GC process for parents after citizenship?

akapoor

Registered Users (C)
Hello All,

As I mentioned before, my citizenship interview is coming up in July. My mom will be visting us in Aug/Sep on non-immigrant visa(B-2).
What will be the procedure to apply for her green card while she is here? Will be any different than applying if she was in India?

Gurus, please advise. Also, kindly let me know, if I am missing some documents that I would need for her.


So, far I have the following things for her.

1. Passport
2. PCC
3. death certificate of dad
4. Old ration card.
5. Service book (she is retired teacher)
6. School Bonafide certificate and
7. High school diploma.

I still need her local police clearance, birth certificate.

thanks all,
akapoor
 
The process is fast and simple for parents. If I remember correctly you can apply for the 130 and 485 at the same time if your mother is already present in the US at the time. Not sure on this though so do confirm with what the correct procedure is.

Also the paperwork you list sounds excessive. Read the forms, you may not need most of that stuff when mailing the appl. It is a good idea to collect only the stuff that is required even if it is for later.
 
Thanks for replying. Actually I know of a case, where the person's mom does not have birth certificate and they are giving hard time. Also, she has PCC from passport office. They asked for additional police certificate from local post office. So, just being safe here.

Thanks. Any responses are greatly appreciated.
 
Are you suggesting that she is better off in India, while I apply for her GC?
I actually thought it wld be easier if she is already here in US.

Please clarify. Thanks.
 
Ideally if you/she can wait, then she should stay in India till the 130 is approved. This may add a delay of 6-9 months after your oath.

Lots of people do get GCs for their parents who are in the US on B1/B2 and this is a complicated issue. The intent of visitor visa is violated if the visitor applies for AOS once in the US. Read up on this in other branches.
 
Are you suggesting that she is better off in India, while I apply for her GC?
I actually thought it wld be easier if she is already here in US.
The problem is with the B-2 status. Applying for a green card while in the US with a B-2 status is frowned upon. Some people do it anyway, but it's not the thing to do if you want a very low chance of denial and want to avoid complications.
 
Seems like applying when they are in home country would be the best, reading above.

aabbcc11,
You say "Ideally if you/she can wait, then she should stay in India till the 130 is approved. This may add a delay of 6-9 months after your oath. "

Do you mean to say 6-9 month delay if you apply in India?

So, then it is a trade off between being safe (dont violate B-2 visa intention) versus faster, but slightly riskier approach? correct?
 
aabbcc11,
Thanks for the clarification.

To All:
Do parents who file via CP route in India also have to go through "name check" just like it is for N-400 for all of us? Does the same stuck-in-namecheck nightmare scenarios happen for those folks as well?
 
Do parents who file via CP route in India also have to go through "name check" just like it is for N-400 for all of us? Does the same stuck-in-namecheck nightmare scenarios happen for those folks as well?

An applicant for an immigrant visa must supply police reports from their former & current addresses during the consular interview. I believe these are used in-lieu of an FBI namecheck, and lengthy delays are largely unheard of. End to end, CP is a 9-12 month process.
 
I would suggest apply in the US, rather than overseas

You can apply for your parents in the US itself. There is no need for them to go back. Since there is no quota for parent visa, it can be quick. Moreover, one of the comprehensive immigration bills had a limit on parents visa (to prevent "chain migration" for illegal immigrants). So the earlier you apply the better and if she is here, then it is better.

Annecodatally I have seen many successful parent 130/485 cases. In fact it is common for local embassies not to give parents tourist visa for visits sponsored by green card holder children. These parents then end up being sponsored for green card and just to be able to make frequent visits to the US.


Applying here, also relieves the pressure off the aged parents, particularly if they are from a non English speaking background.
In either case, do post your updates so others can learn from your situation. Good luck.


Hello All,

As I mentioned before, my citizenship interview is coming up in July. My mom will be visting us in Aug/Sep on non-immigrant visa(B-2).
What will be the procedure to apply for her green card while she is here? Will be any different than applying if she was in India?

Gurus, please advise. Also, kindly let me know, if I am missing some documents that I would need for her.


So, far I have the following things for her.

1. Passport
2. PCC
3. death certificate of dad
4. Old ration card.
5. Service book (she is retired teacher)
6. School Bonafide certificate and
7. High school diploma.

I still need her local police clearance, birth certificate.

thanks all,
akapoor
 
Annecodatally I have seen many successful parent 130/485 cases.
Yes, some people are successful in changing status from B1/B2 to green card, but it is still more risky to do it that way. And it is illegal if the intent to immigrate existed ahead of time, as is the case here.

If the green card is denied because they say the poster's mother lied about her intent, it would also result in revocation of her B2 visa and make it practically impossible to get another such visa.

