ThinkTwice
07-11 06:05 PM
Franklin,
Please post once we have enough volunteers for the calls
Thank you - I've just sent you a pm
Please post once we have enough volunteers for the calls
Thank you - I've just sent you a pm
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gunsnkars
10-17 12:10 PM
Contract - Corp-to-Corp - Slave
Contract - W2 - Slave
Contract to Hire - Independent - Slave
Contract to Hire - Last but not the least "SLAVE"
"Any one with genuine answers"
Contract - W2 - Slave
Contract to Hire - Independent - Slave
Contract to Hire - Last but not the least "SLAVE"
"Any one with genuine answers"
cin45220
12-07 11:51 AM
I do not understand why Indian news papers tout salaries offered to IIT/IIM graduates in foreign companies in overseas locations. It�s a net loss for the country�
First of all, salaries are not exceptional when compared to overseas salaries (for a similar position in a similar company) and secondly, most of these graduates are taking their skills, earned through subsidized education provided by the generous Indian government in IITs/IIMs, to a foreign country.
-CinBoy
First of all, salaries are not exceptional when compared to overseas salaries (for a similar position in a similar company) and secondly, most of these graduates are taking their skills, earned through subsidized education provided by the generous Indian government in IITs/IIMs, to a foreign country.
-CinBoy
2011 Britney Spears
Bpositive
12-08 10:19 PM
by the way, I forgot to mention that I was in India when my GC was adjudicated on Oct 22.
At the immigration POE, I told the officer that my GC was granted while I was away. They took me to a room, I waited for 10 minutes, they checked on their system and later told me that I'm good to enter on GC. I looked at my passport where they had canceled my H1 visa and stamped LPR on the immigration stamp which stands for Legal Permanent Resident.
So, no probs returning to the U.S. I even took the liberty to stand in the GC/ citizen Q at the airport :D
That's very useful feedback....appreciate it.
At the immigration POE, I told the officer that my GC was granted while I was away. They took me to a room, I waited for 10 minutes, they checked on their system and later told me that I'm good to enter on GC. I looked at my passport where they had canceled my H1 visa and stamped LPR on the immigration stamp which stands for Legal Permanent Resident.
So, no probs returning to the U.S. I even took the liberty to stand in the GC/ citizen Q at the airport :D
That's very useful feedback....appreciate it.
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add78
06-08 08:21 AM
$100
Transaction ID: 8VJ563474N368532E
Transaction ID: 8VJ563474N368532E
nk2006
04-17 03:36 PM
As per today I have an H1b visa, I have my I140 approved, and my 6th year ends on April 25, 2008. My actual employer have gave me a contract that says that upon I become a permanent resident i will have to work for him for 5 years, then if I quit after the 5th year or before I will not able to work on the same industry on all the united states, also mention what my salary would be but there is no mention of increase. Since I will have to wait until my residence at least 3 more years, that means that I will have to work on these conditions for 8 or 9 years.!!!!
I do not know what to do , this is almost illegal (I think !), do I have time to change employer and do again my visa, and I140, so I don't lost status ??
The contract is rather stringent � working for 5 years after getting the greencard and not able to work in same industry??? You are right it may not even legal � and may not stand in any court.
Having said that, I can say that it is very common in IT industry to make the visa candidates sign a contract. Generally these contracts ask you to work for the employer for at least 2 years �after� getting the green card; and if you leave before 2 years then you have to pay all the legal charges that employer incurred for the GC processing. Many employers require this before starting the process � but I heard many big companies don�t really enforce this. Also there are other couple workarounds: the contract (even in your case) says �after� getting the GC, so if you are eligible to apply for 485 then sign the contract and apply for 485; after six months you can use AC21 and leave the employer � technically you havn�t yet got the GC card and so the contract is not violated. I know a couple friends did this exactly in our company.
If you are not yet eligible to apply for 485 (retrogressed country) then try to collect some documents like a copy of your approved I140 and if possible a copy of approved labor (this may not be required). Then find a new job now and transfer your H1B there; during transfer ask for three years extension based on your approved I140+not able to apply for 485 status. With new employer start fresh PERM+I140. If you have copies of I140 you might be able to get you priority date too. I know there are lot of ifs and buts here but I think this is the best case scenario for you especially if you don�t like your present job (Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer).
I do not know what to do , this is almost illegal (I think !), do I have time to change employer and do again my visa, and I140, so I don't lost status ??
The contract is rather stringent � working for 5 years after getting the greencard and not able to work in same industry??? You are right it may not even legal � and may not stand in any court.
