Panhandle, TX Immigration Law Firms & Lawyers

You can ask for reinstatement within 5 months of you losing your status if you have not engaged in unlawful employment and have a good reason for falling out of status.  Otherwise, you must return to your home country to apply for a new F-1 visa to return to the U.S. for college. Good luck, Mark J. Curley  

As a US citizen, you can petition for both your parents and brother for a green card. The first step consists of filing a petition with USCIS, and then after approval, processing the case through the US State Department. It is not a difficult process if you submit the correct documentation at each stage and are properly prepared for the interview. The processing time, however, will be much longer for your brother than for your parents. Your parents are considered immediate relatives so the total time to bring them from France to the US can be less than one year. If your parents are already in the US, then it is possible for them to adjust their status to US permanent residents within a few months. Your brother, after the initial approval of the petition, will need to wait for the priority date in his immigrant visa category to become current. Based upon current processing times, the wait can actually be more than ten years. It is only speculation, but it is possible that future immigration reform may shorten the wait for brothers and sisters of US citizens.

Whether a previous probation will affect you in obtaining a replacement green card may depend upon the underlying offense. If such was a crime involving moral turpitude, such could impact your right to permanent residence. You may wish to speak to a lawyer versed in immigration law about your situation. I note that we have heard reports in the past that some people who filed for replacement green cards and received a request for further evidence concerning the offense successfully withdrew their applications without consequence. 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.