QueenOfBlades
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Posts posted by QueenOfBlades
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No it doesn’t count. The public charge rule doesn’t apply once the person is already a permanent resident, and health insurance under ACA is not considered a public charge per the USCIS policy manual.
https://www.uscis.gov/policy-manual/volume-8-part-g-chapter-10
B. Public Benefits Not Considered
1. Unenumerated Public Benefits
Other benefits not considered public benefits in the public charge inadmissibility determination include, but are not limited to:....
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Health Insurance through the Affordable Care Act;
- mogiftney, OHara and WeekendPizzaiolo
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Your I-551 is your green card. It’s just not the physical green card yet but doesn’t mean it’s less valid or that you can’t work. There’s no reason you can’t find work with it. Employers just need to check you’re legal to work. I got a job in the legal industry using my EAD and then updated my HR department when my green card came in, and my subsequent employer had my second GC on file years later with removed conditions.
And yes, it’s unfortunate, but coronavirus doesn’t excuse their obligations. I know it’s a tough spot to be in. My sponsor will be off the hook if/when I naturalize (I’m eligible now - or work so many quarters I believe) but situations can change quickly. My sponsor went from a steady income, investments and a paid off house to being in a nursing facility. We all signed legal papers, and we have to adhere to them. I haven’t personally heard of someone taking their I-864 to court to enforce it but I’m sure it’s happened. Though if you did claim means tested benefits, to my knowledge, the government can seek reimbursement from your sponsor.
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That would be absolutely absurd for Harry to move here and expect the US taxpayer to foot the bill for their security. They got enough of my tax money when I lived in the U.K. They’ve got plenty of money and don’t need to worry about having to beg for scraps anytime soon. Entitled gits.
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Still pretty damning, though. I don’t imagine it would be beyond the capability of USCIS to find out.
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Some countries definitely get an easier time of it than others. I’m from England, so the London interview for my K1 was fine.
I don’t remember exactly what the financial requirements were back in 2013 for the I-864, but at the K1 *and* AOS stage, neither me or my husband had a job. His mom was our sponsor and she had a good bit in investments, owned her own home and was providing all our expenses until I found work.
I’m not even sure if I could’ve moved over here with this new public charge rule. The IO at the London embassy was a bit disgruntled with neither of us having jobs when I would arrive in the US (I still had a job in the U.K. and had worked consistently since I was 16) but he said he would overlook it and is not as concerned due to my strong work history.
I did well for myself here and I’m the one who pays to support USC family members now, not the reverse. 🤷🏼♀️ I guess I just find it a little sad with the new form that some people who could do really well here aren’t allowed in because it doesn’t look good on paper. But I understand the reasoning.
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I’m baffled about the drug use thing considering him falling out of clubs and literally it was public news that he was in rehab for weed. How could he put no for that when it’s public information?
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I’ve gotten to the point of being an unconditional LPR and I’ve always wanted to do my own forms. If it’s something beyond me that I couldn’t handle, like something in court, I’d lawyer up. Otherwise, I’ve seen a lot of stories of lawyers making basic mistakes like sending an outdated form.
I don’t know if this is a healthy trait or not, but I have severe anxiety with anything immigration. Doing it myself allowed me to carefully examine every form, every requirement, all evidence, and scrutinize everything to the letter before sending the package off. I just didn’t trust something so significant with someone else.
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Definitely list it. Without a doubt. The shipping clerk position can be spun into a positive in an interview. If he leaves the big gap, he likely won’t even get the interview to explain the gap. Employers nowadays get a ton of applications for most jobs and they have to go through them quickly to find ones that stand out. Ones with big gaps in work history have a natural disadvantage.
Besides, never know where it might lead. I worked in the legal industry. I currently work for the biggest commercial property insurer in the world on the underwriting side helping with the creation of the contracts, which is definitely my alley. I didn’t get there from the legal experience. The engineering consultants who visit sites to evaluate risk needed someone on their team. I first was brought into the company because of totally irrelevant engineering experience I had in the UK about 5 years prior. I wanted legal work; but the recruiter called me saying she thinks they would really like me and to apply for it. I got it based on experience I thought was completely irrelevant to my career at that point in my life. But it got me into an amazing company that claims to have the second best retirement benefits in the country.
