Douglas, GA Immigration Law Firms & Lawyers

If your husband entered the US on a parole status instead of a visa, you could possibly work to adjust his status to permanent residence in the US without leaving. The major forms that you would be dealing with would be the I-130 relative petition and the I-485 adjustment of status application. If he entered the country illegally without being paroled, does not qualify under section 245(i) as having been the beneficiary of a labor certification application or immigrant visa petition by April 30, 2001 and being physically present in the US on December 21, 2000, you may think of processing under the Obama administration's I-601A program which allows an advance waiver of the penalty for being illegally in the US for a period of time. The relevant forms for that would be the I-130 relative petition, and after that is approved, the I-601A application form for a provisional waiver. If approved, your husband would ultimately complete his case at the American consulate or embassy in his home country, but if everything else is okay, he would be allowed to come back with an immigrant visa right after the interview. For further information you can check out the U.S.C.I.S. website at uscis.gov.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.  

A foreign national who is subject to a J-1 two-year home residency requirement is not eligible to adjust status to become a Lawful Permanent Resident (to get a "Green Card"), such as through a marriage-based application, unless (1) the two-year requirement is waived, or (2) the two-year requirement is satisfied. It is possible in some instances, but not all, to succeed with an application for waiver of a two-year home residency requirement, and often this is based upon the source of funding associated with the J-1 visa. So long as a foreign national remains in valid J-1 nonimmigrant status he/she may remain lawfully present in the U.S. Marriage to a U.S. citizen does not, by itself, authorize additional lawful presence (or employment) in the U.S. Especially since you (justifiably) consider this to be a really important situation, there really is no substitute for you and your spouse to consult with an immigration attorney who, after learning all of the relevant information, could advise about eligibilities, options and strategies to attain your goals, and who then could offer legal representation in the often complex application process.

If you are outside of the US, you can apply for a B-1 visa at the US consulate. If you are no longer working for the previous employer, your current employer must file a completely new H1B petition. You cannot transfer the visa from one employer to another.