World Journal Weekly Q & A - September 28, 2008I received a Welcome Notice Approval for my Green Card but Never Received the Card. What Could the Reason Be? My Petitioning Stepfather and Mother May Divorce Soon. Will I Have a Status Problem?Email reader asks: My mother married a U.S. citizen in the early 2000, and then apply my brother and I. My brother came to the U.S in 2003, then received the “Welcome Notice” and few weeks later received his green card. I came to the U.S in October 2004 and also received the “Welcome Notice” which stated that I would receive my green card in a couple of weeks. However, as of today I still haven’t received it. I went to U.S.C.I.S. website and checked, it indicated “Approval Notice Sent.” In 2004, my stepfather had some tax issues, IRS deducted $3,000 from my parents’ supporting fund account, later my mother took out all the money. Since then, I continued to study language and did not know the importance of not having received my green card. But now, my parents are fighting for divorce. For me, I need a copy of my green card to change school. My questions are: Dear reader: 1 Financial support would not be a reason for your not receiving your permanent residence card after welcome notice. 2 As you were sent a welcome notice saying that you would receive your green card in a few weeks, that usually means that you are already recognized as a permanent resident. Unless such notice was a mistake, your parent and step-parent's divorce would not affect your status. 3 U.S.C.I.S. runs all the background checks before sending out welcome notices which say that you will receive a green card within the next three weeks 4 More realistic possibilities for your not having your permanent
residence card at this time are malfunction at the service center,
the card being sent to the wrong address or to the right address
and being returned to U.S.C.I.S., or even someone taking and disposing
of the card as soon as it arrived. I suggest that you do an InfoPass
at the local U.S.C.I.S. office to check what happened with your
card. Infopasses can be made electronically by accessing the U.S.C.I.S.
website at www.uscis.gov. E-1 and E-2 Visas and What Factors Are Looked at in Their AdjudicationsPan reader asks: I want to inquire information regarding establishing a new company in the U.S. and once the company is established, is it possible to file papers for the investor and employees for E1 and E2 immediately? Also what will be the fees from setting up a company to the visa application? Dear reader: An E-1 visa is for a treaty trader and an E-2 for a treaty investor. These require the seeker to be a national of the country with a treaty of Navigation and Commerce with the United States. A citizen of a treaty country can establish a venture in which he/she will be the owner and apply for E-1 or E-2 status for citizens of the same country who will be executives, managers, or individuals with specialized knowledge. An E-1 company will have at least 50% of its business with the treaty country, and the E-2 investor will have to show that the level of investment is commensurate with the needs of the type of venture on which the E-2 will be based. The U.S. government believes that E-1 and E-2 visas should not be issued merely for an individual to make a living. The E-1 or E-2 organization should expand job opportunities in this country. You may be able to file papers for the investor and employees immediately after establishing the company, but such would require the showing of a bonafide organization. Factors such as the size of the organization's capitalization, lease space, business plan, prior marketing analysis, agreements with other companies, etc. may be considered in deciding whether to grant E-1 or E-2 visas and statuses. On your second question as to fees from setting up a company to the visa application, we do not quote fees publicly although they are reasonable. Asylum Dependent Child has Girlfriend Back Home, Wants to Return, and to Sponsor Her for the Green CardTao reader asks: I came to the U.S. in April of this year through my father’s application. My father is an asylee and it was V92 category. I have a girlfriend back home, if I apply for her, how long will it take? My friend told me I could not file for her until I received my green card which would be another year. Therefore, once I have my green card how long will it take to apply for her? At the meantime, if I want to go back home before I receive my green card, is it possible? Dear reader: Coming to the U.S. as an asylum dependent, you would have to remain
in such status for one entire year before being able to apply for
adjustment of status to permanent residence. Following such filing,
you would have to wait the normal processing time of U.S.C.I.S.
before the agency can review your case. The current processing time
chart of U.S.C.I.S. shows that the Nebraska Service Center and Texas
Service Center are reaching cases that they received in July 2007.
These two centers are the only ones receipting asylum based I-485
adjustment of status applications in the U.S.. When you are finally
approved for your green card, you can file for a spouse. Currently
the backlog is approximately five years in this category. You are
not able to sponsor an individual as a girlfriend; neither are you
able to sponsor anyone in your present status. If you wish to return
home, you can do so on your current passport since you are an asylum
dependent and not the principal. If you stay out of the U.S. for
a long period of time, you could face problems in re-entering the
country. In addition, any period of time that you are outside of
the U.S. now would take away from the one year period that you are
required to stay here physically before filing your I-485 adjustment
of status application. The Crossroads of a 10 Year Bar for Illegally Residing in the U.S. for One Year and Eligibility for CSPA ProtectionYang reader asks: I came to US in 1991 without inspection. My family started I-130 application in 1998 (at the time I was 17), but in 2005 my family still could not receive legal status, so I gave up and went back Taiwan. Since I stayed in US illegal, does it mean I am in the U.S. black list? My parents received green cards in 2007, unfortunately, in 2007 my sister and I were already aged out. Am I under new CSPA protection? Since I am in Taiwan now, will it affect my parent’s application for me? Dear reader: As you went to the U.S. without inspection, your leaving the U.S.
in 2005 subjects you to a 10 year bar on reentry to the States as
an individual who has resided illegally in the States for at least
one year after April 1, 1997. For you to ultimately return to the
U.S., you would have to request a waiver based upon extreme hardship
to a U.S. citizen or permanent resident parent or spouse if the
10 year period has not yet passed by the time that you apply for
the immigrant visa at a U.S. consulate or embassy. You have stated
that your parents received their green cards in 2007 but you did
not disclose under what preference category or how long the I-130
petition pended with the U.S.C.I.S.. Therefore I cannot assess your
eligibility to have immigrated with your parent, but assume that
the decision of the AIT was correct based upon your age, possible
categories of immigration through family, and priority date. If
your parents have not already done so, your parent who was the principal
alien should file an I-130 petition for you and request the old
priority date. Although we do not yet see a trend at U.S.C.I.S.
granting the old priority dates at this time, it would appear that
the argument to assign the old priority date is persuasive. Your
being in Taiwan at this time will not affect your parent's application
for you, but -again- at the end of the immigration process, you
will need to have a waiver approved on your behalf if 10 years have
not yet passed from the date of your leaving the U.S.. Married for Three Years to U.S. Citizen and Having Received Conditional Green Card Last Year, Wants to Apply for Citizenship NowHong reader asks: In 5/05, I married a US citizen. In 5/07 I received my 2-year conditional green card. In 5/08, I am already married for 3 full years. Do I have a right to apply for naturalization at this time? I have consulted many attorneys and received conflicting information. Please advice. Dear reader: In order for you to naturalize, you must be married to a U.S. citizen for three years, the U.S. citizen must have been a citizen for the three years, you must be physically living together for the three years, and you must hold conditional residence status for two years and nine months (you may apply for citizenship up to 90 days before the three-year mark). In your situation, because you have held the conditional green card for less than the required period of time, you are not eligible to apply at this stage. You would be eligible sometime in February 2010.
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Copyright © 2003-2008 Alan Lee,
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