Married on Tourist Visa

[cactus john 1]

Cactus John, why don't you start your own thread so people can advise accordingly and keep things separate. I also see you replied to an old thread in the Tourist visa section. Hopefully a mod will split the topics.

Without knowing anymore information, if your wife was not planning to stay when she entered on her tourist visa, you can apply for her Adjustment of Status by filing a concurrent 130/485 petition. Here is the guide:

http://www.visajourney.com/content/i130guide2

I'm sorry...

[esoj 0]

You said you don't know the difference between a B1 and a B2, but like Harpa Timsa I would assume that your wife entered without a visa, purely based on the fact that you stated she got only 90 days to stay. You never confirmed that (unless I totally overlooked it), but it would be important to actually open her passport and look for a visa.

If there's a B1 or B2 visa in there, you guys can take a deep breath, as any potential overstay will not be made an issue of at the Adjustment of Status (AOS) from non-immigrant to immigrant.

If your wife does not have a visa, and also in light of your quicky marriage, you are looking at 2 options:

1) File an I-130 petition (petition for an alien relative) this week. Have your wife return to Her Majesty's Kingdom before December 16th. Once the I-130 is approved, your wife can apply for a CR-1 visa. Once issued, she enters the US as a Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR) and receives her Green Card a couple of weeks later in the mail. No AOS, no headaches, no fear of dire consequences.

2) Find somebody competent in AOS issues and get your I-130, I-485 and I-765 out ASAP via USPS Express Mail.

Don't make a mistake, don't forget anything, don't enclose a check that doesn't have the exact amount and you should be fine, as long as the petition is being accepted in time.

If that doesn't happen and your wife overstays for a few days, heck . . . even stays until after Christmas and New Year's . . . no big deal. The overstay would prevent her from entering the US again without a visa, but when it comes to the CR-1, it won't have an impact as long as no 180-day overstay would trigger a 3-year bar. Needless to say, while out of status, your wife should keep a low profile, not being arrested for doing' fireworks on New Year's Eve and not trying to visit Niagara Falls.

Good luck.

Hello Just Bob,

I was reading blogs and looking for something like this. I applied for 1-485, 1-130, AP, EAD. Already married to a USC (USC for one year). We were married for 4 years already. We just processed the papers this November. I am allowed to stay here till March. I will be doing my 2nd biometrics on January. I'm afraid the processing of the papers may take long. I'm worried if I need to file an extension since I might be out of status. Should I file for an extension so I will not have a bad record which may affect my application? Any feedback would help thanks.

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

You do not need an extension. Once your application was accepted, you entered into a NEW period of authorized stay. Your I-94 is irrelevant now. Your current status is "AOS-pending." Your authorized stay will last until they make a decision on your case.

Note: This is an old thread. It's best to make a new thread to get answers to your questions

[esoj 0]

You do not need an extension. Once your application was accepted, you entered into a NEW period of authorized stay. Your I-94 is irrelevant now. Your current status is "AOS-pending." Your authorized stay will last until they make a decision on your case.

Note: This is an old thread. It's best to make a new thread to get answers to your questions

thank you Harpa! I have been posting and replying to threads in a different forum in visa journey. There wasn't any replies so questions I posted here. Anyways, I saw this forum has members with a lot of information given. I read your blogs it was very informative. I was afraid I was going to get into trouble because I filed last November. My father was in the hospital two weeks ago and I asked for an interview with an immigration officer asking if my AP can be expedited. She was quite upset why I wanted to go out of the country since I had an intention of staying here. I explained my father was gravely ill and I wanted to see him. My visa was questioned since it was B1. She photocopied it and told me it was sketchy. Since I got a B1 even my hubby is USC. Told me I need to produce documents that would prove my relation to the person I need to see and why it is an emergency. The week after after that I got the letter to repeat my biometrics.

[Kathryn41 3,205]

Post and responses split from this older thread can now be found here: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/296486-advised-to-file-aos-by-helpline-problems-can-i-use-vwp-to-return/

Edited February 20, 2011 by Kathryn41