maherjulia
New Member
I filed an I-130 to petition for my husband, along with his i-485 form at the beginning of September 2009 in Atlanta Georgia. We did everything correctly and passed our interview on Dec. 17th, however they requested another document: a notarized translation of his French birth certificate. We complied and got an original, notarized translation, which we mailed to DHS within 30 days, however the USPS lost our certified letter in the mail.
As we had only one original copy, we immediately mailed DHS a photocopy of the document along with an explanatory letter, and a photocopy of the original USPS receipt for the certified letter containing the original. We also lodged a complaint with the post office, who launched a formal inquiry into the disappearance of the letter two weeks ago.
We didn't know how exactly to proceed and should probably have gotten and sent another original translation, but we were always unsure about whether or not the first letter had arrived, or if DHS would be willing to accept the copy under the circumstances. Foolishly, we waited to hear from DHS, and we did yesterday: my husband's I-485 was denied because of this lack of evidence. It doesn't mention anything about our notarized copy (which they received) in the letter, and says nothing about my I-130 form. It also says "no appeals" at the end of the letter.
We are obviously very upset and scared, and plan on talking with a lawyer ASAP, but we're wondering if anyone could give any information or advice about how to proceed. Will it be possible for us to furnish the missing piece of evidence retroactively? Will we be able to file another I-485 immediately? Will my husband have to leave the country? He was here on a J-1 when we were married and has been staying here because of our marriage and subsequent petitions.
We have also made an appointment with DHS to see if they can offer any help or advice.
Thank you so much for your help.
As we had only one original copy, we immediately mailed DHS a photocopy of the document along with an explanatory letter, and a photocopy of the original USPS receipt for the certified letter containing the original. We also lodged a complaint with the post office, who launched a formal inquiry into the disappearance of the letter two weeks ago.
We didn't know how exactly to proceed and should probably have gotten and sent another original translation, but we were always unsure about whether or not the first letter had arrived, or if DHS would be willing to accept the copy under the circumstances. Foolishly, we waited to hear from DHS, and we did yesterday: my husband's I-485 was denied because of this lack of evidence. It doesn't mention anything about our notarized copy (which they received) in the letter, and says nothing about my I-130 form. It also says "no appeals" at the end of the letter.
We are obviously very upset and scared, and plan on talking with a lawyer ASAP, but we're wondering if anyone could give any information or advice about how to proceed. Will it be possible for us to furnish the missing piece of evidence retroactively? Will we be able to file another I-485 immediately? Will my husband have to leave the country? He was here on a J-1 when we were married and has been staying here because of our marriage and subsequent petitions.
We have also made an appointment with DHS to see if they can offer any help or advice.
Thank you so much for your help.