EA and MK

Why is marriage fraud something you're even concerned about? What is causing you to even remotely think that is an issue? At face value, i honestly don't see what the big deal is? Just withdraw the old I-130 and submit a new one for your current relationship. Or, as other users pointed you to do, contact your congressman and see what USCIS can advise about your prior case status. You'll probably be under more scrutiny to prove your relationship, but if it is genuine there is nothing to worry about.

Ah, my apologies! I totally spaced that.

I there a reason you're submitting a DS-160 and not a DS-260?

I would encourage you to read form I-601 instruction, page 12 in particular, which you can find on the USCIS website. You will need to hire a lawyer that specializes in I-601s. But the facts used to prove extreme hardship for the 601 need to come from your dad, the petitioner. But essentially - Your mom must demonstrate that her qualifying relative (U.S. citizen/LPR petitioner) will suffer "extreme hardship" if she is not admitted. There is no getting around this, and is always required for an I-602 response. Extreme hardship is a difficult standard to satisfy. Per USCIS: Common results of removal or separation — such as sadness, missing a spouse, difficulty adjusting — are expected and therefore not “extreme” by themselves. Therefore, the hardship waiver must be well-documented and carefully prepared. Again, emotional hardship is not extreme hardship. For the unlawful presence, the inadmissibility expired February 2026. You'll need to confirm if that's accurate, otherwise you'll also need to include it in the 601.

Thank you @TBoneTX!

Hi All, My wife had been scheduled for her N-400 appointment 2 months after she submitted her application. Unfortunately, she was outside of the country and had to cancel her initial appointment. USCIS then rescheduled it for the day after, and she had to reschedule again given she was out of country still. Since then, the case has been stuck. She has called the contact center, but every time they call her back the call disconnects and they send a generic email saying they tried to contact her without success. She submitted a "I need to reschedule my appointment" query in her myUSCIS account today. Not sure this was the right approach given I feel that is better used for when you gave active appointment. But, not sure what else can be done? The generic message is her case is still within normal processing window for a case inquiry ...

The applicant (my wife) was born in Colombia. Her birth certificate explains her name change — her biological father is not listed, but her stepfather gave her his last name. At one point, she had her mother’s last name. Although she no longer has a document showing her original birth name, she still listed it during the I-130 process. Her birth certificate also notes that she was an extramarital child and later took her stepfather’s last name. At the interview, she plans to explain this. We hope they do not request another document other than her birth certificate with these annotations.

We have certified translations from our attorney of birth and marriage certificates that we submitted back in the day with the I-130. Is it ok to submit the same ones? Even if we aren't using the lawyer we had back then? Thank you!

Thank you for your feedback!

Hey @Crazy Cat, hope you e been doing well. Absolutely, we're not hiring a lawyer for the N-400. There's really zero need unless you have a complex case, which ours is as vanilla as can be lol.

Hi, My wife entered on an IR-1 visa. When our lawyer filled out DS-260, she forgot to include my wife's birth name. This was correctly included in I-130/I-130A, but missed in the DS-260. There were also some dates that were wrong in her previous address history, they marked "yes" to the "is spouse immigrating with you" question, they put my MIL's middle name as part of her last name, and selected "does not apply" to "name of person living at current address" question - instead of putting my name. We wanted to correct all of this, even prepared a letter and redlines to the DS-269, but the CO was so fast paced at the embassy that we didn't get a chance to raise these issues before they completed the interview and handed my wife the approval slip. My lawyer back then said none of this is material, but it's still bugging me. Does any of this create issues with the N-400?