Case: I-130/I-485
Issue: Visa Waiver Entry
Applicant/Beneficiary – Italian
Location: Cleveland, Ohio

Our client entered the United States from Italy in January 2012 under the visa waiver program. As a Visa Waiver Entrant, she was only authorized to remain in the United States for 90 days. However, she has remained in the United States ever since.

Our client is a doctor, and she mentioned that she came on a J-1 visa before. So even though old visas and passports were not required, we asked her to show us those, together with her old DS-2019, so that we could check if she was subject to the 2-year foreign residency requirement. Our first inclination was that she was subject, as most J-1 entrants who are physicians are. When we saw the J-1 documents, we found out that she indeed was not subject. And so we proceeded with the adjustment of status case.

She married her U.S. Citizen spouse in September 2011 in Italy and her U.S. citizen husband filed an I-130 petition on October 4, 2011.  One main issue in her green card application through marriage was the fact that she came to the United States under the visa waiver program. As our office wrote in a previous success story with a similar issue, under the visa waiver program, citizens of certain countries can enter the U.S. for 90 days without a visa with the condition that the visitor waives his or her right to contest removal (other than on the basis of asylum). The “no-contest” provision of the Visa Waiver Program is fundamental; if someone could enter under the VWP and then contest removability; it would defeat the whole purpose of the Program which is to make it easy for certain nationals to come to the United States to visit and then leave without all the red-tape involved in visa issuance.

Our office filed the I-485 Adjustment of Status Application on March 5, 2012. Our office requested the CIS to exercise favorable discretion in granting adjustment of status despite her visa waiver entry.  Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices, fingerprint appointment, and the work permit all came on time. There was no Request for Evidence. Prior to the interview, we thoroughly prepared our clients. On May 15, 2012, our client was interviewed at the Cleveland, Ohio USCIS Field Office. We accompanied them at the interview as well. Despite the visa waiver entry and subsequent adjustment of status issue, the USCIS officer approved her green card application on the same day. Now, our client is a green card holder.

For other visa waiver success stories, please click here.

For other marriage-based green card success stories, please click here.

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CASE: H-1B Visa Petition
PETITIONER:  Financial Investment Management Company
BENEFICIARY: Associate Financial Analyst

Our client is a financial investment management company located in Indianapolis, IN.  They contacted our office in late March to seek legal assistance from our office for their foreign employee.  Their foreign employee was a former client of ours, and he got a J-2 waiver approval through our representation before. The beneficiary obtained his Bachelor’s degree in Business/Finance in the United States. The proffered position for the Beneficiary is an associate financial analyst.  We showed that this is a “specialty occupation” because the minimum requirement for this position is a Bachelors Degree in Business / Finance or its equivalent.

Once retained, our office filed the H-1B visa petition with various supporting documents on May 1, 2012 via premium processing. There were no Requests for Evidence during the processing of the H-1B.  Eventually, our client’s H-1B application was approved on May 12, 2012, only 11 days from the date of filing. He can now work for his employer for three years on an H-1B status starting October 1, 2012. He will continue to work there on an OPT in the meantime.

For other H-1B success stories, please click here.

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CASE: H-1B Visa Petition (Change of Employer)
PETITIONER:  Electric Manufacturing Company
BENEFICIARY: Procurement Engineer

Our client is an electric immersion heater manufacturing company in Ohio. They contacted our office in late February to seek legal assistance from our office for their foreign employee.  The beneficiary is from India who obtained his Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering in the United States. The proffered position for the Beneficiary is a procurement engineer which we argued qualifies as a specialty occupation.

The foreign beneficiary in this case had his H-1B from his previous employer. He was on his sixth year in H-1B which expires in September 2012, unfortunately, he was terminated in December 2011. So he looked for another employer and found one in February 2012. Since he was terminated from his H-1B employer in December 2011, he could not change status in the U.S. But he was still within the 180 day unlawful presence period, so he did not have a 3-year bar. He also wanted to extend his H-1B status not just up to September 2012, but to 5 months more by recapturing all the time he was out of the United States, and the remaining period that he was not on an H-1B. So we explained in our cover letter that the Beneficiary is eligible to recapture his remaining period of H-1B from the time of his termination from his previous employer, plus all those times that he was abroad on vacations.

