[urgent help] 3 years after i-751 denied due to abandonment, what should I do?

[aliceresidentevil 0]

I have been married on Dec 2012 till today; got conditional green card on Jun 2013; filed i-751 on Apr 2014. USCIS sent an RFE letter on Jul 2014, but I lost it. I requested USCIS to send the RFE letter again for me to reply with, but they said no RFE was found. Anyway, they denied my application on Jan 2016 due to abandonment and my conditional green card was terminated because I failed to reply an RFE within 84 days. I then travelled outside of US shortly after due to family emergency. When I returned back at LAX, the homeland security stopped me. That incident end up with me left on parole and a notice to appear in front of the immigration court.

I hired a lawyer immediately. We went to the immigration court asking for the date to appear, but was told no case was found.  My lawyer helped me file i-485 and then i-751 again on Mar 2017 with a cover letter explaining why we are filing. It's been 22 months since then, we heard nothing. The lawyer filed N-400 on Dec 2018 to expedite the i-751 and on Jan 2019, the i-751 got transferred to NBC. USCIS also sent a letter saying my i-751 and N-400 will be decided at the same time.

My lawyer is confident about the practice. As time passes, I get anxious and started to asking around. To my horror, some lawyers say the practice is completely wrong. We shall never re-file i-751. The jurisdiction shall be with the immigration court. Some ppl say re-file is fine as long as you never received a NTA (in my case, I did). Sounds like my lawyer screwed it. 

If you have heard any similar cases or went through anything similar, please help me! 

Thank you!

[EM_Vandaveer 2,364]

Re-filing I-751 is fine.

[USS_Voyager 1,971]

8 minutes ago, aliceresidentevil said:

I have been married on Dec 2012 till today; got conditional green card on Jun 2013; filed i-751 on Apr 2014. USCIS sent an RFE letter on Jul 2014, but I lost it. I requested USCIS to send the RFE letter again for me to reply with, but they said no RFE was found. Anyway, they denied my application on Jan 2016 due to abandonment and my conditional green card was terminated because I failed to reply an RFE within 84 days. I then travelled outside of US shortly after due to family emergency. When I returned back at LAX, the homeland security stopped me. That incident end up with me left on parole and a notice to appear in front of the immigration court.

I hired a lawyer immediately. We went to the immigration court asking for the date to appear, but was told no case was found.  My lawyer helped me file i-485 and then i-751 again on Mar 2017 with a cover letter explaining why we are filing. It's been 22 months since then, we heard nothing. The lawyer filed N-400 on Dec 2018 to expedite the i-751 and on Jan 2019, the i-751 got transferred to NBC. USCIS also sent a letter saying my i-751 and N-400 will be decided at the same time.

My lawyer is confident about the practice. As time passes, I get anxious and started to asking around. To my horror, some lawyers say the practice is completely wrong. We shall never re-file i-751. The jurisdiction shall be with the immigration court. Some ppl say re-file is fine as long as you never received a NTA (in my case, I did). Sounds like my lawyer screwed it. 

If you have heard any similar cases or went through anything similar, please help me! 

Thank you!

Sounds like this is complicated enough that you might want to consult a second lawyer. I think your lawyer screwed up by filling a second I-751 (?).  He should have filed some sort of motion to reopen and reconsider or something like that. But I don't know much about any of this...

Edited January 16, 2019 by USS_Voyager

[aliceresidentevil 0]

6 minutes ago, EM_Vandaveer said:

Re-filing I-751 is fine.

Really? even after receiving a notice to appear? Have you heard any successful stories from others?  

I'm getting really anxious now. Thanks!

[mindthegap 2,521]

You are permitted to file an I-751 - or multiple I-751s - at any time, right up until a final order of removal and termination of status by an immigration judge.

ALL outstanding I-751s must be adjudicated by USCIS before a hearing and if you file one once proceedings have commenced, they will be stayed (adjourned) until after adjudication of the I-751s. 

The I-751s will be adjudicated on their merits.

 

 

You were ill-advised to leave the US after denial and without filing a fresh one before leaving, emergency or not - and that is why you have been paroled in and not admitted as a LPR with a still-pending I-751.

Ignoring/losing/not addressing the RFE in the the first place - in the full knowledge that it was sent and not responded to - was foolish, and the trigger for the mess you are in now.

 

 

 

 

 

1 minute ago, USS_Voyager said:

. I think your lawyer screwed up by filling a second I-751 (?).  He should have filed some sort of motion to reopen and reconsider or something like that..

He didn't, and that isn't possible now. Way past that point.

 

1 minute ago, USS_Voyager said:

But I don't know much about any of this...

Clearly

[USS_Voyager 1,971]

Thank you. I live and learn.

[aliceresidentevil 0]

6 hours ago, mindthegap said:

You are permitted to file an I-751 - or multiple I-751s - at any time, right up until a final order of removal and termination of status by an immigration judge.

ALL outstanding I-751s must be adjudicated by USCIS before a hearing and if you file one once proceedings have commenced, they will be stayed (adjourned) until after adjudication of the I-751s. 

The I-751s will be adjudicated on their merits.

 

 

You were ill-advised to leave the US after denial and without filing a fresh one before leaving, emergency or not - and that is why you have been paroled in and not admitted as a LPR with a still-pending I-751.

Ignoring/losing/not addressing the RFE in the the first place - in the full knowledge that it was sent and not responded to - was foolish, and the trigger for the mess you are in now.

 

You are right. I was foolish and ignorant to miss the deadline of responding RFE. I live in regret everyday ever since. 

