Can I Still Get A Green Card Through My Siblings After An Entry Ban Expires?

Laudawa

New Member
I was traveling by Greyhound bus from Canada to the United States in October of 2017 to see my family. The officer who was questioning me noticed on my record that I had a temporary U.S. drivers license, and he told me that I am supposed to have a Canadian driver’s license because Canada is my place of permanent residence. I have since obtained a Canadian drivers license, as requested, and it is valid for 10 years. Another officer started to question me about my travel history, and I gave her all my information, not knowing I had done anything wrong. I was found inadmissible to the United States under Section 212 (a) (9) (B) (I) (ii) of the INA for “alien unlawfully present over 365 days”. I was told that due to my length of time in the United States without a valid status, I am inadmissible to the United States for a period of 10 years. I will require a waiver until January 2, 2021. I am returning to the same border and paying the $930.00 for the I-192, Application for Advance Permission to Enter as a Nonimmigrant to the United States, and to have 5 years taken off my 10-year ban. I do not have a criminal record in Canada or the U.S.

The period I am being punished for is 2006 through 2011, but it should be 2006 through 2010. The U.S. Customs and Border Patrol Officers who looked at my travel history said that I did not return to Canada until January 2 of 2011, which is not true. I returned to Canada on January 2 of 2010, and I have my old passport from 2010, my apartment rental agreement from 2010, my letter of employment from 2010, my pay stubs from 2010, my tax assessments for 2010, and my bank account, which was opened in 2010, to prove it. They are all included in the packet I am taking with me to show them at the border, along with all my tax assessments and pay stubs from 2011 to 2016 as well. Will this get them to change my required waiver date from January 2, 2021 to 2020?

In 2006 I flunked out of University during my senior year and I lost my F1 student visa status. I was unlawfully present in the United States for four years from 2006 to 2010 because I did not have the money to go back to Canada. On top of that, my parents and my grandparents would not help me financially to move back up to Canada by myself because they did not want to worry about me. Whenever I would talk to my parents and grandparents about helping me move back up to Canada, it would turn into an argument. My parents were both Canadian citizens, and they were also divorced. Both of my parents got remarried to U.S. citizens, and they both got their green cards by 2003. I could not get a green card through my parents because I was over 21 years of age. I was angry, depressed, and upset at my parents and grandparents for putting me in that position. It wasn’t my fault. On top of that, my family no longer owned or rented any property in Canada after 2006. I had nowhere to go to.

In 2010 my parents and grandmother finally agreed to help me move back to Canada and start working. I returned to Canada on January 2, 2010. I got my first job on July 2, 2010, a couple months before my 32nd birthday. I take the bus everyday to work, which is why I never got a Canadian drivers license. I have been working in Canada for the past 7 years, and visiting my family in Florida for the past 7 years as well, mostly for the Christmas holidays. In July of 2017 I had to be with my mother in the U.S. My mother was admitted to the hospital with stage 4 breast cancer. My mother passed away in August 2017. She was 61 years old. I stayed in the states to clean up my mother’s bedroom and put away her belongings. I returned to Canada by Greyhound bus on September 24, 2017 to pay some bills and return to the U.S. again in October 2017 to help my grandmother, but I was not permitted to enter the U.S. I did not purchase a round-trip ticket because I did not know how long my grandmother was going to need me to be with her in the U.S.

My grandmother has owned and lived in the same condominium building in the U.S. since 1981 (36 years). This has been my second home since I was 3 years old. For my entire life I have been traveling back and forth between Canada and the U.S. My grandmother is 83 years old and she obtained her green card in 1991 when she was 57 years old. My brother (age 31) and my sister (age 29), both work and live with my grandmother in the U.S. My brother and my sister obtained their green cards when they were both still under 21 years of age in 2005 through the marriage of our mother to our stepfather in 2001. My brother and my sister will be applying for U.S. citizenship in the near future.

There will be a one-year anniversary memorial service for my mother in August of 2018, and I need to be there with my brother, my sister, and my grandmother. A letter from the church will be included with the packet I am submitting CBP/DHS, along with a copy of my mother's death certificate. My mother’s ashes and her urn are still sitting in my grandmother’s condo because we did not have the money to bury her right after she passed away. I need to be with my grandmother, my brother, and my sister to take my mother’s urn to be buried at the same cemetery where my grandfather and my great-grandfather are buried.