However, a middle ground that is much less risky and not so clearly illegal would be to do the following:

1. Have her enter on the B2 visa.
2. Wait 60 days, then file the I-130 but ask for consular processing.
3. She spends some more time in the US (but without overstaying the visa), then returns to India for the interview at the consulate.

That allows her to spend some of the 6-12 month waiting period in the US with you, without worrying about the "immigrant intent" issue. Once outside the US and at the consulate, they are unlikely to delve into questions of "immigrant intent" of prior trips at the GC interview.
 
Check this out:
http://boards.immigration.com/showpost.php?p=1910427&postcount=6

It seems to be (based on discussion) that it is risky to apply AOS route (I-130 + I-485) applying while in US on B1/B2 visitor visas. As Jackolantern says, the "intent" of B-visas is non-immigrant, and it is VERY VERY difficult to prove that you did not come to US with the intent to file for GC after you landed here.

The onus of proof is on the APPLICANT.

Seems to be much safer to apply while in India, trade off being spme extra months time.

Questions: Once they apply for I-130, and assuming once I-130 is approved in India...
1. do they NEED to come to US for next step (I-485)? or can they do this from homecountry such as India?
2. Can they travel to US after I-130 is completed? (if they want to)
3. If they can travel into USA, what Visa (since no longer "non immigrant" intent) can someone travel on?
 
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However, a middle ground that is much less risky and not so clearly illegal would be to do the following:

1. Have her enter on the B2 visa.

2. Wait 60 days, then file the I-130 but ask for consular processing.
I do not agree. Filing I-130 also suggests her immigration intention. It has the same effect as concurrent filing of I140/485.

3. She spends some more time in the US (but without overstaying the visa), then returns to India for the interview at the consulate.
The normal authorized stay is 6 months for B-2. How can you wait for the approval of I-130 in the U.S. (>> six months) without being out of status?
That allows her to spend some of the 6-12 month waiting period in the US with you, without worrying about the "immigrant intent" issue. Once outside the US and at the consulate, they are unlikely to delve into questions of "immigrant intent" of prior trips at the GC interview.[/QUOTE]

I do not think this will solve the issue.

Technically, you can not have immigration intent at the time you obtained your B-2 visa. But USCIS will certainly understand (and it's reasonable and quite possible) for people later change their mind from non-immigration to immgration during their stay in the U.S. There is nothing illegal about that, on the contrary, it's quite understandable. That's exactly what I-485 is about, you can adjust your status to PR while in the US, from B1/B2 or even out of status in limited circumstances. However, filing I130 or I485 right away (or very soon) after entering the US strongly hints the USCIS your immigration intent exists when you obtained your B-2 visa and that's a fraud. Otherwise, waiting for at least two months after entering the US and filing I130 and I485 concurrently are your best option, in my opinion.
 
Hello All,

My mother got her B2 visa last year, stayed like a year with me (applied for extension). Left like last week back to India. So, I was hoping to get her back in next couple of months on her B2, and then after my citizenship, apply for her GC while she is here. She has ten year visa(B2).
I am still very confused as to what to do.
Please help.

Thanks,
akapoor
 
akapoor,

Are you person who takes quite a bit of risk? Then you can use AOS (in US) or CP (India).

If you prefer to ensure she gets it 100%, and play it all safe, then dont file for GC for her while she is in USA. Do it in India.
 
You want your mother to re-visit you two months after her last year long visit ended?
That is a bad idea in my opinion.

My mother got her B2 visa last year, stayed like a year with me (applied for extension). Left like last week back to India. So, I was hoping to get her back in next couple of months on her B2
 
2. Wait 60 days, then file the I-130 but ask for consular processing.
I do not agree. Filing I-130 also suggests her immigration intention. It has the same effect as concurrent filing of I140/485.
No it doesn't, if she voluntarily leaves the US without overstaying her visa. Her departure and request for CP shows that she did not intend to immigrate on that trip. For similar reasons, people with TN visas whose employer filed an I-140 for them commonly request consular processing, because filing an I-485 is more likely to bring up issues of immigrant intent (TN doesn't allow immigrant intent).
3. She spends some more time in the US (but without overstaying the visa), then returns to India for the interview at the consulate.
The normal authorized stay is 6 months for B-2. How can you wait for the approval of I-130 in the U.S. (>> six months) without being out of status?
Where did I say she should stay in the US all the time until approval of the I-130? I said she should not overstay her visa. That might mean waiting in India for several months until the interview. But at least it gives her a few months in the US.
However, filing I130 or I485 right away (or very soon) after entering the US strongly hints the USCIS your immigration intent exists when you obtained your B-2 visa and that's a fraud.
That's why I said to wait for 60 days, so it doesn't look too bad. The CP route is still safer because once you're outside the US at the GC interview they are unlikely to delve into that intent issue.
 
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