Will this candidate have a chance at a legal status?

[Kris & Liezl 3]

Wow, and he's made it nice and easy for the officials to find him too, with that paper trail he's worked so hard to establish in the last 15+ years. He'd better start sleeping in running shoes - as he'll never know when that red flag is going to pop up on their radar!

In all seriousness, you should probably start learning the language of the country you are going to be deported to (if you don't know it), make friends and find support groups in that place ahead of time and email that info to yourself (while you have convenient access to the Internet), and make sure your money is somewhere where you will have access to it in that country. At least then you won't be so lost when you get there. Good Luck!

[Brother Hesekiel 2,235]

VJ User,

this thread is drifting in a direction that will make it difficult to continue. I am willing to have a one-on-one with you, but we have to take this off the air. P.M. me and we take it from there.

[Casprd 167]

Correct me if I'm wrong but I thought overstay can be only forgiven if your spouse is USC. The OP mentioned earlier that his mother became a USC and they want to start family-based petition. If he wants to be petitioned by his mother and AOS in the US then he needs to maintain legal status. He failed to do this so his mother cannot apply for his AOS. Hence the whole discussion about false citizenship in his case is completely futile. Does not matter. To get a green card through his USC mother he would have to leave the US which would trigger 10-year ban anyway. I know 10 years does not equal a lifetime ban for misrepresentation but still - no GC in the near future for him.

Unless his wife is USC...

This issue is much deeper than just an overstay. And even if he was trying to adjust based on marriage he would still have the problems of claiming to be a USC. This is not a 10 year ban but a lifetime ban.

[A and T 82]

The made it this long, he might as well stay and enjoy. Its much cheaper and easier than waiting on USCIS the proper way. Take a look at my timeline for example

[Casprd 167]

Return to my home country at the age of 11?

So the friend really is you. As with so many others who are in an illegal status, you're spending a lot of time and energy trying to convince everyone on VJ why your activities should be forgiven. But we are not the ones you have to convince. US immigrations is who you have to convince and as you have been told countless times, the fact that you claimed to be a US citizen numerous times since the age of 18, you now face a lifetime ban. Sorry if that is not what you want to hear, but that is a fact and you can't change it. At this point you have two choices. Return to your home country and try to make a life there or continue to live here illegally an hope you don't get caught. Personally I hope you return to your home. People doing things like what you are doing are what makes it so much harder for the rest of us who follow the rules and do things legally.

[nurse1967 287]

People like this guy piss me off. They come here illegally then try to lie, steal and cheat their way into being able to stay. Go home. It's people like you who ruin it for everyone.

[Messybrownhair 251]

People like this guy piss me off. They come here illegally then try to lie, steal and cheat their way into being able to stay. Go home. It's people like you who ruin it for everyone.

I so agree to this.. Everyone here has given up thousands of dollars, time and patience to do things legally.

Nevertheless, I wish you all the best. I am sure your home country is not so bad

[Myopia 93]

He came to the US legally. He overstayed because of his parents actions.

OP-I feel kinda sorry for you because you have asked the same questions on other forums and you got the same answer.

You were also being rather unhelpful with the information too.

Bottom line is you have created a paper trail pertaining to your false USC claims and there really isnt too much you can do to circumvent that reality.

Sorry.

[Daniel&Theary 30]

How did he get social security card and drivers license on a tourist visa? Did he lie and say he was citizen that would be the only way to get them. They will check those 2 so looking at a life time ban. No matter the reason do not lie to the government it will come back to haunt you. To many people try to do it legal and are dragged trough hell and back so not many people have sympathy for people who do it illegal. You can keep asking questions does not change the fact they claimed to be a citizen when they were not.

[Daniel&Theary 30]

If the Immigration Reform passes then the law can be changed right?

I would not hold my breath for reform laws it a touchy subject and with an election coming up I doubt it will get much more play until after the 2012 election if any at all.

[jj789 0]

VJ User

Since it was already stated on this Thread that "None of Us are Lawyers" My suggestion is if you can afford it, is to asked for Legal Advice or Hire a Lawyer. They can help you more than we can. I hired a lawyer through my immigration process and although at times I had my doubts about hiring a lawyer in the end I was glad I did. I know this is not a popular belief in this forum, but in your situation the best advice is Legal Advice, not from a forum.

