Brigantine, NJ Immigration Law Firms & Lawyers

If your only ground of inadmissibility is your illegal stay in the US and you are married to a US citizen, you may be able to benefit from the I-601A waiver if your permanent departure would cause extreme hardship to a US citizen spouse or parent. The difference between this provision and regular law is that in the past, the US citizen would have to first file the I-130 relative petition for you, have it approved, and you would then go overseas for a consular interview at which time you would be refused and then invited to apply for a waiver of inadmissibility on form I – 601. You would have to remain outside the US during the time that the waiver was being adjudicated. Under the I – 601A, you are allowed to remain in the US during the time that the waiver is being adjudicated and if approved, you would leave the country for an immigrant visa interview at your home consulate or embassy, at which time you would normally have a routine interview as the main bar to your admissibility would have been removed even before you left the States. Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee, Esq.'s (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided herein by the Firm is general, and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.

Inasmuch as you only stayed in the US on H-1B visa status for 1.8 years out of the total allotted stay of six years, you appear eligible for a cap exempt visa petition. If approved and you pass the consular interview, you would have 4.2 years left on the H-1B visa if your count of 1.8 years is correct. Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee & Arthur Lee, Esqs.’ (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided herein by the Firm is general, and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.  

Much depends on how you plead at the municipal court. Some guilty pleas have serious consequences in the immigration law. Further, depends on the of law the residence in the state the shoplifting took place. You need to consult an attorney who has a background in criminal law and immigration law, or who handled similar cases.