You never know where things might take you. List the job and fluff up any possible skills or attributes associated with it that could be relevant to the role. Hard or soft skills. People have core competencies as employees that carry across any role and industry.
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Kind of a bit late chiming in here. I’m a UK expat with 8 GCSEs. No bachelors degree. Never got the eval done. Got a job coordinating international legal publications, then moved on to a Fortune 500 corporation in Seattle. I’m not saying it may not help with getting a job initially, it could well help for US employers to see terms they’re familiar with. Not *absolutely necessary* though. Once I had one good bout of work experience here, beyond having an idea that it’s about high school level, they saw the work experience as much more indicative of my skills and relevant to my application. Never been asked to prove my education or show that translation. Not once.
Saying that, I was in a pretty bad financial spot when I moved to Seattle due to my USC spouse suddenly becoming disabled and losing her income, and it was up to me to find a way to compensate for her lost annual income of around $30,000 as best I could so we could afford to even pay rent.
I did *a lot* of interviews. With recruiters, employers. At one point it felt like I was going to several a week. Never once was asked for the credential translation.
It would only really be relevant imo for your first job or something specialized like engineering. If you put together a really polished, solid resume and sell yourself, an employer is unlikely to get hung up on credential translations if they like the look of you.
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I just read something about USCIS offices assisting LPRs abroad and they’re all closed as far as I’m aware. So yeah. Travel at your own peril.
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Don’t go. State Department put out an advisory saying you might have to remain there indefinitely with reduced or absent assistance from an embassy.
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As an update, just saw this. This applies even to citizens, so I would certainly not recommend it for anyone. If you are planning any international trips, you might want to call it off unless you’re ready to be there indefinitely.
“The Department of State advises U.S. citizens to avoid all international travel due to the global impact of COVID-19. In countries where commercial departure options remain available, U.S. citizens who live in the United States should arrange for immediate return to the United States, unless they are prepared to remain abroad for an indefinite period. U.S. citizens who live abroad should avoid all international travel.”
”Many countries are experiencing COVID-19 outbreaks and implementing travel restrictions and mandatory quarantines, closing borders, and prohibiting non-citizens from entry with little advance notice. Airlines have cancelled many international flights and several cruise operators have suspended operations or cancelled trips. If you choose to travel internationally, your travel plans may be severely disrupted, and you may be forced to remain outside of the United States for an indefinite timeframe.”
So basically, you might end up stranded overseas indefinitely and consular officers are being allowed home so you might not have access to an embassy for assistance.
DO. NOT. TRAVEL. -
Pretty much the same thing. Reaching out to the local education authority. They should have something called the Common Transfer File. This is for when students switch schools and contains their educational record. Structure is the same with the Key Stages. Years 5 and 6 would put him at Key Stage 2.
Yeah, educational records like that aren’t usually necessary unless a student transfers schools. If it’s just leaving secondary school and he had done his GCSEs, he’d have had official certificates as proof issued from places like EdExcel.
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You got married and submitted the application within the 90 day period. I assume you have a tracking slip for when you mailed it. We are also in a global pandemic and USCIS is not exempt from their reduced inability to function right now.
I’m not saying this to be patronizing. I’m just stating facts. ICE are not going to be dragging your wife away after busting down the door, no. She is married to a US Citizen with a current application in process who filed to adjust within the period of authorized stay and married within that 90 days, in compliance with the terms of her visa. Certainly don’t get into trouble with the law or leave the US, no, but ICE aren’t coming after you. No reason to.
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Good luck. Perhaps they can at least recommend something. You could always try the USCIS call center but who knows how helpful that would be..
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@J&S12 Is he English? The instructions say to list whatever the highest level of education he reached. So in England, that would be whatever Key Stage/year he got to. He has the legal right to his school records under the UK’s Data Protection Act. His first port of call should be his Local Education Authority. I put “<old city name> Local Education Authority” and their site came up.
There’s also this:
https://dera.ioe.ac.uk/22630/8/Keeping and maintaining records - GOV_UK.pdf
It provides this e-mail address if you are still struggling: assessments@dfe.gov.uk
DFE = Department of Education.
If he’s not English, this won’t have been much use, but same principle applies. Take whatever grading system they have there (UK’s key stages, US’ grades), use that for the USCIS form, and do a bit of googling on pulling his educational record. If the school’s shut down, it’ll be with some local educational authority I expect.
