I want to come home!!

[snowball 0]

Ok, I am new to this so please do tell me if I have made a mistake in posting this in the wrong place or what not. I was researching everything on my own and came across this forum.

Anyway, this is my situation; My husband was deported from the US in October 2005. He was in the US on a student visa and violated his visa by working, he went through a court case and the verdict was that he would be given voluntary departure, and had to leave within 120 days. He did not leave and stayed in the the states for more than a year over the allotted 120 days given, then he was picked up at our home by INS in July 2005. He was detained in various facilities before he was actually deported because he had to wait for his flight. We were already married at the time, we were married on May 3rd 2004.

He was deported back to Pakistan (his home country) and I came over here to be with him. Now we have a child and have been here in Pakistan together for 4 years and three months. We cannot afford a lawyer, but the situation over here has escalated and I feel that me and my husband and son are no longer safe living here. There are bombings and threats everyday.

I am an American citizen by birth, I understand that the first step is filing the 1-212 and I-601, can anyone tell me what else I can do? I do not have any documents of his Where can I find his files, I know I have to file a FOIA, but where do I file for his deportation and court case stuff? How long does the I-212 and 601 process take? How often are the declined (I cannot afford to take chances and it be declined). What are the next steps after filing I-212 and 601 if they are accepted, and what are the steps if they are declined?

[Tinh ve noi dau 0]

Ok, I am new to this so please do tell me if I have made a mistake in posting this in the wrong place or what not. I was researching everything on my own and came across this forum.

Anyway, this is my situation; My husband was deported from the US in October 2005. He was in the US on a student visa and violated his visa by working, he went through a court case and the verdict was that he would be given voluntary departure, and had to leave within 120 days. He did not leave and stayed in the the states for more than a year over the allotted 120 days given, then he was picked up at our home by INS in July 2005. He was detained in various facilities before he was actually deported because he had to wait for his flight. We were already married at the time, we were married on May 3rd 2004.

He was deported back to Pakistan (his home country) and I came over here to be with him. Now we have a child and have been here in Pakistan together for 4 years and three months. We cannot afford a lawyer, but the situation over here has escalated and I feel that me and my husband and son are no longer safe living here. There are bombings and threats everyday.

I am an American citizen by birth, I understand that the first step is filing the 1-212 and I-601, can anyone tell me what else I can do? I do not have any documents of his Where can I find his files, I know I have to file a FOIA, but where do I file for his deportation and court case stuff? How long does the I-212 and 601 process take? How often are the declined (I cannot afford to take chances and it be declined). What are the next steps after filing I-212 and 601 if they are accepted, and what are the steps if they are declined?

[Tinh ve noi dau 0]

That is too bad u r in this situation, i used to work for the INS as a interpreter, I have seen case in the past that people got deport, chances are they will never be able to come back to USA again. base on what u said ealier ]He did not leave and stayed in the the states for more than a year over the allotted 120 days given, then he was picked up at our home by INS INS takes seriously on immigration fraud, once u r on the black list u will be on the list for good. I hope u can find what good immigration lawyer.

good luck

[snowball 0]

By filing the I-212 we will be able find out if he is on the black list though right? Or is there something else I can file or do in order to find out? I believe he only has a 10year bar, but how do I confirm that?

[Penguin_ie 5,986]

Did he get any paperwork, or still have the passport he used at the time? It may say there what exactly he was charged with and/ or how long his ban is for. It should be for ten years (as more than one year of overstay), and those ten years start from the day he left the USA. However, if he lied during the deportation proceedings or has been charged with anything criminal, he may have gotten a lifetime ban.

What you would need to do is file a I-130 via DCF (ie directly with the embassy). Once that is approved, he can apply for a visa (IR-1 spousal visa). At the interview, he will be denied due to the overstay, and then you can file the waiver.

[Lia792 5]

By filing the I-212 we will be able find out if he is on the black list though right? Or is there something else I can file or do in order to find out? I believe he only has a 10year bar, but how do I confirm that?

