A little confused on which is the best option

[JohnMc 0]

Hello Me and my Fiancee are looking for some advice on which route to take, and if we should seek the help of an immigration lawyer or just attempt to do it ourselves. So here is our background

I am US citizen born in California. When I was 12 my family moved to mexico were i have lived the past 14 years, I met my fiancee Lily who is a Mexican citizen 10 years ago and have been together ever since. She has had a b1/b2 tourist visa for about 9 years. we have a 6 year old daughter that was born in Arizona while we were on vacation. All medical bills were paid and we returned to mexico. We have been avoiding getting married because of all the legal hoops and what not.

after 12 years in mexico, 7 months ago i got a new job and I moved back to the U.S.. Lily comes and has extended visits as her visa allows for up to 6 months at a time. I we have several questions

1. Should we get married first?

2. If we should get married first should it be in Mexico or US?

3. Which type of visa would best suite our needs, and allow Lily to continue to stay in the U.S. be it on the new visa or her existing tourist visa

4. Money is tight, do you recomend we go through the added expense of hiring an imagration lawyer to file all the paperwork?

I would like to thank you in advanced for taking the time to assist through this very confusing proceess. Again Thank you

[AR y MD 1]

I'm in the same situation that you are in except the fact that my fiancee doesn't have visa

When i was talking to my lawyer she said that if he had visa we it would better to get married here because it would be easier to fix papers up for him

But since he didnt we went through the fiancee visa.

Here's the thing its up too u what road u want to take.

If u get married first and then do papers it takes about a year. But when they get approved they come in with there residency. My friend did this and right now they are waiting on her husbands mica

if u do fiance its shorter its about 5 months to 7 months but once you get here u have to apply for residency and all that

hope that helps

ps if u leave here in arizona i can give u a number of a great lawyer who is very helpful and very cheap she only charges u 50 bucks for her to give u advice fill out papers and translations and sends the packet out for u

[JohnMc 0]

I'm in the same situation that you are in except the fact that my fiancee doesn't have visa

When i was talking to my lawyer she said that if he had visa we it would better to get married here because it would be easier to fix papers up for him

But since he didnt we went through the fiancee visa.

Here's the thing its up too u what road u want to take.

If u get married first and then do papers it takes about a year. But when they get approved they come in with there residency. My friend did this and right now they are waiting on her husbands mica

if u do fiance its shorter its about 5 months to 7 months but once you get here u have to apply for residency and all that

hope that helps

ps if u leave here in arizona i can give u a number of a great lawyer who is very helpful and very cheap she only charges u 50 bucks for her to give u advice fill out papers and translations and sends the packet out for u

Yes we are in phoenix, the price sound to good to be true. could you please send me the lawyers info thank you

[Harpa Timsah 13,263]

Hello Me and my Fiancee are looking for some advice on which route to take, and if we should seek the help of an immigration lawyer or just attempt to do it ourselves. So here is our background

I am US citizen born in California. When I was 12 my family moved to mexico were i have lived the past 14 years, I met my fiancee Lily who is a Mexican citizen 10 years ago and have been together ever since. She has had a b1/b2 tourist visa for about 9 years. we have a 6 year old daughter that was born in Arizona while we were on vacation. All medical bills were paid and we returned to mexico. We have been avoiding getting married because of all the legal hoops and what not.

after 12 years in mexico, 7 months ago i got a new job and I moved back to the U.S.. Lily comes and has extended visits as her visa allows for up to 6 months at a time. I we have several questions

1. Should we get married first?

2. If we should get married first should it be in Mexico or US?

3. Which type of visa would best suite our needs, and allow Lily to continue to stay in the U.S. be it on the new visa or her existing tourist visa

4. Money is tight, do you recomend we go through the added expense of hiring an imagration lawyer to file all the paperwork?

I would like to thank you in advanced for taking the time to assist through this very confusing proceess. Again Thank you

If she entered the US with a valid visa, then her options are vastly different than people who did not enter with a visa. If you want to marry in the US and stay in the US, you can file for her Adjustment of Status. http://www.visajourney.com/content/i130guide2 At the end she will be a permanent resident, and it takes about 3-5 months.

[JohnMc 0]

also someone mentioned to me that I would have to provide proof of finacial solvency, well i just moved back to the u.s. so I don;t have any tax returns or anything will this present a problem?

[JimVaPhuong 4,865]

also someone mentioned to me that I would have to provide proof of finacial solvency, well i just moved back to the u.s. so I don;t have any tax returns or anything will this present a problem?

You'll need to provide evidence why you were not required to file a tax return. Did you work while you were in Mexico? Did you know that US citizens are required to file tax returns even when they live abroad? Your income must be 125% of the poverty guidelines for your household size in order to qualify as a sponsor. For a household size of two (you and your fiancee/wife) you'd need annual income in excess of $18,387. If you don't make enough to qualify then you'll need a joint sponsor who qualifies.

DON'T let her get pregnant! You don't have enough physical presence in the US after the age of 14 for any child of yours to derive US citizenship through you. You'd have to get a visa for the child, as well. The child would become a citizen after adjusting status in the US.

[* Kristin * 49]

Personally, I'm not sure I would trust an immigration lawyer who only charges $50. I know couples who have spent thousands. And not small thousands, either. Also, VJ is a great resource and you can do it all yourself, if you have patience.

When you file taxes after working abroad, you can file it so that your foreign income is excluded from being taxed. Don't worry, I didn't know either. I only learned that I needed to when I started our K1 process.

You'll need to provide evidence why you were not required to file a tax return. Did you work while you were in Mexico? Did you know that US citizens are required to file tax returns even when they live abroad? Your income must be 125% of the poverty guidelines for your household size in order to qualify as a sponsor. For a household size of two (you and your fiancee/wife) you'd need annual income in excess of $18,387. If you don't make enough to qualify then you'll need a joint sponsor who qualifies.

DON'T let her get pregnant! You don't have enough physical presence in the US after the age of 14 for any child of yours to derive US citizenship through you. You'd have to get a visa for the child, as well. The child would become a citizen after adjusting status in the US.

[JohnMc 0]

I was not working while in Mexico, I was going to school and living with my parrents. I now make $40k plus a year for the past 8 months, this will be my first year filing a tax return ever. My daughter was born in the US while we were on a legitamate vacation. She is now 6 years old.