Having said that, I can say that it is very common in IT industry to make the visa candidates sign a contract. Generally these contracts ask you to work for the employer for at least 2 years �after� getting the green card; and if you leave before 2 years then you have to pay all the legal charges that employer incurred for the GC processing. Many employers require this before starting the process � but I heard many big companies don�t really enforce this. Also there are other couple workarounds: the contract (even in your case) says �after� getting the GC, so if you are eligible to apply for 485 then sign the contract and apply for 485; after six months you can use AC21 and leave the employer � technically you havn�t yet got the GC card and so the contract is not violated. I know a couple friends did this exactly in our company.
If you are not yet eligible to apply for 485 (retrogressed country) then try to collect some documents like a copy of your approved I140 and if possible a copy of approved labor (this may not be required). Then find a new job now and transfer your H1B there; during transfer ask for three years extension based on your approved I140+not able to apply for 485 status. With new employer start fresh PERM+I140. If you have copies of I140 you might be able to get you priority date too. I know there are lot of ifs and buts here but I think this is the best case scenario for you especially if you don�t like your present job (Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer).
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xbohdpukc
09-25 02:45 PM
If this is derivative, then how come H1 obtained should be counted towards H4. H1 is standalone and should not be counted.
Again, my wife is on H4 for 6 years and I did not get into 485 stage. Now she wants to go to India and come back after a one year break. If she comes back after a year on new H1, it would be fine for her. If she come back on H4, can she get a H1 after one year?
Any idea, whether this is possible?
Ur missing the point.
The number after the letter, which stands for the classification category is pretty much irrelevant for the purpose of determining the maximum period of stay. You might notice that in many publications USCIS addresses visitors to the US as being in B, H or L status, omitting the #.
As long as your wife maintains her H4 status properly (providing you maintain your H1 status) and as long as she possess necessary travel documents she is free to enter and exit the country.
As far as I understand she will not have any legal problem obtaining an H1 visa after staying out of the country for a year, as long as the visa # is available, she has a job offer etc.
But I do not believe that her H status clock will reset if she leaves the country for a year, then enter in H4 status (which is still a derivative and tied to your principal H status clock). Therefore she will not be able to change her status to that of H1.
Again, it's a pretty complicated matter and you might want to consult an experienced lawyer.
Again, my wife is on H4 for 6 years and I did not get into 485 stage. Now she wants to go to India and come back after a one year break. If she comes back after a year on new H1, it would be fine for her. If she come back on H4, can she get a H1 after one year?
Any idea, whether this is possible?
Ur missing the point.
The number after the letter, which stands for the classification category is pretty much irrelevant for the purpose of determining the maximum period of stay. You might notice that in many publications USCIS addresses visitors to the US as being in B, H or L status, omitting the #.
As long as your wife maintains her H4 status properly (providing you maintain your H1 status) and as long as she possess necessary travel documents she is free to enter and exit the country.
As far as I understand she will not have any legal problem obtaining an H1 visa after staying out of the country for a year, as long as the visa # is available, she has a job offer etc.
But I do not believe that her H status clock will reset if she leaves the country for a year, then enter in H4 status (which is still a derivative and tied to your principal H status clock). Therefore she will not be able to change her status to that of H1.
Again, it's a pretty complicated matter and you might want to consult an experienced lawyer.
2010 Tags: ritney spears
H1B-GC
08-14 04:51 PM
A Call from DOL to your Employer is enough to start coughing all the Money he owes you. Make sure you have all the paper Trail as Evidence -Emails,Fax and etc..
more...
rajmirk
04-08 09:51 PM
ANyone has any links?
Thanks in advance,
Thanks in advance,
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tabletpc
05-28 12:02 PM
Thanks Ramba, Thats greatly appreciated.
In b/w as anyone heard of USCICS picking up 485 from later date and processing it or am i trying to be too pessimistic...???
Just want to make sure I analyze all pros/cons before making a decision.
Thanks ...
In b/w as anyone heard of USCICS picking up 485 from later date and processing it or am i trying to be too pessimistic...???
Just want to make sure I analyze all pros/cons before making a decision.
Thanks ...
more...
ameryki
07-14 01:54 PM
my lawyer says... apply now.. dont know what will be situ in october.. it might go forward.. backward...my pd is 10/2003.
he says since my medicals are over.. all docs are ready ... so he says file and be part of lawsuit..
is this wise idea...if i say yes.. he will file by next week..
i already sent money for my wife...
my company is not covering my wife's expenses.
the lawyer is charing 600 for legal and 745 for filing...
are these
reasonable fees
What is the lawyer charging you for your wife's application for?? If I am not mistaken all they have to do is add your wife's information alongwith your filing stating you are married and show a copy of marriage certificate as proof. Am I right here people?
he says since my medicals are over.. all docs are ready ... so he says file and be part of lawsuit..
is this wise idea...if i say yes.. he will file by next week..
i already sent money for my wife...
my company is not covering my wife's expenses.
the lawyer is charing 600 for legal and 745 for filing...
are these
reasonable fees
What is the lawyer charging you for your wife's application for?? If I am not mistaken all they have to do is add your wife's information alongwith your filing stating you are married and show a copy of marriage certificate as proof. Am I right here people?