I suggest you check out http://immigrate2us.net/forum/index.php. There is another forum that I can't remember right now that also has a lot of waiver people. (There are two separate ones dealing with Mexico that might be helpful for you as well since people on those forums seem pretty knowlegeable about waivers and overstays.) As far as I understand, you have to do the entire IR-1 process (I-130), then you get denied automatically, then you apply for a waiver, they tell you if you are eligible to apply for a waiver and how long the ban is if there is one. It sounds like you could draft a pretty good hardship letter from the situation. Good luck!

[sachinky 464]

You can file through DCF since you both are living in Pakistan. Have a strong hardship waiver package ready because the case will be denied at the interview stage.

Your case is far too complicated to proceed without an attorney.

Does he have a 10-year ban or a lifetime ban? The problem is that he not only violated his student visa regulations, he also ignored a voluntary departure order.

Yours is an uphill battle. Good luck.

Edited December 29, 2009 by sachinky

[Chica Yeyé 41]

Indeed, prepare yourself for an uphill battle. I understand you have limited resources, but a good immigration attorney specializing in waivers is a must.

Ignoring a voluntary departure order is -besides a really uncool thing- a blatant disregard for the immigration laws of the US, which is not something USCIS looks upon with much love or forgiveness. I am looking at this from the perspective of USCIS, and it does not look good.

Begin gathering your evidence (both for the I-130 AND the waivers), and make sure you form a really strong package --- specially if you cannot afford a lawyer. Good luck,

[momof1 205]

That is too bad u r in this situation, i used to work for the INS as a interpreter, I have seen case in the past that people got deport, chances are they will never be able to come back to USA again. base on what u said ealier ]He did not leave and stayed in the the states for more than a year over the allotted 120 days given, then he was picked up at our home by INS INS takes seriously on immigration fraud, once u r on the black list u will be on the list for good. I hope u can find what good immigration lawyer.

good luck

Very very bad advice.

where was there any instance of fraud???? They violated the terms of their visa. This is not going to be considered fraud for immigration purposes. Also, applying for entry into the US within 10 years of a deportation requires the filing of an I-212 permission to reapply after deportation or removal. It's not a forever ban.

The biggest issue as I see it for the OP is that they are considered a deportation absconder because they violated teh terms of their voluntary departure. Technically, unlawful presence and deportation can be overcome by filing 601 and 212 waivers. The violation of the voluntary departure is HUGE negative factor in their case. In addition to proving exteme hardship, they will have to show that the positive factors in their case outweigh the negative ones.

We overcame a true lifetime inadmissibility earlier this year. My husband was allowed to return to the US after 27 months separation from our family. His ban was based on fraudulent entry, visa overstay, and deportation. It can be done, but it takes stellar hardships and a well documented case.

For the OP, one of our main hardships was the threat of terrorism. I credit our approval on our son's very serious congenital heart condition for which he had already underwent open heart surgery. I'm just not sure if country conditions in Pakistan will be enough to overcome those inadmissibilities. I'm not a lawyer though so that's not my call.

I suggest you contact a lawyer ASAP. Laurel Scott is the premier immigration attorney in the country for waivers of inadmissibility. She can be found at www.scottimmigration.net. Be aware that her fees are extremely high. Good service comes at a price. You can also get in touch with Lizz Cannon of boston who used to work with and was trained by Laurel at www.lizzcannonlaw.com She is currently offering free consultations. Anna Maria Schwartz at www.amschwartzlaw.com and Heather Poole of www.humanrightsattorney.com are also good choices.

[mrs.jayb 0]

Maybe you could move somewhere besides the US, until things calm down in Pakistan.

[sara..... 371]

Maybe you could move somewhere besides the US, until things calm down in Pakistan.

for many pakistani that have never been to the usa to get deported from it going to any country is not even a possibility for this man it will be simply impossible...

you have received excellent advise on how to proceed.....i know that its hard and money is prolly short.....hopefully you have some family members that will help you with the finance part of getting a good attorney

i have already added you and your family to our prayers.......may God guide you and help you

sara

[emt103c 10]

momof1 is right.

