F1 Visa with OPT marrying US Citizen...help!

[illogicist 0]

Hi everyone

I am an F1 visa holder with OPT. My OPT began Jan 25th, and it gives me 3 months to find a job. I have been with my US-citizen girlfriend for a long time and we are planning to get married. 'When' is not a problem - we can get married tomorrow if need be. But I am worried about gaining permanent residence status - specifically, I worry that I have left it too late, and that I may have to leave the country, even if we get married (under the assumption that I am unable to find employment). Can anyone tell me the process here? If my OPT expires April 25th, and I were to get married, say, tomorrow, what forms would I need to file? Would I be able to stay in the country until these forms are processed, even beyond April 25th?

Thanks, much appreciated.

[NancyNguyen 1,657]

No need to worry, if you can't find an employer, let's volunteer with no pay. Google "volunteer in your city" then apply for it, apply for a job with your study field. I volunteered for a non-profit company to fix computer for low-income people, part time job with no problem at all. Ask the job for a letter then bring to your school DSO to update it with DHS system. OPT is okay with volunteer jobs with no pay. No need to rush, do your AOS when you are really ready. Good luck.

[Little_My 464]

To avoid overstaying your F1 visa, all you need to do is make sure USCIS receives and acknowledges your AOS (Adjustment of Status) application before the last day of your authorized stay under the F1. You have 90 days to find employment under OPT, and after that I believe another 60 days of grace period during which you should then leave the US if you haven't been able to find a job. This gives you 5 months from when the OPT was issued to being out of status. This is plenty of time to file AOS, and in best case scenario even get it approved.

Once USCIS has received your AOS application, you enter into a new period of authorized stay which is no longer dependent on your F1 status or OPT. You can still continue working under the EAD that was issued for you for OPT, but you don't have to worry about your OPT expiring. You are allowed to stay in the US lawfully until you have a decision on your AOS case.

Visa Journey has a very detailed and easy to follow guide for filing adjustment of status from a non-immigrant visa. Read through the guide and the forms, and once you have familiarized yourself with the process, come back to ask more detailed questions if something seems to be unclear or you need help with something.

The VJ Guide is here: http://www.visajourney.com/content/i130guide2

What the previous poster noted is also accurate - you can satisfy the OPT requirement even by finding a volunteer/internship job, as long as it is in the field you graduated from.

[illogicist 0]

Thank you both for the info - it's very reassuring. I did not know about the volunteering option, and it's something I may explore while looking for a full-time job. I'm an economics major so it might be difficult to find something in that field, but worth a shot certainly.

[jhada 0]

Hi,

I am a bit late, But I am reading this and it is very helpful in my situation. My one questio is do I also need to file an I864 form?

[Ryan H 3,798]

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