A: Dyan’s answer: DACA does not give you any nonimmigrant status, but does provide authorized stay and tolls (stops) the accrual of unlawful presence. On September 5, 2017, the Trump administration announced an end to the DACA program and USCIS will not consider any new applications after this date. But existing DACA recipients with authorization set to expire before March 5, 2018, may apply for a two-year renewal if they apply by October 5. Once DACA (or any other authorized stay ends), the accrual of unlawful presence begins again.

Your U.S. citizen spouse may file an I-130 immigrant petition for you in the immediate relatives category. But you do not qualify for I-485 adjustment to permanent resident status if you do not meet the lawful admission requirement. If you entered the U.S. illegally, you normally have to depart the United States to apply for an immigrant visa at the U.S. Consulate. One possible exception is if you received Advance Parole (travel document) as a DACA recipient, left the United States, and then gained lawful admission to the country on Advance Parole.

If you accrued unlawful presence of more than 180 days to less than 1 year, after you turned age 18, you will be subject to a 3 year bar to re-entry upon departure from the U.S. The bar to re-entry is 10 years if the unlawful presence lasts 1 year or more. (NOTE: Unlawful presence prior to age 18 does not count toward the 3/10 year bar, and while you are on DACA, unlawful presence is tolled/stopped.)

If the 3/10 year bar applies to you, you may file a Form I-601A, application for provisional unlawful presence waiver, within the U.S. before you leave for the immigrant visa interview. To get the waiver, you must prove a qualifying relative (U.S. citizen or permanent resident spouse or parent) will suffer "extreme hardship" if you are not admitted to the U.S. as an immigrant.

The green card/immigrant visa application process is long and involves several steps. Be sure to consult an experienced immigration attorney to discuss the eligibility requirements and the application process. With DACA coming to an end, it is now even more critical for you to determine how to legalize your status.

A: Dyan’s answer: On the Form N-400, Application for Naturalization, you are asked if you have ever claimed to be a U.S. citizen; ever registered to vote in any federal, state or local election in the U.S.; or ever voted in any federal, state, or local election in the U.S. When you sign the N-400, you do so under penalty of perjury and certify the information is true and correct. During the N-400 interview, you will provide testimony under oath to a US officer (US government official). USCIS officers are trained to detect when an applicant is lying and they may also check independent sources, such as voter records, to verify your answers.

Good Moral Character (GMC) is one eligibility requirement for naturalization. Deliberately providing false testimony under oath to obtain an immigration benefit, during the statutory period, bars you from showing GMC for naturalization. Normally, the statutory period starts 5 years prior to the date of N-400 filing and continues to the date of naturalization. USCIS may also consider conduct outside the statutory period if your present conduct does not reflect a reformation of character or the earlier conduct is relevant to the your present moral character. If you are caught lying on your naturalization application, you can expect USCIS to deny it and you will then have to wait at least 5 years to try again.

Unlawful voting and falsely claiming U.S. citizenship for voting, during the statutory period, bars you from establishing Good Moral Character for naturalization, depending on totality of the circumstances. Perhaps more important, unlawful voting in a federal, local or state election in the U.S. or false claim to U.S. citizenship for voting may subject you to being found inadmissible to the U.S or removable from the U.S.

Due to the potential risks and consequences of admitting to unlawful voting or falsely claiming U.S. citizenship, it might be tempting to lie in your naturalization application - which is what the paralegal is recommending you to do. But a paralegal is not authorized to provide legal advice or counseling.

Before you file for naturalization, you must consult an experienced immigration attorney who will fully advise you on the legal, immigration, and ethical implications of your answers on the N-400 form. Telling the truth or lying about the particular issues you described could both lead to immigration consequences. It is best that you hold off on applying for naturalization until you get accurate and complete information from a qualified attorney.

A: Dyan’s answer: Only U.S. citizens, age 21 or older, (not permanent residents/green card holders) may file an I-130 immigrant petition for a parent in the immediate relatives category. You first need to become a naturalized U.S. citizen before you may help your mom immigrate to the U.S.

With an approved or pending I-130 in the immediate relatives category, the mother of an adult U.S. citizen may file an I-485 adjustment of status/green card application in the United States. She must be physically present in the U.S. following lawful admission (e.g. on a visitor visa). An overstay, by itself, does not prohibit adjustment of status in this category.

But fraud/willful misrepresentation of material facts to gain immigration benefits (e.g. visitor visa or entry as a visitor) is a lifetime bar to immigrating to the U.S. under INA 212(a)(6)(C)(i). For example, if the person specifically intended to overstay and eventually file for a green card, but tells the consular officer or customs officer that the purpose of the trip is temporary, this generally amounts to misrepresentation. An inadmissibility finding under INA 212(a)(6)(C)(i) requires the person to obtain an I-601/INA 212(i) immigrant waiver to get a green card or immigrant visa.

An overstay subjects your mother to being placed in removal proceedings. And if she accrues unlawful presence of more than 180 days to less than 1 year, and departs the U.S. prior to commencement of removal proceedings, she will trigger a 3-year bar to re-entry to the U.S. The bar to re-entry is 10 years if the unlawful presence lasts 1 year or more.

When the 3/10 year unlawful presence bar applies, the person must obtain an I-601/INA 212 (a)(9)(B)(v) immigrant waiver to obtain an immigrant visa at the U.S. Consulate. (Current I-601 filing fee is $930). To qualify for the I-601 waiver, the person must present documentary evidence showing a qualifying relative (U.S. citizen or permanent resident spouse or parent) will suffer extreme hardship if she is not admitted to the United States.

A U.S. citizen or permanent resident daughter/son is not a qualifying relative for I-601/unlawful presence waiver purposes. But the 3/10 year bar is not triggered until or unless the person departs the U.S.

Even when the 3/10 year bar does not apply, the person may still be denied a new visitor visa or re-admission as a visitor due to an overstay of any length of time. Failing to depart on time often leads the U.S. Consulate to conclude the person will violate her status or the terms of her visa again.

Consult an experienced immigration attorney to obtain specific guidance. The information you provided shows you are confused about how the immigration process works.