grrrrreat

Google searched and thought I'd bump this thread. I'm in a very similar situation. My girlfriend's j1 Visa expires in a month and we have been dating for 6 months. I was thinking of doing a k1 visa OR marrying her. The issue is, we both don't want to risk her not being able to get back into the US. From my understanding, a k1 visa is only if your significant other is not in the USA currently, correct?

My big question is, since my girlfriend's visa expires in a month, can we just take our time and get married at the end of the year? I personally had a New Years wedding time celebration in mind or somewhere around the holidays, so it gives us both time to invite friends and family, but I don't want it to hurt her status if she is here illegal for too long. Thoughts??

First, does your girlfriend's J-1 have a home residency requirement? If so, she either has to satisfy that or apply for a waiver before she can get any other immigration benefit. If you don't know, your first step is to find that out.

Second, yes a K-1 is a visa issued to somebody who wants to come to the U.S. to get married, so individuals who are present in the U.S. usually don't need it Theoretically, you could begin the K-1 process now by filing a I-129F, but it takes several months for the I-129F petition to be approved. Once it is approved, she leaves the U.S. and apply for the K-1 at an overseas consulate in her own country. Once she has the visa, she can travel to the U.S. for the purpose of getting married within 90 days, and then apply to adjust her status to lawful permanent resident. One scenario, if you timed it correctly, is to file the I-129F now and wait 6-7 months for approval, let her overstay the visa (but not by more than 180 days--see below), leave the U.S. to attend an overseas interview, re-enter with the visa, get married, and apply to adjust status. This seems like a lot of effort and money (and some risk) for someone that is already in the U.S.

Third, the route for someone who is already in the U.S. who gets married is to apply for adjustment of status. They wouldn't need the K-1 visa at all. An overstay is not a disqualification for adjusting status as the spouse of a U.S. citizen, although the overstay does have other consequences (see below). A scenario is possible where she overstays her current visa, marries toward the end of the year, and then applies to adjust status, but it has some risks and she likely wouldn't be able to leave the U.S. until she has adjusted status.

Finally, overstaying the J-1 visa status does have consequences. Most importantly, if she overstays for more than 180 days and then departs the U.S., she will incur a ban from reentering (for at least 3 years). This can be waived for spouses of U.S. citizens, but only if they can prove extreme hardship, and it takes much longer. Another consequence of course is that she is subject to being placed in removal proceedings and removed from the U.S. This would also incur a reentry ban. Finally, another consequence is that aliens who have overstayed often have to work harder to prove their marriage is bona fide, especially if someone marries after being placed in removal proceedings. She also can't work legally. So you have to consider all of that in deciding what to do.

Personally, I would marry as soon as I was ready and make the New Year's celebration more of a reception and less of a wedding.

Can someone help me please.. i am filling up i130 to petition my wife and i am finding a hard time answering question no. 13. I am a USC acquired through my father he is a retired US Navy i was born outside the united States of America so i only have a certification of birth abroad and a US passport. On the i130 form question no. 13 i have chosen Parents but what should i put on the question where it ask if you have obtain a certificate of citizenship in your own name? Please help! I think i am totally mixing up everything.

The answer is no because you have not obtained a certificate of citizenship. You don't need one and it won't affect your application. Provide your Consular Report of Birth Abroad and/or a copy of your U.S. passport to prove citizenship.

That's exactly what I thought and that's the reason why I made Infopass to ask USCIS what forms to file in my case.

again I know people that successfully adjusted and where required to submit a hardship waiver, waiver was approved and now they are LPR .

The only difference in my case from their is, I no longer require a waiver for EWI or UL.

been with NOW Hubby for over 3 yrs and just been married 2.5 months

And I pray to god I get approved.

Good luck. Please do let us know how it turns out.

Our interview date is coming up. I still have not found any official law or regulation about name changes after marriage. Just checking to see if anybody has new info I can take to the interview.

