Canceling a I-485 while another one is pending

[LizLovesFlor 11]

Hi all,

My husband and I consulted a lawyer before we filed for I-130 and I-485 and since it sounded like a fairly simple process and would save us some money we opted for doing it solo.

As you can see my time line below so far so good. To add, the case status for his I-485 (the one we applied for on 03/04/13) says its in line for interview scheduling.

But,

On march 29, 2013 my husband was contacted through email about his previous and still pending I-485 application which stated that it was moved to another office. The notice came in for this application and stated it was sent to the national benefits center (where our I-485 is currently located also.)

So to press rewind,

He came to the u.s. as a dependent on his ex wife's employment based visa in April of 2007. They broke up late 2009 and we started dating February of 2010. We moved in together shortly after, his divorce was final in march 2011, we had our baby in November of 2011. Up until march 29, 2013 there has been no update on his previous application.

The lawyer we went to said there is no need to cancel his previous I-485 and we should just apply for a new one. I have a feeling I must cancel this previous application. Something just doesn't feel right if I don't.

Should we? If so, how do we go about it? And what will happen when it's cancelled? Deportation notice or is he ok because of his new application?

[SOflaherty 40]

He won't be deported if he has a pending I-485, they wait until that has been decided unless he has committed a crime, so I wouldn't sweat that too much.

I know one of the I-485's will be rejected due to him having another one pending, but I can't remember which one takes precedence, I would assume the one that was filed first. Needless to say it would be a VERY good idea to send in a notarized letter along with a copy of his divorce papers letting them know to cancel the old case so it doesn't tangle up the new one. Be sure to let them know he has a current pending case and reference the case number. An Infopass appointment might be the fastest way to get that done.

[Pinkrlion 2,612]

Hi all,

My husband and I consulted a lawyer before we filed for I-130 and I-485 and since it sounded like a fairly simple process and would save us some money we opted for doing it solo.

As you can see my time line below so far so good. To add, the case status for his I-485 (the one we applied for on 03/04/13) says its in line for interview scheduling.

But,

On march 29, 2013 my husband was contacted through email about his previous and still pending I-485 application which stated that it was moved to another office. The notice came in for this application and stated it was sent to the national benefits center (where our I-485 is currently located also.)

So to press rewind,

He came to the u.s. as a dependent on his ex wife's employment based visa in April of 2007. They broke up late 2009 and we started dating February of 2010. We moved in together shortly after, his divorce was final in march 2011, we had our baby in November of 2011. Up until march 29, 2013 there has been no update on his previous application.

The lawyer we went to said there is no need to cancel his previous I-485 and we should just apply for a new one. I have a feeling I must cancel this previous application. Something just doesn't feel right if I don't.

Should we? If so, how do we go about it? And what will happen when it's cancelled? Deportation notice or is he ok because of his new application?

Very confused about when was the previous one filed, if he has been here since 2007 and got divorced in 2011. He needs to get a infopass appointment to address previous application before they deny both.

[LizLovesFlor 11]

Very confused about when was the previous one filed, if he has been here since 2007 and got divorced in 2011. He needs to get a infopass appointment to address previous application before they deny both.

The first one was filed October of 2007. I forgot to add that his I-94 expire in September of 2009, i don't know if that effects anything.

Edited April 10, 2013 by LizLovesFlor

[LizLovesFlor 11]

He won't be deported if he has a pending I-485, they wait until that has been decided unless he has committed a crime, so I wouldn't sweat that too much.

I know one of the I-485's will be rejected due to him having another one pending, but I can't remember which one takes precedence, I would assume the one that was filed first. Needless to say it would be a VERY good idea to send in a notarized letter along with a copy of his divorce papers letting them know to cancel the old case so it doesn't tangle up the new one. Be sure to let them know he has a current pending case and reference the case number. An Infopass appointment might be the fastest way to get that done.

Thanks so much for your answer.

Thank you Pink as well.

[LizLovesFlor 11]

so i think I am going to do both. I am writing the letter and sending it to them and schedule an infopass to make sure. I guess I send it to the national benefits center since the application is there? Do I get a notice of when they received it?

[Hypnos 6,576]

Your I-485 cannot be approved if you have a second I-485 already pending.

I have read of cases where some people had twin I-485s in the system, one employment-based and the other family-based, and at their family-based interview the IO required them to officially withdraw their employment-based I-485 before the other could be approved.

You received poor advice from the lawyer about letting the first application float around in the ether. I would consult with at least one more attorney (and ideally several) before you do anything, but withdrawing the first AoS is likely what you will need to do.

Edited April 11, 2013 by Hypnos