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TheImmigrant
Jan 18, 2011
I won't give legal advice on this thread, but I'll talk about general principles of US immigration law. Talking about my practice area keeps me sharp, and randoms are usually bored to tears by the subject.

[I tagged the thread 'sluts' because sluts are my friends.]

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seacat
Dec 9, 2006
What does a US permanent resident (Polish citizen) need to travel outside the US (specifically, to Spain) besides a valid Polish passport? There is a re-entry document form on the USCIS website but it costs 300$ and that makes me sad :( Will I be barred from re-entering the US without this document, even with a valid foreign passport?

Pollyanna
Mar 5, 2005

Milk's on them.


How's policy gonna change in the coming years? Are standards gonna be more restrictive or will it start fighting against certain groups immigrating here?

Uncle Jam
Aug 20, 2005

Perfect
What is the reasoning to let people in for higher education, like PhDs, only to make it incredibly hard for them to stay afterwards? It seems really dumb to me to educate people to the highest standards so you can send them back to their country.

GreenCard78
Apr 25, 2005

It's all in the game, yo.
I assume you're a lawyer but you say next to nothing about yourself or your practice, where you practice law, what kind of immigrant groups you generally help. Really anything about yourself would be good for your lackluster OP.

Covered In Bees
Aug 22, 2003
How much melodrama is required for a successful hardship waiver application?

feedmegin
Jul 30, 2008

seacat posted:

What does a US permanent resident (Polish citizen) need to travel outside the US (specifically, to Spain) besides a valid Polish passport? There is a re-entry document form on the USCIS website but it costs 300$ and that makes me sad :( Will I be barred from re-entering the US without this document, even with a valid foreign passport?

As a former permanent resident - you reenter on your green card, not as a foreigner on your passport alone. If you're not away for months, I.e. this is just a holiday visit abroad, that's all there is to it. No form needed.

Mr. Smile Face Hat
Sep 15, 2003

Praise be to China's Covid-Zero Policy

Pollyanna posted:

How's policy gonna change in the coming years? Are standards gonna be more restrictive or will it start fighting against certain groups immigrating here?

I guess we can answer that right after we predict correctly how congress will be made up in the next few years.

Mr. Smile Face Hat
Sep 15, 2003

Praise be to China's Covid-Zero Policy

Uncle Jam posted:

What is the reasoning to let people in for higher education, like PhDs, only to make it incredibly hard for them to stay afterwards? It seems really dumb to me to educate people to the highest standards so you can send them back to their country.

Laws don't have any coherent reasoning when you have power changing hands on a regular basis and you need to compromise to get anything passed. One group of people wants next to no immigrants at all ever, the other wants as many as possible, so you end up with a compromise (or at least you did in the 90s, when there was the last round of major changes - nowadays you simply get nothing done).

Additionally, it's not "incredibly hard" for a PhD with a sought-after skill to stay, at least not as difficult as for the general public of foreign countries. For example, unless I'm mistaken, the H-1b program has quotas for researchers.

Also, if you insist on finding a reasoning: They pay tuition to their schools, so they help funding them, and they export the ideas they were taught here.

Meow Meow
Mar 16, 2012

Kitty loves mangos!
My BF and I are planning on emigrating to the US (by hook or by crook) within the next ten years. We're both highly paid professionals, but to my surprise- it seems that the US doesn't have a points based entry system like Canada or Aus.

(If this is true), why doesn't the US want to attract young professionals with a high earning potential? The mind boggles.

Sperg Victorious
Mar 25, 2011

Meow Meow posted:

My BF and I are planning on emigrating to the US (by hook or by crook) within the next ten years. We're both highly paid professionals, but to my surprise- it seems that the US doesn't have a points based entry system like Canada or Aus.

(If this is true), why doesn't the US want to attract young professionals with a high earning potential? The mind boggles.

Our jerbs!

psydude
Apr 1, 2008

Heartache is powerful, but democracy is *subtle*.