My current employer allows me to take a 2-week vacation during the year. Between my mother’s death and what happened to me at the U.S.-Canada border this year because of my ignorance, this has been a very stressful and emotional year for my family. I am 39 years old, and up until this year I had never experienced this kind of legal trouble. I am worried that I won’t get to be with my grandmother in the states if she becomes ill or if something else happens to her in the next 10 years. My grandmother, my brother and my sister are all I have left. Will DHS allow me to visit my family in the U.S. in August 2018, after the 180 days review of my file? Will they keep in mind, and take into consideration, and give me credit for the fact that I had been living and working in Canada, and visiting my family in the U.S. for the past 7 years (2010 to 2017) before I was found to have been unlawfully present in the United States for 4 years prior to 2010?

Will Customs and Border Protection take 5 years off my 10-year ban on the spot after I pay the $930.00? Or do I have to wait the 180 days for DHS to tell me if the 5 years will be taken off? If DHS takes 5 years off my 10-year ban, and allows me to visit my family in the States next year, can I still get a green card through my brother or sister in the future, once my U.S. entry ban has completely expired?
 
Wow, that’s really long and there is a lot of information totally extraneous to your immigration case. Im going to tell you upfront I didn’t read it all so may have missed stuff.

I’m sorry for your family and financial issues but those are not excuses for a 4-year overstay. And it’s not that difficult to get back to Canada from the US, greyhound, but that’s not relevant. Again, I’m sorry for your recent family issues, but again, your entry to the US will be determined by how likely CBP thinks you are to go back home this time, not for all the issues that you need to visit for.

Might I suggest you post another, brief, post in this thread parsing the immigration-relevant factors so that hopefully someone who knows about these waivers can give you facts.

You will be able to get a family based green card in the future, should that category still be available when you’re eligible to file. By the way you do know that the current wait for a sibling visa is something like 13-15 years?
 
Yes, I do know that it takes 13 to 15 years to get a green card through a sibling, but I really want to be in the U.S. with my brother and sister.
 
Unfortunately what you want is immaterial in this case. What matters is what the US immigration law says and allows.

You clearly broke the law between 2006 and 2010. I believe CBP’s error in stating you departed on Jan 2, 2011 as against your actual departure on Jan 2, 2010 is immaterial. You clearly accrued an illegal presence of 365 days or more. I very much doubt if you will be allowed back in the US anytime soon, talk less of CBP slashing away 5 years from your ten year ban.
 
Waivers of a 10-yr ban for accruing illegal presence are rarely granted, only under extenuating circumstances. Nothing listed here supports a case for one.
 
It seems from what you said that you probably don't actually have a ban, and whoever thought you had a ban was mistaken. The key is the definition of "unlawful presence". In order to have a 9B ban, you must have accrued 180 days / 1 year of "unlawful presence" and then leave the US to trigger a 3-year / 10-year ban. "Unlawful presence" is different from simply being out of status. Being out of status for no matter how long does not by itself cause "unlawful presence" to start accruing. Normally, "unlawful presence" only automatically starts accruing if you stay past the date on your I-94. However, people in F status are almost always admitted for "D/S" on their I-94, not until a specific date. Therefore, you do not automatically start accruing "unlawful presence" no matter how long you stayed after flunking out. The only other ways "unlawful presence" can start accruing are if 1) you applied to a benefit (e.g. change of status, EAD, etc.) to USCIS and it was denied for the reason that you are out of status, or 2) you were given a final order of removal in immigration court by an immigration judge. I am assuming neither of these things happened. So you likely have not accrued even a single day of "unlawful presence" before you left the US, even though you were out of status in the US for years.

Unfortunately, it's hard to argue with CBP on technicalities of law at entry, and if they put in their system before that you have a ban, you are probably not going to change their mind; and there isn't really any way to "appeal" their decision if you think it's wrong.

Note that even if you didn't have a ban, CBP can still deny you entry for the general reason of failing to overcome the presumption of immigrant intent, and there is no waiver for that. Your past overstay is a big negative factor in their determination.

You should have no problem immigrating, when a visa number is available.
 
So will I be able to see my brother, sister, and grandmother again in the states before 2027?
As a visitor, your entry is always at the officer's discretion. So it's impossible to say.

If you get petitioned to immigrate and wait until a visa number becomes available, you should have no problems immigrating to the US.
 
Do these qualify as good character reference letters? This is what I have gotten so far. I need one more.

To U.S. Customs And Border Protection And Department Of Homeland Security

Mr. … has been leasing an apartment in my building on … in Canada for the past 7 years. Mr. … always pays his monthly rent on time, and sometimes he pays me for three or four months in advance. Mr. … is a polite and respectful person who never gives his neighbours or myself any problems. I know Mr. … travels to the states every year to see his family.

