Guidance - AOS from B1/B2 to LPR

[CandaceEG 0]

Hello everyone, thank you in advance for this helpful community.

 

I am a USC who lived in Egypt for the last 14 years.

My husband (not a USC) and I met in Egypt in Jan 2018, and married in May 2019, in a wedding celebration in Egypt, attended by both our families.

Before we met, my husband already secured a B1/B2 visa for tourist purposes, to visit the US, and it was granted by the US Embassy in Cairo in February 2018. 

 

Our life and home is based in Egypt, and we have not submitted any immigration petition or paperwork at all so far, as we have not made any plans to immigrate to the US and were unsure where we would settle in the coming few years.

 

After Covid-19 hit, our life changed a lot, our professional demands slowed down as my work is now remote (and he works in the public sector, which has been quarantining and keeping employees at home, most employees are furloughed), and we decided with this free time to come to the US for a few months, so my husband and I could spend this down-time with my family here. We arrived to the US in mid-December and our return tickets back home to Egypt are reserved for the first week of May, as my husband's current B1/B2 allows him a max 6 month stay. 

 

Lately, I'm wondering if it's possible that we could settle here, and manage his immigration case from here, without returning to Egypt to do so. 

 

If I decide to stay in the US., I think it is possible that I could file an i-130, and my husband an i-485, so that we could adjust his status from B1/B2 to becoming a LPR, ideally doing the entire process from here, rather than returning to Egypt and starting the process from abroad. Is this correct? 

 

If I begin this process now, will I have enough time for the paperwork to be sorted before our return flight in May? 

 

Thank you all for your help, this is kind of overwhelming and I don't want to make any mistakes

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mushroomspore 3,044]

15 minutes ago, CandaceEG said:

Hello everyone, thank you in advance for this helpful community.

 

I am a USC who lived in Egypt for the last 14 years.

My husband (not a USC) and I met in Egypt in Jan 2018, and married in May 2019, in a wedding celebration in Egypt, attended by both our families.

Before we met, my husband already secured a B1/B2 visa for tourist purposes, to visit the US, and it was granted by the US Embassy in Cairo in February 2018. 

 

Our life and home is based in Egypt, and we have not submitted any immigration petition or paperwork at all so far, as we have not made any plans to immigrate to the US and were unsure where we would settle in the coming few years.

 

After Covid-19 hit, our life changed a lot, our professional demands slowed down as my work is now remote (and he works in the public sector, which has been quarantining and keeping employees at home, most employees are furloughed), and we decided with this free time to come to the US for a few months, so my husband and I could spend this down-time with my family here. We arrived to the US in mid-December and our return tickets back home to Egypt are reserved for the first week of May, as my husband's current B1/B2 allows him a max 6 month stay. 

 

Lately, I'm wondering if it's possible that we could settle here, and manage his immigration case from here, without returning to Egypt to do so. 

 

If I decide to stay in the US., I think it is possible that I could file an i-130, and my husband an i-485, so that we could adjust his status from B1/B2 to becoming a LPR, ideally doing the entire process from here, rather than returning to Egypt and starting the process from abroad. Is this correct? 

 

If I begin this process now, will I have enough time for the paperwork to be sorted before our return flight in May? 

 

Thank you all for your help, this is kind of overwhelming and I don't want to make any mistakes

 

 

 

 

 

 

After filing I-130/I-485, your husband must stay within the USA. With a pending AOS, intending immigrants can only re-enter the USA with Advanced Parole (Form I-131, which you can file concurrently with AOS). If they leave the USA without AP, they are considered to have abandoned their AOS process. He also is not allowed to work until he receives employment authorization (Form I-765). The employment authorization comes in the form of a card called the Employment Authorization Document (EAD). If you file both I-765 and I-131 together with AOS, the EAD also serves as Advanced Parole, which means he can use it to re-enter the USA if he leaves while AOS is pending.

 

Given that EAD/AP takes several months to process, there is a very very VERY slim chance that he'll have it before May. Expect 6+ months just for the EAD/AP.

[aaron2020 11,651]

42 minutes ago, CandaceEG said:

Hello everyone, thank you in advance for this helpful community.

 

I am a USC who lived in Egypt for the last 14 years.

My husband (not a USC) and I met in Egypt in Jan 2018, and married in May 2019, in a wedding celebration in Egypt, attended by both our families.

Before we met, my husband already secured a B1/B2 visa for tourist purposes, to visit the US, and it was granted by the US Embassy in Cairo in February 2018. 

 

Our life and home is based in Egypt, and we have not submitted any immigration petition or paperwork at all so far, as we have not made any plans to immigrate to the US and were unsure where we would settle in the coming few years.

 

After Covid-19 hit, our life changed a lot, our professional demands slowed down as my work is now remote (and he works in the public sector, which has been quarantining and keeping employees at home, most employees are furloughed), and we decided with this free time to come to the US for a few months, so my husband and I could spend this down-time with my family here. We arrived to the US in mid-December and our return tickets back home to Egypt are reserved for the first week of May, as my husband's current B1/B2 allows him a max 6 month stay. 

 

Lately, I'm wondering if it's possible that we could settle here, and manage his immigration case from here, without returning to Egypt to do so. 

 

If I decide to stay in the US., I think it is possible that I could file an i-130, and my husband an i-485, so that we could adjust his status from B1/B2 to becoming a LPR, ideally doing the entire process from here, rather than returning to Egypt and starting the process from abroad. Is this correct? 

 

If I begin this process now, will I have enough time for the paperwork to be sorted before our return flight in May? 

 

Thank you all for your help, this is kind of overwhelming and I don't want to make any mistakes

 

 

 

 

 

 

Your husband can file for AOS while in the US.

After filing for AOS, it could take 12-18 months to get a green card.  It could take 6-8 months to get an EAD to legally work and AP to legally leave the US and return without abandoning the AOS.  While AOS is pending, your husband is authorized to stay in the US; he would not need to leave in May.

 

If your husband files for AOS and leaves in May, then he will abandon his AOS.

 

Edited March 12, 2021 by aaron2020