Once retained, our office filed the H-1B visa petition with various supporting documents on March 20, 2011 via premium processing. The supporting documents included those for our recapture argument, such as copies of stamps on his passport, plane tickets, and the termination letter from his previous employer. Since this petition was based on a change in employer, this petition was exempted from the annual cap of the H-1B.  Thus, we could file prior to April 1.  There were no Requests for Evidence during the processing of the H-1B.  After 7 days, our client’s H-1B Petition was approved on March 27, 2011. That H-1B was valid until February 2013, which meant that the CIS granted our request for recapture. Now the Beneficiary can have an interview for his H-1B visa at the U.S. Embassy in India, and once admitted, he can work for his Petitioner-Employer as an H-1B visa holder up to February 2013.

For other H-1B success stories, please click here.

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CASE: Adjustment of Status / J-1 Waiver
NATIONALITY: Jordanian
LOCATION: Ohio

Our client is from Jordan who initially came to the U.S. on a J-1 Visa in 2009.  After the completion of her program, she went back to Jordan. She then married a U.S. Citizen in Jordan, and then came to the United States with a B-2 visitor visa in January 2011.

According to her DS-2019, she was subject to the two-year foreign residency requirement, so she could not adjust until she got a waiver.   In March 2011, she consulted with our firm for her adjustment of status and waiver of the two-year foreign residency requirement.

After we were retained, our office prepared and filed a waiver request through a No Objection Statement (NOS) from the Jordanian Embassy in the United States.  We also filed the I-130 petition for our client as well. The I-130 petition was approved on September 14, 2011.

On May 3, 2011 the J-1 Waiver was filed to the Department of State.  We sent a request to the Jordanian Embassy to issue a No Objection Statement and recommend this waiver based on the fact that our client is eligible to adjust if she obtains the waiver.  The Jordanian Embassy issued a No Objection Statement for our client, and sent this letter to the State Department’s Waiver Review Division.  Thereafter, the Waiver Review Division issued a favorable recommendation based on the No Objection statement.  Eventually, on October 4, 2011, the USCIS issued an I-612 approval notice for the waiver.

After the waiver was issued, our office filed the I-485 Adjustment of Status Application on November 14, 2011.  Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices, fingerprint appointment, and work permits all came on time. We thoroughly prepared our clients prior to the interview.   On March 22, 2012, our client was interviewed at the Cleveland USCIS office.  We accompanied them at the interview as well.  On the same day, her green card application was approved, and our client obtained her green card.

For other J-1 waiver success stories, please click here.

For other marriage-based green card success stories, please click here.

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CASE: J-2 Waiver of Two-Year Foreign Residency Requirement / Over 21-year-old dependent child
NATIONALITY: Chinese
LOCATION: Oklahoma

Our client is a citizen of China who came to the U.S. on a J-2 Visa.  He came with his father who came on a J-1 Visa for his research program in the United States. Both were subject to the two-year foreign residency requirement, meaning they had to go back to their home country for two-years before they can apply for permanent residency or some non-immigrant visa such as the H, L, and O visas.

After our client came to the United States, he finished high-school as a J-2 visa holder and later pursued his Bachelor’s degree.  Our client initially started his bachelor’s program as a J-2 visa holder, but in April 2001, he changed his status from J-2 to F-1 through the U.S. Consulate in Mexico. He had to change his status from J-2 to F-1 because he turned 21 in January 2011.  After he graduated, he married his current U.S. Citizen wife in October 2009 and his wife filed an I-130 petition on behalf of our client.  The I-130 petition was approved in February 2011.