Meow Meow posted:

My BF and I are planning on emigrating to the US (by hook or by crook) within the next ten years. We're both highly paid professionals, but to my surprise- it seems that the US doesn't have a points based entry system like Canada or Aus.

(If this is true), why doesn't the US want to attract young professionals with a high earning potential? The mind boggles.

The idea is that the US government would like you to already have a job by the time you get here.

z0331
Oct 2, 2003

Holtby thy name
I always liked this chart to really illustrate how difficult it is to become a US citizen.

Mr. Smile Face Hat
Sep 15, 2003

Praise be to China's Covid-Zero Policy

z0331 posted:

I always liked this chart to really illustrate how difficult it is to become a US citizen.

While it's good for some general orientation, some of the problems with this chart are:

1) I know from first-hand experience that some of the durations are exaggerated,
2) It doesn't cover things like the Green Card Lottery and investments below $1 million,
3) By its very nature as a chart that was made for a 2008 article, it will never get updated.

It also doesn't cover why something is "easy" or "difficult".

Mr. Smile Face Hat
Sep 15, 2003

Praise be to China's Covid-Zero Policy

Meow Meow posted:

My BF and I are planning on emigrating to the US (by hook or by crook) within the next ten years. We're both highly paid professionals, but to my surprise- it seems that the US doesn't have a points based entry system like Canada or Aus.

(If this is true), why doesn't the US want to attract young professionals with a high earning potential? The mind boggles.

I'd seriously try to get over all these question of why politics are the way they are in a thread that's about helping people get things done. Consider asking about the policy considerations in D&D.

Anyway, if you're highly paid, once you have saved up $200k, you can already start with investor visas (if you want to run a business) and from $500k you can leave controlling the investment to others. The risk is of course that the investment is lost and you'd have to return to your country of origin (unless you've already gained permanent residency in the case of the visa for the higher investment).

A second option to consider are employment based visas such as the H-1b, which is for highly skilled individuals. After a few years you can get permanent residency. A friend of mine just got permanent residency this way.

Also, if you're from one of the qualifying countries, there's always the Green Card Lottery. The only downside to that is that the chances of winning are in the single digit percentages and depend on your country of origin. But since it's free, it doesn't hurt to try.

By the way, where the hell is the OP?

The Dagda
Nov 22, 2005

flavor posted:

While it's good for some general orientation, some of the problems with this chart are:

1) I know from first-hand experience that some of the durations are exaggerated,
2) It doesn't cover things like the Green Card Lottery and investments below $1 million,
3) By its very nature as a chart that was made for a 2008 article, it will never get updated.

It also doesn't cover why something is "easy" or "difficult".

How exaggerated are the durations, and in what kind of situations? I ask because I've only worked with immigrants on the low-income end (dealing with asylum and/or undocumented people), so barring asylum and hardship my impression of the U.S. immigration regime is that it's really hard to get in.

Are you mostly working with people who are trying to get employment visas?

RICHUNCLEPENNYBAGS
Dec 21, 2010
Are the processing times they list on their Web site generally accurate? I'm getting anxious waiting to hear anything about the K1 visa I petitioned for.

e: Also I mean, as far as I understand it it's pretty rare to get rejected for a fiance visa... right?

RICHUNCLEPENNYBAGS fucked around with this message at 22:10 on Aug 26, 2012

Mr. Smile Face Hat
Sep 15, 2003

Praise be to China's Covid-Zero Policy

The Dagda posted:

How exaggerated are the durations, and in what kind of situations? I ask because I've only worked with immigrants on the low-income end (dealing with asylum and/or undocumented people), so barring asylum and hardship my impression of the U.S. immigration regime is that it's really hard to get in.

Are you mostly working with people who are trying to get employment visas?

I guess I should first explain that I'm not a lawyer and that everybody should absolutely double-check everything I'm saying here. I'm just a guy who immigrated into the US and who knows several other people who did the same thing or are in the process. Once in a while I'm just interested in sharing some of my experience with people in similar situations and helping them out. I'm really sorry if I gave any other impression.