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Rb_newsletter
02-09 03:28 PM
These are blood sucking leeches playing with our emotions, just for the sake of few clicks on to their page.
The article is Dated Feb 11, 2010 and glorifying a half-hearted attempt in Dec 2009. GRRReattt:mad:
How does this 'Blog Feeds' work? Is there a way to filter these kind of dupicate/old news?
The article is Dated Feb 11, 2010 and glorifying a half-hearted attempt in Dec 2009. GRRReattt:mad:
How does this 'Blog Feeds' work? Is there a way to filter these kind of dupicate/old news?
more...
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needhelp!
08-30 05:33 PM
As IV grows up, we should have a hall of fame for folks like you who have shown continued support to the cause. I am here now because I am affected, but to be here after its all said and done, is greatness.
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pappu
07-30 10:25 AM
Pappu - I agree with you in totality that it is an opportunity wasted when people focus on the individual issues. But, after listening in on a couple of calls, I find the whole call to be not much of use as they always defer the question with 'we have asked the TSC to find out' or 'that is for the USCIS to answer'.
I appreciate a channel of communication and a watchdog for USCIS activities but when communicating regarding problems with USCIS, I see ombudsman's office as a level of indirection. They seem to identify problems, pass on as a report that gets nowhere or gets partially addressed.
If USCIS took cues and had allowed a conference call with the USCIS leadership directly, or if one of us (could be me but I need some ideas as to how to approach) could do such a thing, we could see far more benefit in gathering more significant problems and getting them answered.
I would rather hear the news from the 'horse's mouth' than listening to someone who barely has an influence. I would gladly stand corrected if history has shown otherwise.
USCIS leaders too have meetings where organizations can take part. But one has to go to DC and take part in them during office hours. IV has met with their leadership a few times for our admin fixes.
Other avenue to meet USCIS is via their state offices. I had passed this information to state chapter leaders many months ago so that they start building relationship with the office in each state assigned the task of interfacing with community groups like IV in each state. I know MI chapter had reported that they established contact but do not know if they pursued it further and if other chapters too succeeded in making progress.
These calls with Ombudsman are important because they are attended by USCS and probably other officials from DHS. It is a time to talk about policy matters, recommendations, response of these recommendations from USCIS, and delays in their implementation. That can help bring positive changes for everyone rather than questions about individual cases. Just my opinion.
I appreciate a channel of communication and a watchdog for USCIS activities but when communicating regarding problems with USCIS, I see ombudsman's office as a level of indirection. They seem to identify problems, pass on as a report that gets nowhere or gets partially addressed.
If USCIS took cues and had allowed a conference call with the USCIS leadership directly, or if one of us (could be me but I need some ideas as to how to approach) could do such a thing, we could see far more benefit in gathering more significant problems and getting them answered.
I would rather hear the news from the 'horse's mouth' than listening to someone who barely has an influence. I would gladly stand corrected if history has shown otherwise.
USCIS leaders too have meetings where organizations can take part. But one has to go to DC and take part in them during office hours. IV has met with their leadership a few times for our admin fixes.
Other avenue to meet USCIS is via their state offices. I had passed this information to state chapter leaders many months ago so that they start building relationship with the office in each state assigned the task of interfacing with community groups like IV in each state. I know MI chapter had reported that they established contact but do not know if they pursued it further and if other chapters too succeeded in making progress.
These calls with Ombudsman are important because they are attended by USCS and probably other officials from DHS. It is a time to talk about policy matters, recommendations, response of these recommendations from USCIS, and delays in their implementation. That can help bring positive changes for everyone rather than questions about individual cases. Just my opinion.
more...
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krishnam70
03-26 12:28 AM
My case details below:
EB3 INDIA
PD of Jul 2004.
I am still working for same GC sponsoring employer since last 5 years. I still perform the same job title/job duties as mentioned in labor.
My employer had mentioned a salary of 87,000$ in my labor. --> what does your H1 LCA say?