Unfortunately it just depends on the state where you live and what the marriage certificate says. In some states, the marriage certificate can automatically change only the last name to the new married name. In other states, you have to write on your marriage license or certificate what you want your new name to be.

Not sure about the circumstances of your lawyer's advice. If she was outside of the U.S. or not a resident at the time, it's probably true that no U.S. court could change her name. If she's living here now, I would expect you to be able to get a court ordered name change for her, if that's what she wants. Please try to understand that names and name changes are determined by state law, not federal law, so the rules are just going to vary depending on where you are. You'll be going to state courts to request the name change.

I am looking at what I need to do to file for my Husband's AOS. It appears to say that if I am filing his I-485 and wanting to file the I-765 and I-131 at the same time then there is no fee for the I-131. Is that correct? I want to be absolutely sure I include the correct amount with the package.

Thanks for an clarifications!

This isn't related to the fee question but make sure you submit a copy of your NOA2 from the I-129F with I-485. It's very important for people adjusting from K-1. Send a copy of your I-94 also.

Thank you grrrreat, yes i dont hold my H1 anymore since i applied to my I485 back on 2007.

My plan son far is have her come here months before i am current, get married here and then add her to my i485 application.

The only way that she has to come here is with a regular tourist visa.

What's LPR??

Any additional comments grrrreat...

Regards!

LPR = lawful permanent resident, which is the goal of filing I-485 to adjust your status. It also means having a Green Card. When I said "B1/B2 visa", I was referring to what you describe as a tourist visa. B1/B2 is the visa for people who are visiting for business or tourism.

Unfortunately, it's illegal for her to use a tourist visa if her intent is to settle permanently in the United States. In fact, to get a B1/B2 visa she will have to submit evidence and declare that she intends to return home. From many parts of the world, this is a very difficult thing to do. If she misrepresents her intent or submits false evidence, she could be barred from the U.S. permanently. In addition, even if she were to come here, CBP may not necessarily provide her with very much time in status. It is in their discretion at the border and if there are doubts about the alien's intent, they may provide only a few weeks of visitor status. As someone else suggested, she will not be able to adjust status at all unless she is lawfully present when the application is submitted.

I believe that you will have to find another way. If you get married before your adjustment is approved, you must research "follow-to-join" benefits. With follow-to-join, a consulate overseas can issue her an immigrant visa, which permits her to come to the U.S. and settle permanently. (Upon entering, she will get LPR status and a Green Card.) If you wait to get married until after your I-485 is approved, you will have to file a petition for her and simply wait for her priority date to become current.

Yes. I have. before submitting my applications I made an Infopass at the Local USCIS Office and was told that since May 10TH of this yr they had received a letter that AP through TPS is now considered a legal entry and that they will go by last entry.

"If I entered in 2001 as EWI got TPS after having been in the US for over yr , then Traveled with advance parole can I file I-130 concurrent with I-485 since I'm now married to USC? "

She said that Advance Parole was a legal entry but to give her a minute to make sure that TPS Advance Parole was also considered a legal entry. (she came back over 10 minutes later) and said.

IO: I spoke to Head Officer and was told that In fact TPS advance Parole is considered a legal entry and that since May 10th their office had received a letter from HQ stating that they can now use TPS Advance Parole as a legal Entry....

she also said; cases like mine where frozen until 20 days ago and that I can go ahead and file I-130 and I-485 together along with all supporting documents.

I then asked her if I would require a waiver for EWI she said NO and nor for the unlawful presence because HQ authorized the entry with your Advance Parole so you are no longer EWI ...

I also asked how long is the process in my case?

she said you are adjusting as a standard AOS so it should take about 2-3 months if no criminal record, she also mentioned that I might not get approved if I have any criminal records...(no problem at all for the past 13 yrs since I entered US)

I know people that have adjusted with approved waiver before.

See Matter Arrabally and Yerrabelly (BIA2012)

I would definitely like to see that letter from HQ regarding entrance on advance parole being an admission for adjustment purposes.

