Satellite

The picture of the liquor store was a joke.

The actual office is quite boring. See for yourself:

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=5015+Madison+Ave,+Sacramento,+CA&hl=en&ll=38.660825,-121.347234&spn=0.007548,0.013937&sll=38.661327,-121.347876&layer=c&cbp=13,3.71,,0,0.05&cbll=38.660962,-121.347904&hnear=5015+Madison+Ave,+Sacramento,+California+95841&t=h&z=17&iwloc=A&panoid=3dCFu1HnJpJvATjGLZ1J7w

I will be in the front and I have Hertz as a tenant. The office sits on 0.66 acres of land so I have a huge parking lot in the back for all of their cars.

I tried updating my profile to list my business website and then my calbar profile but the VJ team frowned upon both. Some how it is considered advertisement. Go figure.

Once someone gets a GC, they are supposed to live in the U.S. for at least 6 months every year, if not their green card expires.

Where are you getting such information? The issue at hand is abandonment of a green card. There is nothing in the INA (Immigration and Nationality Act and FAM (Foreign Affairs Manual) that states you must be present in the US 6 months out of every year or else your green card expires. As long as the actual green card hasn't expired you can theoretically check in for one day and be gone for the other 364 days. Likewise, you can be gone for one day and be considered to have abandoned your status, although I have never heard of such cases.

You can get very detailed information this works at:

https://cliniclegal.org/sites/default/files/Abandonment%20of%20LPR%20Status.pdf

USCIS states on their website:

http://www.uscis.gov/green-card/after-green-card-granted/maintaining-permanent-residence

Abandoning Permanent Resident Status

You may be found to have abandoned your permanent resident status if you:

• Move to another country intending to live there permanently
• Remain outside of the United States for more than 1 year without obtaining a reentry permit or returning resident visa. However, in determining whether your status has been abandoned, any length of absence from the United States may be considered, even if less than 1 year
• Remain outside of the United States for more than 2 years after issuance of a reentry permit without obtaining a returning resident visa. However, in determining whether your status has been abandoned any length of absence from the United States may be considered, even if less than 1 year
• Fail to file income tax returns while living outside of the United States for any period
• Declare yourself a “nonimmigrant” on your tax returns

There goes another two years since I've been on here. We'll be celebrating 10 years of marriage this year. How time flies.

For my fellow Ukrainians you should enjoy this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0mB7gJM8qo

My wife also finished her Master's in Speech pathology last year and now works for our lovely school district. Here is how it typically goes:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A6fcIqUHz8Q

Lastly, we purchased a commercial building for my law practice. But at the end of the day the below setup would make the most sense.

Nice to have you back. Glad to hear all's well. Don't be a stranger. We need some more "old school" RUBbers on here.

Thanks all for the welcome back. I am not sure how much I can really contribute any more. I haven't been to Russia since 2004 although my wife and I go through the routine fight every year about her trip. I was hoping for some comments about the videos and pictures, but I guess when you are all worried about the immigration process it sort of gets ignored.

Here is one without any words. 12 years of Putin in 2 minutes. Most likely another 12 years to come. Anybody else voting on Sunday?

http://www.yapfiles.ru/show/357933/caff1afa86cd136a899fc655d092c191.flv.html

The board is still here. Slim is still around.

I am still married. It was seven years in December. Coming up on four years since pasing the California Bar. Still doing bankruptcy law full time with cherry picked easy immigration cases on the side.

Some funny videso for you all to enjoy if you understand Russian:

а в моей стране все есть

России слишком легко взять кредит

Depending on your state you can accomplish service by publication in your local newspaper when the person to be served cannot be located in your local jurisdiction:

Service by publication--When the whereabouts of a defendant are unknown, or personal service within the state is impossible, a court may allow the defendant to be served with notice of the lawsuit by publishing the notice in a newspaper of general circulation. As a general matter, this type of service is only allowed in cases involving property and status (personal relationships affected by the law). Thus divorces and certain adoptions (status) and partition suits (property) may be allowed to proceed after service by publication. But issues such as child custody and support cannot be decided until and unless personal service occurs.

http://www.lectlaw.com/def2/s034.htm

I actually came back to get an answer to a question I had:

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...p;#entry3391954

I didn't draw any answers I liked.

I made one post here just for fun too.

It's pretty simple here. Pay up and do another medical exam or you don't get a visa on October 26. You will be lucky if you even get an apology for their mistakes,

I know US Consulates can re-validate the K1, but this section of the code of federal regulations talks about the point of entry officer allowing admission without going to any consulate. According to this rule, you are not eligible if you do apply at a consulate for a new visa while out on your 30 day or less trip.

For years on VJ everyone has been preaching do not leave the country once you arrive on your K1 visa. Do not go on a vacation outside the US, etc. What is everyone's opinion of:

Automatic Visa Revalidation Rule

http://travel.state.gov/visa/laws/telegram...grams_1441.html

Basically if your visa expired, K1, B2, J1, etc., and you have a valid I-94, and you want to return to and remain in valid non-immigrant status, the Point of entry officer should allow you to enter the country despite having an expired visa. For K1 holders this means before marriage and before you apply for adjustment of status as that changes your non-immigrant status.

Logic holds that travel to Mexico and Canada known as the contingent territories would still allow for re-entry, for example closed loop cruises that start and finish in a US port despite stopping in say Mexico.

Good to see you back AK.

Congratulations on the citizenship.

As for divorce, it actually happens more times then you think. The divorce is filed the day after the citizenship ceremony. For many petitioners this is the last step before they get paid the full amount for their services in "helping" someone come to the US. In other cases the wife completes her journey in moving up in the world for herself and her kids.