Edited May 6, 2011 by jj789

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

VJ User

Since it was already stated on this Thread that "None of Us are Lawyers" My suggestion is if you can afford it, is to asked for Legal Advice or Hire a Lawyer. They can help you more than we can. I hired a lawyer through my immigration process and although at times I had my doubts about hiring a lawyer in the end I was glad I did. I know this is not a popular belief in this forum, but in your situation the best advice is Legal Advice, not from a forum.

Au contraire! Though this is primarily a self-help website, when someone has a difficult immigration situation then the people on this forum regularly advise the counsel of a good immigration attorney. This is sound advice!

I would suggest one additional proviso: Be a very proactive client. Tell your attorney everything - and I mean everything - about your situation. A lawyer's guidance can change dramatically based on tiny but critical tidbits of information. It also infuriates them if they get hit with a surprise that their client knew all along. In addition, educate yourself as much as possible about the relevant laws. At every step of the way, you should know exactly what you're attorney is doing and why they are doing it. If something doesn't seem right then confront them on it, and make sure you agree with them before they proceed. Also, insist on reviewing any document or form they plan to submit before they submit it. You know the facts about your case better than they do, so you must help insure they get the details right.

Finally, expect that an attorney is going to blow a little smoke up your tailpipe. An attorney will frequently try to give you hope when there is none because, frankly, a client in trouble is their best source of revenue.

[HeatDeath 430]

I don't believe in immigration lawyers at all for normal cases, but for a case like this, I agree emphatically. OP has ZERO chances of getting through this without a lawyer. Unfortunately, he only has epsilon (as close to zero as possible without actually being zero) chance of making it through even with a lawyer.

OP: Beware of any lawyer who tells you that this will in any way be easy or even close to guaranteed. There are lots of unscrupulous lawyers who will take hopeless cases, puff up the clients with a lot of confident talk, and string them along until they run out of money and/or are deported.

Unfortunately, in this case, the offense is so blatant, and the law so clear cut, I can't even imagine what sequence of steps a lawyer could do to get you out of this. And the above posters are correct - immigration reform won't ever help you either. Immigration reform may eventually provide a path for current illegals to become legal residents, because that is in a lot of people's interests (agricultural employers, etc). There is no group of people who's interests are served by making it legal to - or forgiving people who have - falsely claim[ed] US citizenship.

[HeatDeath 430]

Au contraire! Though this is primarily a self-help website, when someone has a difficult immigration situation then the people on this forum regularly advise the counsel of a good immigration attorney. This is sound advice!

I would suggest one additional proviso: Be a very proactive client. Tell your attorney everything - and I mean everything - about your situation. A lawyer's guidance can change dramatically based on tiny but critical tidbits of information. It also infuriates them if they get hit with a surprise that their client knew all along. In addition, educate yourself as much as possible about the relevant laws. At every step of the way, you should know exactly what you're attorney is doing and why they are doing it. If something doesn't seem right then confront them on it, and make sure you agree with them before they proceed. Also, insist on reviewing any document or form they plan to submit before they submit it. You know the facts about your case better than they do, so you must help insure they get the details right.

Finally, expect that an attorney is going to blow a little smoke up your tailpipe. An attorney will frequently try to give you hope when there is none because, frankly, a client in trouble is their best source of revenue.

Agreed emphatically!

I've said this before and I'll say it again:

Your lawyer should be able to tell you, at every step of the way, what they are doing, what the possible outcomes are, give you a good estimate of the relative probabilities of each possible outcome, and tell you what the next step would be for each possible outcome. In doing so your lawyer should be able to map out for you, not just a possible path to a GC, but EVERY possible path to a GC (and all other reasonably realistic possible outcomes).

If your lawyer can't or won't do this, you need another lawyer.

Edited May 6, 2011 by HeatDeath

[Aztec&Taino 144]

What happens if the Immigration Reform passes and/or Dream Act?

It has not passed and, in my opinion, there is very little chance it will pass in the short to midterm future...