My first hand experience is that it took me a little over four years to go from nothing to citizen using the sequence that's on the very top of that chart. Posts on forums like visajourney.com at the time showed similar timelines.
The chart says that the best case is six to seven years, so either me and the other people were imagining things or the chart is simply wrong.

The Dagda
Nov 22, 2005

flavor posted:

I guess I should first explain that I'm not a lawyer and that everybody should absolutely double-check everything I'm saying here. I'm just a guy who immigrated into the US and who knows several other people who did the same thing or are in the process. Once in a while I'm just interested in sharing some of my experience with people in similar situations and helping them out. I'm really sorry if I gave any other impression.

My first hand experience is that it took me a little over four years to go from nothing to citizen using the sequence that's on the very top of that chart. Posts on forums like visajourney.com at the time showed similar timelines.
The chart says that the best case is six to seven years, so either me and the other people were imagining things or the chart is simply wrong.

Sometimes it's hard to tell on the internet but I wasn't trying to be accusatory or anything, I was just curious about your experiences. Thanks for sharing. I'm also not a lawyer (yet) but I used to work for a refugee resettlement organization and before that, with a couple community organizations that worked primarily with immigrants.

I think it's likely that the infographic is just wrong, or is measuring an average rather than the "best case" scenario as it advertises. Nuclear family reunion like you did is actually (kind of) a surefire way to get into the U.S. even if it takes a long time. The people I worked with usually had no U.S. ties or had already violated immigration law once, and so were subject to penalties for that reason.

RICHUNCLEPENNYBAGS posted:

Are the processing times they list on their Web site generally accurate? I'm getting anxious waiting to hear anything about the K1 visa I petitioned for.

e: Also I mean, as far as I understand it it's pretty rare to get rejected for a fiance visa... right?

As far as I know (again, I'm not a lawyer) it is indeed pretty rare to get rejected for a fiance visa. Where are you or your fiance coming from?

THE AWESOME GHOST
Oct 21, 2005

Thanks for the chart. I was born in the US so I'm a citizen but I'm 24 and only lived there 6 or so years of my life, good to know if anything really goes bad I can bring my wife and parents and get them all green cards.

That chart says minors of US Citizens can apply for a green card... aren't minors automatically naturalized if parents are citizens? At least I thought that's how it works, that if I have children they'll be US Citizens regardless.

Criminally stylish
Dec 12, 2010

It's totally fine if you want to ride my disco-stick.
My living grandmother is an american citizen born in America, but she has lived in Norway since she was 3 or 4. Would this help me in any way if I decided I wanted to immigrate?

Adar
Jul 27, 2001

THE AWESOME GHOST posted:

Thanks for the chart. I was born in the US so I'm a citizen but I'm 24 and only lived there 6 or so years of my life, good to know if anything really goes bad I can bring my wife and parents and get them all green cards.

That chart says minors of US Citizens can apply for a green card... aren't minors automatically naturalized if parents are citizens? At least I thought that's how it works, that if I have children they'll be US Citizens regardless.

That chart refers to existing children of a foreigner who marries a US citizen. Newborns are usually automatically considered US citizens, but there are a few exceptions if the child was born abroad:

http://travel.state.gov/law/citizenship/citizenship_5199.html

Criminally stylish posted:

My living grandmother is an american citizen born in America, but she has lived in Norway since she was 3 or 4. Would this help me in any way if I decided I wanted to immigrate?

Check the above link and try to figure out the status of your father and yourself. If you're not citizens, getting in through her is effectively impossible unless she wanted to move back and wait out a fairly long period of time.