You keep citing Matter of Arrabally and Yerrabelly, but it's a completely different case from yours. The aliens in that case were admitted and inspected with nonimmigrant visas, not EWIs, when they filed for adjustment of status. The advance parole was issued due to the pending adjustment, not because of TPS. The question there was only whether they had incurred 10 year bans due to departing the U.S. after accumulating overstay. The court held that leaving the U.S. with advance parole does not constitute a departure for the purpose of the 10 year ban. It did not hold that entry into the U.S. with advance parole (granted due to TPS) was an admission for adjustment of status purposes.

Heh, I did end up telling the Immigration Officer that I got married because of the baby. I'm 29, husband is 30 - it's not a tragic teen pregnancy, I didn't even think I could have children after some reproductive health issues in my teens.

If it wasn't for the surprise pregnancy, we would have gone the K1 route. It's a second marriage for us both (first kid), and we were happy just taking it slow and visiting every month. I have no regrets and I love our son, love our family and love our life BUT - it wasn't the plan!

She asked a couple of questions, joked around with us and told us she'll approve our petition, should get the card within the month.

The whole thing took less than 10 minutes!

Congratulations. A pregnancy is about the best explanation for changing your nonimmigrant intent that I can think of.

Hi guys,

So were getting super close to finally filing my AOS from a visa wavier. We had hoped to have it done a couple of months ago, but it wasn't possible for a couple of reasons. Now that I'm at about 6 months worth of overstay, we are doing everything we can to get it off as soon as possible.

So when I completed most of the paperwork about 4 months ago, my wife was comfortable in her job, and I filled out all the paperwork to match this. She however hadn't been in her job long enough to file for complete sponsorship, so we have her Mum as a joint sponsor anyway.

About a month ago my wife was made redundant.

Now I'm picking up the forms again to get them fully complete, I obviously remembered things have changed. Now I know obviously, anywhere on the forms where it would have said she was employed with any details, this will now be change to unemployed. But is there anything else I need to do? Is there anything else I need to include extra? Obviously, I had copies of her W2, and 6 months worth of pay stubs ready to send. Do I still send these, or not include these?

So I have to include anything to show her actively looking for employment?

And with regards to the joint sponsor, is there anything else her Mum will need to include?

Thanks in advance guys!

If you didn't previously think of submitting I-131 for an advance parole because of your overstay, I would reconsider doing so. The regulations were recently changed to allow adjustment applicants to leave the U.S. with advance parole and not incur an overstay ban. I wouldn't use AP just yet, as the decision may be temporary, but it's worth having if you did have an important reason to leave the U.S. before you become an LPR, and if you weigh your risk and decide it's worth it based on the regulations in place at that time.

Also, if your wife is earning unemployment insurance or severance, that may qualify her under the guidelines. You would need proof of the amount she was getting.

It's mostly the same. you don't need paystubs for your wife now though because she is not working. Paystubs are to prove ongoing employment. Include all of the other evidence and point out she is currently unemployed. Make sure to include proof of citizenship for your co-sponsor

You can qualify with unemployment insurance benefits, if they are enough under the guidelines.

Thank you for your input.

I agree that if he entered in 8-2011 and stayed here without going home and we got married now, intent would be pretty clear to any outsider. School, of course.

However, because he returned home in April and returned in June to start summer quarter next week, I assume it would look suspicious if we got married now and used the school tuition money to pay for said marriage and AOS... We just want this to go as smoothly as possible. If that's too much of a red flag for immigration, we will wait until late summer to marry and he will go to school this summer.

I doubt you'll have problems with intent.

Makes sense.. Thats what they do for TPS HOLDERS ” ONLY FOR HUMANITARIAN REASONS” and of course we have to prove that is emergent.

I find it fare if they require bona fide reasons for overstayers or anyone who violated the law. They been doing it to most EWI TPS HOLDERS why not who violated their visa and overstayed

Been there done that and survived.