Do you have an idea of how long it will take until the decision by USCIS? It's been 22 months since the application - longer than normal processing time, longer than anyone I know. Do you think it's because of the history of my case? 

Thanks!

6 hours ago, mindthegap said:

 

 

 

 

He didn't, and that isn't possible now. Way past that point.

 

Clearly

 

[little immigrant 800]

Why did the lawyer file I-485? Because you were paroled in? Have you thought of starting completely from scratch with a spousal visa? 

Edited January 17, 2019 by little immigrant

[EM_Vandaveer 2,364]

14 hours ago, little immigrant said:

Why did the lawyer file I-485? Because you were paroled in? Have you thought of starting completely from scratch with a spousal visa? 

I'm confused by that, too. While file BOTH I-751 & I-485. (Not to mention you can't just file I-485 on its own, it'd have to have an I-130 with it at this point.)

File one or the other & let it run its course first.

[HonoraryCitizen 179]

21 hours ago, aliceresidentevil said:

I hired a lawyer immediately. We went to the immigration court asking for the date to appear, but was told no case was found.  My lawyer helped me file i-485 and then i-751 again on Mar 2017 with a cover letter explaining why we are filing. It's been 22 months since then, we heard nothing. The lawyer filed N-400 on Dec 2018 to expedite the i-751 and on Jan 2019, the i-751 got transferred to NBC. USCIS also sent a letter saying my i-751 and N-400 will be decided at the same time.

My lawyer is confident about the practice. As time passes, I get anxious and started to asking around. To my horror, some lawyers say the practice is completely wrong. We shall never re-file i-751. The jurisdiction shall be with the immigration court. Some ppl say re-file is fine as long as you never received a NTA (in my case, I did). Sounds like my lawyer screwed it. 

If you have heard any similar cases or went through anything similar, please help me! 

Thank you!

You didn't complete your filing to remove conditions on your conditional status, and then traveled, got put into removal proceedings upon returning, then you filed a 485 and 751, and then for good measure filed an N400 to force USCIS hand to adjudicate the removal of conditions which you failed to satisfactorily address. You want to make sure you shadow such a lawyer carefully and back check his every move.

 

Where is your spouse in all this? Is she/he standing by you? Was the 751 filed jointly, both the first and the second one? Was there any word like sham marriage or bona  fides of marriage thrown out there by USCIS?

 

I wish you well on your journey.

Edited January 17, 2019 by HonoraryCitizen

[dwheels76 5,458]

23 hours ago, aliceresidentevil said:

I have been married on Dec 2012 till today; got conditional green card on Jun 2013; filed i-751 on Apr 2014. USCIS sent an RFE letter on Jul 2014, but I lost it.

I'm confused on this fact. You filed for removal of conditions 1 year later? Are you sure of the dates you got green card and date you filed. If these dates are right you weren't even qualified to file.
Be interesting to see what the RFE was. Oh well Good luck.

[aliceresidentevil 0]

5 hours ago, dwheels76 said:

I'm confused on this fact. You filed for removal of conditions 1 year later? Are you sure of the dates you got green card and date you filed. If these dates are right you weren't even qualified to file.
Be interesting to see what the RFE was. Oh well Good luck.

first i-751 was filed on Apr 2015, not 2014. it was my typo. 

the RFE was the tax return record on year 2012. there's one year that we didn't file tax together,

[aliceresidentevil 0]

7 hours ago, HonoraryCitizen said:

You didn't complete your filing to remove conditions on your conditional status, and then traveled, got put into removal proceedings upon returning, then you filed a 485 and 751, and then for good measure filed an N400 to force USCIS hand to adjudicate the removal of conditions which you failed to satisfactorily address. You want to make sure you shadow such a lawyer carefully and back check his every move.

 

Where is your spouse in all this? Is she/he standing by you? Was the 751 filed jointly, both the first and the second one? Was there any word like sham marriage or bona  fides of marriage thrown out there by USCIS?

 

I wish you well on your journey.

He is with me all the time. Both i-751 were filed jointly. 

[aliceresidentevil 0]

21 hours ago, little immigrant said:

Why did the lawyer file I-485? Because you were paroled in? Have you thought of starting completely from scratch with a spousal visa? 

Yes, because I was paroled in. The part I don't understand is my lawyer filed i-485 for me and then USCIS treated it as i-751. Could USCIS be so nice that let me skip the conditional green card part to i-751 directly? My lawyer said it's because he included a cover letter in the application.  

7 hours ago, EM_Vandaveer said:

I'm confused by that, too. While file BOTH I-751 & I-485. (Not to mention you can't just file I-485 on its own, it'd have to have an I-130 with it at this point.)

File one or the other & let it run its course first.

Yes, because I was paroled in. The part I don't understand is my lawyer filed i-485 for me and then USCIS treated it as i-751. Could USCIS be so nice that let me skip the conditional green card part to i-751 directly? My lawyer said it's fine. He included a cover letter in the application.

[EM_Vandaveer 2,364]

5 minutes ago, aliceresidentevil said:

Yes, because I was paroled in. The part I don't understand is my lawyer filed i-485 for me and then USCIS treated it as i-751. Could USCIS be so nice that let me skip the conditional green card part to i-751 directly? My lawyer said it's because he included a cover letter in the application.  

Yes, because I was paroled in. The part I don't understand is my lawyer filed i-485 for me and then USCIS treated it as i-751. Could USCIS be so nice that let me skip the conditional green card part to i-751 directly? My lawyer said it's fine. He included a cover letter in the application.

I'm pretty sure there's no such a thing as "USCIS treating the I-485 as I-751"...