Parents already here in the US

[suomynona]

My parents are already here in the US on their tourist visa and their I-94 is expiring 25th Jan 2007. My sister became a US citizen in end of Nov 2006. She wants to sponsor our parents GC's, but we are not sure of the process and have some specific questions.

1. Is the process a lot invovled that we will need an attorney? If yes then what are the average costs invovled?

2. Which forms are needed to be submitted besides - I130 & I-485.? Can these two forms be submitted at the same time? On the 'sticky' thread there were mention of other forms too. We wanted to know which are the forms that are needed to be submitted immediately (since time left is less) and which ones can be submitted later, without jeopardizing the status of their current stay.

3. Once the appropriate forms are filed, can my parents continue to stay beyond their I-94 period?

4. Typically in how much time is Parents GC approved?

5. My sister is in New York and I am in IL ( I am not a citizen yet). Will it be beneficial to file in NY vs IL or vice-versa? Which center to file - is this dependent on the temporary address of parents or is it dependent on the sponsorer's address?

6. Once all the paperwork is filed, can the parents go back to India if required? On what Visa will they come back in? They currently have a 10-year visitor visa expiring in Sep 2008.

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[visaapplicant]

My parents are already here in the US on their tourist visa and their I-94 is expiring 25th Jan 2007. My sister became a US citizen in end of Nov 2006. She wants to sponsor our parents GC's, but we are not sure of the process and have some specific questions.

Most of the questions are answered in parents sticky thread and other posts.

1. Is the process a lot invovled that we will need an attorney? If yes then what are the average costs invovled? .

It is upto you. Many people in this forum have done parents' GC processing without attorney.

2. Which forms are needed to be submitted besides - I130 & I-485.? Can these two forms be submitted at the same time? On the 'sticky' thread there were mention of other forms too. We wanted to know which are the forms that are needed to be submitted immediately (since time left is less) and which ones can be submitted later, without jeopardizing the status of their current stay.

I-485 is a package of forms. It includes I864, bio info form and medical form to be filled out by doctor. Please see the instructions.

I131 is optional. However if parents want to leave US while waiting for GC, they will need I131 approved before they can leave.

3. Once the appropriate forms are filed, can my parents continue to stay beyond their I-94 period?

Yes, after I485 is filed, they will have the legal status of "AOS pending".

4. Typically in how much time is Parents GC approved?

It depends. If they do not get stuck in name check, it is much quicker nowadays. Depending on their DO, it can be 6-12 months. Please see the timelines in this forum and on CIS website.

5. My sister is in New York and I am in IL ( I am not a citizen yet). Will it be beneficial to file in NY vs IL or vice-versa? Which center to file - is this dependent on the temporary address of parents or is it dependent on the sponsorer's address?

Only citizens can file for their parents. Dependent on sponsor's address.

6. Once all the paperwork is filed, can the parents go back to India if required? On what Visa will they come back in? They currently have a 10-year visitor visa expiring in Sep 2008.

Thanks in advance for your help.

Already answered in Q2. With Advance Parole I131 approved, they can leave US and come back. Once they file I485, visitor visa is no longer valid.

Good luck!

 

[NeShawn]

I believe that they can travel while AOS is pending, but cannot stay out of US long periods of time or application will be considered abandoned.

 

[TheRealCanadian]

I believe that they can travel while AOS is pending, but cannot stay out of US long periods of time or application will be considered abandoned.

It has nothing to do with "long periods of time"; they can stay abroad until AP expiration.

 

[NeShawn]

It has nothing to do with "long periods of time"; they can stay abroad until AP expiration.

For as long as they want while they are seeking residency in US?
Can you tell me when is it considered abandoning your petition? I need the exact details. How long can one leave US while application is "pending"?

I am going to research and find out because I read somewhere that "30 days" is the limit

 

[TheRealCanadian]

Can you tell me when is it considered abandoning your petition?

Formally, I think a petition really only gets abandoned when you fail to show up for an interview/fingerprinting, or if you request cancellation in writing. Practically speaking, if you leave the US with no means to re-enter that will cause an I-485 to be abandoned eventually.