Have you gotten a legal opinion on whether your entry under advance parole was sufficient to make you eligible for adjustment of status? I am asking because adjustment requires that you have been admitted and inspected, and I know for some purposes being paroled is not the same as having been admitted. I am not trying to worry you I just have never encountered a situation where someone who initially EWI later entered with AP and wanted to adjust.

I think everyone should know about a newish BIA case that says leaving the U.S. after the issuance of advance parole does not trigger the ban resulting from an overstay, because leaving with advance parole does not constitute a "departure" for the purpose of the bans. At least one field office has begun to reopen adjustment cases that were denied as a result of the ban. This is an ongoing development, so I do not think that people who have overstays should be confident about leaving the U.S. with advance parole, but it is something to think about (especially if someone has left with advance parole, returned to the U.S. and has a pending adjustment application).

Personally, I think the decision is poorly reasoned and unpersuasive. The rule that leaving with advance parole does not constitute "departure" from the U.S. breaks with longstanding law that leaving the U.S. is generally a "departure" for the purpose of the overstay bans. The decision was result-oriented and probably was made because the BIA found it unfair that USCIS was issuing advance paroles to individuals who had overstays. The decision would result in unintended consequences, such as USCIS refusing to issue advance paroles to adjustment applicants without a good reason, or refusing to issue AP to people who have overstayed at all. I do not know if the case will be appealed to a higher court.

Here is the decision: http://www.justice.gov/eoir/vll/intdec/vol25/3748.pdf

USCIS had taken the position that a person who obtains advance parole and returns lawfully is subject to the 10-year bar. The position was based on the conclusion that the person “departed” the U.S. However, recently, that position has been overturned by the Board of Immigration Appeals in a seminal case,Matter of Arrabally.

Exiting the U.S. with advance parole no longer triggers the unlawful presence bar. InMatter of Arrabally, the BIA came to the conclusion that advance parole is a distinct benefit, and is “qualitatively different from other departures, because it presupposes both that he will be permittedto returnto the United States thereafter and that he will upon return, continue to pursue the adjustment of statusapplicationhe filed before departing.” In other words, leaving the US under a grant of advance parole does not constitute a “departure” for the purposes of triggering the unlawful presence bar. This is a significant victory for individuals who need to travel during the pendency of their adjustment of statusapplication. Matter of Arraballyis also a significant victory for those who have previously been denied adjustment based on their ineligibility for an unlawful presence waiver after departure under advance parole. These individuals may now have grounds to reopen their adjustment of statusapplication, pursuant to newcase law.

The Arrabally case is poorly reasoned and I suspect it will be appealed and overturned. If it is upheld, I suspect that USCIS will stop granting advance parole to adjusters as a matter of routine, and may instead begin requiring some bona fide reasons for needing it. Or USCIS may stop issuing advance parole to overstayers at all.

Thank you Jim,

By with lawful non-immigrant status, you mean lets say a valid tourist visa?

Regards

Yes a B1/B2 visitor visa is a nonimmigrant status. But it's illegal to use a nonimmigrant visa to enter the U.S. if her intent is to stay permanently, and if the overseas consulate knows that she is married to someone who is adjusting status, they are more likely to deny the visitor visa.

If she is outside of the United States and you get married before you become a lawful permanent resident, then you need to apply for "follow to join" benefits. If you are eligible for follow to join benefits, they will let her apply for an immigrant visa at the overseas consulate.

As someone else said, if you marry after you become an LPR, she isn't eligible for follow to join benefits.

yes actually. infact my ead case doesnt have any status beyond the initial receipt.

Your interview letter came really really fast after you filed, so the national benefits center just hasn't had the chance to process your EAD. You might not get it at all if you're approved at the interview.

ok good to know about the job thing ! i am very , very upset i can't travel. my family will be devastated. it is my fault but i had a newborn on my hands and trying to do immigration stuff by myself and i had no idea what i was doing . i didn't know i even had to do this green card thing. so if i would have just done it when i did the i130 it wouldn't even be an issue. but i really, really want to start looking for work. i am losing my mind not working ! ahh SAHM sucks. haha.

