Latest update April 25th, 2024 12:59 AM
Aug 24, 2014 News
By Attorney Gail S. Seeram,
[email protected]
Through this “Question & Answer” column, our goal is to answer your immigration questions. We appreciate your comments and questions. If you have a question that you would like answered in this column, please email: [email protected].
Question #1: My cousin who has a 10-year U.S. holiday visa plans on getting married to her boyfriend who will soon become a citizen of the US. She wants to know if she can get married in the U.S. and then return to Guyana and await sponsorship.
Answer #1: It is faster if your cousin marries in the U.S. while visiting and processes immigration petitions in the U.S. (only three months) versus returning to Guyana where processing can take one year.
Question #2: Can you tell me how far is sponsorship for single child by permanent mother?
Answer #2: If the child is under age 21 then the visa backlog is currently 1-2 years. If child is over 21 then there is a 7-year backlog and visas being issued right now are for petitions filed on or before May 2007.
Question #3: My husband has been in the United States for one year and a half. He got his green card and he came back and we got married. He applied for a permanent visa for me on April 5, 2013. He also hired a lawyer to help with the paperwork. How long will it take for my visa to be issued? I already checked the status and it shows an initial review.
Answer #3: According to September 2014 visa bulletin, visas are being issued for petitions filed on or before January 2013. Your husband should have received an approval notice and current processing should be at the National Visa Center.
Question #4: I live in Guyana. My mom filed a petition for me in June 2008 as F-2B family preference, then she upgraded the petition in November 2009 to F-1 category when she became a U.S. citizen. I am single and have no children. I would like to know how much longer I will have to wait?
Answer #4: According to September 2014 visa bulletin, visas are available for petitions filed on or before May 2007 for F-1 preference or unmarried child of a U.S. citizen. So, you have about a two-year wait.
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Immigration watching you on Facebook, Twitter, etc.
In recent days, there has been much unease about the government surveillance program. Although President Obama assured Americans no one is listening to your phone calls, many still do not trust the government. The Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, declassified certain information about the surveillance program to resolve the misunderstanding that the contents of phone calls are not surveil, but rather, the program allows the government to observe the sending and receiving of telephone numbers and the length of the call.
In any case, the issue has been raised about how far the U.S. government can reach in terms of surveillance and invading the privacy of those living in and outside the United States.
The Department of Homeland Security has been observing petitioners and beneficiaries through social media platforms like Facebook, MySpace, Hi-5, etc. The internet provides a platform where people can easily connect and through social media tools like Facebook, people tend to accumulate a large group of friends (some known and some unknown). In turn, social media has provided the Department of Homeland Security with a tool for them to “observe the daily life of beneficiaries and petitioners who are suspected of fraudulent activities”. These words taken exactly from a memo published by the Department of Homeland Security and posted on our Facebook page– see Facebook.com/GailSeeram (post on 06/07/2013).
Additionally, the memo states, “[t]his social networking gives FDNS [Fraud Detection and National Security] an opportunity to reveal fraud by browsing these sited to see if petitioners and beneficiaries are in a valid relationship or are attempting to deceive CIS [Citizenship and Immigration Services] about their relationship.”
What types of fraud are we talking about? (1) marriages that are not based on love but rather a business arrangement to help the beneficiary get legal status in the U.S.; (2) immigrant that was deported and returned to the U.S. without permission or proper entry; and (3) investigations into misrepresentations made to an officer during questioning to gain an immigration benefit.
Fraud can be detected in various stages of the immigration process – submission of petitions, pre-interview, post-interview, admission at the U.S. port of entry, deferred inspection, and removal/deportation proceedings.
The following are common I-130 family based petition fraud indicators: (1) short time between entry and marriage: (2) unusual marriage history; (3) children born during marriage to other parent; (4) unusual number of children and large discrepancy in age; (5) unusual dates on submitted documents; (6) divorce/new marriage dates close; (7) large age discrepancy between spouses; (8) unusual cultural differences; (9) same employer of petitioner/beneficiary; and (10) unusual associations between family members.
Based on various fraud indicators, an officer may investigate petitioner and beneficiary on various social media sites to verify the relationship and/or statements made during the interview process. Petitioners and beneficiaries are urged not to engage in fraud or misrepresentations, as they will be subject to jail, fines, and visa denial.
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