Where do we begin?!?

[ReiEverdream 0]

My boyfriend came here on a student visa when he was 17, his visa was to expire before his 18th birthday. So his sister's husband adopted him around that time,(his mom had no way of taking care of him) his sister told him his renewal for the visa was denied, come to found out she never reapplied for him. Fast forward its been 10 years since that happened. We tried filing before but its hard to know what we can or can't do. We want to get married. I just need advise badly. Thanks for all your time. 

[Precisely 95]

Not sure what you mean by "we tried filing before", which could be pertinent information... do you mean the original attempt by his sister's husband? Or what other petition did you file for? Did you abandon the process? Were you denied? If you were denied, why? Try to provide more detail.

 

Otherwise, you can either

a. apply for a K-1 now, which is a fiance visa. This entails you being engaged and getting married upon entry into the US, which must be done in 90 days. Then Adjustment of Status has to be filed which would actually give him a Green Card and right to work.

b. get married and apply for the CR-1. This takes several months longer but most recommend it to the K-1 because it is cheaper and often more successful, and the spouse immediately becomes a Legal Permanent Resident.

 

Other notes:

 - make sure you provide plenty of evidence for your relationship. 

 - use the guides in the guides section at the top of this website. Very useful and a lot more detail.

Edited November 22, 2018 by Apelcina

[ourjourney_pc 118]

24 minutes ago, ReiEverdream said:

My boyfriend came here on a student visa when he was 17, his visa was to expire before his 18th birthday. So his sister's husband adopted him around that time,(his mom had no way of taking care of him) his sister told him his renewal for the visa was denied, come to found out she never reapplied for him. Fast forward its been 10 years since that happened. We tried filing before but its hard to know what we can or can't do. We want to get married. I just need advise badly. Thanks for all your time. 

few questions:

 

are you the usc?

based from stated above, he is currently in usa and out of status since 10yrs ago?

so was he adopted legally? by a his sister husband who is a usc?

what did you filed before?

 

without knowing the above, people can only assume and might not able to give proper advice.

[Unlockable 7,306]

1 hour ago, ReiEverdream said:

My boyfriend came here on a student visa when he was 17, his visa was to expire before his 18th birthday. So his sister's husband adopted him around that time,(his mom had no way of taking care of him) his sister told him his renewal for the visa was denied, come to found out she never reapplied for him. Fast forward its been 10 years since that happened. We tried filing before but its hard to know what we can or can't do. We want to get married. I just need advise badly. Thanks for all your time. 

How were they planning to grant him legal status?

 

If it was through adoption they may have a problem. For immigration purposes, adoptions of a child must have been completed before the child is 16 years old (see the link below). It is true that they may have been able to adopt him, but US immigration would not recognize the adoption for him to get immigration benefits.

 

If he applied for a visa before and was denied, and his student visa is expired, he very well may be living here without legal status. This makes things even more complicated. We will need more info in order to help.

 

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/Intercountry-Adoption/Adoption-Process/before-you-adopt/who-can-be-adopted.html