F-1 working on campus

[Reegan/Katie 0]

Hey so straight to the point.

The school semester is about to start and I have been asked if I would fill a work study position at the college I attend. I am also about to file AOS and have completed, signed and printed all the forms for that, other than the results of the medical, which is why I have not filed yet. At the time of signing I did not have a work study position so I shouldn't have to go back and change that on the G-325A right?

I am also not filing the EAD in case AOS was rejected, then I won't have to go back to Australia and I keep my F-1 status? Am I correct so far? Will the work study position affect AOS? I could file EAD but I don't want AOS to be rejected and have to leave the country.

So my understand is as long as I don't file EAD I keep F-1 status, which allows me to have a work study position on campus. Sorry if this is all confusing and a mess.

Thank you in advance for replies

[LindaC1990 23]

I never heard of it..

You probably don't have to go home if you get rejected.

but it's likely you will never get an non-immigration visa once you go back home.

Don't know why it has anything to do with EAD

Somebody please explain

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

So my understand is as long as I don't file EAD I keep F-1 status, which allows me to have a work study position on campus. Sorry if this is all confusing and a mess.

This is incorrect. I think you might be confusing this with H1B. You won't be able to keep F-1 status because you are showing your intent to immigrate once you file the AOS papers.

Why do you think you will be denied?

Is the campus job in accordance with the terms of the F-1 visa (which is 20 hours a week max and on campus, I believe).

[Reegan/Katie 0]

Campus job would indeed be in accordance with F-1 terms. I thought I had read somewhere that as long as EAD wasn't filed I would keep F-1 status until AOS was approved and then it would change. May have read it wrong. There was definite grey area in that conversation as to what my status would be once AOS was filed. I'm just try to cover all bases. I thought I had read that there was risk of deportation if EAD was filed with AOS and AOS was rejected. From memory this was on an immigration lawyers website and may have been a ploy to get customers in the door? thanks again guys

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

Once you apply for AOS, you will begin a new period of authorized stay. Your F-1 status will remain, meaning that you can continue school, etc, but your F-1 visa will not remain, in that you will not be able to travel on your F-1 any more, for instance. As far as I know, there is no way to keep your F-1, because it is a non-immigrant visa and by filing AOS you are proclaiming your intent to immigrate.

Why are you worried about your AOS being denied? If you have a real relationship you will not be denied.

If your on-campus job is sufficient for you, then you do not need to apply for an EAD. It is completely optional, but once approved it would free you from F-1 working restrictions.

Edited August 9, 2012 by Harpa Timsah

[Reegan/Katie 0]

ok thanks. This gives me confidence. So they will just keep RFEing until they get everything they need?

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

ok thanks. This gives me confidence. So they will just keep RFEing until they get everything they need?

Not exactly. Why are you planning to get RFEs? You seem to have a lot of ideas about something and you don't explain your reasoning, so I am not sure what you mean.

[Reegan/Katie 0]

Here is a quote from another forum I came across.

http://www.trackitt.com/usa-discussion-forums/i485-eb/182826447/do-i-loose-my-f1-status-if-i-use-my-ead-based-on-my-i485-aplication

"As per SEVIS rule, F1 student will only be terminated of his F1 status once AOS is approved. While it is pending, SEVIS will remain in ACTIVE status as long as the student maintain F1 status except for filing AOS.

Technically, if F1 student did not work using EAD from AOS, then he is still maintaining status. Once you use EAD from AOS, then that's not maintaining F1 status anymore. You will be in AOS pending status."

Therefore, if for some strange reason at all, AOS is not approved, I am out of status and will be sent home (because I have violated F-1 status), if I file for EAD. Obviously the last thing I want to happen is to be deported and be away from family and an unfinished degree. So I'm not planning to get rejected or planning to get RFE's I'm trying to avoid that. I'm just trying to come up with a game plan if that does happen rather than say "oh sh*t what do I do now?" if it does. There's no need to cause undue hardship on my family by applying for an EAD if I don't need one, then if AOS is denied (for some reason, not saying it will) and get deported. It's not the end of the world but not the desired outcome.

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

I don't trust that website, but in any way, you are misreading that. It says if you use the EAD, you will be violating your previous F-1 status, and that is true. As I said, using it will free you from your F-1 working restrictions. But if you don't want to use it, you don't have to. You don't have to apply for it either. I don't think that avoiding the EAD can somehow let you fall back to F-1 status after an AOS denial, for the reasons listed above.

I am confused why you are expecting multiple RFE's. If you read the forms carefully, and there are also good guides at VJ, you simply supply what is listed. If you miss an item, they will send an RFE. It is true if you fail to respond properly to the RFE, or never send anything back, then you will be denied, but why would you do that? THey tell you what is missing and you send back what they need. It's very simple.

If you have a real relationship, you will not be denied. Plenty of people have done this. You are being educated at University, surely you have the mental capacity to properly fill out some forms?

That website you reference is full of fraud, so I wouldn't let them scare you. I was there for a while when we first applied, and I found the overall level of comprehension to be a lot lower than here. I saw all sort of people with multiple convictions, fake certificates, all kind of junk. VJ has its share of paranoia, but I really think that planning for a failed AOS and making contingencies is not a realistic or fruitful exercise if you have a valid marriage.

Edited August 10, 2012 by Harpa Timsah