Our client contacted our office in January 2012, and sought advice regarding his chances of applying for permanent residency.  He has an approved I-130 petition; however, without a waiver of the 2-year foreign residency requirement, our client would not be able to adjust his status in the United States.  Our office explained that we can apply for his J-2 waiver application through the Interested Government Agency (IGA) route.

Although J-2 dependents cannot independently apply for a waiver, in cases where a J-2 child reaches 21, the Waiver Review Division may consider requests for waivers on behalf of the J-2 dependent.  The Department of State’s policy allows for that process in instances where the J-2 dependent obtains a divorce form the J-1 principal, the J-1 principal dies, or in cases where the J-2 dependent turns 21, which is our client’s case.

Our firm was retained to do his J-2 waiver on January 19, 2012. On January 31, 2012, the J-2 Waiver application (Form DS-3035 and supporting documents) was filed to the Department of State. We also sent a request to the DOS to be an interested government agency and recommend this waiver based on the fact that our client reached the age of 21 and was not a dependent of a J-1 visa holder anymore.  Eventually, on February 21, 2012 the DOS recommended to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) that our client be granted a waiver.  On March 16, 2012, the USCIS issued an I-612 approval notice for our client’s waiver request. Now, our client can file his I-485 adjustment of status application with the approved I-130 petition and I-612 waiver approval. He can now apply for his green card.

For other J-2 waiver success stories, please click here.

For other success stories, please click here.

Also feel free to contact our office anytime for free consultations.

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CASE: J-1 Waiver of  the Two-Year Foreign Residency Requirement, No Objection Statement
NATIONALITY: Indonesian
LOCATION: Cleveland, OH

Our Indonesian client came to the U.S. on a J-1 Visa in April 2008.  He came to the U.S. for business training, and his J-1 visa made him subject to the two-year foreign resident requirement.  In October 2011, our client married his U.S. Citizen wife and he wanted to apply for permanent residency. However, due to the two-year foreign residency requirement, he had to obtain a waiver first.

After he retained our firm, we prepared and filed a waiver request through a No Objection Statement (NOS) from the Indonesian Embassy in the United States.  Our office contacted the Indonesian Embassy in Washington D.C. to make sure we knew all the requirements needed for their office to issue a no objection statement.  The Embassy requested nine different documents including a statement of reason for the waiver, the applicant’s resume, a copy of his valid Indonesian passport, and a copy of Form DS-3035.

On January 10, 2012 the J-1 Waiver (Form DS-3035) Application was filed to the Department of State.  We also sent a request to the Indonesian Embassy to issue a No Objection Statement and recommend this waiver based on the fact that our client would have been eligible to file a marriage based adjustment of status application but for the waiver.

The Indonesian Embassy eventually issued a No Objection Statement for our client, and sent this letter to the State Department’s Waiver Review Division.  On February 16, 2012, the Waiver Review Division issued a favorable recommendation based on the No Objection statement. The CIS then issued a receipt and an I-612 approval notice on March 7, 2012.  Now that our client’s two-year foreign residency requirement is waived, we can prepare and eventually file his petition and adjustment of status application.

For other J-1 waiver success stories, please click here.

For other success stories, please click here.

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CASE: J-2 Waiver of Two-Year Foreign Residency Requirement / Over 21-year-old dependent child
NATIONALITY: Ukraine
LOCATION: Indianapolis, IN

Our client is a citizen of Ukraine who came to the U.S. on a J-2 Visa.  He came with his father who was on a J-1 Visa to pursue his Ph.D. program in the United States. Both were subject to the two-year foreign residency requirement, meaning they had to go back to their home country for two-years before they can apply for permanent residency or some non-immigrant visa such as H, L, and O.

After our client came to the United States, he completed his high-school as a J-2 visa holder and later went to college.  Our client initially started his bachelor’s program in a J-2 status, but in January 2011, he changed his status from J-2 to an F-1 student visa through the U.S. Embassy in Canada.  He had to change his status from J-2 to F-1 because he turned 21 in January 2011. After graduation, he applied for OPT (Optional Practical Training), later got a job offer, and started to work for this company in Indianapolis.