As for VJ, we cannot encourage this kind of activity. For those confused moderators, this post does not encourage this activity, it simply acknowledges that it does happen in the real world.

If anybody has his/her k-1 interview in Moscow in September, please let me know in case it happens the same day as my fiancée.

Be a strong couple, grab your baggage together and walk down to the Komsomolskaya metro station. Get off at Domodedovskaja and the get on the local shuttle to DME. Total cost under $10. Total time about 1.5 hours. Experience Russian public transportation with multiple heavy bags, priceless.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/comm...osmetro2008.png

I used to post this information all the time, but everyone said it was too hard or too difficult and that is was so much easier to just pay for the tourist visa. It's not. Plus the 90 days no hotel ####### needed was a huge benefit. I did exactly as you did bobb. However, since I lived within 100 miles of San Francisco, I would bring the documents to the consulate myself and then pick them up two weeks later. So I did not incur any kind of 3rd party processing fees. Also self registering is under $1 in Russia versus paying some third party $30.

Like others have said, both documents are valid IDs. One is recognized by Russia and the other by the US. Your biggest problem is the airline ticket if she flew in on Tatyana and returns on Tatiana. Since she is departing Russia, which will recognize a Russian passport over the US green card which is not a passport.

(To fina an) Inexpensive hotel (in Moscow)

I've been trying to relate to my wife that you can't just skip work to travel. If you do, you have to save money for several months, if not years before, in order to overcome not only what you'd spend while traveling, but what you're "not earning" while away. She's talked about going back for a few months and I'm doing my best to illustrate how her car sits in the driveway while she's gone with no one making payments on it because no one is working or sending money back from Russia. Once we figure out a way to send money back or have enough money here first, then we'll make that trip. Til then.... time to pay some bills.

She was approved today for a tourist visa!

It looks like the tides are changing. The consulates have to come to the understanding that due to our poor economy and high unemployment the extra in flow of "tourism" money will out weigh the risk that the "non-immigrant" will find a job or spouse and actually choose to stay.

I don't think there's really anything you can do in Russia that you can't "pay the fine" to get out of, including public sex.

Having political ambitions and the ability to pull it off. See Mikhail Khodorkovsky.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mikhail_Khodorkovsky

I was born there, am a native speaker, could find a decent job there and wouldn't go back in a million years.

There are several ways she can adjust status in the US without having to return to Mexico.

If someone has filed an immigrant petition for her before April 30, 2001 she can apply for adjustment under the provisions of 245i.

http://www.uscis.gov/files/pressrelease/Se...EAct_032301.pdf

If not she can uses the 42B application pursuant to INA 240A(b )

Form EOIR-42B, Application for Cancellation of Removal and Adjustment of Status for Certain Nonpermanent Residents. Here are the factors for qualification:

"1. Prior to the service of the Notice to Appear, you have maintained continuous physical presence in the United States for ten (10) years or more, and you have been a person of good moral character

as defined in section 101(f) of the INA during such period;

2. You have not been convicted of an offense covered under sections 212(a)(2), 237(a)(2), or 237(a)(3) of the INA; and

3. Your removal would result in exceptional and extremely unusual hardship to your United States citizen or lawful permanent resident spouse, parent, or child, and you are deserving of a favorable

exercise of discretion on your application."

http://www.usdoj.gov/eoir/eoirforms/eoir42b.pdf

This form is filed with the immigration courts and not USCIS.

Lastly there is the filing of asylum and withholding of removal. She would most likely only be eligible for the latter because asylum must be filed within a year of entry.

http://www.uscis.gov/files/form/I-589_Inst.pdf

All three methods allow you to stay in the US with the first two allowing you to adjust and the last is very difficult to show why you couldn't file within the 1 year, but if you succeed under the asylum provision you too can adjust despite entering the US illegally.

If you choose to go back to Mexico, don't forget about the I-601 waiver of inadmissibility for the 10 year ban:

http://www.uscis.gov/files/form/I-601instr.pdf

And if she ultimately gets deported then use I-212 to get around that:

http://www.uscis.gov/files/form/I-212instr.pdf

Of course the more practical advise is that if she has made it this far without any trouble why ask for it. Wait for another amnesty to come around.

Tuesday is the best day you can have for your interview when you are coming from far away. If you plan it right you can stay in Moscow for only 1 night. We got stuck with a Monday interview, which meant way more nights. IOM was fine for us and yes same day results. It also gave us enough time during the day to take care of DHL and find the embassy for the interview.

This has been asked and answered multiple times before in the Russian Forum.

Simply put the name change probably isn't going to happen here in the US unless you can convince a consulate like a AK did to Seattle to do it.

Instead you will probably have to get your marriage certificate certified, translated, appostiled, and consulate verified. Take it to Russia, get the authorities there to update the internal passport and order a new external passport in Russia.

If you are cool with just the amendment to the existing passport that reads this bearer also goes by this name the consulate will do that for you.

If you just need a new passport with the old name the consulate will also do that for you.

In other words, are there any potential pitfalls by getting married in the states and then following the marriage visa route?

well whether it is written on anybodies I-94 or not... the fact is true... if you want to stay, you can only marry the petitioner.... if you don't you must depart

The beneficiary can likewise see adjustment under I-360 Violence Against Woman Act (WAVA) if the petitioner turns out to be a sour apple. Likewise a beneficiary who can also seek relief under the provisions of Asylum and Withholding of Removal (I-589).