Demented Guy
Apr 22, 2010

IF YOU ARE READING THIS IN AN NBA THREAD, LOOK TO YOUR RIGHT TO SEE MY EXPLETIVE RIDDEN, NONSENSICAL POST OF UTTER BULLSHIT
Here's another unusual pathway:

I migrated here in the US in September 2008 via an employer-sponsored H-1B visa. 10 months into my job, I was laid off. Risking being caught by the Immigration officials, I decided to stay in the US while out of status because I can't leave my wife (we married in January 2009). Being out of status is HARD. I can't move around freely. I can't look for work because I might get caught. Fortunately my wife is very supportive and made the waiting process much easier. Earlier this year, she got her US citizenship and by July 2012, I got my green card through the family-based petition with her as my petitioner. In 3 years time, I'll apply for the citizenship itself. So if all plan goes to well, I'll be a US citizen in 7 years since I got here.

THE AWESOME GHOST
Oct 21, 2005

Adar posted:

That chart refers to existing children of a foreigner who marries a US citizen. Newborns are usually automatically considered US citizens, but there are a few exceptions if the child was born abroad:

http://travel.state.gov/law/citizenship/citizenship_5199.html


Check the above link and try to figure out the status of your father and yourself. If you're not citizens, getting in through her is effectively impossible unless she wanted to move back and wait out a fairly long period of time.

Ah, if I'm American and my wife isn't I only transmit it if I lived in the US for 5 years (Which I did) 2 of which were after the age of 14 (Which I'm not sure about)

Kwagga
Jun 11, 2002

I am small

flavor posted:

Additionally, it's not "incredibly hard" for a PhD with a sought-after skill to stay, at least not as difficult as for the general public of foreign countries. For example, unless I'm mistaken, the H-1b program has quotas for researchers.

NOTE: All of this is anecdotal so it could be wrong information. A real immigration lawyer can clarify.

The H1-B itself is a bit flawed in that the employee is at the mercy of the company the visa is tied to. They paid me slightly below market rate because they knew they had me by the balls. And they also stalled me repeatedly whenever I brought up the issue of applying for a green card.

I was working for my company under the H1-B for about a year and a half before it did massive layoffs in 2009 and I got cut. Some consultations with immigration lawyers provided me with the info that I had about 1-2 months to find a new job and transfer the visa or I would need to leave. Of course, finding a new job in the height of the recession didn't work out so well. So after 10 years of building a life in the US (undergrad, grad school and work), I uprooted and went back home.

The work-sponsored green card process itself is another nightmare, especially if you are from an over-subscribed country like India or China. I have an Indian passport and the rule of thumb is that it generally takes at least 5 years. That's 5 years that you will be tied to the same company. The process restarts if you switch companies, and god help you if you get laid off halfway through. My cousin got his green card a few years back and it took him the sum total of 9 years with the same company. I don't think committing yourself to a company like that is a reasonable expectation these days, especially at the beginning of your career. The appeal for a highly-skilled worker to go through a process like this is very low.

Kwagga fucked around with this message at 09:37 on Aug 28, 2012

Tim Selaty Jr
May 16, 2011

by Pipski
What can you say about somebody in a NAFTA country immigrating permanently through the TN visa?

I understand that they are just 1 year (increasing to 3 years, maybe?) and have to be renewed at a port of entry, AND you are subject to the whims of the border guard every single time... I've heard that it's possible to change from a TN visa to a green card, eventually. Any truth to that?

Syphilis Fish
Apr 27, 2006

RICHUNCLEPENNYBAGS posted:

Are the processing times they list on their Web site generally accurate? I'm getting anxious waiting to hear anything about the K1 visa I petitioned for.

e: Also I mean, as far as I understand it it's pretty rare to get rejected for a fiance visa... right?

I got married in october of last year. I am still waiting for my green card, or even my invitation for an interview. Paid all my dues and am still waiting my rear end off, a year later.

OP; How long is this going to take? It is really frustrating.

Queen Elizatits
May 3, 2005

Haven't you heard?
MARATHONS ARE HARD

Syphilis Fish posted:

I got married in october of last year. I am still waiting for my green card, or even my invitation for an interview. Paid all my dues and am still waiting my rear end off, a year later.