My 485 was filed way back in Sep 2004. OK
My 140 was approved way back in Nov 2004. GOOD
I have had 2 FPs done and 1 RFE replied to about 2 years ago. RFE was for EVL & TB Skin test.you are good here
2004 W2 – shows 74,000$/yr (Less than the salary mentioned in approved labor which is 87,000$) --> your current employment is on H1B/A or whatever you need to be worried about the salary mentioned there
2005 W2 – shows 57,000$/yrsame as above
2006 W2 – shows 50,000$/yrsame as above
2007 W2 – shows 58,000$/yrsame as above
2008 W2 – shows 67,000$/yrsame as above
Never changed employers nor job titles. good
My concerns and questions below:
Q1) Will my 485 approval be affected due to the W2’s as mentioned above showing less way less salary than mentioned in the labor. I still work for same employer with same job duties/title as mentioned in labor. YES if your salary is less than what is on your H1B/A LCA application if not then you should be fine
Q2) Am I safe because GC is intended for future job offer? If there is any issue with me getting less salary all these years than my labor petition then can my employer say the 87,000$/yr salary is after 485 approval? Will this suffice? Or am I in jeopardy here? same as above, GC is future job you will be fine
Q3) With my EB3-India Jul 2004 PD how much more long do you think I need to wait to see a 485 approval? My FBI name checks are cleared.only USCIS can tell
Q4) With June 2004 PD/EB3 India do you advise me at this stage after 5 years to switch to CP? How will it help? talk to an attorney
Q5) Would you advise me to start a brand new EB2 India labor and 140 considering my retrogressed eb3 India category and dates?you can try but i this current scenario it might be difficult to get PERM approved and then your company needs to prove you are eligible for EB2. If they can and you are eligible you can port your PD and you should be almost current.
Q6) I have been on bench for about 3 times (periods of 2 to 3 months) in the last several years witout pay. But I have always had EAD but never used EAD as I had H1B from same GC sponsoring employer. But I always got paid every year more than the prevailing LCA wage for my geographical location? Will this affect my GC? Technically there is nothing such as bench. You should get paid. However there seems to be an interpretation that in a current year if you get paid more than what is mentioned in your LCA(H1) you are safe. I would speak to an attorney about this.
Thanks.
- cheers
kris
EB3 INDIA
PD of Jul 2004.
I am still working for same GC sponsoring employer since last 5 years. I still perform the same job title/job duties as mentioned in labor.
My employer had mentioned a salary of 87,000$ in my labor. --> what does your H1 LCA say?
My 485 was filed way back in Sep 2004. OK
My 140 was approved way back in Nov 2004. GOOD
I have had 2 FPs done and 1 RFE replied to about 2 years ago. RFE was for EVL & TB Skin test.you are good here
2004 W2 – shows 74,000$/yr (Less than the salary mentioned in approved labor which is 87,000$) --> your current employment is on H1B/A or whatever you need to be worried about the salary mentioned there
2005 W2 – shows 57,000$/yrsame as above
2006 W2 – shows 50,000$/yrsame as above
2007 W2 – shows 58,000$/yrsame as above
2008 W2 – shows 67,000$/yrsame as above
Never changed employers nor job titles. good
My concerns and questions below:
Q1) Will my 485 approval be affected due to the W2’s as mentioned above showing less way less salary than mentioned in the labor. I still work for same employer with same job duties/title as mentioned in labor. YES if your salary is less than what is on your H1B/A LCA application if not then you should be fine
Q2) Am I safe because GC is intended for future job offer? If there is any issue with me getting less salary all these years than my labor petition then can my employer say the 87,000$/yr salary is after 485 approval? Will this suffice? Or am I in jeopardy here? same as above, GC is future job you will be fine
Q3) With my EB3-India Jul 2004 PD how much more long do you think I need to wait to see a 485 approval? My FBI name checks are cleared.only USCIS can tell
Q4) With June 2004 PD/EB3 India do you advise me at this stage after 5 years to switch to CP? How will it help? talk to an attorney
Q5) Would you advise me to start a brand new EB2 India labor and 140 considering my retrogressed eb3 India category and dates?you can try but i this current scenario it might be difficult to get PERM approved and then your company needs to prove you are eligible for EB2. If they can and you are eligible you can port your PD and you should be almost current.
Q6) I have been on bench for about 3 times (periods of 2 to 3 months) in the last several years witout pay. But I have always had EAD but never used EAD as I had H1B from same GC sponsoring employer. But I always got paid every year more than the prevailing LCA wage for my geographical location? Will this affect my GC? Technically there is nothing such as bench. You should get paid. However there seems to be an interpretation that in a current year if you get paid more than what is mentioned in your LCA(H1) you are safe. I would speak to an attorney about this.
Thanks.
- cheers
kris
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sunny1000
11-19 06:10 PM
Application Type: I485, APPLICATION TO REGISTER PERMANENT RESIDENCE OR TO ADJUST STATUS
Current Status: Case received and pending.
On October 14, 2007, we received this I485 APPLICATION TO REGISTER PERMANENT RESIDENCE OR TO ADJUST STATUS, and mailed you a notice describing how we will process your case. Please follow any instructions on this notice. We will notify you by mail when we make a decision or if we need something from you. If you move while this case is pending, call customer service. We process cases in the order we receive them. You can use our processing dates to estimate when yours will be done. This case is at our TEXAS SERVICE CENTER location. Follow the link below to check processing dates. You can also receive automatic e-mail updates as we process your case. Just follow the link below to register.
