Concord, CA Immigration Law Firms & Lawyers

Your question requires an attorney consultation. It is not a simple question that can be answered on this type of forum. There are many factors that would need to be considered and evaluated. The short is possibly, depending on the exact statute you are charged under and whether it is considered a crime involving moral turpitude. I strongly suggest that you contact an experienced immigration attorney for a face-to-face consultation and give him/her all of the facts surrounding your situation. He/she would then be in a better position to analyze your case and advise you of your options.

Generally speaking, you must be in status during the entire time that you are waiting for the October approval of your H-1B. If you are a student or in another nonimmigrant visa classification, this satisfies that requirement.

It depends: 1) if your father entered the U.S. legally and is still in lawful status - you can file an immigrant petition for him, and he can apply for a green card; 2) if your father entered the U.S. illegally, or if he came legally but his admission expired and he is now without any lawful status - he cannot get a green card, unless a) someone - a relative or an employer - filed an immigrant petition for him before April 30, 2001; or b) the Congress changes the law. If the law changes, your father will need an immigration attorney to file his case as soon as possible and to do it right; otherwise, the opportunity to obtain legal status might be lost. Also, some attorneys believe that, in cases like yours, an immigrant petition should be filed now, before the Congress passes the reform - and some attorneys advise against it. To file the petition or not is an important decision, and you should make it with the benefit of a professional advice.