World Journal Weekly Q & A - January 6, 2008I Filed an I-130 Petition for My Overaged Child and Asked for the Old Priority Date Under My F-4 Category - Can My Child Get It Under the CSPA?Xu reader asks: I am a green card holder and applied for my over 21 years old child
an I-130 application in 5/2007. I have received the approval notice
(I-797). My questions are: Dear reader: 1 At the present time, nothing has changed in the immigration quota system to invalidate the I-130 approval for your child. I do note that no one can predict the path of future legislation, and whether it will affect I-130's which are pending or have already been approved and are only waiting for their priority dates to clear. 2 We have noticed that the the U.S.C.I.S. has not been adjudicating
I-130's in which we have asked for the old priority dates of the
parent pursuant to the Child Status Protection Act (CSPA) legislation.
The agency had previously denied most of these requests although
we received one approval and the entire processing of the aged out
child took less than 1 year. Under the CSPA legislation, however,
we believe that U.S.C.I.S. should approve the petitioms with the
old priority dates as the language of the law supports this position.
However, that is an issue which will probably have to continue to
be litigated unless the U.S.C.I.S. comes up with a final CSPA rule,
which it has been promising to do for years. I Am Naturalized for Less Than One Year - Can I Go Overseas and Work Long Term or Do I Have to Wait for 1 Year?Cai reader asks: I have just naturalized for less than one year. But I want to apply a permanent resident, working permit or getting married in Hong Kong. However, my friends told me not to apply permanent residency in other country or territory even if I have been naturalized for less than one year or more, or else, the USCIS has a right to cancel my U.S. citizenship. Is it true? Dear reader: A naturalized U.S. citizen is allowed to work overseas, apply for
permanent residence and marry in another country. Under old law,
it was much safer for the U.S. citizen to wait one year after naturalization
before staying and working in another country for a long period
of time. Under present law, a U.S. citizen is allowed to do all
these things as soon as he/she receives the naturalization certificate.
Expatriation only occurs where a U.S. citizen takes positive steps
showing allegiance to other countries such as becoming a government
official, serving in the other country's military in an officer's
capacity, making a formal declaration of abandonment of U.S. citizenship,
or becoming a citizen of a country which is an enemy of the U.S.,
etc. What to do When Past Actions Were Clearly Abusive of the Immigration LawsDear Mr. Lee, I made an error of judgment with my ex-wife's immigration sponsorship and wish to know what are the chances of success in the present K-1 fiancée case that I am petitioning and what kind of liability I could have for my error. When I sponsored my ex-wife, we divorced, but afterwards I still made out and sent her affidavit of support papers and other evidence of our communications for a later interview with the American Embassy. She passed her interview and immigrated to the U.S., but we have had no communications. I met my fiancee in Taiwan shortly thereafter and made an application for her as a K-1 fiancée and the application is now stalled after U.S.C.I.S. approval. It has now been seven months without action and every time I inquire, I get the answer that it is under administrative review at the National Visa Center. What can I do? Dear reader: The best suggestion that we can make under the circumstances is
for you to withdraw the application and hope that nothing further
comes up concerning the case. Although there is a possibility of
having the case approved, there is also the possibility that it
will be denied and that you may have liability for your previous
action. Under the law, immigration fraud is punishable by five years
imprisonment and /or $250,000 fine. My guess is that the government
will not come after you for a criminal prosecution as there is obviously
no pattern of deception on your part, but we make the suggestion
because there is no guarantee that such will be the case. Options After Being Here for 10 + Years With a Permanent Resident Wife and U.S. Citizen Child with Serious Medical ProblemsWeb reader asks, I came to the U.S. in 1996 with an F-1 student visa and stayed for five years before going back home for 2 months, getting another F-1 visa, and coming back to the States. I did not attend the school after I returned. I have not left the U.S. since that time. My girlfriend just got her green card and we have one child who was born last year. He has had eye problems which required surgery and he must have more complex surgeries in the future. I am worried because I am working illegally in a restaurant and afraid that I will be arrested by Immigration. Will marriage to my girlfriend help me to stay? Dear reader: You can actually marry at any time, and the marriage would be a
positive even though your wife as a green card holder cannot confer
an immediate benefit upon you at this time or in the near future.
While she can file an I-130 relative petition for you, you would
not be allowed employment authorization or the ability to stay here
legally through the filing. If and when your wife becomes a U.S.
citizen, she can make an effective application for you and you can
apply to adjust status to permanent residence as the immediate relative
of a U.S. citizen without leaving the U.S. .
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Copyright © 2003-2008 Alan Lee,
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