The introduction of the ability to re-enter on a valid H/L with a pending I-485 really muddies the waters, since one could leave the US with a pending adjustment, stay out for two years and then get an H/L stamp and re-enter. Unless a biometric or interview notice was issued in the interim, it's possible that the petition stay alive. Having a valid stamp certainly isn't a requirement, since there are some of us that do not require H/L visa stamps....

But the bottom line is that there is no requirement that an intending immigrant maintain US residency. As such, merely being out of the country a lot does not cause abandonment, although USCIS could question your intent to reside here once permanent residency is approved. However, I haven't heard of a single case of that in almost a decade.

I am going to research and find out because I read somewhere that "30 days" is the limit

There's certainly no 30 day limit.

 

[Anahit]

Just one correction...

Originally Posted by suomynona
5. My sister is in New York and I am in IL ( I am not a citizen yet). Will it be beneficial to file in NY vs IL or vice-versa? Which center to file - is this dependent on the temporary address of parents or is it dependent on the sponsorer's address?
Dependent on sponsor's address.

Filing location is not dependent on sponsor's address. You file all the paperwork together to Chicago lock box regardless of any address. However, you get to chose the District office where you want to get interviewed (question No 22 of I-130).
Btw, the sponsor does not need to be present at the interview, but he should be reachable if needed.

 

[pianoplayer]

Formally, I think a petition really only gets abandoned when you fail to show up for an interview/fingerprinting, or if you request cancellation in writing. Practically speaking, if you leave the US with no means to re-enter that will cause an I-485 to be abandoned eventually.

The introduction of the ability to re-enter on a valid H/L with a pending I-485 really muddies the waters, since one could leave the US with a pending adjustment, stay out for two years and then get an H/L stamp and re-enter. Unless a biometric or interview notice was issued in the interim, it's possible that the petition stay alive. Having a valid stamp certainly isn't a requirement, since there are some of us that do not require H/L visa stamps....

But the bottom line is that there is no requirement that an intending immigrant maintain US residency. As such, merely being out of the country a lot does not cause abandonment, although USCIS could question your intent to reside here once permanent residency is approved. However, I haven't heard of a single case of that in almost a decade.



There's certainly no 30 day limit.

Ditto!

 

[suomynona]

Filing location is not dependent on sponsor's address. You file all the paperwork together to Chicago lock box regardless of any address. However, you get to chose the District office where you want to get interviewed (question No 22 of I-130).
Btw, the sponsor does not need to be present at the interview, but he should be reachable if needed.

Thanks Anahit for the clarification. So a subsequent question that arises is - is it then beneficial which DO we select? My sister is in New York whereas I am in Illinois, so if we it is helpful we can have them select the associated DO to these two locations.

 

[suomynona]

Formally, I think a petition really only gets abandoned when you fail to show up for an interview/fingerprinting, or if you request cancellation in writing. Practically speaking, if you leave the US with no means to re-enter that will cause an I-485 to be abandoned eventually.

The introduction of the ability to re-enter on a valid H/L with a pending I-485 really muddies the waters, since one could leave the US with a pending adjustment, stay out for two years and then get an H/L stamp and re-enter. Unless a biometric or interview notice was issued in the interim, it's possible that the petition stay alive. Having a valid stamp certainly isn't a requirement, since there are some of us that do not require H/L visa stamps....

But the bottom line is that there is no requirement that an intending immigrant maintain US residency. As such, merely being out of the country a lot does not cause abandonment, although USCIS could question your intent to reside here once permanent residency is approved. However, I haven't heard of a single case of that in almost a decade.



There's certainly no 30 day limit.

Thanks RealCanadian & PianoPlayer! Pardon my ignorance about the acronyms, but what exactly is H/L?

So did I understand you guys correctly - I (through my sister) can have Parents paperwork I-130, I-485 & other documents & forms filed and then parents can leave the US and come back for formalities like the interview or finger printing etc ... withouth jeopardizing their GC processing or their current visitor visa? Wouldn't AP (I-131) be the correct way for them to go back to India?

About AP - is the AP kind of a blanket approval - meaning is the date that they can go back and the date they can come back open? or do these dates of going & coming back have to be fixed at the time of AP filing?

 

[suomynona]

Most of the questions are answered in parents sticky thread and other posts.



It is upto you. Many people in this forum have done parents' GC processing without attorney.