OP; How long is this going to take? It is really frustrating.

drat, which center is processing your application? My initial greencard took 9 months and everyone I have talked to about it told me that was a pretty long time. A couple who started the same time as us but went through a different center had their interview in less than four months.
You haven't heard anything at all?

Mr. Smile Face Hat
Sep 15, 2003

Praise be to China's Covid-Zero Policy

Syphilis Fish posted:

I got married in october of last year. I am still waiting for my green card, or even my invitation for an interview. Paid all my dues and am still waiting my rear end off, a year later.

OP; How long is this going to take? It is really frustrating.

The OP has shown tremendous interest - just not in this thread. Anyway, you can use this page to find out where to check for processing times:

http://www.visajourney.com/content/times

And these are maximum times, so if your application is any older, by all means contact them.

Demented Guy
Apr 22, 2010

IF YOU ARE READING THIS IN AN NBA THREAD, LOOK TO YOUR RIGHT TO SEE MY EXPLETIVE RIDDEN, NONSENSICAL POST OF UTTER BULLSHIT

Syphilis Fish posted:

I got married in october of last year. I am still waiting for my green card, or even my invitation for an interview. Paid all my dues and am still waiting my rear end off, a year later.

OP; How long is this going to take? It is really frustrating.

I got my green card in 3 months since applying (since my wife got her citizenship). You can call or e-mail USCIS to get an update about your case.

Johnny Cage
Sep 7, 2004

Doin' big things
Crossposted this from the engagement thread.

Anyone have experience getting married in the US to a non-US citizen? I just got engaged last weekend. We really don't really know the best place to start with the whole legal marriage process and paperwork. We are both students and she's been in the US for ~4 years (F-1 visa), and we have dated almost the whole time she has been here.

Any help would be appreciated.

Weatherman
Jul 30, 2003

WARBLEKLONK
Did the OP get deported?

Demented Guy
Apr 22, 2010

IF YOU ARE READING THIS IN AN NBA THREAD, LOOK TO YOUR RIGHT TO SEE MY EXPLETIVE RIDDEN, NONSENSICAL POST OF UTTER BULLSHIT

Johnny Cage posted:

Crossposted this from the engagement thread.

Anyone have experience getting married in the US to a non-US citizen? I just got engaged last weekend. We really don't really know the best place to start with the whole legal marriage process and paperwork. We are both students and she's been in the US for ~4 years (F-1 visa), and we have dated almost the whole time she has been here.

Any help would be appreciated.

Not a lawyer but unless one of you becomes a permanent resident or an H-1B visa holder, you can't work in the US legally. You can both stay as F-1 visa holders as students but you need a whole different path if you want to live here in the US permanently/for a long time legally. Even if one becomes married to a permanent resident, you're still gonna have to wait until the preference date under F2A visa (http://www.travel.state.gov/visa/bulletin/bulletin_5749.html) becomes current or exceeds the day you become married to an LPR before you're eligible to apply for a green card yourself.

Johnny Cage
Sep 7, 2004

Doin' big things

Demented Guy posted:

Not a lawyer but unless one of you becomes a permanent resident or an H-1B visa holder, you can't work in the US legally. You can both stay as F-1 visa holders as students but you need a whole different path if you want to live here in the US permanently/for a long time legally. Even if one becomes married to a permanent resident, you're still gonna have to wait until the preference date under F2A visa (http://www.travel.state.gov/visa/bulletin/bulletin_5749.html) becomes current or exceeds the day you become married to an LPR before you're eligible to apply for a green card yourself.

I should have clarified that I am a US citizen, she's not.

Demented Guy
Apr 22, 2010

IF YOU ARE READING THIS IN AN NBA THREAD, LOOK TO YOUR RIGHT TO SEE MY EXPLETIVE RIDDEN, NONSENSICAL POST OF UTTER BULLSHIT

Johnny Cage posted:

I should have clarified that I am a US citizen, she's not.