I have a question. Mine was filed on Aug 15th but, the online status says that it was received on 10/14. Is this common or is this in error? Should I call CS?
Thanks in advance.
Current Status: Case received and pending.
On October 14, 2007, we received this I485 APPLICATION TO REGISTER PERMANENT RESIDENCE OR TO ADJUST STATUS, and mailed you a notice describing how we will process your case. Please follow any instructions on this notice. We will notify you by mail when we make a decision or if we need something from you. If you move while this case is pending, call customer service. We process cases in the order we receive them. You can use our processing dates to estimate when yours will be done. This case is at our TEXAS SERVICE CENTER location. Follow the link below to check processing dates. You can also receive automatic e-mail updates as we process your case. Just follow the link below to register.
I have a question. Mine was filed on Aug 15th but, the online status says that it was received on 10/14. Is this common or is this in error? Should I call CS?
Thanks in advance.
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talash
12-17 08:24 PM
I was in kind of simmilar situation in April 08 .I found out online that my 140 /485 denied on april 18th .called my lawyer and statred counting days to find out why .Neither My attorney.employer or me got any denail notice till may 15 .meanwhile i had mad multiple call to NSC.finally I got denail notice on my home address thu it was supposed to go to attorney .Any was they asked for same things what they wanted from u .My employer was in process of audit but i had only 4 days to file MTR .
Now answers to ur quiries
1-Read denail notice they may give option of MTR .My MTR got approved in 2 months .I gues Apeal takes longer time
2-Can u send W-2 later? .what i did at that time was called NSC to ask .They said take info pass n go to local offive .i had 4 days .took info pass same day n drove about 150 mils to local office .There head of that place told me to file MTR with what ever u have and write them letter to buy more time for other docs and make sure u file MTR with in 30 days .
I sent unauditted statements but my W2 nad paystubs were way more then i was supposed to get .
Wish u luck
Now answers to ur quiries
1-Read denail notice they may give option of MTR .My MTR got approved in 2 months .I gues Apeal takes longer time
2-Can u send W-2 later? .what i did at that time was called NSC to ask .They said take info pass n go to local offive .i had 4 days .took info pass same day n drove about 150 mils to local office .There head of that place told me to file MTR with what ever u have and write them letter to buy more time for other docs and make sure u file MTR with in 30 days .
I sent unauditted statements but my W2 nad paystubs were way more then i was supposed to get .
Wish u luck
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ek_akela
06-05 10:16 PM
can't make it to DC, made a contribution of 100$
Transaction ID: 9BC03733FT1686746
Transaction ID: 9BC03733FT1686746
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SirDuke
01-04 10:02 AM
Are Tweening Engines ok to use? TweenLite for instance?
purgan
11-11 10:32 AM
Randell,
Congratulations on getting the attention of the Times, and your tireless efforts in spreading word of the broken legal immigration system.
===
New York Times
Immigration, a Love Story
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/12/fashion/12green.html
WHEN Kenneth Harrell Jr., an Assemblies of God minister in South Carolina, invited Gricelda Molina to join his Spanish ministry in 2000, it didn’t take him long to realize he had found the woman he had been waiting for. On the telephone and during romantic strolls they talked about their goals, their commitment to God and how many children each would like to have. Six months flew by, and he asked her to marry him.
“She’s a beautiful woman with a beautiful spirit, very gentle, very sincere,” Mr. Harrell said. But Ms. Molina, a factory worker, was also an undocumented immigrant from Honduras, who had crossed into the United States twice, having once been deported. Mr. Harrell, the pastor of Airport Assembly of God church in West Columbia, said he was not too concerned. “Whatever came, we would walk through this path together,” he said.
Mr. Harrell and Ms. Molina, both 35, married in 2001, in a large wedding attended by family from both sides and blessed by pastors in English and Spanish. But the Harrells no longer live together, not because of divorce, but because Mrs. Harrell, now the mother of two sons and four months pregnant with their third child, has been deported. She had applied for legal residency, or a green card, with her new husband as her sponsor, Mr. Harrell said, but she was sent back to Honduras 20 months ago because of her illegal entries and told she would have to wait 10 years to try again.
“Illegals are pouring over the border,” said Mr. Harrell, who has visited his family five times. “We meet them, we fall in love with them, we marry them. And then the government tears your family apart, and they take no responsibility for letting them in, in the first place.”
Falling in love and marching toward marriage is not always easy, but a particular brand of heartache and hardship can await when one of the partners is in this country illegally. The uncertainty of such a union has only been heightened by the national debate over illegal immigration. Whether the new Democratic leadership in Congress will help people like the Harrells remains to be seen.