Just go ahead and file I-485 according to the instructions and with supplemental materials and include a copy of the letter approving your I-130. Also add form I-765, which will provide you an employment authorization document. There's nothing else to do for you.

Again, technically you have not started to accrue unlawful presence, although you are subject to being placed in removal proceedings, which would begin that accrual. As others have said, other aliens in your situation would still find it unacceptably risky to travel outside of the U.S., even if they had advance parole. In fact, other undocumented immigrants would probably simply feel lucky that they had a route to legal status and look forward to traveling home as soon as they became a lawful permanent resident.

Sorry you didn't know the proper route to adjust your status, as the Green Card could have already been obtained for you. But the initial overstay of your visitor status was entirely your fault.

Howdy,

This is my first post here, though I've spent quite some time perusing the useful guides and getting our paperwork together. I'm a US citizen, and my wife is an Iranian citizen in the US on an F1 (student) visa. We married about a year ago, over a year after she arrived in the country. We are now preparing to do a concurrent filing of an I-130 and I-485 to start her AOS. I just wanted to see if anyone knew if there was any sort of special rigamarole or technicality that was going to get in the way because she's Iranian, and if anyone has any tips for getting through them as quick as possible.

Thanks.

Some individuals from that part of the world have to undergo background checks before they obtain nonimmigrant status, which can significantly delay the process. I am guessing that in your wife's case any such processing would have been done when she obtained an F-1. I can't imagine anything else that would hinder her adjustment.

Agree with the previous post. Also one thing to note is that it won't matter if the AP is issued before your return date, and someone would send it to you to wherever you are now so that you could use it to re-enter - what matters is that your departure date from the US will have been before the issue date of the new AP, and therefore you left the US without a valid travel document at the time of departure. You need it to get back in, but you also need to have a valid travel document to leave the US to not abandon your AOS. Even if CBP would let you back in with the new AP , assuming someone sent it to you abroad, it would most likely become obvious at some point during the AOS process that you left the country before the travel document had been issued, and after the previous one had already been expired, which would most likely result in a denial in your AOS case.

I do not know whether or not you can appeal this kind of a situation - someone here will probably have experience or information on that.

I agree with you also. The problem with leaving before AP is approved is that as soon as you leave, the adjustment application is considered abandoned, which makes the alien ineligible for AP. Now, USCIS doesn't necessarily know that the alien has left, which is why it issues AP in error, and CBP may not necessarily know that the advance parole they're presented with on the return trip is invalid, so I suspect more than a few folks have probably successfully gotten back into the U.S., but it's not the way things are supposed to happen.

Thank you all very much for such detailed answers. They were really helpful.

17. Additional question: My future wife is a student, she is a babysitter. She doesn't file taxes, since she doesn't have to: she is paid in cash (that's her explanation). As she said, her overall annual income is 19K, which meets poverty guideline requirement for a 2-person household. Question: what documents shall we provide instead of tax return files?

Her explanation is bull-pucky. She is required to file and pay taxes on all income, even income earned in cash. She will not be able to file an affidavit of support or petition for you until she has filed taxes.

Consider the alternative: wouldn't every employer pay their employees in cash so that no one had to pay taxes?

Worse yet, the tax burden on $19,000 will be minimal, even if she is single with no dependents. If she is able to claim educational tax credits, she could owe no taxes or even get a refund. So why not do the right thing and file taxes as she is required to?

Hi. I made the mistake of leaving without an approved AP, and I'd like to hear any experiences on how to straighten out the situation.

I have an Adjustment of Status pending. Should come current around January. I was on H1b before. I have had many AP's in the past, but my last one expired in January. USCIS received my new I131 application on March 13th. I only realized the night before my flight that my last AP was expired. I thought I'd get my AP eventually, get it sent to Europe, then come back with it, even if slightly late. I couldn't even imagine that the act of leaving the country without a valid AP automatically voids the AOS. Now I know. Though I still have no idea what the rationale may be. Does anyone know?

My return ticket is June 25th. I should be able to get the AP paper in the mail before then, if they really process applications in 90 days.