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Everything I’m reading says about using the credit report site I listed above, including using it to provide evidence that the immigrant has no credit history. Looking at the site though, they require an SSN. So I’m not sure if they could identify her in other ways. I’m not sure how that works honestly.
Request Your Free Credit Report:
Online: Visit AnnualCreditReport.com
By Phone: Call 1-877-322-8228. For TTY service, call 711 and ask the relay operator for 1-800-821-7232.
It says to call that 877 number with any questions. If it were me, I’d probably try that and see if they can do anything.
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Copy pasting what I just said about this in the other thread (He being the alien):
He doesn’t need an SSN to build credit. It’s just one identifier that’s used to find someone. People like students can build credit histories as well. Estimates I’m seeing are 3-6 months. The credit isn’t something to stress over. USCIS provide this link for more info:
https://www.usa.gov/credit-reports
Which in turn leads to a free credit report here:
https://www.annualcreditreport.com/index.action
Which notes it is the only source for a free credit report, and authorized by federal law. Put your husbands information in. Run a search. Save whatever results you get either way, submit it with your form. Even PrintScreen or something if it pulls up negative to show he has no credit report per the source they provide. Negative credit reports or errors have requirements too if he is pinged for that. Getting letters back saying he doesn’t have one would be helpful too, as you mentioned.
Regarding not having a credit score, USCIS says:
“If you do not have a credit report or credit score, provide documentation that demonstrates that you do not have a credit report or score with a credit bureau. You may provide evidence of continued payment of bills if there is no credit report or credit score.”
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Remember that they approve petitions based on the totality of circumstances and 2 GCSEs isn’t an instant denial. They will look at his work history, skills, all of it. I’m sure doing a GED wouldn’t be a big deal for him and USCIS would know that too. Clearly he already got through the K1 bit of it. Then there’s assets too. When I had my K1 interview in London years ago, in 2013, my K1 was based entirely off a co-sponsor because neither me or my fiancé had jobs in the US. He overlooked it based on my strong work history. It was a different time, but USCIS have always been firm regardless.
@brainless69 I’m glad my post helped and that the ECE guys have what you’re looking for.
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He doesn’t need an SSN to build credit. It’s just one identifier that’s used to find someone. People like students can build credit histories as well. Estimates I’m seeing are 3-6 months. The credit isn’t something to stress over. USCIS provide this link for more info:
https://www.usa.gov/credit-reports
Which in turn leads to a free credit report here:
https://www.annualcreditreport.com/index.action
Which notes it is the only source for a free credit report, and authorized by federal law. Put your husbands information in. Run a search. Save whatever results you get either way, submit it with your form. Even PrintScreen or something if it pulls up negative to show he has no credit report per the source they provide. Negative credit reports or errors have requirements too if he is pinged for that. Getting letters back saying he doesn’t have one would be helpful too, as you mentioned.
Regarding not having a credit score, USCIS says:
“If you do not have a credit report or credit score, provide documentation that demonstrates that you do not have a credit report or score with a credit bureau. You may provide evidence of continued payment of bills if there is no credit report or credit score.”
I would submit the US bills. If he’s been here since October and his name is on the bills, that is a decent amount of time to show bills are getting paid. Ultimately, they care whether he is a burden now on US soil and able to pay for himself, not what his situation was in England.
On to GCSEs. A high school diploma is generally considered to be at least 5 GCSEs at C or above. C is a pass in England.
They will need to be sent for an equivalency review. 2 GCSEs would almost certainly not count as passing high school, but you can wait until the equivalency review comes back to make sure before filling it out. He will need to send transcripts/documentation for all education he lists. If he can’t get a hold of them, he needs to explain why and “if possible”, the evidence of unavailability such as the issuing institution writing a letter stating it. USCIS recommends members of NACES for the equivalency review: https://www.naces.org/membersListing the GCSEs is not optional. It says you have to state the highest level of education completed if you did not pass high school, “also, list all educational programs you attended in the space provided, such as high school, college, or other higher education”. All. You must NEVER, I cannot emphasize that enough, willingly leave things out of a USCIS application that it specifically asks for, thus is a material fact, because you think it could negatively affect the filing. Accusations of Willful Misrepresentation from USCIS and the consequences would not be something either of you want.
