J1 Hardship Waiver 2021-2022 Timeline

[J1 hardshiper 2]

There was no sponsor's view for me, I was not Fulbright.

Edited April 21, 2023 by J1 hardshiper

[AM820 12]

6 hours ago, J1 hardshiper said:

It was a foreign Gov scholarship. Based on hardship to Spouse, Son, and step daughter (All USA citizens) . So I have them all!! Not sure based on what they decided that

It's quite strange. I've always heard that having more US citizen family members increases your chances. There should be at least one medical condition that applies to one of your dependents. It seems there might be an issue with your application, which could be due to your lawyer. By the way, who is your lawyer, if you don't mind me asking? I suggest you speak with him first to discuss the odds and hear his suggestions. It might be a good idea to consult with another lawyer who specializes in J-1 waivers to explore your options. From what I understand, DOS decisions are typically unchallengeable. You could also wait for the USCIS decision. Please keep us posted on any updates.

[HardshipWaiverApr 10]

16 hours ago, J1 hardshiper said:

That’s so brutal and unfair. Any idea where people go from there? 
 

 

 

So sorry 😢 this is making us with US Government funding even more hopeless 😩. They didn’t even ask the view from your sponsor 

Edited April 22, 2023 by HardshipWaiverApr

[KA1214 1]

1 hour ago, HardshipWaiverApr said:

So sorry 😢 this is making us with US Government funding even more hopeless 😩. They didn’t even ask the view from your sponsor 

Oh God! This is so infuriating! Just a quick question here: If your case is denied and you go home and serve the two years, would it not affect future visa applications? Thank you for the responses.

[J1 hardshiper 2]

4 minutes ago, KA1214 said:

Oh God! This is so infuriating! Just a quick question here: If your case is denied and you go home and serve the two years, would it not affect future visa applications? Thank you for the responses.

My lawyer told us that we can file I-130 petition (marriage based case) while I am serving the two years back in my home country. Fyi, my visa lapsed and I got out of status, but he said that would not affect the petition since we (as J1 visa holders) legally entered on our J1 visa. I hope to hear from anyone who heard that too or has different experience. 

[Chancy 6,241]

18 hours ago, J1 hardshiper said:

My lawyer told us that we can file I-130 petition (marriage based case) while I am serving the two years back in my home country.

 

Your spouse could have filed an I-130 petition as soon as you got valid marriage certificate.  What you can't do without meeting the 2-yr HRR or having an approved waiver is file an I-485 or be issued a visa.

 

[Wyboxcx 49]

30 minutes ago, Chancy said:

 

Your spouse could have filed an I-130 petition as soon as you got valid marriage certificate.  What you can't do without meeting the 2-yr HRR or having an approved waiver is file an I-485 or be issued a visa.

 

We were actually advised against filing any Green card forms including the I-130 by our lawyer as long as the waiver hasn’t been approved. But every lawyer is different 

[Crazy Cat 41,814]

19 hours ago, J1 hardshiper said:

My lawyer told us that we can file I-130 petition (marriage based case) while I am serving the two years back in my home country.

That just isn't true.  However, an I-130 confers no actual  immigration benefit.  You still need a properly submitted I-485.

Edited April 22, 2023 by Crazy Cat

[Crazy Cat 41,814]

3 minutes ago, Freidrichm said:

We were actually advised against filing any Green card forms including the I-130 by our lawyer as long as the waiver hasn’t been approved. But every lawyer is different 

What is his/her rationale for that?  To keep you off the radar?  I think having an approved I-130 to present to an immigration judge (if detained) would be better than not having filed any immigration petitions. 

Edited April 22, 2023 by Crazy Cat

[Crazy Cat 41,814]

5 minutes ago, Freidrichm said:

We were actually advised against filing any Green card forms including the I-130 by our lawyer as long as the waiver hasn’t been approved. But every lawyer is different 

Would not an approved I-130 strengthen a spousal hardship case?  That isn't legal advice.  It's common sense.

Edited April 22, 2023 by Crazy Cat

[Wyboxcx 49]

3 hours ago, Crazy Cat said:

What is his/her rationale for that?  To keep you off the radar?  I think having an approved I-130 to present to an immigration judge (if detained) would be better than not having filed any immigration petitions. 

He said filing it now "wouldn't help the waiver case in any way and would complicate matters even more" so we trusted him and we are waiting for this never-ending waiver process. 

[Crazy Cat 41,814]

8 hours ago, Freidrichm said:

He said filing it now "wouldn't help the waiver case in any way and would complicate matters even more" so we trusted him and we are waiting for this never-ending waiver process. 

Like I said, it seems to me that an I-130 strengthens a spousal hardship case.  I see no way it would complicate things unless you misrepresented yourself when applying for the J-1. 

[Hardship_waiver 54]

10 hours ago, Freidrichm said:

He said filing it now "wouldn't help the waiver case in any way and would complicate matters even more" so we trusted him and we are waiting for this never-ending waiver process. 

Two main things:

1. If you file i-130/i-140 without waiver and later waiver is denied, you risk your future entries as non immigrant. 

2. If you file i-130/i-140 without a waiver and later have to fulfill 2 years HRR, the approved i-130/i-140 will go to NVC (embassy) and they provide a certain time to schedule interview otherwise petition gets revoked. That seems the logic behind filing immigrant petition after waiver is approved. 

[KA1214 1]

5 minutes ago, Hardship_waiver said:

Two main things:

1. If you file i-130/i-140 without waiver and later waiver is denied, you risk your future entries as non immigrant. 

2. If you file i-130/i-140 without a waiver and later have to fulfill 2 years HRR, the approved i-130/i-140 will go to NVC (embassy) and they provide a certain time to schedule interview otherwise petition gets revoked. That seems the logic behind filing immigrant petition after waiver is approved. 

So, if your hardship case was denied by USCIS and you went home to fulfill the 2years HRR, there wouldn’t be problems with applying for H1B which is a dual intent visa compared to going back again with another J1 program? Thank you.

[J1 hardshiper 2]

I already got denial on my hardship waiver. So, the plan might be to go back to my home country and try to fulfill the two years since I do not wanna waste more time trying to fight this denial or applying for different waiver. Once I am at my home country, my wife will be  filling I-130 petition so I can comeback after the two years.  Does that make sense?