N-400 with out of status wife.

[GeorgeF]

I know that I should consult a lawyer regarding this matter and I will. I just wanted to ask if someone had personal experience with this.

I'm an LPR married to a student who never got her F-1 status straigten up. It's been in process and out and now she is basically out of status. I don't think I need to put more details since this is about me (at least for now). Oh, yes, she came insptected on B-2 and asked for change of status after more than 90 days.

Here is my questions:
On N-400 I put her status as F-1 which I intent to correct at the time of the interview. Is her being out of status going to case any trouble at N400 interview for me?
I keep reading about LPR waiting to naturalize so they can petition for their spouses as imm. relatives. Anyone with similar experience? Thank you!

 

[sk686]

N-400 with out of status wife

GeorgeF,

Your wife's status should not affect your N-400 application. You should be fine.

Once you become a US Citizen, sponsor your wife for the Green Card. You shouldn't worry even if she is out-of -status, as long as she entered the US legally, as you said she did. That's the thing they look for. If she entered the country without inspection, that would have caused some problems.

As a US citizen, once you sponsor her, she'll be able to adjust her status, even if she is out of status now, as long as she entered the country legally.

If you guys have been married for more than 2 years, when you file for her Green Card, even better! That way, you won't even need to go through the I-751 (removal of conditions) process, which can sometimes be cumbersome.

Although, I'm pretty confident the information I'm giving is correct, please verify the information with a good immigration lawyer.

 

[Aloha2003]

I think the information ska is giving to you is not entirely accurate. I believe that a naturalization application can be negatively affected (and if it is only a lengtly delay) if your spouse's statutus is an unfavorable one.

Because you can sponsor your spouse once you're a citizen, extra scrutiny will be put on your past ability and willingness to assist her in these decisions (such as violating U.S. immigration laws). It can therefore reflect quite negatively on your "good moral character" requirement. I don't want to discourage or depress you; just a word of caution! Good luck!