Help Where do I start ?

[kairio 0]

Hello guys, I'm a newbie here. I thought I posted last week about a question I have. I just wanted to know if me and my husband would be better off hiring a lawyer to file on behalf for my GC application I-130&1-485 concurrently. I have been married to my husband (us cit) for over 5 years and we have two kids. We tried believe me to file for it, but kids happened and finances got tighter and now we are in a much better situation to go ahead and do it. I have overstayed my Visa for 6 years now and has no valid ID whatsoever. ( Do I need to have a valid ID to file for a GC? My passport has expired and to renew it, I would need to have a valid ID, which is expired. ) Anyways, I read the forms and for me, I think it's doable. I don't think it's overwhelming at all but my concern is, if it would be "too late " for us to file by ourselves since it's been 5 years since we got married. Is there also a topic here where it can direct me to where to start or the step by step guide in filing concurrently ? TIA for any suggestions. 

[Ontarkie 13,918]

~~Duplicate post removed. Please only post once for the same questions. What visa did you enter on as I can move this thread to the proper place. Also if you look to the top of the page you should see a section called Guides. You can find the steps there.~~

[Timona 3,943]

Your overstay will be forgiven as you are married to a US citizen.

It's not too late to file. But I'd suggest you do concurrent filing sooner.

You will end up getting a 10year GC as you've been married for more than 2 years.

You do not need an American ID to file. 

I believe all they require as part of the process is the data/biographical page of your passport. Since it's just the data, I tend to believe the passport being expired or not is not an issue.

If your case is straight forward, I'd suggest do it yourself. You'll save lawyer headaches and fees, which are in the thousand of dollars. You can save that money and use it to pay your AOS process.

 

Steps to take: click on the menu icon on top right of page and then guides on the dropdown page.

Edited August 19, 2019 by Timona

[Duke & Marie 1,389]

Personally, I’d be thinking seriously about an immigration lawyer... 6 years overstay and lack of ID, given kids involved I wouldn’t be considering trying to do it alone... but that’s just me.. 

[kairio 0]

9 minutes ago, Timona said:

Your overstay will be forgiven as you are married to a US citizen.

It's not too late to file. But I'd suggest you do concurrent filing sooner.

You will end up getting a 10year GC as you've been married for more than 2 years.

You do not need an American ID to file. 

I believe all they require as part of the process is the data/biographical page of your passport. Since it's just the data, I tend to believe the passport being expired or not is not an issue.

If your case is straight forward, I'd suggest do it yourself. You'll save lawyer headaches and fees, which are in the thousand of dollars. You can save that money and use it to pay your AOS process.

 

Steps to take: click on the menu icon on top right of page and then guides on the dropdown page.

Thank you for a quick response . Yes, I believe my case is pretty straight forward, I came here on a valid visa (h2b) tried extending it, but got denied then met my husband after 6 months. I would like to believe our marriage is bonafide 😂. The lack of valid ID tho limited us into adding me say , in his bank account , but we have other evidence, such as our 2 kids, ( Lol) lease etc. Checking out the guides section now. Thanks again

[kairio 0]

14 minutes ago, Duke & Marie said:

Personally, I’d be thinking seriously about an immigration lawyer... 6 years overstay and lack of ID, given kids involved I wouldn’t be considering trying to do it alone... but that’s just me.. 

Hi, thank you. I read somewhere that having kids together is one fool proof evidence of a bonafide marriage, not saying that we had kids just for the sake of getting a GC ( that's a bit of commitment ) but I should say the overstaying for 6 yrs is what's making me get a consultation at least. I do want to save as much as I know filing fees are expensive ...

[kairio 0]

26 minutes ago, Ontarkie said:

~~Duplicate post removed. Please only post once for the same questions. What visa did you enter on as I can move this thread to the proper place. Also if you look to the top of the page you should see a section called Guides. You can find the steps there.~~

Hi, apologies! I entered US on an H2b visa. 

[Ontarkie 13,918]

~~Moved to AOS From Work, Student and Tourist Visas, from AOS from K1/K3 - As e OP is adjusting from work visa~~

[Timona 3,943]

12 minutes ago, kairio said:

Hi, thank you. I read somewhere that having kids together is one fool proof evidence of a bonafide marriage, not saying that we had kids just for the sake of getting a GC ( that's a bit of commitment ) but I should say the overstaying for 6 yrs is what's making me get a consultation at least. I do want to save as much as I know filing fees are expensive ...

 

Fill up your timeline on your profile so as to get better assistance from members.

To me, you seem to have a straight case. Save those lawyer $$ for important family stuff.