It is hard to quantify how many people find themselves in Mr. Harrell’s situation, but with stepped-up enforcement in recent years, deportations have increased, and so have fears of losing a loved one in that way. (There were 168,310 removals in 2005, compared with 108,000 in 2000, immigration officials said.)
And that is only one byproduct of love between two people with such uneven places in society, immigration lawyers say. Many relationships strain under the financial burden of hiring lawyers for what can turn into years of visiting government offices, producing pictures, tax records and other evidence of a legitimate marriage in the quest for legalization. And while instances of immigrants faking love for a green card are in the minority, according to immigration officials, some couples feel pressure to marry before they are ready, hoping that marriage will prevent a loved one’s deportation.
Raul Godinez, an immigration lawyer in Los Angeles, said: “I ask people, ‘How much do you love this person? Because immigration is going to test your marriage.’ If you don’t feel it’s going to be a strong marriage, I wouldn’t do it.”
Many people may still believe that obtaining legal status through marriage is easy, because of periodic reports of marriage scams. In a three-year investigation called Operation Newlywed Game, immigration and customs enforcement agents caught more than 40 suspects in California for allegedly orchestrating sham marriages between hundreds of Chinese or Vietnamese nationals and United States citizens. But such fraud occurs in only a minority of cases, federal officials said.
In reality, immigration lawyers said, marrying a citizen does not automatically entitle the spouse to a green card and is only the first step in a long bureaucratic journey. The lawyers noted that changes in the law in the last five years have made this legalization path increasingly difficult, one worth choosing only if true love is at stake. (Other routes include sponsorship by immediate family members or an employer.)
The Harrells said they had no idea how difficult it could be and were shocked when Mrs. Harrell’s application for permanent residence was turned down, leaving them only 12 days to prepare for her departure. In that time, Mr. Harrell said, they decided that the children, now 4 and 3, would go with her. So Mr. Harrell obtained passports for them, and the church held a farewell service.
“It was very traumatic,” he said. “Our whole world was crashing around us.”
In Yoro, in north central Honduras, where Mrs. Harrell and the children live with her parents, she said the older boy constantly asks for his father, begging, “Let’s go to my papa’s house.” She has coped with her own dejection, too. “I know how much work he has over there,” she said by telephone. “He needs his wife.”
But even in the best of circumstances, when an immigrant enters the country legally, couples may have to rearrange their lives and defer their dreams.
Paola Emery, a jewelry designer, and her husband, Randall Emery, a computer consultant in Philadelphia, said they delayed having children and buying a house for the nearly four years it took the government to complete a background check for Mrs. Emery, who had entered the country from Colombia with a tourist visa and applied for permanent residency after they married in 2002.
Mrs. Emery, 27, said lawyers advised them it was not wise for her to risk trouble by visiting her close-knit family in Colombia and then trying to re-enter this country. She said she was absent through weddings, illnesses and even the kidnapping and rescue of an uncle.
“I felt like I was in jail,” Mrs. Emery said.
Officials with the Citizenship and Immigration Services in the Homeland Security Department say that delays lasting years are rare, but some immigration lawyers say they see clients who wait three to four years for security clearance. Mrs. Emery and her husband, 34, sued Homeland Security over the delays, and she was finally cleared last May. By then Mr. Emery had helped form American Families United, a group of citizens who have sponsored immediate family members for immigration, and which advocates immigration-law change to keep families together. Immigration Services officials say they are not out to impede love or immigration. Nearly 260,000 spouses of citizens received permanent residency through marriage last year, out of 1.1 million people who became permanent residents, according to the Immigration Services office. “The goal is to give people who are eligible the benefit,” said Marie T. Sebrechts, its spokeswoman in Southern California. She said the agency does not comment on individual cases.
When a legal immigrant is sponsored by an American spouse, she said, the green card can be obtained in as little as six months. But with complications like an illegal entry, laws are not that benevolent, Ms. Sebrechts said. In those cases, the immigrant usually must return to the home country and wait 3 to 10 years to apply for residency, though waivers are sometimes granted.
Such obstacles are far from the minds of couples when they meet. And for some, so is the idea to question whether the beloved feels equally in love with them.
Sharyn T. Sooho, a divorce lawyer and a founder of divorcenet.com, a Web site for divorcing couples, said she has represented American spouses who realized too late that the person they married was more interested in a green card than in living happily ever after. “They feel conflicted, used and abused,” she said. “It’s a quick marriage, and suddenly the person who was so sweet is turning into a nightmare.”
But more often, said Carlina Tapia-Ruano, the president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, couples marry before they are ready because “there’s fear that if you don’t do this, somebody is going to get deported.”