If you have any questions, please contact me at …

Sincerely,


To U.S. Customs And Border Protection And Department Of Homeland Security

I have known Mr. … for 31 years. He is my oldest friend. We met in 1986 in 2nd grade. Throughout his travels, back and forth between Canada and the U.S. with his parents and grandparents over the years, he and I have always kept in touch. I have visited him at his grandmother’s condo in the U.S., and I have visited him at his apartment in Canada, and he has visited me a few times in Canada in the past 7 years. Mr. … is a very nice, decent, quiet, shy and funny person. Please allow him to visit his family in the U.S.

If you have any questions, please contact me at …

Sincerely,
 
As a visitor, your entry is always at the officer's discretion. So it's impossible to say.

If you get petitioned to immigrate and wait until a visa number becomes available, you should have no problems immigrating to the US.

How long does it take for the visa number to become available?
 
How long does it take for the visa number to become available if I marry a U.S. Citizen in Canada, and then she goes back to the States and files a petition and proves financial hardship?

I grew up in the states. I have actual friends who I love and care about. These are women that I know everything about, and they know everything about me, but none of them have any financial hardships. There's no way to waive the financial hardship part?

How do you prove financial hardship? Any examples? Is there a USCIS form to fill out for that? What needs to be presented? Is there a link? I can't find anything?
 
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How long does it take for the visa number to become available if I marry a U.S. Citizen in Canada, and then she goes back to the States and files a petition and proves financial hardship?

I grew up in the states. I have actual friends who I love and care about. These are women that I know everything about, and they know everything about me, but none of them have any financial hardships. There's no way to waive the financial hardship part?

How do you prove financial hardship? Any examples? Is there a USCIS form to fill out for that? What needs to be presented? Is there a link? I can't find anything?
A spouse of a US citizen is in the Immediate Relative category and there is never a wait for visa numbers (there are unlimited visa numbers). The process from petitioning you to you getting the immigrant visa can take a year or so. Not sure what you mean by "financial hardship".
 
That's what lawyers are telling me. My wife has to file for/prove that she has a financial hardship and needs me with her in the states working and helping her financially.
 
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That's what lawyers are telling me. My wife has to file for/prove that she has a financial hardship and needs me with her in the states working and helping her financially.
"Hardship" sounds like they might be talking about the immigrant waiver for the 9B ban, which requires showing "extreme hardship" to your USC or LPR spouse or parent if you can't be in the US. But that has nothing to do with finances specifically, and the hardship shown for these waivers are usually about needing someone to take care of an elderly parent or emotional hardship, etc., not financial, although I guess finances could factor into it. But like I said above, you likely don't have a 9B ban, so all this is irrelevant. When getting an immigrant visa, it will be adjudicated in detail over a long period of time by the consulate and they likely won't make the mistake that the CBP did, and you will have the chance to bring it to their attention if they make a mistake.

The only other financial thing is the petitioner (your wife) must fill out an Affidavit of Support showing a certain level of household income, or find a joint sponsor who also fills out an Affidavit of Support showing a certain level of household income.
 
After I flunked out of University in June of 2006, I did go back to Canada and turn in my I-94 (F1) Visa to U.S. Customs at the airport. Then I went back to the States and stayed until 2010, because I didn't have a place to live in Canada, and I didn't know anyone there, and my parents and grandparents would not help me financially to get a place in Canada.

So if I turned in my I-94 at the airport in Canada and then returned to the States and stayed from 2006-2010, does that make the 9B ban I have correct?

If it is correct, can I still marry my American friend now in Canada, and she goes back to the States and petitions for me, and will it still take a year or so to get a U.S. immigrant Visa?
 
That's what lawyers are telling me. My wife has to file for/prove that she has a financial hardship and needs me with her in the states working and helping her financially.

....
If it is correct, can I still marry my American friend now in Canada, and she goes back to the States and petitions for me, and will it still take a year or so to get a U.S. immigrant Visa?

You do know that marrying someone for a green card is immigration fraud, right? I believe that can get a lifetime ban for you and conviction for your friend. I have to wonder what's in it for her. It's clearly not a genuine relationship or it wouldn't only have been brought up after you seem to have exhausted all other options.
 
Af Then I went back to the States and stayed until 2010, because I didn't have a place to live in Canada, and I didn't know anyone there, and my parents and grandparents would not help me financially to get a place in Canada.

You keep bringing this up. You know, most young adults in this position go out and get a job so they can afford a place to live etc. There are plenty of us who have managed to get by our entire adult lives without financial help from our families. I'm not sure why you keep bringing this up, it doesn't excuse anything, not to us and US immigration certainly won't be interested.
 
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