Our client contacted our office in December 2011, and sought legal advice regarding the J-2 waiver process.  His OPT will be expired in July 2012, and his current employer was willing to sponsor his H-1B visa.  However, without a waiver of the 2-year foreign residency requirement, our client would not be able to change his status to H-1B.  Our office explained to him that we can do the J-2 waiver application through the Interested Government Agency (IGA) route.

Although J-2 dependents cannot independently apply for a waiver, in cases where a J-2 child reaches 21, the Waiver Review Division may consider requests for waivers on behalf of the J-2 dependent.  The Department of State’s policy allows for this process in instances where the J-2 dependent obtains a divorce form the J-1 principal, the J-1 principal dies, or in cases where the J-2 dependent turns 21, which is our client’s case.

Our firm was retained to do his J-2 waiver on December 20, 2011. On January 9, 2012, the J-2 Waiver application (Form DS-3035 and supporting documents) was filed to the Department of State. We also sent a request to the DOS to be an interested government agency and recommend this waiver based on the fact that our client reached the age of 21 and is not a dependent of the J-1 visa holder anymore.  Eventually, on January 27, 2012 the DOS recommended to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) that our client be granted a waiver. On February 29, 2012, the CIS granted the J-2 waiver.

For other J-2 waiver success stories, please click here.

For other success stories, please click here.

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CASE: J-1 Waiver of Two-Year Foreign Residency Requirement, No Objection Statement
NATIONALITY: Korean                                                                                                         �
LOCATION: New York City, NY

Our South Korea client came to the U.S. on a J-1 Visa in January 2009.  She came to the U.S. to participate in an international internship program in New York City.  Upon completion of her J-1 internship program, she went back to South Korea in 2010. 

While our client was in the United States for her internship, she met her U.S. citizen fiancé.  Later, they got engaged and her fiancé filed an I-129F fiancée visa petition on behalf of her in January 2011.  In May 2011, the I-129F petition was approved, and the related application materials were forwarded to the U.S. Embassy in Seoul to conduct our client’s fiancée visa interview.  In October 2011, our client had her fiancée visa interview at the Embassy.  During the interview, the Consulate officer told her that he cannot adjudicate the fiancée visa unless our client fulfills the two-year foreign residency requirement or obtain a waiver.  Although her visa was not denied, the Consulate officer told her that he would hold the decision for visa approval until client gets a waiver of the two-year foreign residency requirement.

Our client and her fiancé contacted our office in early December of 2011.  Upon consultation, they retained us in December 2, 2011.  Once retained, our office prepared and filed a waiver request through the No Objection Statement (NOS) from the Korean Embassy in the United States.

Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu from our office contacted the Korean Consulate General Office in New York City, NY to pursue the waiver for our client.  The Consular office requested six different documents including a statement of reason for the waiver, the applicant’s resume, a J-1 visa waiver confirmation application, and a letter of reason for obtaining the J-1 waiver.  Most of those documents needed to be written in Korean, so Attorney Yu, a Korean himself, assisted our client in completing those documents.

On December 6, 2011 the J-1 Waiver (Form DS-3035) Application was filed to the Department of State.  We also sent a request to the Korean Embassy to issue a No Objection Statement and recommend this waiver based on the fact that our client is eligible to get a K-1 Fiancé Visa, and will be eligible to adjust in the United States after her K-1 admission and the subsequent marriage to her U.S. Citizen fiancé.
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The Korean Consulate General in New York forwarded our client’s documents to the Korean Embassy in DC.  Soon after, the Korean Embassy issued a No Objection Statement for our client, and sent this letter to the State Department’s Waiver Review Division.  On February 2, 2012, the Waiver Review Division issued a favorable recommendation based on the No Objection statement. The CIS has receipted the fee and will issue an I-612 approval shortly. 

For other J-1 waiver success stories, please click here.

For other success stories, please click here.