Sadly, I have heard having kids is not a strong evidence as people have been known to just get kids for the mere sake. However, it can form part of your list of evidences. The instructions on the forms gives you an array of options that you can use as evidences. So just provide what you can from the list. You do not have to provide everything on that list.

They will ask questions about why you did not AOS soon. Just be frank. I'm pretty sure they have seen scenarios of your case before. I never had money for my AOS. I had to borrow from multiple sources. Not everyone has all the money to AOS ASAP. 

Edited August 19, 2019 by Timona

[kairio 0]

1 minute ago, Timona said:

 

Fill up your timeline on your profile so as to get better assistance from members.

 

To me, you seem to have a straight case.

They will ask questions about why you did not AOS soon. Just be frank. I'm pretty sure they have seen scenarios of your case before. I never had money for my AOS. I had to borrow from multiple sources. Not everyone has all the money to AOS ASAP. 

Ahhh you're giving me so much confidence to do this by ourselves. I just read too from another article, that no matter how long the overstay is, because I'm married to a citizen, I get the privilege of it being forgiven thru AoS. Not that it's the reason why we didnt file for it sooner; life would've been easier with a GC. Will do the timeline too. Thank you and blessings! 

[Timona 3,943]

1 minute ago, kairio said:

Ahhh you're giving me so much confidence to do this by ourselves. I just read too from another article, that no matter how long the overstay is, because I'm married to a citizen, I get the privilege of it being forgiven thru AoS. Not that it's the reason why we didnt file for it sooner; life would've been easier with a GC. Will do the timeline too. Thank you and blessings! 

 

I added some stuff on my post that you just quoted. 

Members are here to help should you have questions.

I downloaded all required forms, sat down on Saturday for 3 hours to fill and even crosscheck my work. I then gathered required documents for each form (for is in bold as each form has it's own supportive documents that accompany it. Some may be redundant eg forms A and B may each require their own 2 passport photos- totaling to 4 passport photos. Don't just provide 2 as you think they can be used for all forms). Voila!

[kairio 0]

3 minutes ago, Timona said:

 

I added some stuff on my post that you just quoted. 

Members are here to help should you have questions.

I downloaded all required forms, sat down on Saturday for 3 hours to fill and even crosscheck my work. I then gathered required documents for each form (for is in bold as each form has it's own supportive documents that accompany it. Some may be redundant eg forms A and B may each require their own 2 passport photos- totaling to 4 passport photos. Don't just provide 2 as you think they can be used for all forms). Voila!

That is interesting, altho I totally see and get it why they'd think people would do that to get a gc. So 3 hours to fill up the forms. What about gathering all the supporting docs? That's a subjective question I know but if I were to start from scratch ?

[Duke & Marie 1,389]

1 hour ago, kairio said:

Hi, thank you. I read somewhere that having kids together is one fool proof evidence of a bonafide marriage, not saying that we had kids just for the sake of getting a GC ( that's a bit of commitment ) but I should say the overstaying for 6 yrs is what's making me get a consultation at least. I do want to save as much as I know filing fees are expensive ...

Yes, excellent proof... but I was leaning more along the lines of I’d be terrified of screwing it up and getting deported having to leave my kids behind, when I said given kids involved ☺️

[JFH 12,189]

6 hours ago, kairio said:

Hi, thank you. I read somewhere that having kids together is one fool proof evidence of a bonafide marriage, 

No. It’s foolproof evidence that your uterus works. 

 

My husband and I can’t have children. Are you saying our marriage is less genuine because I had emergency surgery that required the removal of certain reproductive organs? Ridiculous. 

 

I’d file sooner, rather than later, if I were you. Every minute you don’t file you are accruing unlawful presence. Whilst overstay for spouses of USCs is forgiven, the forgiveness only takes effect once you have the NOA1 for AOS. Up until that point, you are just as illegal - and just as deportable- as the next person. 

[Timona 3,943]

7 hours ago, kairio said:

That is interesting, altho I totally see and get it why they'd think people would do that to get a gc. So 3 hours to fill up the forms. What about gathering all the supporting docs? That's a subjective question I know but if I were to start from scratch ?

 

Gathering supportive documents all depends with your pace. 

My suggestion- download each form together with its instructions from USCIS website. The instructions also provide guidance on how to fill the form. 

Upon downloading instructions and for each form, look at the area that talks about supportive documents/ documents that should accompany that particular form. Read through that section and decipher for yourself how many you have handy and how many you can organize to get. Simple...remember, any document like birth certificate in foreign language has to be translated.  You haven't filled your timeline. So i can't tell your native language. 

Edited August 19, 2019 by Timona