If I'm a citizen and want to sponsor my parents to get green card, do they have to spend 6 months/year in the US? Is there a way around this requirement? Life abroad is better for them so 6 months/year in the US is a lot, but having the flexibility to come and go would be nice without having to deal with visas.
I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
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Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#222What in your opinion is required in terms of policy changes for mobility of talent?
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#223Earlier quoted context omitted.
You're not supposed to come with the intent of both getting married and then staying afterwards on a non-immigrant visa. Getting married is fine. Getting married and then changing your mind is acceptable. Immigrant intent on a non-immigrant visa is what leads to 7A1 refusals. Your friend's real problem is the 88 days. Long stays like that on ESTA are not a problem until suddenly they're a problem. They raise eyebrows…
> Come for a couple of weeks, or get an immigrant visa. You mean, come for a couple weeks, but don't fall in love or start a family with an American girl or boy . > Getting married is fine. Getting married and then changing your mind is acceptable. I would imagine that getting married and changing your mind is what this policy is meant to encourage! What about getting married and not changing your mind? What about ha…
I can't really comment on the justification behind the policy, I can just explain how it works.
Point is, with a few exceptions (notably, H-1B), coming to the United States on a non-immigrant visa with the intent of staying is an inadmissibility (7A1 immigrant without an immigrant visa). It doesn't matter if you're married of have children. Coming to the United States on a non-immigrant visa and then adjusting status due to a change in circumstances is allowed.
>Is it United States policy that the children of such marriages must be raised only by a single parent?
If it's a bone fide marriage (and if there's a child, it probably is), the US citizen spouse can petition for an immigrant visa (which will turn into a "green card" on admission at the border). Immigrant intent is not an issue when entering on an immigrant visa.
My personal opinion that this immigrant/non-immigrant visa distinction should be removed from US immigration law, but right now it's there, so these are the rules right now.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#224Can we sue the USCIS for not making an interview slot available for a family based greencard application and then rejecting the application because we didn't attend the interview before the time limit?
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#225I am very interested in developing a tech career in the US. I have roughly 5 years of industrial experience and my bachelor degree is in physics. I am currently working as a software engineer in the UK (I'm from Hong Kong) for the past 2 years and am actively considering the following: 1. Getting a Masters degree in US then work in US with STEM OPT and apply for Green Card through employer; or 2. Moving to Canada, be…
I am not an immigration lawyer. Something you should be aware of is that when applying for a green card, your status as a Canadian (whether permanent resident or citizen) or as a Brit (ditto) is completely irrelevant. The green card process sees your application solely through the lens of your birth country. The GC backlog for Chinese-born people is very lengthy. So lengthy that it tests the longevity of a visa or a…
(short time is 2 years for no-backlog)
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#226How common are H1Bs for people without a degree but with 12+ years of experience? Is that a legit thing?
This was my own path; I had to use a service to certify my experience (it included getting multiple letters of recommendation from previous employers) and after three tries I got my H1B. The odds of getting accepted for each year were impacted because the pool for people without degrees is smaller than the rest, so it took patience and time.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#227Do you have any software you use for your practice that you would recommend other attorneys?
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#228Me: EU citizen, with a PhD. Wife: US citizen. We live in Europe. Wife cannot work due to a disability. How complicated would it be for us to move to US?
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#229In June 2021 I tried entering the United States with a TN packet as an Engineer with a Bachelor of Computer Science. However, the officer denied me the TN status saying I need an Engineering, not Computer Science degree, to qualify for the Engineer TN status. Given the denial, in July 2021 the hiring company then applied through USCIS premium processing again for TN Engineer with my Computer Science degree and I was…
This happened to me too. Mind-boggling dumb. Had to switch out of TN (E2 in my case) for it to stop happening. Still spent 3 years going to secondary, “just because”.
I'm sorry that I'm coming in late to this but for certain TN occupations, the outcome has less to do with the applicant's qualifications or the offered job and more to do with where the applicant applies. There are some airports and land crossings that are very good, that is, reasonable and fair.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#230Hi I am not really asking for specific advice (since I know our situation is already not working out to nice…), I just want to highlight how absurd the state of affair is and maybe get some input on that. My wife is a US citizen and we currently both live in Germany and planed to move at the and of this year. We’ve filed a I130 in November last year and got an initial estimate of it being done right now (7 Months not…
Not advice, just some words of encouragement: I am in a very similar situation (German citizen, US citizen spouse), and we started our I130 petition at the end of August last year. We got the approval notice (for the I130) literally this week. So with your November filing, I think it would not be unreasonable to expect an update within the next 3 months or so. And from there on it should go fairly fast, probably just…
Good guidance. That's what we're seeing as well with marriage-based immigrant visa applications, about 9-12 months for the I-130 to be approved and then, depending the consulate, about 1-4 months to get the immigrant visa.