Entered on CR-1, exited within 6 months.What are our re-entry options

[VirtualMorpher 0]

Hello all,

My wife entered the US in May 2008 on a green card. She left in Nov 2008 without a reentry permit.When the 2 year deadline to remove the conditions on the green card came, I didn't/couldn't file since she was not in the country. By May 2010, we had sorted out our difference and I moved overseas to be with her and our son who is a USC (born while she was still in the US).

Early 2011 (Feb), I received a letter at my US address from the Immigration court stating they had initiated removal proceedings with a court appearance date set for early March. We sent in supporting documentation and a letter that showed (a) she was no longer in the US and had in fact left within 6 months of entering (b) her continued presence in the current place of residence (passport entry stamp pages,resident permit,work permit).

We do not know what the outcome of the removal proceedings were. I checked with our local US Embassy and they've indicated she does not qualify for filing of "Returning Resident Status" which would have been filed at the Embassy and they (embassy in Qatar) do not have Direct Consular Filing (DCF) either . This means I will have to go through the entire CR-1/ I-130 process via the US based Service Centers all over again. Question is...

1)As a petitioner, can I continue to live and work overseas when re-filing the I-130 for my wife.Is the petitioner required to be working in the US or is overseas employment acceptable?

2)Before we start the lengthy CR-1 process, can my wife apply for a visit/tourist visa to be able to visit the US on a vacation? She can of course provide proof of employment,salary history etc to support her application ,or is it likely that it will be denied given the background ? If the embassy DOES issue a visit visa , can Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) deny her entry at POE in spite of having a valid visa ?

Apologies for the long post.I've tried to keep it concise as possible. Please let us know what you think and any other considerations we should be aware of. Thanks in advance.

Best,

Virt

[TimeTravel 78]

1)As a petitioner, can I continue to live and work overseas when re-filing the I-130 for my wife.Is the petitioner required to be working in the US or is overseas employment acceptable?

Yes, you can.

2)Before we start the lengthy CR-1 process, can my wife apply for a visit/tourist visa to be able to visit the US on a vacation? She can of course provide proof of employment,salary history etc to support her application ,or is it likely that it will be denied given the background ? If the embassy DOES issue a visit visa , can Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) deny her entry at POE in spite of having a valid visa ?

First of all, please fill out the country of your wife, so VJ members can give the better idea for this. While her IR-1 process would be under process, she would be considered as intended immigrant, so it gives hard time to get the B1/B2 visa.

Final decision is up to Embassy.

Edited March 12, 2012 by iwaiting

[VirtualMorpher 0]

Thanks for your response iWaiting.

My wife is a Indian national,residing in Doha,Qatar.Her final visa interview, the first time around in 2008 was also in Qatar.

Are you reasonably certain that when I re-file the I-130 and reach the AOS stage, the fact that I'm employed overseas and NOT in the US will be acceptable ? Reason I'm asking is because the USCIS agent I spoke on the phone indicated that for AOS purposes, one has to be working in the US :-( ! Maybe she meant "generally" but as you said, it is OK if the petitioner is working overseas.If I have other relatives in the US that can co-sign the AOS,then can I continue work in Qatar till the CR-1 process finishes.FYI - Qatar does not have DCF ,so I'll have to file with one of the US based service centers (Vermont in this case)

Just to clarify my question regarding the visit visa-what I meant to ask was,is it OK to apply for a visa/tourist visa now and if she gets it,visit family in the US for 2-3 weeks and return to Qatar. And upon return , at a later point in time initiate the I-130 filing ? Cause as you said, the application for a visit visa is almost certainly going to get rejected if I also have a I-130 filed for the Mrs at the same time.

Any idea if the CBP can deny her entry on POE even if she has a valid visit visa considering she was a LPR and but isn't anymore and had removal proceedings initiated against her ?

Edited March 13, 2012 by VirtualMorpher

[kj6fk 0]

Are you reasonably certain that when I re-file the I-130 and reach the AOS stage, the fact that I'm employed overseas and NOT in the US will be acceptable ? Reason I'm asking is because the USCIS agent I spoke on the phone indicated that for AOS purposes, one has to be working in the US :-( !

Yes. I am in a similar situation. In our case, both beneficiary and petitioner are not in the US. The agent is correct- you cannot sponsor her using your employment income overseas, (they only accept income that will continue after the beneficiary immigrates). But using your employment income is one of many ways to complete AOS. We used our assets instead of income and a joint sponsor as backup. In your case, if you have a joint sponsor with income in the US, it won't be a problem.