Krystal Rivera, 18, a college student in Los Angeles, and her boyfriend fall into this group. Ms. Rivera is set on marrying in April 2008, even as she worries that it may put too much pressure on the relationship.
“I never wanted to follow the Hispanic ritual of getting married early,” said Ms. Rivera, a native of Los Angeles whose parents emigrated from Mexico.
She said she fell in love at 13 with a Mexican-born boy who sang in the church choir with her. “He started poking me, and I said ‘Stop it!’ ” she remembered.
Ms. Rivera is still in love with the boy, now 19, who was brought into the country illegally by his mother when he was 12. He goes to college and wants to become a teacher, while she hopes to become a doctor.
But for those plans to work, Ms. Rivera said, she needs to help him legalize his status. She said she has witnessed his frustration as he dealt with employers who didn’t pay what they owed him or struggled to find better jobs than his current one as a line cook. Because of his illegal status, he is unable to get a driver’s license or visit the brothers he left in Mexico. “We want to be normal,” Ms. Rivera said.
The Harrells, too, have decided to take charge. After months of exploring how to reunite the family and spending thousands of dollars on lawyers, Mr. Harrell has decided to leave his small congregation, sell his house and join his wife in Honduras. He will be a missionary for his church for a fraction of the $40,000 a year he makes as a minister.
Congratulations on getting the attention of the Times, and your tireless efforts in spreading word of the broken legal immigration system.
===
New York Times
Immigration, a Love Story
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/12/fashion/12green.html
WHEN Kenneth Harrell Jr., an Assemblies of God minister in South Carolina, invited Gricelda Molina to join his Spanish ministry in 2000, it didn’t take him long to realize he had found the woman he had been waiting for. On the telephone and during romantic strolls they talked about their goals, their commitment to God and how many children each would like to have. Six months flew by, and he asked her to marry him.
“She’s a beautiful woman with a beautiful spirit, very gentle, very sincere,” Mr. Harrell said. But Ms. Molina, a factory worker, was also an undocumented immigrant from Honduras, who had crossed into the United States twice, having once been deported. Mr. Harrell, the pastor of Airport Assembly of God church in West Columbia, said he was not too concerned. “Whatever came, we would walk through this path together,” he said.
Mr. Harrell and Ms. Molina, both 35, married in 2001, in a large wedding attended by family from both sides and blessed by pastors in English and Spanish. But the Harrells no longer live together, not because of divorce, but because Mrs. Harrell, now the mother of two sons and four months pregnant with their third child, has been deported. She had applied for legal residency, or a green card, with her new husband as her sponsor, Mr. Harrell said, but she was sent back to Honduras 20 months ago because of her illegal entries and told she would have to wait 10 years to try again.
“Illegals are pouring over the border,” said Mr. Harrell, who has visited his family five times. “We meet them, we fall in love with them, we marry them. And then the government tears your family apart, and they take no responsibility for letting them in, in the first place.”
Falling in love and marching toward marriage is not always easy, but a particular brand of heartache and hardship can await when one of the partners is in this country illegally. The uncertainty of such a union has only been heightened by the national debate over illegal immigration. Whether the new Democratic leadership in Congress will help people like the Harrells remains to be seen.
It is hard to quantify how many people find themselves in Mr. Harrell’s situation, but with stepped-up enforcement in recent years, deportations have increased, and so have fears of losing a loved one in that way. (There were 168,310 removals in 2005, compared with 108,000 in 2000, immigration officials said.)
And that is only one byproduct of love between two people with such uneven places in society, immigration lawyers say. Many relationships strain under the financial burden of hiring lawyers for what can turn into years of visiting government offices, producing pictures, tax records and other evidence of a legitimate marriage in the quest for legalization. And while instances of immigrants faking love for a green card are in the minority, according to immigration officials, some couples feel pressure to marry before they are ready, hoping that marriage will prevent a loved one’s deportation.
Raul Godinez, an immigration lawyer in Los Angeles, said: “I ask people, ‘How much do you love this person? Because immigration is going to test your marriage.’ If you don’t feel it’s going to be a strong marriage, I wouldn’t do it.”
Many people may still believe that obtaining legal status through marriage is easy, because of periodic reports of marriage scams. In a three-year investigation called Operation Newlywed Game, immigration and customs enforcement agents caught more than 40 suspects in California for allegedly orchestrating sham marriages between hundreds of Chinese or Vietnamese nationals and United States citizens. But such fraud occurs in only a minority of cases, federal officials said.
In reality, immigration lawyers said, marrying a citizen does not automatically entitle the spouse to a green card and is only the first step in a long bureaucratic journey. The lawyers noted that changes in the law in the last five years have made this legalization path increasingly difficult, one worth choosing only if true love is at stake. (Other routes include sponsorship by immediate family members or an employer.)