Sources:
https://www.uscis.gov/system/files_force/files/form/i-944instr-pc.pdf?download=1 -
The I-864 (Affidavit of Support) is a legally binding contract to keep the alien with at least 125% the federal income poverty level. The alien can enforce the I-864 against the sponsor to that end. The government also requires with the I-864 that they agree to cover for welfare etc in the future, so they (government) can come after the sponsor for certain “means tested public benefits” for reimbursement. I’m not sure what type of unemployment benefits you’re talking about or if he’d even be able to if it’s public assistance. Different requirements and having to have been here a certain amount of time with so many quarters worked, and such. It’s been a while since I read the I-864 but given the criteria for being a public charge, it’s a fair bet that all income maintenance is subject to this. Keep in mind that this is an unprecedented global pandemic though and these aren’t normal times. I’ve already read about Trump trying to do something for those out of work.
Non-citizen eligibility for public benefits:
https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL33809.pdf
LPRs are not subject to the public charge rule when removing conditions or naturalizing. Just keep in mind though that every approval is always at the IO’s discretion and if it’s excessive, it might be something they consider. But no, he isn’t subject to the public charge rule.
I’ve included a link below to USCIS which details all that the new rule includes, including any federal, state, local or tribal income maintenance.
Naturalization (Form N-400)
LPRs who apply to naturalize are not be subject to the public charge ground of inadmissibility.
Removal of conditional residency (Form I-751)
Conditional residents are similarly not subject to the public charge ground of inadmissibility when they apply at the two-year stage to remove the conditions (Form I-751). Since they have the same status as other LPRs, however, they would be subject to all grounds of inadmissibility if they depart the United States and then seek readmission after 180 days.
https://www.uscis.gov/greencard/public-chargeA. DHS will only consider public benefits as listed in the rule:
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Any federal, state, local or tribal cash assistance for income maintenance
- Supplemental Security Income
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Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
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Federal, State, local, or tribal cash benefit programs for income maintenance (often called General Assistance in the state context, but which may exist under other names)
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This probably sounds like a dumb question, but as I am “paranoid”, I want to check.
As a LPR, am I allowed to sign petitions on Change.org? Like one petitioning the Mayor to wipe out rent during the pandemic? Would this count as ‘voting’?
Thanks.
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With the 120 days, being around roughly 4 months still gives them until the end of May roughly, unfortunately. I think mine took about 5 weeks when I waited for my 10 year GC. Your worry is definitely understandable, but as a permanent resident, the ban doesn’t apply to you. Airports look like a nightmare right now though.
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I wouldn’t think so.
The apartments aren’t subsidized, as they say. You’d still need a minimum income of of $1,311 to be eligible and that’s only for a studio, from what it looks like.
Subsidized housing is government assistance, like Section 8. The things USCIS considers for housing and the new public charge rule is:
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Section 8 Housing Assistance under the Housing Choice Voucher Program
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Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance (including Moderate Rehabilitation)
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Public Housing under section 9 the Housing Act of 1937, 42 U.S.C. 1437 et seq.
Public housing is government owned. Thus, it would most certainly be subsidized.
If you were using the Housing Choice Voucher, you’d literally have a voucher saying what you qualify for so you can look for housing.For Project Based assistance under Section 8, you would specifically apply for it and join a waiting list that is often long. It is often for people with extremely low income who can only pay 30%ish of their rent and the rest is covered for them, as mentioned in your picture (PBV - project based voucher).
Tax credits aren’t considered with the new public charge rule. Not that you’d possibly have a way to know anyway, but the Low Income Housing Tax Credits (helps a lot of newly constructed affordable housing) administered by the IRS doesn’t count.
https://www.uscis.gov/policy-manual/volume-8-part-g-chapter-10
Like the link says, just be careful of states naming federal benefits under different names and check into any benefit if you ever need one.
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A Warning To Green Card Holders About Voting
in Moving to the US and Your New Life In America
Posted
I understand the comments about being clear regarding federal elections and whatnot, but...
..... no. No way. Consequences way too severe to risk it. I refuse to deposit the signed ballots of my USC best friend and wife or touch the ballot box. Don’t even want to go near the elections office. When my USC best friend went to register to vote and I drove him there with my USC wife, she took him in and helped him do it and I wouldn’t go into the Elections building. Call me paranoid, but... noooooo.