I-485 is a package of forms. It includes I864, bio info form and medical form to be filled out by doctor. Please see the instructions.

I131 is optional. However if parents want to leave US while waiting for GC, they will need I131 approved before they can leave.



Yes, after I485 is filed, they will have the legal status of "AOS pending".



It depends. If they do not get stuck in name check, it is much quicker nowadays. Depending on their DO, it can be 6-12 months. Please see the timelines in this forum and on CIS website.



Only citizens can file for their parents. Dependent on sponsor's address.



Already answered in Q2. With Advance Parole I131 approved, they can leave US and come back. Once they file I485, visitor visa is no longer valid.

Good luck!

Thanks for the detailed reply visaapplicant. One question that still isn't clear to me is - can I130 & I485 be applied together? Or do we have to wait for I130 to get approved before filing I485? From the sticky note it seem to be that they can be applied 'concurrently' however I recall reading about a Visa Number that gets assigned through I130 and is used subsequently in the other documents & forms. Hence the ambiguity.

Does the medical examination form I-693 need to be filed along with the 485 or is this something that can be applied later or is needed before the interview.

Question about birth certificate - I just realized that I have my parent's birth affidavit as one affidavit with two signatures (sibling & elder)! Is this valid? or do I really need two affidavits with one signature each?!?!

When I got my GC approved, I had a sigh of relief that finally I can relax. I guess it ain't over yet

 

[pianoplayer]

Thanks for the detailed reply visaapplicant. One question that still isn't clear to me is - can I130 & I485 be applied together? Or do we have to wait for I130 to get approved before filing I485? From the sticky note it seem to be that they can be applied 'concurrently' however I recall reading about a Visa Number that gets assigned through I130 and is used subsequently in the other documents & forms. Hence the ambiguity.

Does the medical examination form I-693 need to be filed along with the 485 or is this something that can be applied later or is needed before the interview.

Question about birth certificate - I just realized that I have my parent's birth affidavit as one affidavit with two signatures (sibling & elder)! Is this valid? or do I really need two affidavits with one signature each?!?!

When I got my GC approved, I had a sigh of relief that finally I can relax. I guess it ain't over yet

Hi:

If your sister as a USC applies for them, submit the I130/I485 TOGETHER, with ALL SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS, which would include the I693s.

Read the forms carefully for all the supporting forms/documents required. If you read the instructions carefully you won't miss anything.

I am not responding to the BC question, because I do not know what the situation is. You cannot obtain a BC? Are you submitting affidavits in place of the BCs?

 

[NeShawn]

Thanks RealCanadian & PianoPlayer! Pardon my ignorance about the acronyms, but what exactly is H/L?

So did I understand you guys correctly - I (through my sister) can have Parents paperwork I-130, I-485 & other documents & forms filed and then parents can leave the US and come back for formalities like the interview or finger printing etc ... withouth jeopardizing their GC processing or their current visitor visa? Wouldn't AP (I-131) be the correct way for them to go back to India?

About AP - is the AP kind of a blanket approval - meaning is the date that they can go back and the date they can come back open? or do these dates of going & coming back have to be fixed at the time of AP filing?

Once AP has been filed and approved, they will be able to travel back and forth from the USA.

 

[visaapplicant]

Thanks for the detailed reply visaapplicant. One question that still isn't clear to me is - can I130 & I485 be applied together? Or do we have to wait for I130 to get approved before filing I485? From the sticky note it seem to be that they can be applied 'concurrently' however I recall reading about a Visa Number that gets assigned through I130 and is used subsequently in the other documents & forms. Hence the ambiguity.

Does the medical examination form I-693 need to be filed along with the 485 or is this something that can be applied later or is needed before the interview.

Question about birth certificate - I just realized that I have my parent's birth affidavit as one affidavit with two signatures (sibling & elder)! Is this valid? or do I really need two affidavits with one signature each?!?!

When I got my GC approved, I had a sigh of relief that finally I can relax. I guess it ain't over yet

Your other questions have already been answered by pianoplayer and neshwan.

About BC, I am assuming that you are talking about your parents' BC required alongwith their I485. For each parent, you will need:

either a BC
or
a non availability cert (from the same agency that would have issued BC) + 2 separate affidavits

Also with I130, you will need your BC to prove relationship to your parents.