blueblue

You are lucky to be going through Frankfurt. As long as your HSL and supporting evidence was well put together, you have very high chance of approval and the best part is that Frankfurt has historically been one of the quickest to respond on waivers. I haven't seen one on the boards in a while but they have averaged 4-6 weeks turn around in the past.

Yes.

Read more here http://immigrate2us.net/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=6

The expiration of the medical only comes into play on the ISSUANCE of the visa, not the validity. It should be valid for 6 MONTHS, ours was. I expect the embassy made a dumb mistake and they can fix it by re-issuing it.

Hopefully when they answer your email they will give you a valid reply and tell you how they will do that.

i came under my moms visa,k2.i was 19years old at that time.so,she went back,to romania,and i suppose to go with her...i just found out in july that i was illegal,even though i am legally married to my husband,who is an american citizen.

Definately consult with an attorney BEFORE you leave the U.S. If you entered with inspection, your overstay generally can be forgiven as the spouse of US citizen allowing you to adjust your status here - no waiver needed.

Here is a list of recommended attorneys that may be helpful. http://www.immigrate2us.net/forum/showthread.php?t=889

In addition to what they asked for, it would likely be helpful to include letters from friends, family, neighbors, etc. from both your wife and your side that know you both and can speak about your marriage and how happy they are for you and talk about a time you both visited with them or some event you experienced together. Something to show that they are aware and involved in and support your relationship.

A friend of mine married a girl who was clearly here illegally, had been for years. They filed the I130, AOS, etc, and also she was fined (well, he was) around 1000-1500, but she was allowed to stay. They have (2) children (they've been married several years and she just got her green card 2 months ago). They met at her workplace (where she was working on a false SS# lol, but whatever)

Your friend apparently was able to adjust under 245i, the I-130 was likely filed before April, 2001. That is no longer available.

If someone enters without inspection and did not have the I-130 filed before that date, they are now required to leave the country for consular processing, become subject to the 3 or 10 year bar, file a waiver if they qualify, prove extreme hardship and hope that it is approved.

Based on the 3 documents you posted, it seems there is some basis for the false claim charge. The first page pretty clearly states that they say you claimed to be a US citizen. The 3rd page is somewhat unclear without the other context, but implies that claim.

I think it will be important to see what the FOIA says, if you can get something from the border that is different than the 1st page.

For the record, if you had claimed to only be a NATIONAL, that is NOT the same as claiming to be a citizen and would not result in the same consequences - no waiver. There is a recent court case on this related to the I-9.

Unless the FOIA provides some evidence to counter that false claim charge, I think there is not much hope until the law changes.

On that point, you can visit www.americanfamiliesunited.org. One of the provisions that group is working on is a change on this specific issue.

I-212 is used to request re-entry after a deportation. Not relevant for you.

I-601 is used to waive an inadmissibility for an immigrant visa. Not relevant for you.

You will need the 212d3 waiver for non-immigrant visa. Different embassies handle this differently. I haven't seen many people on the boards who have had to go this route, so not much practical information to depart, unfortunately. The I-192 is the correct form for it (altho I have heard sometimes they don't use the form).

Waiting on a 601 since June 2006 is VERY unusual for London. I would have your wife contact her Senator or Congressman to make an inquiry to London USCIS to ask what is happening with the case.

You have to declare all past crimes. Not just those that may appear on a Police Certificate.

Boiler's made the point I was going to. You have to disclose arrests, too, and the U.S. usually does not recognize other countries' pardons or expunging the records as overriding the crime indicating moral turpitude. If he's found inadmissible, then you qualify as a relative to file an I-601 waiver, where you, the USC, argue that it would be an extreme hardship to you to relocate to your fiance's country.

On this sort of thing, the devil is 100% in the details. How old was he? Was he the driver? Was he found not guilty or did he plea? Were there one charge or many? (If this were a drug case, the difference between 'no problem' and 'inadmissible' might be something as simple as 'were they on a street corner near a school?')

And that's well beyond anyone's expertise here. A site like visajourney is only good insofar as the experiences are shared. Get yourself a good lawyer. (People over at immigrate2us.net probably will have good suggestions for one.)

As far as inadmissible goes, if he was not convicted then he would not be inadmissible. If he was then it is probably considered a CIMT and would have to file a waiver. If it is just an arrest, he would have to say he was arrested. If he started explaining all the details, then I am sure the CO will look at him in a different light just as the folks on this site have. It is a pretty horrific type of situation that most average people would be very concerned about. I wouldn't recommend going anywhere without a lawyer on this one.