Also feel free to contact our office anytime for free consultations.

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CASE: J-1 Waiver of Two-Year Foreign Residency Requirement, No Objection Statement
NATIONALITY: Korean                                                                                                         �
LOCATION: Ohio

Our client is from South Korea who came to the U.S. on a J-1 Visa in August 2008.  He came to the U.S. for a NASA research fellowship, but his J-1 program made him subject to the two-year foreign residence requirement.  He retained our office to seek legal assistance for his I-140 (National Interest Waiver Classification) and I-485 Adjustment of Status applications.  Before we file his I-140/I-485 application simultaneously, he has to get a waiver for his two-year foreign residency requirement.

Once retained, our office promptly prepared and filed a waiver request through the No Objection Statement (NOS) from the Korean Embassy in the United States.

Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu from our office contacted the Korean Consulate General Office in Los Angeles (Our client’s program sponsor was in Southern California, so the Korean Consulate General in Los Angeles has jurisdiction for our client’s application) to pursue the waiver for our client.  The Consulate requested six different documents including a statement of reason for the waiver, the applicant’s resume, a J-1 visa waiver confirmation application, and a letter of reason for obtaining the J-1 waiver.  Most of those documents needed to be written in Korean, so Attorney Yu, a Korean himself, assisted our client in completing those documents.

On December 7, 2011 the J-1 Waiver (Form DS-3035) Application was filed to the Department of State.  We also sent a request to the Korean Embassy to issue a No Objection Statement and recommend this waiver based on the fact that our client is eligible to file a National Interest Waiver petition and adjustment of status application.
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The Korean Consulate General in Chicago forwarded our client’s documents to the Korean Embassy in DC.  After that, the Korean Embassy issued a No Objection Statement for our client, and sent this letter to the State Department’s Waiver Review Division.  On January 10, 2012, the Waiver Review Division issued a favorable recommendation based on the No Objection statement. The CIS has receipted the fee and will issue an I-612 approval shortly.  Now, our client can file his adjustment of status application along with his NIW petition.

For other J-1 waiver success stories, please click here.

For other success stories, please click here.

Also feel free to contact our office anytime for free consultations.

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CASE: J-1 Waiver of Two-Year Foreign Residency Requirement, No Objection Statement
NATIONALITY: Kenyan
LOCATION: Ohio 

Our client is from Kenya who came to the U.S. on a J-1 Visa in 2004.  She was later on placed in removal proceedings and she retained our office for legal representation. We filed her I-360 self-petition which was since considered prima facie approvable and is now awaiting adjudication.   However, even if she gets the approved I-360 petition, she will not be able to adjust her status unless she gets a waiver of the 2-year foreign residence requirement, which she had from her J-1 program. 

Our office filed a J-1 waiver request through a No Objection Statement (NOS) from the Kenyan Embassy in the United States.  As mentioned in a previous success story, every country’s Embassy maintains different procedures and policies with regard to the J-1 No Objection Statement. Our office contacted the Kenyan Embassy in D.C. to request a no objection statement. The Embassy requested several documents including a statement of reason for the waiver, a clearance letter from the J-1 program sponsor, clearance certificate from the HELB and KSCE in Kenya, and a letter of reason for obtaining the J-1 waiver, among others.  

On November 21, 2011 the J-1 Waiver (Form DS-3035) Application was filed to the Department of State.  We also sent a request to the Kenyan Embassy to issue a No Objection Statement and recommend this waiver based on the fact that our client is eligible to adjust pending approval of the I-360 petition. 

On January 3, 2012 the Kenyan Embassy issued a No Objection Statement for our client, who also sent this letter to the State Department’s Waiver Review Division.  On January 23, 2012, the Waiver Review Division issued a favorable recommendation based on the No Objection statement. The CIS has receipted the fee and has issued an I-612 approval. 

For other J waiver success stories, please click here. 

For other success stories, please click here. 

Also feel free to contact our office anytime for free consultations.

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