EB1-EA to be filed, Marriage, and Adding to GC petition...

K

kavehg

Registered Users (C)
Hi guys,

I arrived in the U.S. few days ago under H-1B as a post-doctoral researcher. I am planning to fill my Green Card petition as soon as poosible. My girlfriend, however, is currently in Finland and is doing here studies. As we are planning to marry soon, I am thinking to first fill the Green Card petition and then return to Finland and get married to my girlfriend and bring her to the U.S. under H4 (dependent to an H-1B holder). Now I am wondering if it would be possible to add her to the GC petition once she arrives in the U.S. under H4, nothing to most probably at the time she might arrive in the U.S., I would be still under H-1B with my Green Card petition pending for process. Thanks for your help...
 
Once she is in the US with an H4, her I-485 can be filed together with your I-485, or after your I-485 (if hers is filed after your application, her I-485 app needs to be filed with your I-485 receipt and I-140 receipt notices).
 
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Hi Jackolantern,

Thanks a lot dude! I have got another question to be added to the aforementioned comment you gave us over here.

I am an Iranian citizen and for all Iranian passport holders, all U.S. visas are single entry. Once I fil my GC petition, I have to apply for a travel document (I-140), too. I am told by people that once I use my travel document to leave the country and then return to the U.S., my H-1B visa becomes invalid as I implicitly requested for change of status. Now the question is: After getting married to my girlfriend and coming back to the U.S. using the travel document, as my H-1B becomes invalid, how could I bring my wife to the U.S. under H4? Could it be still possible to do so?

Thanks a lot!
 
I-140 is not a travel document, it is the employment-based immigrant petition. I-131 is the travel document (Advance Parole).

Upon leaving the US, you should apply for another H1B stamp at the consulate for yourself so she can get an H4 without a problem.
 
Dude!

Thanks a lot for the correction and great help. I have been browsing the forum and hit another post, commenting about the fact that based on Bulliten October 2010 the processing time up to AOS for the wife of a GC holder has been reduced down to maximum 6 months. The post titled as:

"what-is-a-way-for-girlfriend-fiance-to-come-over-to-USA"

Does it mean that once I get my GC before Summer 2011, I can right away fil my wife's I-485 GC petition and she will (hopefully) get the GC within 6 months?

Thanks for awesome work and great help :)
Kaveh
 
kavehg said:
Does it mean that once I get my GC before Summer 2011, I can right away fil my wife's I-485 GC petition and she will (hopefully) get the GC within 6 months?
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Not really. That scenario is not applicable to you*. She needs to be in the US legally to file I-485. So if she wasn't already in the US when your GC is approved, she would have to pursue her GC through the consulate, and could not file the I-485.

If you get married before your EB1 GC is approved, and she already didn't join you in the US and file her I-485 when your I-485 was pending, she can get a derivative EB1 GC via follow-to-join through the consulate, and that should take less than 6 months.


*except if you get married after your GC is approved, you would file for her in the family 2A category for which the backlog is currently down to 6 months. However, historically until early this year the backlog was 4-5 years, so don't expect it to stay at 6 months for the long term. I would advise you to get married before your GC is approved, so you can bring her as a derivative EB1, where there is no backlog.
 
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Hey Jackolantern,

Thanks a lot for your great help. So let me summarise the discussion to check whether I got your recommendation:

It would be better for me to file the I-140 as soon as possible and before my EB1 I-485 AOS gets approved, I go to Finland and get married to my girlfriend and subsequently file for her the so-called Follow-To-Join I-824 while she is outside of the U.S. This way, she can get a derivative EB1 GC via Follow-To-Join through the consulate in Finland, for which (hopefuly) there is no backlog.

Now the question is whether she gets her GC once my GC gets approved and I receive my GC, or she shall stay in another type of visa, e.g., H4, etc., even I hold a GC? Another question: Shall I be with her when she presents in the consulate in Finland or she can do it by herself?

Please correct me if I am mistaken. Thanks bro!

Cheers,
Kaveh
 
So you're not going to try to bring her on H4, by getting a new H1B stamp in your passport at the consulate? You shouldn't need to redo the whole H1B application process, you can just reuse the same approved H1B petition which is valid for 3 years.
 
Well. I am planning to go to Finland soon and get married with my girlfriend. I need to re-apply for H-1B as the current one I have is single entry and will be invalid once I eave the country. I wonder if U.S. government accepts our Marriage Certificate issued by Finnish Government! What do you think? Or do we need to get married in Iran, instead, as we are Iranian citizens. She will either join me under H4 later or Follow-to-Join.

By the way, you said that I shouldn't need to redo the whole H1B application process; I could just reuse the same approved H1B petition which is valid for 3 years. What does it mean? Does it mean that getting a new H1B stamp, this time, would be easier?

Thanks bro!
 
If that certificate is accepted by Finnish authorities as a valid marriage certificate, USCIS/DOS will also accept it.

kavehg said:
I wonder if U.S. government accepts our Marriage Certificate issued by Finnish Government! What do you think? Or do we need to get married in Iran, instead, as we are Iranian citizens.
Click to expand...
 
kavehg said:
By the way, you said that I shouldn't need to redo the whole H1B application process; I could just reuse the same approved H1B petition which is valid for 3 years. What does it mean? Does it mean that getting a new H1B stamp, this time, would be easier?
Click to expand...

When you initially interviewed for your H1B visa, you took an H1B approval notice with you to the consulate. You will have to fill out another DS-156, but the same old H1B approval notice can be used again at the consulate to get a new H1B stamp in your passport. Your employer will not need to repeat the complicated paperwork that led up to getting the approval notice; the only thing they'll need to do is give you an updated employment letter saying that you are still employed in the stated job.

However, I would advise that you get Advance Parole in your hand before leaving the US, so you'll have a way to return in case things don't go well at the consulate when applying for your new H1B visa.
 
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