CASE: I-130 / I-485 Adjustment of Status
NATIONALITY: Philippines
LOCATION: Great Falls, Montana
Our client came from the Philippines on a J-1 in August 2016 to work as a teacher. She was subject to the two-year foreign residency requirement.
In May 2018, she got married to her U.S. citizen husband and later on consulted with our firm for her J-1 visa waiver prior to applying for adjustment of status. If someone is subject to the two-year foreign residency requirement, he or she cannot get a green card in the United States until he or she fulfills the requirement or obtains a waiver.
Upon retention, our office promptly prepared a waiver request through a No Objection Statement (NOS) from the Philippine Embassy in the United States and eventually the EVP in the Philippines.
On June 19, 2018, the J-1 Waiver Application (Form DS-3035) was filed to the Department of State. We also sent a request to the Montana State Government to get authentication for the necessary documents. Later, these authenticated documents and No Objection Application (for the Philippines Government) were sent to the Philippines Consulate General in Chicago for further authentication. On August 8, 2018, our office sent our client’s materials to the Waiver Review Committee in Manila, Philippines. Then, the Waiver Review Committee forwarded the materials and favorable recommendation to the Philippine Embassy in D.C. who eventually issued a No Objection Statement.
On December 11, 2018, the Waiver Review Division issued a favorable recommendation based on the No Objection statement. Eventually, on February 22, 2019, the USCIS issued an I-612 approval notice for the waiver.
Once her J-1 waiver was approved, our client retained our office again for her adjustment of status application. Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 Petition and Adjustment of Status Application on January 29, 2019. Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices, fingerprint appointment, and work permits all came on time. Prior to the interview, we thoroughly prepared our clients through conference calls. On June 7, 2019, our client was interviewed at the Helena, Montana USCIS office. The interview went well, and eventually, on the same day of the interview, her green card application was approved.