As for the other advice, DCF is definitely the fastest way to proceed, but unless you are considered a RESIDENT legally in Pakistan, you will not be eligible to do so. There are people who've lived in Pak for years and still were not eligible to do DCF. You can find information on that process here

The link they provided to www.immigrate2us.net will also provide priceless to you. There is a lot of information there, sometimes attorney authored, on the process and requirements in case you really cannot swing an attorney at all. Please do your homework while the I-130 is processing, you won't have to file the waivers until the interview.

[snowball 0]

Sorry I changed my screen name because I used my usual screen name a my husband did not want people to find out that he was deported, so if someone would have googled my name then they would find my posts from here... Just thought I would explain a bit. I belong to a different forum (family forum) and people always get mad about people changing their screen names, but I promise it will not happen again!!!

anyway, I really appreciate the help you all have given me!! Some of you have restored my hope! I do have another question though.

We have already been here for a bit more than 4 years, would it be better to just wait out the 6 remaining years? I really do not want to do that but if the paperwork will take more than 4 years to complete, then I might as well not waste the money and just wait for the 6 years to go by, right? I am pretty sure that he has a 10 year ban, but how would I find out if that is for sure? And what would the process be after the 10 years are over? Would I just have to file for a visa normally or would I have to file the I-212? But I would not have to file the I-601 right because then the 10 years would be over? Sorry if I sound like an idiot, but I really am when it comes to immigration things!

Momof1-- did it only take 27 months all together for you to file? I am sorry about your son's heart condition, I am glad that INS had mercy for your son! I really do not want to stay here for another 6 years, and I seriously do not have enough money to hire a lawyer, I barely have enough money to file the papers, we make less than $1,000 a month combined income. Do you have a rough estimate of how much you spent on everything, during the process of filling papers?

ETA: I am a legal resident of Pakistan I have a Pakistan Overseas Origin Card (I think that is right)

Edited January 1, 2010 by snowball

[momof1 205]

Momof1-- did it only take 27 months all together for you to file? I am sorry about your son's heart condition, I am glad that INS had mercy for your son! I really do not want to stay here for another 6 years, and I seriously do not have enough money to hire a lawyer, I barely have enough money to file the papers, we make less than $1,000 a month combined income. Do you have a rough estimate of how much you spent on everything, during the process of filling papers?

I filed the I-130 in February 2003 and he received his Green card in August 2009...so for us the entire process took about 6.5 years. Our case is complicated though because my husband was in the middle of asylum proceedings when we got married, and it took 2.5 years for the I-130 approval. We held off on the consular processing for a while to see what happened with my husband's asylum, but in the end he was deported during his appeals.

The 27 months was how long he was gone from deportation to returning back to the US. We got held up at NVC for a year waiting for a police clearance from Turkey so they would not schedule our interview at the US embassy in Algeria. His interview was two months after they received it, his visa was denied, and we turned in the 601/212 waivers with all evidence the same day. Background checks took approx 3 months before the file was sent to Rome where a decision was made. From the time Rome received the file until a decision was made was about 6 months. The file went back to Algeria and his visa was issued after redoing medical and police certificates in Algeria.

It's hard for me to give you a number for how much we spent because it was probably around $25k including all of the asylum stuff and appeals.

When we filed I-130 in 2003 it was $140 but now it is close to $400

NVC stages was $450 if I remember correctly

601 and 212 waivers were $545 each

doing Medical twice $ -????

Lawyer fees- $5000

I would say, in total, that the waiver process cost us about $7000.

Hope that was helpful as I know the direct consular filing is a bit different. If you have any other questions, I will try my best to answer them.

[emt103c 10]

You should go ahead and file. Since you are there legally you will be able to DCF which is REALLY fast. . . after that, the waiver for ISL has been going through New Delhi lately and taking less than 6 months to process.