Congrats!!! You are very lucky to have been able to go thru Bangkok. They seem to be very fair and fast.

blueblue,

He already had his medical. We were in the area (its a 5 hour drive) and decided it was best to get it done. The medical is good for one year and alcohol never came up. I am growing more and more concerned with what I read in the article you posted. Especially this paragraph: To ensure proper evaluation, you must refer applicants to panel physicians when they have a single drunk driving arrest or conviction within the last three calendar years (NO) or two or more drunk driving arrests or convictions in any time period. (NO) You also must refer cases to a panel physician if there is any other evidence to suggest an alcohol problem. (MAYBE) In my opinion, because I am extremely negative when it comes to immigration, his record would suggest an alcohol problem. He absolutely does not have an alcohol problem because he doesn't even drink anymore, what-so-ever, and hasn't for a number of years.

I would check in the Canada forum to see what other's experience has been with medical there. From what I have seen, this has become an issue so far only in Mexico.

THE CHANCE OF THIS BEING A PROBLEM FOR YOU IS VERY SMALL. We are talking about something from 8 years ago. There is a balance between trying to help you understand the things that COULD go wrong and how to avoid them without making it sound like it WOULD go wrong. I think it is good to know what pitfalls can happen so you can try to avoid them. But you may never even encounter them.

The best you can do is present your case with all the proof of your relationship and be ready to address any questions that come up. The fact that he doesn't even drink alcohol now is the first proof. The second is this DUI is 8 years old. It is not a current issue.

If he were referred to the physician again (or psychologist), he would just need to go to that visit and answer their questions and show he is not an alchoholic. He shouldn't have problem with that given the facts you have stated. Once he had satisfied them he was not, he would be sent back with that result to the embassy where they should then issue the visa.

Hopefully others who have gone thru Canada recently and had a DUI in the past can add more.

If they bring it up, the consulate will be concerned that it is a legal marriage in the place they will reside and where the marriage was performed. They should bring proof that it legal in their state/county of USC residence and where the marriage was performed, if overseas.

Otherwise, I wouldn't bring it up if they don't.

The hardship letter is a letter that accompanies the waiver form I-601, explains your hardships and refers to all the supporting evidence in your package.

I was reading about denied I-130 here http://www.smossmanlaw.com/family.html

"If USCIS denies the petition, then the petitioner has the right to appeal that decision to the Board of Immigration Appeals (for I-130's) or the Administrative Appeals Office (for I-129F's). An appeal may be appropriate if the USCIS officer made a legal error, ignored important evidence, relied upon the wrong standard of proof, or simply reached the wrong conclusion. "

He gives a bit of info on the basis on which the denial can be appealed and also confirms that I-130s are sent to BIA for appeal. The original denial I imagine then was at the Service Center (CSC?) not a local USCIS office.

I think you have 2 choices.

1) Appeal the denial for the $110 to the BIA. Have no idea how long this might take, perhaps someone else might.

2) File a new I-130 with all the evidence to support the petition and rebut any reason given in the first denial. Specifically and fully address the first denial in that second petition.

The attorney in the above link does consulations for $100. I have no experience with this attorney other than his website implies he has experience in this area.

My wife's medical is soon, and i am not sure if the fact we share herpes 2 will be an issue. Is this something of concern? Should i send something to show there doctors that i carry it also? Or is this not a big deal?

thanks,

Steve

If you are asking if it is a concern for immigration purposes, I don't think so. Here is info on the medical issues and inadmissibilities: http://www.lexisnexis.com/practiceareas/im...pdfs/web475.pdf

Based on what you've posted, I wouldn't worry too much until you have to. Keep educating yourself about the process and how it works as best you can, try to learn what possible things could go wrong so you can try to head them off, BUT no need to invent possible things to go wrong to worry about.

Ask (or search) in the Canada forum for people's recent experiences with doing the medical there, what they ask for and how involved it is. This probably will not even come up in the medical. From what I've seen, it more often is an issue in Mexico because of how the panel physicians there operate.

Is there anyone else here who has filed a waiver with Montreal/Vermont and are waiting for a decision?

Sorry, I can't answer that question, but wondering why, if the ban is over, you would need to wait on the waiver. It is no longer required.