The airline person did not take my I94 out of my passport. This has happened to me many times before, and I only received a scolding from the immigration officer upon return. Not sure what this means in terms of my departure record.

What are my options right now?

Is there ANY way I can keep my AOS in effect at this point and not give up my priority date? I've heard it is up to the officer's discretion to enforce the technicality of the departure date. I had a good experience once when I lost my passport and AP, the officer let me in with a temporary passport and a photocopy of the AP. Alternatively, would I be going before an immigration judge? Can the invalidation of AOS be appealed? I'm obviously working in the US, and can't even consider lengthy paperwork while waiting outside the country.

I'd appreciate any advice, especially based on experience. Thanks!

Do you still have a valid H1-B? Are you still in status on it? Did you actually use the prior advance paroles? People who have valid, unexpired H1-Bs and are still in status on their H1-B can travel in and out of the U.S. with the H1-B visa and don't need advance parole. On the other hand, if you have no valid H1-B, or it has expired, or you were out of status on it, then leaving the U.S. without advance parole results in abandonment of the adjustment application.

The rationale is that the alien has to be in the U.S. when the adjustment process is complete. If the alien leaves the U.S. without a valid permission to return, then it becomes impossible to complete the adjustment process. Generally adjustment applicants can not use nonimmigrant visas or the VWP to enter the U.S. because they have the intent to immigrate, which disqualifies them. They can only do it with advance parole.

The reason that H1-B visas are different is that they are "dual-intent visas", which means you can use them even if you have the intent to immigrate (i.e., have applied for adjustment).

There will be a further complication if your H1-B is still technically valid, but you have used a previous advance parole. Using advance parole technically cancels H1-B status (i.e., instead of an H1-B entrant, you were a "parolee"). CBP may not notice this, but it's sufficient reason to deny you entry using the H1-B. A similar result occurs if you stopped working at the H1-B job or used an EAD to get a different job, since H1-B entrants have to keep working for the same employer to maintain their H1-B visa.

You could try entering the U.S. with the advance parole that USCIS issues after you leave, but there is of course a risk that you will be denied entry and have your adjustment application cancelled.

There actually is a new immigration verification system called SAVE. Government agencies can run your immigration document through the database to make sure that you are in the status you're claiming to be in. After you're naturalized, they'll add that data too so that agencies can make sure you are actually a U.S. citizen.

Theoretically they could be using SAVE now. http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.5af9bb95919f35e66f614176543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=e05588061b5c4210VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCRD&vgnextchannel=1721c2ec0c7c8110VgnVCM1000004718190aRCRD

Hi,

Here is my basic situation. I REALLY need some advice. I keep calling the USCIS customer service and they are useless. I live on an island and there is ONE lawyer here and he is useless. So anyways..

I came to the US from Canada in OCTOBER 2010. I came here as a Canadian visitor. I used my passport, and they do not stamp passports when you are just coming for a short trip. At least they did not stamp mine. So I do not have a proof of entry.

I have not left the country since then. I got married to my husband in March 2011. We didn't do anything right away because we weren't sure what steps to take. Also, we had a baby on the way so for us I guess it wasn't the biggest thing on our minds. So my son is a citizen but I am not! .

So in November 2011 I filed for the i130 petition for alien relative and thought that was that. I didn't know I had to do the 485 for green card or that I could file concurrently. I was approved for the i130 in May 2012. I still have yet to receive anything beyond my letter of approval.

I had planned a trip to Canada for this summer. My family has not met my son, and my parents are unable to travel due to health issues. Well, they could travel if it was completely necessary, but they are old and my dad has extremely painful arthritis. He is having tests and what not done for it currently.

