Green Card Process

Question:

1a. Am I correct in assuming that I will need to wait at least 8 weeks for the Green Card application to come through? If we are filing in late March, therefore, I can be reasonably confident of holding a Green Card in my hands in early June?

1b. Given that our favourite school and city is Madison, Wisconsin, should we send the I-130/I-134 applications to the Vermont office and request a transfer later, or should we mail them straight to the Nebraska office?

Answer:

I've been reading this forum on and off for over a year, and have posted only once - a question related to K-visas. I've always found the forum helpful and encouraging, and now just need some confirmation that I'm on the right track. Here, very briefly, is our story...

My American lady Jenny and I are getting married in the UK on 26th March. She has been living here in the UK with me since October. She left the country and returned twice, so she was on tourist visas the whole time. She then re-entered from the USA in February on a 'Visit to Marry' visa and everything is now in place for our wedding.

We will be filing I-130 and I-134 paperwork the day after the wedding, and mailing this to the Vermont service center. Jenny is from Virginia and happily, the Vermont center appears to have the fastest turnaround time for I-130 applications.

After the wedding, and a bit of travelling in Europe, we are moving back to the US on May 11th. Jenny has offers of places at graduate schools, so we will be choosing one of these cities and moving there in mid-May 2006. I intend to begin work as soon as possible (I have not been admitted to these schools this year, but will try again for Fall term 2007) and have the following questions:

2. Am I correct in saying that, as soon as I receive my Green Card, whenever that is, I can immediately take a job? Could I be searching for the job prior to this, for example, and start work the day after I receive the Green Card?

3. What happens about getting a social security number? Is there a seperate applications procedure for this?

4. I have read a great many experience reports from people who went through the whole Green Card and removal of conditions procedure. I will be opening a bank account on arrival in the US, and signing up Jenny to my UK account before we leave. Her name appears on our rental agreement with our landlord. Apart from making sure the paperwork is bombproof, that everything is original, that statements are printed by the bank and not printed off the internet, and that I smile sweetly, is there anything else we need to bear in mind?

5. Once I have the green card, am I right in thinking that it will be good for two years (i.e. I can work without further paperwork for up to 2 years) but that I'll need to renew it within 90 days of its expiry date?

6. What if I become a student? Would I stay on my Green Card, or switch to a student visa? I am likely to be a student for several years (MA and PhD in Music composition) and my 2-year Green Card will almost certainly run out while I am a student. Do I simply renew it?

I'm assuming that you do not qualify for DCF (filing the I-130 directly in London, since your wife-to-be does not have the right status in the UK to do this. So you will be filing the I-130 at a service center in the USA. This is my assumption.

OK, but I don't think the Affidavit of Support gets filed along with the I-130. Besides which, it will be the I-864 Affidavit of Support, not the I-134. (unless she follows up filing the I-130 with filing an I- 129F for a K-3 visa as a backup plan.)

Well, I wouldn't make any definite plans about your moving date back to the USA. You won't be filing the I-130 until after March 26, and I think a 6-week turnaround for an immigrant visa is unrealistic. Better plan more like 6 or 8 months, not weeks.

There is no way to pinpoint a timeline, but I would say early June is an unrealistic expectation. I would say more like September (could be earlier, could be later).

Send the I-130 to whatever service center has jurisdiction over the place where the USC will be living when it comes time to continue processing the paperwork that will follow the I-130, such as I-864 and Agent of Choice.

Yes.

Somewhere on the multitude of paperwork you'll be filling out, there is a place to check something like "request social security number" - "yes" or "no". You'll want to check yes.

All the requirements are on the paperwork instructions, such as how to obtain your police report, medical appointment, etc. My biggest word of advice right here would be....do not make any final plans for moving to the USA until you have your visa in hand.

If your marriage is less than 2 years old when you get your green card approved (if you come on an immigrant visa, this happens at the POE in the USA), then you'll receive the 2-year conditional GC. You will need apply to remove the conditions and receive a 10-year GC, within 90 days of the 2-year GC expiry date.

You are free to study on your GC without changing status. Your studies are not relevant to your GC.

You're welcome. The biggest thing I could see is your unrealistic timeline for making the move to the USA. You left yourself only 6 to 8 weeks, and it will probably be more like 6 months, give or take.

First have a look at www.visajourney.com for FAQ and timelines.

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?autocom=custom&page=times

But there is a lot more to the process than you appear to think. Time to have a good read.

And there are always glitches.

DCF in UK requires indefinite leave to stay so would not be available to you.

Anything not clear, do ask.

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?autocom=custom&page=times

I have already had a look at this very helpful page, and was encouraged by the mere 9-week waiting time. Sounds fine to me. If I'm missing something, do let me know.

We've bought our tickets to the States - no other way to do it, unless we were prepared to pay stupid money for tickets during the summer - so I'm going to have to arrive as a tourist and convert to the Green Card whenever they see fit to provide me with one. Again, if this is far out, do tell me.

1. I think you are looking at the timelines for part of the process.

2. You can not enter on a visitors visa with immgrant intent. Know here as the 10ft Pole. I will not go further, a search will find loads.

OK, I'm just starting to understand part of this. According to what I'm reading, a petition by a US citizen for their spouse to come and live in the US is done while the US citizen is in the US, and the spouse is in their home country. Or not in the US, at any rate.

I'm going to be in the US, plain and simple. Can all the interviews be conducted over there, or do I absolutely have to attend an interview at the US embassy in London?

It depends on what visa gets issued to you...or rather, what visa you pursue. Your initial post said the USC will be filing an I-130 stateside. If that is all that's done, it will eventually result in you receiving an immigrant visa application over in the UK, which will then result in an immigrant visa interview in the UK. You'll reveive an immigrant visa, you'll come to the USA, and will receive your GC shortly after arrival in the USA.

If you want to come visit the USA during this waiting period, you will have to convince the POE officers that you do NOT intend to remain in the USA, and that you have strong ties to the UK, and that you will return once your visit time is up. (and also, in order to return to the UK for your immigrant visa interview.)

OK, all that aside, if the USC also submits an I-129F (once the I-130 NOA is received), that could result in a K-3 non immigrant visa for you. However, those have actually been taking as long or longer than the immigrant visa. But, if you do end up getting the K-3 visa first, you can come to the USA and do either of 2 things - stay in the USA and wait till time to return to the UK for your immigrant visa interview...or adjust status here in the USA for your green card. Option 2 has more paperwork and cost involved in it, but you don't have to go back to the UK for it.

Again, the immigrant visa and the K-3 visa are both approximately a 6 month (+/-) time frame to receive. You might have only been looking at part of the time frame.

The one thing you *shouldn't* do is enter the USA with intent to stay and adjust status here, without having the K-3 visa in hand.

Or, the USC spouse and the UK spouse are both in the UK. The I-130 can still be filed stateside, even though the USC spouse is in the UK physically.

I can understand where you are coming from, if the French give you no hassle enetering France why should you have any issues entering the US.

Now we all know there are people who have successfully entered the US as a visitor, and then "changed their minds", and have adjusted status succesfully.

Others have ended up on the next flight home.