Just to clarify my question regarding the visit visa-what I meant to ask was,is it OK to apply for a visa/tourist visa now and if she gets it,visit family in the US for 2-3 weeks and return to Qatar. And upon return , at a later point in time initiate the I-130 filing ? Cause as you said, the application for a visit visa is almost certainly going to get rejected if I also have a I-130 filed for the Mrs at the same time.

Any idea if the CBP can deny her entry on POE even if she has a valid visit visa considering she was a LPR and but isn't anymore and had removal proceedings initiated against her ?

I hope there is someone in this forum in a similar situation who can answer this question. Otherwise, this is a question for an immigration attorney. The officer at the POE has authority to deny entry even if a person has a valid visa. IMHO I would try to get the removal proceedings off her record before starting a new visa application.

[canadian_wife 1,823]

Any idea if the CBP can deny her entry on POE even if she has a valid visit visa considering she was a LPR and but isn't anymore and had removal proceedings initiated against her ?

Yes, CPB can deny her. All a 'valid visa' allows her to do is apply for entrance to the US. Entrance, and duration of stay, is up to the CBP

I've been denied entrance twice, so I know it's possible

Good luck

PS - you REALLY want to find out the course of the removal proceedings, it could prove to be a huge headache further down the road.

[VirtualMorpher 0]

Yes, CPB can deny her. All a 'valid visa' allows her to do is apply for entrance to the US. Entrance, and duration of stay, is up to the CBP

I've been denied entrance twice, so I know it's possible

Good luck

PS - you REALLY want to find out the course of the removal proceedings, it could prove to be a huge headache further down the road.

Thank you Canadian_Wife & KJ6FK for your insights. I will try calling the Hartford,CT Immigration Court to find out what the procedure is to find out the outcome of the removal proceeding.

On the website of the EOIR (Executive Office of Immigration Review), it states that a "party" or a "representative" to the case can inspect the record of the court proceeding in person or apply for a copy. A "non-party" has to apply for a copy via a FOIA (Freedom of Information Request Act) request,which expectedly has a long processing time.

As the petitioner ,am I considered either a party or a representative in order to be able to request a copy of the proceedings without filing under FOIA ? Any have any idea about this ?

[Laure&Colin 558]

Are you reasonably certain that when I re-file the I-130 and reach the AOS stage, the fact that I'm employed overseas and NOT in the US will be acceptable ? Reason I'm asking is because the USCIS agent I spoke on the phone indicated that for AOS purposes, one has to be working in the US :-( ! Maybe she meant "generally" but as you said, it is OK if the petitioner is working overseas.If I have other relatives in the US that can co-sign the AOS,then can I continue work in Qatar till the CR-1 process finishes.FYI - Qatar does not have DCF ,so I'll have to file with one of the US based service centers (Vermont in this case)

Yes, it will be acceptable but:

1. You'll need a co-sponsor

2. You'll need to prove at the time of the interview that you are going to relocate to the USA (lease contract, employment letter....).

Your wife will apply for an IR1 since you have now been married for more than 2 years.

You're gonna have to file the I-130 with the appropriate lockbox, not a service center. The lockbox will accept your file and then forward it to a service center, most probably California.

[VirtualMorpher 0]

Yes, it will be acceptable but:

1. You'll need a co-sponsor

2. You'll need to prove at the time of the interview that you are going to relocate to the USA (lease contract, employment letter....).

Your wife will apply for an IR1 since you have now been married for more than 2 years.

You're gonna have to file the I-130 with the appropriate lockbox, not a service center. The lockbox will accept your file and then forward it to a service center, most probably California.

Thanks Laure&Colin for pointing out that we'll have to file for a IR-1 and not CR-1.Its good to know that I'll be able to continue working in Qatar right until the interview stage at which point we'll have to provide evidence of our intention to relocate to the US immediately.Considering the time between starting a IR/CR-1 and the final interview is considerable, I can be with the family for essentially the entire IR-1 process instead of leaving the job in Qatar, going to the US and start looking for a job, just because I filed a IR-1.

[VirtualMorpher 0]

Yes, it will be acceptable but:

1. You'll need a co-sponsor

2. You'll need to prove at the time of the interview that you are going to relocate to the USA (lease contract, employment letter....).

Your wife will apply for an IR1 since you have now been married for more than 2 years.

You're gonna have to file the I-130 with the appropriate lockbox, not a service center. The lockbox will accept your file and then forward it to a service center, most probably California.

Also LaureNColin - as a Petitioner/USC living abroad ,how did you deal with it -ie- Did you find a job and are back in the US or still in Paris and will provide evidence of intent to relocate at the time of interview? If so, what do you plan on providing as evidence ? Job offer? Rental agreement ? Thanks again.