Published on Lawyers.com and the Epoch Times on August 19, 2016

Q & A 1. 2. 3. 4.

Q&A 1.

F-2 Change to F-1 Visa

I am currently on a F2 visa with a valid I-20 as a dependent of my spouse. I got admitted to University Of California for Spring/2016 quarter and the university gave me 2 options: preparing an initial I-20 or a change of status I-20. I want to know which one is the safest and earliest way to change to F1 visa without leaving the US, and how long will it take?

Mr. Lee answers:

Whether you obtain an initial I-20 or change of status I-20 does not make that much of a difference if at all in our experience. The question to U.S.C.I.S. is whether you have been maintaining your legal status, whether there is a purpose to the schooling, and whether you are able to maintain yourself financially as an F-1 student during the time of your schooling without working. The change of status request usually takes 3 months to complete in your part of the country. 

Q&A 2.

How Long Does It Take to Switch a L-1A Visa to an EB-1C Green Card?

I was born in France, live in Washington State and my company is headquartered in Michigan.

Mr. Lee answers:

The usual period of time to switch from an L-1A to the EB-1C green card assuming everything is good is less than a year from the date of filing, although I note that the category has back logged recently due to visa numbers being almost exhausted at the end of the current fiscal year.  I note the current processing times of U.S.C.I.S. indicate that I-140 petitions of this nature in your region are taking approximately 10 months at the Nebraska service center while those covered by the Texas service center are approximately 6 months. The estimated total processing time assumes that you will be asking for a concurrent filing of the I-140 and I-485 applications.

Q&A 3.

Getting an Immigrant Visa Based On Travel Document

My brother and his family are living in Germany and were granted an immigrant visa. The visa was stamped on their home country passports. They also have valid travel documents that were issued to them in Germany. Can the visa be stamped on their travel documents as well? Note: they have asylum in Germany.

Mr. Lee answers:

The difficulty is that once the immigrant visas have been placed into a passport, U. S. consular officers would most likely not consent to placing the visas also in other travel documents. Your brother and his family could try to explain their situation to the American consulate, but if it agreed to place the immigrant visas in the travel documents, it would likely require cancellation of the visas in the home country passports.

Q&A 4.

Is the Ground of Divorce An Issue for Immigration?

I was married and divorced recently, both happened in India. I am currently residing in USA and involved in grad school and a job. The divorce notice was filed by my ex and was served to me (at my parents place, India) and I have a copy of that. I was not present there, but I did file a response through an Indian lawyer with a counterclaim of divorce along with my allegations which was accepted in court and I have a certified copy of that too. My ex was present during the process in India. But as I was not present there the divorce was granted ex-parte on the ground of cruelty like he filed. All of the documents are in English. Everything is also clearly written in the court order. I want to know if this ground of divorce could be an issue while filing a green card later (by employer or spouse or self) to the immigration department. If yes, then what can be the remedy?

Mr. Lee answers:

I do not believe that a divorce granted ex parte on the ground of cruelty would hinder you in an application to immigrate to the U. S. through an employer, spouse, or self. U.S.C.I.S. is concerned with criminal convictions, not with divorce grounds such as yours. 

Copyright © 2003-2017 Alan Lee, Esq.
The information provided here is of a general nature and may not apply to any particular set of facts or circumstances. It should not be construed as legal advice and does not constitute an engagement of the Law Office of Alan Lee or establish an attorney-client relationship.