AOS from F-1 on OPT to GC

[igoyougoduke 1,680]

21 minutes ago, missileman said:

It's all about intent.  A person can not enter via a non-immigrant path (such as an F-1 visa) with the intent (plan) to stay inside the US to adjust status.  In addition, misrepresentation to immigration officials can result in a lifetime ban.

 

 

that would eliminate 100 percent of immigrants into the country. OP has valid F1 status that she can enter.  Intent in the mind does not equal to real life.

[Crazy Cat 44,446]

24 minutes ago, moosers said:

I still have my Canadian apartment, and all my finances are still through my Canadian banks. That is to say, I have kept my Canadian ties with the intention of returning to this apartment once my time in the US is completed. Those plans did change once I met my fiancé, but that doesn't mean I'm entering with misintent, does it?

EVERY entry is independent.  The following statement applies to EVERY entry at the time of THAT entry: You can not enter the US via an F-1 with the intent to stay and adjust status.

[Crazy Cat 44,446]

1 minute ago, Donald120383 said:

that would eliminate 100 percent of immigrants into the country. OP has valid F1 status that she can enter.  Intent in the mind does not equal to real life.

I disagree......If entering the US via an F-1, he/she must have intent to return home at the time of entry...

[igoyougoduke 1,680]

5 minutes ago, missileman said:

EVERY entry is independent.  The following statement applies to EVERY entry at the time of THAT entry: You can not enter the US via an F-1 with the intent to stay and adjust status.

 

Never mind. OP is marrying in Jan. I dont think she can enter on F1 visa.

Edited January 8, 2020 by Donald120383

[gramercygreen 34]

You, outside the country: “I will return to the US and adjust status to become an immigrant.”

 

You, at the border: “I am entering the US as a student on the F-1, and as such do I not plan on becoming an immigrant.“

 

You have just lied to US immigration about what you’re doing in the US. NG no good.

Edited January 8, 2020 by gramercygreen

[gramercygreen 34]

Follow up: Would OP be allowed in on the F-1 with plans to marry IF they did not have any intent to adjust?

 

It would probably look super suspicious to the USCIS... but technically legal?

Edited January 8, 2020 by gramercygreen

[geowrian 22,339]

1 hour ago, gramercygreen said:

Follow up: Would OP be allowed in on the F-1 with plans to marry IF they did not have any intent to adjust?

 

It would probably look super suspicious to the USCIS... but technically legal?

Perfectly legal. The AOS is the problem.

it night raise questions about intent if they knew, but getting married is fine.

[Suze1 366]

Preconceived intent to immigrate is forgiven and adjustment of status is possible for immediate relatives of US citizens.

But that does not mean that they are knowingly welcomed in, or even allowed to come in, by Border Patrol, if the visitor actually, honestly expresses at the border their intention to adjust status.

Many people here have said they know of no case where someone with preconceived intent has been denied the right to apply for adjustment of status, as adjudicated in immigration court, and they have challenged people to show a case where preconceived intent alone did prevent adjustment of status.

If there is no issue other than preconceived intent, then applications for adjust of status (AOS) can be considered, as long as there are no other issues, and approved.

That is how it seems to me, so far.

Corrections and caveats are welcome.

Edited January 9, 2020 by Suze1

[geowrian 22,339]

9 minutes ago, Suze1 said:

Preconceived intent to immigrate is forgiven and adjustment of status is possible for immediate relatives of US citizens.

But that does not mean that they are knowingly welcomed in, or even allowed to come in, by Border Patrol, if the visitor actually, honestly expresses at the border their intention to adjust status.

Many people here have said they know of no case where someone with preconceived intent has been denied the right to apply for adjustment of status, as adjudicated in immigration court, and they have challenged people to show a case where preconceived intent alone did prevent adjustment of status.

If there is no issue other than adjustment of status, then applications for adjust of status (AOS) can be considered, as long as there are no other issues, and approved.

That is how it seems to me, so far.

Corrections and caveats are welcome.

The actual entry with intent to adjust status would be fraudulent. Whether or not they would have an issue at AOS is a separate item. Illegal immigration activities are not an item for discussion per the TOS.

[Suze1 366]

I do not advocate for anything...I described my understanding.

And what I said and what you said are NOT contradictory.

[gramercygreen 34]

We’re really getting into the nitty gritty of things here... but I remember in some other thread about the Matter of Cavazos and the Matter of Ibrahim?

 

Intent to immigrate alone is not grounds to deny AOS for immediate relatives. It’s misrepresentation to the USCIS that’s the problem.

 

So I guess if OP re-enters and is *never* explicitly asked, then there is no misrepresentation even though the intent was present.

 

However, if OP *is* explicitly asked, then that’s where the problem starts: be honest and risk denial of entry, or be dishonest and commit immigration fraud.

Edited January 9, 2020 by gramercygreen

[Suze1 366]

(Yep, Matter of Cavazos is relevant here. I shared the text of that earlier in a different, but related, post.)

 

I really want to get this matter clear. smile

Because there is a lot of visceral reaction on this issue.

I think it needs to be clear to everybody what the deal REALLY is.

 

What sense I make of it so far is -

 

1) Intention to immigrate is a problem if you enter without an immigrant visa or the special K-1 visa (which is not an immigrant visa, but is issued WHEN preconceived intention has been expressed/accepted before the fact.)

 

2) Lying to immigration is fraud and reason for denials of entry, bars to entry, and revocation of visa and of subsequent citizenship when discovered.

 

3) Preconceived intent and saying you are just coming for a visit when you plan on moving here and staying IS LYING (not the truth, the whole truth, etc.).

 

4) The courts have weighed in on this and decided, in the interest of equity, that this particular lie/fraud is forgiven if you are/become the immediate relative of a US citizen and for NO ONE ELSE... and that includes the misrepresentation and not telling the truth and the whole truth at the border about your intention.

 

5) For everyone else (non-immediate relatives of US Citizens and for immediate relatives of LPR's), the fraud is NOT FORGIVEN.

 

That is what it seems to be to me so far.

 

Corrections and caveats are welcome, as always.

Just trying to get the law straight.

 

This is NOT ADVOCACY.

 

[Duke & Marie 1,391]

4 hours ago, Donald120383 said:

that would eliminate 100 percent of immigrants into the country. OP has valid F1 status that she can enter.  Intent in the mind does not equal to real life.

Incorrect, immigrants enter into the country on an immigration visa.. the OP is not doing this... shes planning to enter the country on a non immigration visa with intent to get married and adjust, which is not permitted and classified as visa fraud 

[Duke & Marie 1,391]

1 hour ago, geowrian said:

The actual entry with intent to adjust status would be fraudulent. Whether or not they would have an issue at AOS is a separate item. Illegal immigration activities are not an item for discussion per the TOS.

Agreed, if entered with intent is fraudulent, in which case they can’t actually adjust status because to adjust they must have entered and remained within the country legally... 

[Nat&Amy 623]

If asked at the border about the purpose of the trip, OP must be honest. If asked about "how long are you planning to stay", OP must be honest. If asked about fiance, OP must be honest. And these three honest answers will show immigrant intent. 

 

OP gets asked no questions, then yeah, there will be no misrepresentation at the border but the matter of a NONIMMIGRANT visa being misused still applies. No one here has a crystal ball to know how, when and if the "intent" might become a problem is OP's immigration future (if admitted to the US), but that's beside the point. The point is: if the intention is to STAY in the US, then the right visa is not a student visa.