Marry her and file for a family-based petition. You just need to prove in the interview stage that it's not a fixed marriage for the sake of her getting a green card. Submit documents, pictures and be prepared to answer personal questions relating to your relationship. It shouldn't be hard but still prepare together on how to answer certain questions. Scour the Internet for possible questions. If you would like, I can send you a list of possible question that our lawyer sent before the interview. It's a little bit exhaustive but it's better to overprepare than not prepare at all.

If everything is legit, you should't have any problem. If it's approved and you're only married for less than 2 years, she would receive a conditional green card. There's a process that needs to be done to remove that conditional tag. In my case, we were married for 3.5 years when I got approved so I already got a permanent GC. In 3 years (instead of 5), I can already apply for citizenship since my GC was derived from being married to a US citizen.

I hope this helps.

RICHUNCLEPENNYBAGS
Dec 21, 2010

The Dagda posted:


As far as I know (again, I'm not a lawyer) it is indeed pretty rare to get rejected for a fiance visa. Where are you or your fiance coming from?

She's from S. Korea which I don't think is a particularly high-fraud country.

redreader
Nov 2, 2009

I am the coolest person ever with my pirate chalice. Seriously.

Dinosaur Gum

Demented Guy posted:

Marry her and file for a family-based petition. You just need to prove in the interview stage that it's not a fixed marriage for the sake of her getting a green card. Submit documents, pictures and be prepared to answer personal questions relating to your relationship. It shouldn't be hard but still prepare together on how to answer certain questions. Scour the Internet for possible questions. If you would like, I can send you a list of possible question that our lawyer sent before the interview. It's a little bit exhaustive but it's better to overprepare than not prepare at all.

If everything is legit, you should't have any problem. If it's approved and you're only married for less than 2 years, she would receive a conditional green card. There's a process that needs to be done to remove that conditional tag. In my case, we were married for 3.5 years when I got approved so I already got a permanent GC. In 3 years (instead of 5), I can already apply for citizenship since my GC was derived from being married to a US citizen.

I hope this helps.

I've been married for 3 months, and we've been living together for 1.5 years (we have lots of holiday photos, shared bills etc). I am applying for a marriage green card (she is a US citizen, I'm not) and the lawyer has all my documents/medical records/etc and is putting it together. How long after it's sent in will it take for me to get my green card?

Sing like a girl
Aug 8, 2011
Probation
Can't post for 14 days!

Johnny Cage posted:

Crossposted this from the engagement thread.

Anyone have experience getting married in the US to a non-US citizen? I just got engaged last weekend. We really don't really know the best place to start with the whole legal marriage process and paperwork. We are both students and she's been in the US for ~4 years (F-1 visa), and we have dated almost the whole time she has been here.

Any help would be appreciated.

For the getting married part, you don't have to do anything different from anyone else, just file at the county registry or whatever it is (we had to sign some documents but i can barely remember) then get married however you like.

If she's been in the USA 4 years you can then most likely go for the adjustment of status like my husband's brother and his Japanese (student) wife did, but you need to look into potential ramifications of that as they may try to angle that she came to the USA as a student with the intention of immigrating, which is an insta ban. I have no idea, but you potentially have it a lot easier than my situation - I married my husband on a holiday to the USA and had to leave and wait out the spousal visa that took a year.

Will2Powa
Jul 22, 2009

RICHUNCLEPENNYBAGS posted:

She's from S. Korea which I don't think is a particularly high-fraud country.

You would be surprised. My Mom(who's Korean) wanted me to marry a friend's daughter so that she could get a green card. Of course, I told her that it was crazy.

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Chasiubao
Apr 2, 2010


A Intimate Rimjobs posted:

What can you say about somebody in a NAFTA country immigrating permanently through the TN visa?

I understand that they are just 1 year (increasing to 3 years, maybe?) and have to be renewed at a port of entry, AND you are subject to the whims of the border guard every single time... I've heard that it's possible to change from a TN visa to a green card, eventually. Any truth to that?

None whatsoever :canada:

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