The Harrells said they had no idea how difficult it could be and were shocked when Mrs. Harrell’s application for permanent residence was turned down, leaving them only 12 days to prepare for her departure. In that time, Mr. Harrell said, they decided that the children, now 4 and 3, would go with her. So Mr. Harrell obtained passports for them, and the church held a farewell service.
“It was very traumatic,” he said. “Our whole world was crashing around us.”
In Yoro, in north central Honduras, where Mrs. Harrell and the children live with her parents, she said the older boy constantly asks for his father, begging, “Let’s go to my papa’s house.” She has coped with her own dejection, too. “I know how much work he has over there,” she said by telephone. “He needs his wife.”
But even in the best of circumstances, when an immigrant enters the country legally, couples may have to rearrange their lives and defer their dreams.
Paola Emery, a jewelry designer, and her husband, Randall Emery, a computer consultant in Philadelphia, said they delayed having children and buying a house for the nearly four years it took the government to complete a background check for Mrs. Emery, who had entered the country from Colombia with a tourist visa and applied for permanent residency after they married in 2002.
Mrs. Emery, 27, said lawyers advised them it was not wise for her to risk trouble by visiting her close-knit family in Colombia and then trying to re-enter this country. She said she was absent through weddings, illnesses and even the kidnapping and rescue of an uncle.
“I felt like I was in jail,” Mrs. Emery said.
Officials with the Citizenship and Immigration Services in the Homeland Security Department say that delays lasting years are rare, but some immigration lawyers say they see clients who wait three to four years for security clearance. Mrs. Emery and her husband, 34, sued Homeland Security over the delays, and she was finally cleared last May. By then Mr. Emery had helped form American Families United, a group of citizens who have sponsored immediate family members for immigration, and which advocates immigration-law change to keep families together. Immigration Services officials say they are not out to impede love or immigration. Nearly 260,000 spouses of citizens received permanent residency through marriage last year, out of 1.1 million people who became permanent residents, according to the Immigration Services office. “The goal is to give people who are eligible the benefit,” said Marie T. Sebrechts, its spokeswoman in Southern California. She said the agency does not comment on individual cases.
When a legal immigrant is sponsored by an American spouse, she said, the green card can be obtained in as little as six months. But with complications like an illegal entry, laws are not that benevolent, Ms. Sebrechts said. In those cases, the immigrant usually must return to the home country and wait 3 to 10 years to apply for residency, though waivers are sometimes granted.
Such obstacles are far from the minds of couples when they meet. And for some, so is the idea to question whether the beloved feels equally in love with them.
Sharyn T. Sooho, a divorce lawyer and a founder of divorcenet.com, a Web site for divorcing couples, said she has represented American spouses who realized too late that the person they married was more interested in a green card than in living happily ever after. “They feel conflicted, used and abused,” she said. “It’s a quick marriage, and suddenly the person who was so sweet is turning into a nightmare.”
But more often, said Carlina Tapia-Ruano, the president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, couples marry before they are ready because “there’s fear that if you don’t do this, somebody is going to get deported.”
Krystal Rivera, 18, a college student in Los Angeles, and her boyfriend fall into this group. Ms. Rivera is set on marrying in April 2008, even as she worries that it may put too much pressure on the relationship.
“I never wanted to follow the Hispanic ritual of getting married early,” said Ms. Rivera, a native of Los Angeles whose parents emigrated from Mexico.
She said she fell in love at 13 with a Mexican-born boy who sang in the church choir with her. “He started poking me, and I said ‘Stop it!’ ” she remembered.
Ms. Rivera is still in love with the boy, now 19, who was brought into the country illegally by his mother when he was 12. He goes to college and wants to become a teacher, while she hopes to become a doctor.
But for those plans to work, Ms. Rivera said, she needs to help him legalize his status. She said she has witnessed his frustration as he dealt with employers who didn’t pay what they owed him or struggled to find better jobs than his current one as a line cook. Because of his illegal status, he is unable to get a driver’s license or visit the brothers he left in Mexico. “We want to be normal,” Ms. Rivera said.
The Harrells, too, have decided to take charge. After months of exploring how to reunite the family and spending thousands of dollars on lawyers, Mr. Harrell has decided to leave his small congregation, sell his house and join his wife in Honduras. He will be a missionary for his church for a fraction of the $40,000 a year he makes as a minister.
pachai_attai
08-17 07:58 AM
sajimm, I was in similar situation like yours. During Dec 2004, Our doctor directly took xray test instead of TB skin test. Thats the reason I got NOID on 07/20/07.
I submitted my new 693 along with new TB skin test result and the case processing resumes on 08/15. The LUD is changing every day after that.
I submitted my new 693 along with new TB skin test result and the case processing resumes on 08/15. The LUD is changing every day after that.
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