Family based AOS from F-1 status (an expired visa but a valid I-20) concerns

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divinetruth

New Member
Hello experts,
I am currently doing my Phd in New york, but my student visa expired on 07/26/2006, but my I-20 is still valid till 01/31/2008. Also on 06/26/2006 I married an US citizen who is a resident and a student of calfornia. now my question is 1) Is it safe or advisable for me to apply for AOS even if we both are in different states?
2) In her I-130 form, C-14 where it is asked if your relative is currently in USA, give her status and her I-94 and date the authorized stay expires, should my expiry be the date on the visa or the date on I-20? on I-94 it says nothing but F-s (no date is mentioned)
3) Should I give her CA address as that is where I plan to go after I finish my studies or should I give my current NY address, when filing for AOS? or should I wait until we start to live together?

Please help.Your help is greatly needed and appreciated.
Sincerely,
Divine truth
 
divinetruth said:
Hello experts,
I am currently doing my Phd in New york, but my student visa expired on 07/26/2006, but my I-20 is still valid till 01/31/2008. Also on 06/26/2006 I married an US citizen who is a resident and a student of calfornia. now my question is 1) Is it safe or advisable for me to apply for AOS even if we both are in different states?
2) In her I-130 form, C-14 where it is asked if your relative is currently in USA, give her status and her I-94 and date the authorized stay expires, should my expiry be the date on the visa or the date on I-20? on I-94 it says nothing but F-s (no date is mentioned)
3) Should I give her CA address as that is where I plan to go after I finish my studies or should I give my current NY address, when filing for AOS? or should I wait until we start to live together?

Please help.Your help is greatly needed and appreciated.
Sincerely,
Divine truth
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First of all, forget about your visa expiration date. It has nothing to do with anything. Your I-20 expiration date is what matters. You are not out of status as long as your I-20 is valid and as long as you're taking classes. Your DSO should have told you all about it.

2) On my hubby's I-130 we just wrote what the form asked us to write - the expiration date from I-94, which in my case was D/S. That's what we wrote. Yes, it would make sense to write your I-20 expiration date there, but since the instructions on I-130 are clearly asking you to write what's on your I-94, why complicate things?

3) I would wait till you start living together. There's no rush in filing AOS - the more you wait, the better. As long as you're planning to finish your studies, you don't have to file for anything, cause you can remain in your F-1 status for as long as you wish.

It's better to wait until you have been married for 2 years and then file AOS. That way you won't have to deal with this conditional GC crap (I regret not having done it that way myself). However, it's just my opinion - you can file AOS as soon as you want to, but if you live in different states, it can sure raise a big red flag about your relationship.

Good luck! :)
 
Sorry to bring this up but is it really accurate that F1 visa expiration does not matter and you should use the I20 date instead for filing 485?

I am filing petition for my parents who's F1 visa expired but their I20 is still valid and are taking classes. Just want to make sure that this is still within status.
 
sbkim said:
Sorry to bring this up but is it really accurate that F1 visa expiration does not matter and you should use the I20 date instead for filing 485?

I am filing petition for my parents who's F1 visa expired but their I20 is still valid and are taking classes. Just want to make sure that this is still within status.
Click to expand...
Yes. As long as I-20 is valid, they're in status.

Visa is ONLY reqiured to enter the U.S. If it expires while you're here, and you don't travel abroad, it doesn't matter. Visa is just an entry document - it doesn't give you any status within the U.S. Your length of stay here is determined by I-94 only, and, in case of F-1 status, I-20.
 
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