Overstayed and Getting Married

[boodle]

What is the name of your state? Georgia.

I came here legally (with I-94) from the Philippines in January 2007 on a B1/B2 Tourist Visa. It has expired in July and I have overstayed. I have been living with my boyfriend (US citizen) since I arrived and we plan to get married soon. So we have started to look over at some of the forms we need to file and the requirements we need to adjust my status here.

We're planning to just file the whole packet on our own without lawyers. I've read the other threads and it has answered some of our questions with regards to filling out the forms and filing them. But there are still some things we are unclear about. I found that this forum is the most helpful one online. I was wondering if anybody can help us out with these:

1. Do I need to file Supplement A to I-485 and pay the fee? I was never engaged in any criminal acts, deportation, never worked since I got here, etc. When do you need to file this?

2. For the Affidavit of Support, does the co-sponsor need to be a US citizen? We were thinking of having my husband-to-be's father to co-sponsor but he has a retired income now. I do have a permanent resident sibling who resides in CA and makes a pretty good bit of income. She's in the process of filing her citizenship right now, but have not gotten it yet. Can she be a co-sponsor?

3. Just to make sure, we don't need to pay a fee to file an Employment Authorization if we're filing it with I-130 and I-485, right?

Thank you so much.What is the name of your state?

 

[jillianshea]

Hello! I'm jillian and I am in the EXACT same situation as you with my husband (except we married Dec 10, 2007 and are living with my parents now!!! He overstayed his B1/B2 Visa also he came here in 2001 though.. We're also only 18 now lol *young love* But anyway here are some answers for you!!! Lets keep in touch on our situations!!!!

1) No. Supplement A is for special group of people covered under 245i. Don't worry about it. All you need is the I-485,I-130,I-765(work),etc.
2)I'm not sure let attorney lana answer that one
3)Right.. I hope lol.. I'm in the EXACT same boat as you with my husband!!

We are getting stuff ready to file also but we haven't yet! You do have the I-94 departure card right?

 

[evcalyptos]

I found that this forum is the most helpful one online. I was wondering if anybody can help us out with these:

1. Do I need to file Supplement A to I-485 and pay the fee? I was never engaged in any criminal acts, deportation, never worked since I got here, etc. When do you need to file this?

2. For the Affidavit of Support, does the co-sponsor need to be a US citizen? We were thinking of having my husband-to-be's father to co-sponsor but he has a retired income now. I do have a permanent resident sibling who resides in CA and makes a pretty good bit of income. She's in the process of filing her citizenship right now, but have not gotten it yet. Can she be a co-sponsor?

3. Just to make sure, we don't need to pay a fee to file an Employment Authorization if we're filing it with I-130 and I-485, right?

ha ha.. I'd suggest you check some other forums if you find this one helpful! There are a lot of experiences similar to yours posted at this site.. and this is a good document and resource checklist for your AOS: http://www.familybasedimmigration.com/forum/adjustment-of-status.php

1- Supplement A does not apply to your case.

2- There is no such thing as a "co sponsor". There is a Joint Sponsor, and when you read the I-864 you can see that to complete one, a person must be a US citizen OR Permanent Resident who is domiciled in the US.
Retired person's income is fine, or your sister's.

3- The fee for the I-765 EAD is now included in the AOS 'package' for concurrent filings, so you're correct about that. The I-131 Advance Parole is also included, but you should make absolutely sure that you are qualified to use it. They will give it to you with no questions, but will not qualify if you are eligible to use it or not. If you leave the US and can't get back in, you'll have to apply for the correct visa from overseas.

 

[evcalyptos]

3)Right.. I hope lol.. I'm in the EXACT same boat as you with my husband!!

Hey Jillian,
With all best wishes to you, I'll just caution you about thinking that your case is --exactly-- like any other. The devil is in the details, as the saying goes, and one thing I've picked up over the years is that no two immigration cases are --ever-- exactly alike.

Always be careful in your research to find out if a particular situation will apply to you or not, and be careful when telling others what they should do.

peace

 

[boodle]

Thank you jillian and evcalyptos. You're very helpful. Yes, I do have my I-94 departure card. I'll check out that site you gave, evcalyptos. I don't need an Advance Parole, since we don't plan to travel out of the country anytime soon.

I just need some help about a few basic things on the forms. I'll ask these first so they're not so confusing.

1. Do we use my maiden name or married name on the forms? Like on the I-130 and G-325A.

2. On the I-130, page 2, #22 - It asks to put the USCIS office where we would apply for my AOS. Do we put the Chicago Office since that's where the forms will be mailed out to for filing or do we put the Atlanta Office, since that's the closest to us?

3. On the I-485, page 1, part 2 - Under Application type, which one will apply to my case since I overstayed? There is no option to check if you're an immediate relative of a USC (spouse). Do we check "Other Basis of Eligibility"?

Again, thank you.

 

[evcalyptos]

Thank you jillian and evcalyptos. You're very helpful. Yes, I do have my I-94 departure card. I'll check out that site you gave, evcalyptos. I don't need an Advance Parole, since we don't plan to travel out of the country anytime soon.

I just need some help about a few basic things on the forms. I'll ask these first so they're not so confusing.

1. Do we use my maiden name or married name on the forms? Like on the I-130 and G-325A.

2. On the I-130, page 2, #22 - It asks to put the USCIS office where we would apply for my AOS. Do we put the Chicago Office since that's where the forms will be mailed out to for filing or do we put the Atlanta Office, since that's the closest to us?

3. On the I-485, page 1, part 2 - Under Application type, which one will apply to my case since I overstayed? There is no option to check if you're an immediate relative of a USC (spouse). Do we check "Other Basis of Eligibility"?

Again, thank you.

You should use the name that you want to be known by. I didn't change my surname at marriage, but if you do want to, your marriage certificate is sufficient proof of your name change for immigration purposes. Having your immigration documents in the name you want to use will make it easier to get other government docs in that name as well.

You should go to uscis.gov to find out which District Office serves your residence; it's not always the office that is closest to you. The link for those offices is on the page I linked you to before, ie here: https://egov.uscis.gov/crisgwi/go?action=offices

You are misreading the different options available to you on the I-485. What is it about 'a' that you don't like?
--an immigrant petition giving me an immediately available immigrant visa number has been approved. (Attach a copy of the approval notice, or a relative, special immigrant juvenile or special immigrant military visa petition filed with this application that will give you an immediately available visa number, if approved.)

I like to get people pointed in the right direction for the forms and applications, but you are playing a bit of a dangerous game by getting piecemeal help.. an immigration case is a mesh of applications that rely on each other. If there are parts you don't understand (and there should be.. it's a complicated mess!) then there is nothing wrong with spending a couple of hundred dollars on a consultation with an immigration attorney who does these kinds of cases.
This is an especially good idea when someone has a complication or two, like you do.