgia16 2,858]

5 minutes ago, MSSR said:

Thanks for the swift replies. I am a US citizen and we may get married down the road.

 

How hard is the adjustment process? Should I hire an immigration lawyer or is this something I can easily do myself?

 

Edit: I am a US citizen

You can do it yourself. But you can't do it until you guys are married and she has no rights as long as that is not filed and she will not be able to work either.

[Crazy Cat 42,035]

So if she leaves the US, she will get a 10 year ban?

[LittleLeaf 38]

Yeah, the options are either for her to get sponsored through an employer or for you to sponsor her if you guys get engaged/married.

As far as work Visa's, they're tough to get if you don't have a job offer already, but there are a few options. It also depends on what type of work she'll be doing. TN is probably the easiest to get which is good for 3 years and renewable, otherwise there's an H1B visa for specific careers short-term, or the EB-3 visa if you're looking for something more permanent. https://www.uscis.gov/working-united-states/working-us has a great breakdown for all the working class visas and what they entail.

 

If you go the marriage route there's either the K-1 visa where she comes in as a fiancee to marry you and then applies for a greencard/work permit once married, or a CR-1 where you get married first and then you sponsor her as a spouse. They both have their pro's and con's, so do a little digging and see what you think is best. This community has some great discussions on them too.

 

Depending on your situation, if she's been living illegally in the US on a B1 visitor visa since 2013 it may be a tough road. You are only allowed to stay a maximum of 6 months on a visitor's visa. In that case, I'd definitely suggest a trip to an immigration lawyer to at least discuss your case and go over options. As someone previously said, it could result in a ban for her coming back including any application for future visas during that time. If she does have a valid visa of some other sort, you just have to start applying.

[MSSR 0]

50 minutes ago, LittleLeaf said:

Yeah, the options are either for her to get sponsored through an employer or for you to sponsor her if you guys get engaged/married.

As far as work Visa's, they're tough to get if you don't have a job offer already, but there are a few options. It also depends on what type of work she'll be doing. TN is probably the easiest to get which is good for 3 years and renewable, otherwise there's an H1B visa for specific careers short-term, or the EB-3 visa if you're looking for something more permanent. https://www.uscis.gov/working-united-states/working-us has a great breakdown for all the working class visas and what they entail.

 

If you go the marriage route there's either the K-1 visa where she comes in as a fiancee to marry you and then applies for a greencard/work permit once married, or a CR-1 where you get married first and then you sponsor her as a spouse. They both have their pro's and con's, so do a little digging and see what you think is best. This community has some great discussions on them too.

 

Depending on your situation, if she's been living illegally in the US on a B1 visitor visa since 2013 it may be a tough road. You are only allowed to stay a maximum of 6 months on a visitor's visa. In that case, I'd definitely suggest a trip to an immigration lawyer to at least discuss your case and go over options. As someone previously said, it could result in a ban for her coming back including any application for future visas during that time. If she does have a valid visa of some other sort, you just have to start applying.

Thanks, this is informative. I guess I was vague earlier as she is currently still in the US living with me.

[NikLR 13,231]

She is illegally living in the USA.  You probably want to remedy this by getting married and adjusting her status.  Right now she's deportable and would/could have a 10 year ban if she left. 

[MSSR 0]

Well, an update to her status.

 

She was married while being out of status in the US for a brief time. She got a divorce where she had to pay no money and the "fault" of the divorce was placed on her. She believes this may complicate things even if we get married. Would it?

[Ontarkie 14,378]

Depending what that Fault was. If it says something about fraud you may want to consult an attorney. 

 

What did she enter the US with? Did she come here as a visitor or did she come here on a K1 visa, or CR1 visa? It is very important to figure out how she entered. 

 

I know you said she didn't have a visa but they did stamp her passport. Stamping her passport is not a normal or every day thing so please find out for sure. Since it seems you just found out about a marriage there maybe more then you are aware of. 

 

 

Edited July 16, 2017 by Ontarkie

[MSSR 0]

2 hours ago, Ontarkie said:

Depending what that Fault was. If it says something about fraud you may want to consult an attorney. 

 

What did she enter the US with? Did she come here as a visitor or did she come here on a K1 visa, or CR1 visa? It is very important to figure out how she entered. 

 

I know you said she didn't have a visa but they did stamp her passport. Stamping her passport is not a normal or every day thing so please find out for sure. Since it seems you just found out about a marriage there maybe more then you are aware of. 

 

 

Looking at the divorce papers it says "unreconcilable differences" as the reason. She says she did not receive a visa at the border, just that she entered as a visitor as she had previously done to go shopping in Buffalo. 

[Ontarkie 14,378]

1 minute ago, MSSR said:

Looking at the divorce papers it says "unreconcilable differences" as the reason. She says she did not receive a visa at the border, just that she entered as a visitor as she had previously done to go shopping in Buffalo. 

Ok so nothing in the divorce to add any extra hurdles and it I'm glad to see she did enter as a visitor. If she came in on a Fiance visa that could have cause some issues, but we don't need to think of that now. 

 

So if you did want to get married then it doesn't look like there would be much issues to AOS. She doesn't have much options and yes atm she is deportable. 

Her previous marriage may be asked about. Did he file to get her status adjusted?