Dustin R Baxter’s Answers

The transfer of the I-130 means that immigration is processing your petition, and may call you in for an interview to determine whether the marriage is valid. This is normal processing. If your husband is in Guatemala, you do not file the I-485. Once the I-130 is approved, you will receive a letter from the National Visa Center requesting additional forms and filing fees. The I-485 is not a form you will need since your husband will undergo consular processing at the consulate in Guatemala.

You should not have any problem returning to the United States after two weeks, assuming that the two-year foreign residence requirement was waived. As a general rule, you only need to worry about returning after extended absences of 6 months or more, but there is no presumption of abandonment of your resident status until you have been outside the U.S. for more than one year.

The attorney your mom consulted with is correct. You are not able to adjust your status in the United States even though you entered the country with a visa. While most people believe that they are able to adjust if they entered the country legally (as opposed to entry without inspection), that is only the case for immediate relatives of U.S. citizen petitioners. That includes children 21 and under (unmarried) of U.S. citizens, and spouses and parents of U.S. citizens. You would indeed have...

If you pay the bond on the criminal matter, under regulation, immigration has 48 hours to come to place her in immigration custody. If immigration does not come, she must be released from police custody. If they still refuse to release her, call and attorney and seek assistance. Many times immigration will come within the 48 hour window. At that point, you should definitely contact an immigration attorney to discuss the possibility of obtaining an immigration bond.

Here in the Atlanta area, both Catholic Charities and the Latin American Association offer services for free, or at reduced rates. Whatever you do, don't trust a notario or immigration consultant to do this work for you. You should really speak to the attorneys at Catholic Charities or LAA, or at least consult with an attorney to make sure you are eligible for work authorization.

To extend your work authorization you would need to file your I-765, and should do so if your work permit is expiring in the next three months. You should hire an attorney to do an infopass with USCIS for you as this often times get your I-485 moving. If more than one year has passed since your interview you might consult with an attorney about filing a mandamus action to force USCIS into taking action on your application. If the permanent resident card is approved prior to the two...

As mentioned, the first step will be to file an I-90 to replace your permanent resident card. While it generally takes around 2-6 months to obtain the replacement card, you can take the I-90 receipt to your local USCIS office and they will place an I-551 stamp in your passport to show your proof of residency which will allow you to then get a replacement social security card. Also, in addition to the social security card, you will need a valid permanent resident card to obtain lawful...

This should not be a problem. As long as the documents are officially certified copies with certified translations, they should be accepted by USCIS. Honestly, in this case, chances are they may not even ask for your divorce decree.

Immigration Judges do not grant EADs, but often times you are allowed EAD from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services if you have an application pending before the Court. Hopefully you are represented by an attorney and the application has been filed at the appropriate office. Once the EAD application is properly filed it generally takes about 90 days to get approval.

As a general rule, if a person lies to immigration, there is likely to be a problem. Both the fraud committed, as well as the conviction could make this person removable from the United States depending on the facts of each circumstance. You should most definitely consult in person with an attorney, and make sure you bring the conviction record with you when you meet your attorney.