So my husband and I planned to get my #### together and file for the green card, a travel permit - i131, and employment authorization, and hopefully get the travel expedited. Since the closest USCIS office is over 4 hours away, I assume we will need to make an appointment there? Once I file the 485 and i131, can I make the appointment to ask for expedited travel? I would like to travel end of July/August. Do I need to ask for the i131 to be expedited when I mail it in? Do I need to do anything special for it to be expedited? How much of a chance do I have that it will be expedited? Should I purchased airline tickets and just hold my breath? What about the biometrics? Will I need to do those at a USCIS office? How long does that usually take? Please, any advice is greatly appreciated. Even if it is direction to a lawyer that can help me just with info for a small fee or something. I live in Key West, Florida.

Thanks!

Wait a minute, the maximum lawful visitor stay in the U.S. for Canadians is six months. You entered in October 2010. So you were unlawfully present starting sometime in April 2011? You began accruing unlawful presence, and now you have more than 365 days of it. As a result, you have likely incurred a bar from entering the U.S. This means that you cannot use advance parole to travel outside of the U.S.--you may be excluded from the U.S. upon returning for 3 or 10 years!

You cannot travel until you became an LPR--only then do the unlawful presence bars go away. You need to file I-485, but forget about I-131. Include a copy of your approval letter for I-130 with your Form I-485. And include a copy of your passport and all pages in it with your I-485 as it's the best proof of lawful entry that you have (but include the plane ticket you used if you have it too).

Even if you could use I-131 to travel, I doubt you could get it expedited. You haven't articulated a great reason to need it on an urgent basis, and the huge gap between filing your I-130 and I-485 makes your case less sympathetic.. Check out the expedite criteria here: http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.5af9bb95919f35e66f614176543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=16a6b1be1ce85210VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCRD&vgnextchannel=db029c7755cb9010VgnVCM10000045f3d6a1RCRD

Biometrics are scheduled by USCIS by letter to you after you file I-485. They take place at the local USCIS office. There is way more than 1 lawyer on Key West.

UPDATE: perhaps the situation isn't as dire as I thought. Canadians who were admitted without a visa or I-94 do not accrue unlawful presence until an Immigration Judge orders their removal. http://elpasotimes.typepad.com/files/unlawfulpresence-1.pdf at p. 12. I still don't think you can get AP expedited as you don't have a good case.

Probably worth contacting the closest USCIS office to sort out your circumstances. https://egov.uscis.gov/crisgwi/go?action=offices.summary&OfficeLocator.office_type=LO&OfficeLocator.statecode=FL

Yes, you will have to go for biometrics and for an Infopass appointment to request the expedited Advance Parole once you've filed the proper forms.

Probably want to hold off on the travel plans for a bit.

She can't use advance parole--way too much unlawful presence. Most likely would incur a 10 year ban.

Thank you all!

Yeah, I am current out of status now. 90 days are still in full force!

This doesn't prevent you from adjusting status, but it does have other consequences:

1) You're out of status on OPT/F-1, and you can't use that visa or EAD to travel or work.

2) You've begun accruing unlawful presence. If you accrue 180 days of it, you can't travel out of the U.S. until you are an LPR, or you will be barred. Unlawful presence stops accruing when you file I-485.

3) In an adjustment interview, you may be questioned a little more thorougly than others regarding the bona fides of your relationship. (Depending on the officer, USCIS may consider marrying and adjusting status while out of status as suspicious, but it still doesn't prevent bona fide couples from adjusting status.)

4) You need to apply for a new EAD when you adjust status if you want to work.

For current status, put F-1/OPT. "Expired" and "out of status" aren't real statuses.

Finally!!! After two long years of waiting for my wife's 2-year HRR to run out, we have scheduled the visa interview. We are due at the Embassy in Jakarta on June 28th! I am extremely nervous, though we are a "low risk" couple, but also extremely excited to get this all behind us!

Any advice would be great!

Bring very solid proof of satisfaction of the HRR--like stamps in the passport showing entrances and exits from the home country, work or school records, plane tickets, whatever else you can think of.

Thanks you so much for this. It is really helpful. There is also an issue with my wife tax, I just posted that too, I will papreciate it if you can check it out and advise..Thanks again.

Yeah she needs to file her taxes...it's not a complicated situation.