I-130 filing for Husband

[sayruhj 2]

Hey all, this is my first time posting. I am a natural born American citizen who married a Canadian December of 2017. We have been together since December 2011. Up to this point, his parent's and their attorney have been taking care of his immigration paperwork. I'm just now taking over helping him with his paperwork, so I'm learning about this process as I go, so please forgive me if I use any wrong terminology or anything. I'm also trying to figure out all of the details of his immigration history, but since he was a minor when it happened he doesn't know exactly everything that happened and his parents haven't exactly kept the best records / haven't done everything properly (which is part of the reason why we're taking over from his parents). I have a couple of different questions because I am just now diving into this.

He arrived to the US as a minor with his parents coming as T51 and T56 arrival status (entrepreneur). He is designated as a T53 class of admission. Their status is conditional based on different criteria of the business they own (# of employees, net worth of holdings, etc.). While he was still a minor, there was a miscommunication with their previous attorney where they unknowingly overstayed their Visa. He had his green card taken and they are still going through proceedings. Every year he receives an I-551 stamp in his passport to show permanent residency for one year. Since we are now married, we are working on filing an I-130 and I-130(a) for him. For the I-130, I have a couple of questions:

1. On form I-130, question 46.a asks for the class of admission and has a drop-down menu for filing out through Adobe. His class of admission is T53, but that is not an option on this dropdown menu. There is also an option of V2 for child of LPR. Do I hand write in T53 or do I have to select from one of the options in the dropdown menu?
2. For those who have provided the evidentiary support for a bona fide marriage, what kind of examples did you provide? So far I have our joint bank account statement, our mortgage paperwork, the deed for our house, utility bills, photos from various stages of our relationship, ticket stubs from our honeymoon, our marriage license, wedding invitation, and wedding program. Are there any other examples that others have used that I'm not thinking about?
3. Does anyone have any examples of third-party affidavits used to show knowledge of the bona fides of the marital relationship? We have at least four people who have agreed to affidavits.
4. As someone who really doesn't know a lot about this process and is still trying to learn, is there any other pertinent information that I need to know or understand. 

Sorry if there's any ignorance in this, I'm just trying to figure out what I need to do, because I want this process done correctly.

Thanks in advance!

[Roel 7,192]

1 minute ago, sayruhj said:

 Every year he receives an I-551 stamp in his passport to show permanent residency for one year. Since we are now married, we are working on filing an I-130 and I-130(a) for him. For the I-130, I have a couple of questions:

Maybe I'm misunderstanding something, but..

So does your husband have a green card or not? Is he in the US or not? If he HAS a valid green card, then why are you filling for his green card... again?

 

Also I believe your first mistake was letting his parents (?) and attorney take care of all the paperwork when it should be YOU who files for your spouse.

[aaron2020 11,651]

Your husband's green card has been taken away and he was put into proceedings.  (Presumably, he's in removal proceedings.)  He has an attorney who is working with him on his immigration.  All your questions should be addressed to the attorney.  Adjusting status while in removal is not DIY.  You shouldn't be asking a public forum on such a matter that requires a skilled attorney.  

[geowrian 22,337]

If he still technically has LPR status - as would be evidenced via the I-551 stamp - then he will not qualify for an immigrant visa or green card. The existing case has to be resolved first - either that he is entitled to LPR status still, or to have it formally revoked and then he can qualify.

I have seen others go through the green card process in a similar fashion, but they declined to adjudicate the I-130 and/or I-485 until the existing question of their status was resolved.

 

I think you should get some consultations with good immigration attorneys before setting out for any new petition.

[aaron2020 11,651]

This is definately not DIY.  A skilled attorney should handle any cases involving adjusting status during removal proceedings.  

[sayruhj 2]

Okay, thank you all. I wanted to get an attorney but my husband wasn't really wanting to spend the money, but I just convinced him that we needed one because I don't feel comfortable doing this myself. Thank you all, sorry for my ignorance, I'm just learning and trying to figure out the system.

[TBoneTX 45,329]

No need to apologize.  You merely "didn't know what you didn't know."  Good luck.

[aaron2020 11,651]

1 hour ago, sayruhj said:

Okay, thank you all. I wanted to get an attorney but my husband wasn't really wanting to spend the money, but I just convinced him that we needed one because I don't feel comfortable doing this myself. Thank you all, sorry for my ignorance, I'm just learning and trying to figure out the system.

Nothing to apologize for.

 

Your husband needs to understand that DIY is for simple cases.  DIY is not for complicated cases involving revoked green cards and removal proceedings.  There are special rules about adjusting status during removal proceedings.  Rules that requires a skilled immigration lawyer to help you with.