Has anyone successfully crossed inland border checkpoint with no status?

[art1234 14]

We got our K1 visa in late 2019 and got married in Jan 2020 just before Covid hit. My wife is unemployed due to Covid and doesn't meet the i-864 income requirements at the moment so we have applied for AOS yet. 

That means I am technically out of status.

My wife's family lives in southern Texas and we live in Austin TX. I am very reluctant to go to south for a visit because I have no clue what would happen when coming back and getting into one of the many inland border control checkpoints.

 

Has anyone had the same situation (expired K1 visa, married with proper certificate and everything, but not applied for AOS yet) and tried to cross the checkpoints?

If so do you get a lot of investigation or you just have to prove you're married?

 

Thanks in advance

 

Edit: I am working remotely for UK in case anyone's wondering if I am burden on US economy .

Edited February 28, 2021 by art95

[Crazy Cat 39,258]

Proper certificate?  Marriage confers no immigration rights.  Until you submit a proper I-485, you are out of status.....and technically subject to detention and removal.  Some will say the risk is low.......but there is certainly risk.

 

 

Edited February 28, 2021 by Lucky Cat

[HRQX 4,145]

12 minutes ago, Lucky Cat said:

Some will say the risk is low.......

generally low, but crossing an interior BP checkpoint is high risk IMO

Edited March 1, 2021 by HRQX

[art1234 14]

1 minute ago, HRQX said:

generally low, but crossing an internal BP checkpoint is high risk IMO

risk getting killed by a cow is low, but never zero.

Yea it confirms my fear that is risky thing to do. Regretting not going through spousal visa where you get green card practically on arrival.

[Cyberfx1024 7,978]

1 hour ago, art95 said:

risk getting killed by a cow is low, but never zero.

Yea it confirms my fear that is risky thing to do. Regretting not going through spousal visa where you get green card practically on arrival.

So when does your wife's 90 days expires?

[HRQX 4,145]

14 minutes ago, Cyberfx1024 said:

So when does your wife's 90 days expires?

OP's wife is a US citizen. OP's I-94 expired about a year ago and I-485 has not yet been filed.

[Cyberfx1024 7,978]

2 minutes ago, HRQX said:

OP's wife is a US citizen. OP's I-94 expired about a year ago and I-485 has not yet been filed.

Dang... I thought that was a typo. 

[HRQX 4,145]

1 hour ago, art95 said:

and doesn't meet the i-864 income requirements at the moment

Any potential joint sponsor?

[SteveInBostonI130 3,319]

Hi @art95

 

I am a procrastinator so I kind of understand how your situation started.  I assume you guys were planning to submit your AOS package soon, collecting evidence as they became available and get it all together by the 90 day deadline, or maybe a week or two late.  But, as you said, Covid happened.  But that is just a convenient excuse.  You could have lined up joint sponsors or perhaps you wife could have looked for other jobs in the summer.

 

The fact is you are out of status and you are working illegally.  There are debates about the nuances of immigration law and how remote work for non-US companies are categorized, but most here will tell you that it is illegal (working without EAD) and there are posts here about the troubles people have gotten into because of it.

 

I am not going to belabor about your past but point out the precarious nature of your current situation.  As you inquired, there is a real and justified concern of you travelling to the south, near the border with Mexico.  Immigration checkpoints are a real hazard for you.  Also, if you ever have the need to travel outside the US, you cannot.  You cannot respond to family emergencies (back in Latvia).  If you ever get arrested or are in a situation where law enforcement investigates you, you could be in trouble.  If ever the IRS applies the significant presence rule to you, you can be in tax trouble.

 

In summary, I strongly recommended you to apply for AOS right away.  Do whatever you need to get the I-864 situation resolved as soon as possible.

Edited March 1, 2021 by SteveInBostonI130
added OP tag

[art1234 14]

30 minutes ago, HRQX said:

Any potential joint sponsor?

Nope... we had some lined up before I flew to US and all backed out because of family issues.

 

22 minutes ago, SteveInBostonI130 said:

Hi @art95

 

I am a procrastinator so I kind of understand how your situation started.  I assume you guys were planning to submit your AOS package soon, collecting evidence as they became available and get it all together by the 90 day deadline, or maybe a week or two late.  But, as you said, Covid happened.  But that is just a convenient excuse.  You could have lined up joint sponsors or perhaps you wife could have looked for other jobs in the summer.

 

The fact is you are out of status and you are working illegally.  There are debates about the nuances of immigration law and how remote work for non-US companies are categorized, but most here will tell you that it is illegal (working without EAD) and there are posts here about the troubles people have gotten into because of it.

 

I am not going to belabor about your past but point out the precarious nature of your current situation.  As you inquired, there is a real and justified concern of you travelling to the south, near the border with Mexico.  Immigration checkpoints are a real hazard for you.  Also, if you ever have the need to travel outside the US, you cannot.  You cannot respond to family emergencies (back in Latvia).  If you ever get arrested or are in a situation where law enforcement investigates you, you could be in trouble.  If ever the IRS applies the significant presence rule to you, you can be in tax trouble.

 

In summary, I strongly recommended you to apply for AOS right away.  Do whatever you need to get the I-864 situation resolved as soon as possible.

Thanks for detailed response. Tbh I had read in many places there's no deadline to file AOS so now I'm slightly concerned, but the law is unclear and gets applied according to the mood of ICE officer.

Also in regards of remote work its the same thing - the law of employment while waiting for EAD was written well before remote work was even technically possible so it's very grey area. In my k1 visa interview I was asked if I will be continuing to work remotely if i get the visa and move to US. I responded "most definitely" and the officer just moved on to next questions without any concerns.

 

Either way it won't be the worse thing to go back to Europe forcefully, just shame about time and effort wasted. Just hoping I won't get detained for too long and will be able to voluntarily leave the country for good.

 

 

Edited March 1, 2021 by art95

[davidvs 320]

7 minutes ago, art95 said:

Either way it won't be the worse thing to go back to Europe forcefully, just shame about time and effort wasted. Just hoping I won't get detained for too long and will be able to voluntarily leave the country for good.

 

 

You would be able to file for a IR1 spousal visa from outside the country. But it sounds like maybe you wouldn't bother?

[art1234 14]

2 minutes ago, davidvs said:

You would be able to file for a IR1 spousal visa from outside the country. But it sounds like maybe you wouldn't bother?

Yea, I've come to realization US ain't what I was hoping and would prefer EU any day of the week. The only thing that keeps me here is all the effort made to be here would go to waste and would have to be reset if choosing IR1. Also for IR1 we'd still need to meet minimum income requirements. 

[SalishSea 16,772]

2 hours ago, art95 said:

Edit: I am working remotely for UK in case anyone's wondering if I am burden on US economy

Does not matter.  You are not authorized to work (including remotely) without your EAD.

[Crazy Cat 39,258]

18 minutes ago, art95 said:

but the law is unclear and gets applied according to the mood of ICE officer.

Unclear?  Any non-immigrant whose I-94 has expired is subject to removal.  Once you file a proper I-485, you will be granted "authorized stay" until the I-485 has been either approved or denied.

[SalishSea 16,772]

20 minutes ago, art95 said:

the law is unclear and gets applied according to the mood of ICE officer.

Yeah, not so much.  It is quite clear.  Out of status is out of status, and not a grey area.