Haddonfield, NJ Immigration Law Firms & Lawyers

In your situation, you would be in a quasi-legal status in which you are allowed to stay during the time that the I-485 application is pending. You can also include your husband by having him fill out a separate I-485 adjustment of status application. If the petition will not be approved and your F-1 status is already expired, you would not have legal status anymore unless you appealed the petition denial and that was approved. You could conceivably be in the US unlawfully for a long period after that inasmuch as the Biden administration is not targeting most status violators for removal proceedings. At such point, you may wish to consult with an immigration lawyer for any further options. 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.

You can ask for a copy of your file under FOIA to find out what happened back in 1992.  You can also review the instructions for the N-600 form (on the USCIS.GOV website) to see if you can just apply for a certificate of citizenship.

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.