I would get your Senator involved and maybe try up the chain at the embassy, the immigrant visa chief or Consul?

Two questions:

1) In your opinion, would either the DUI or driving with suspended license constitute a crime of moral turpitude?

Doubt it. I would be surprised if they required a waiver for this. There can be other issues though, read this: http://immigrate2us.net/forum/showthread.php?t=632

2) If yes, can we submit the waiver now, or do we need to wait until the interview?

No, you have to wait until the interview to be told you need one and are eligible to file it.

what is the appeal form plz? (eoir-29)or (i-290b)?

This part of the denial letter you posted is confusing to me: you may if u wish,appeal this decision.must submit such an appeal to this office whithin 15 days with a filing fee of $110 .if you do not file an appeal whithin the time allowed,this decesion is final.

appeal in your case may be made to the board of immigration appeals(board)in falls church,virginia

It seems strange they would ask you to appeal to the BIA an I-130 that was filed and denied at a service center for an alien spouse that is overseas? I don't have any personal experience with this side of things, but I would have expected a different scenario on the appeal.

Usually the letter will tell you if you need to use a specific form. The fact that they listed the fee as $110 seems odd too. What was the date on this letter? Since they jacked up the fees, a standard appeal I-290B is $585.

The EOIR is for an appeal of decision of an immigration judge. Was your petition before a judge in some kind of proceedings?

Unfortunately, only Mexico will review a waiver the same day and possibly if approved get a visa at that time. Every other office of USCIS takes their time, from average of 3-18 months depending on the office. Canada waivers are actually sent to Vermont Service Center for adjudication and they are on the slow side. I believe they have been averaging about 12 months to get an answer.

blue-Do you have any idea how I would go about finding a lawyer that would be able to help us figure this out? I don't even know where to start.

Here is a list to start from: http://immigrate2us.net/forum/showthread.php?t=889 Also, you may want to check out: http://www.sfatty.com/ More generically, www.aila.com has a referral service for AILA members.

If we did have to file a waiver, do we fill it out and take it with us to the interview? I have been trying to read about it, and that's what I concluded. Am I totally wrong? Is there anything else we have to do?

Yes, if you need to file a waiver they will deny the visa at your interview and allow you to file a waiver. From what I remember of other posters who went through Canada, you can file it the same day.

The I-601 waiver itself is a one page form HOWEVER there is much more that needs to be submitted with it. You need to present your argument for why the waiver should be approved and evidence to support your arguments.

And does anyone know what I fill in on the DS230 where it asks if he has committed crimes of MT? We don't know if it's considered that so how do we answer that? Or how do we find out? And if it is considered that, will they not even look past our packet 3 if he checks yes to MT?

After you consult with the attorney you will know for sure if the answer to #30b is Yes or No. I think it is No. You will need to explain that you were arrested and convicted though in #31. Provide copies of your court records and police records, sometimes they ask to send it in before the interview, but either way bring copies with you to the interview.

Thank you!!

This is what dh got from our local police station. We are still waiting for the fingerprint version. But from this, does it look as though he'll need a waiver? And what exactly is the process? Is there a link to it? I haven't had much time to look around in this forum to find anything. Someone from one of the other forums directed me over here.

Thanks!

Tammy

A cursory look seems to imply he would NOT require a waiver. Here is a link on the CIMT in the FAM http://foia.state.gov/masterdocs/09fam/0940021aN.pdf. Simple assault is not a CIMT.

Generally, you would want to get a copy of the law under which he was convicted. The law he was convicted under is what matters, not the U.S. version of a foreign law. Important parts are the specific features of the law that he was convicted under like intent provisions and especially the maximum penalty allowed, not the penalty received. You may want to pass this by an attorney familiar with the criminal statutes and immigration to be sure.

Since his convictions are over 15 years old, if he had to file a waiver, he can request a waiver without a qualifying relative and only by showing a lower standard - he is not a threat to the safety and security of the U.S. & he has been rehabilitated. (not extreme hardship)

If the overstay is less than 180 days, he won't need a waiver.

Visiting while K1 or F1 is pending is OK, BUT you have to convince the POE that you are visiting. If they are not convinced, they will send you home (the K1 is a bigger issue as it has immigrant intent, while the F1 is viewed differently). It depends on who greets you that day. Certainly lots of people have done it, but lots have been sent home. The best you can do is bring all the evidence that you don't intend to stay and hope for the best.