River Ranch, FL Immigration Law Firms & Lawyers

You would have to file with USCIS a packet of several forms: Form I-130 Petition for an Alien Relative; Form I-485 Application to Adjust Status; Form I-765 Application for Employment Authorization; Form I-131 Application for Travel Document; Forms G-325A for yourself and for your wife; and Form I-864 Affidavit of Support. All these forms are available on-line at uscis.gov, along with instructions for each form. Pay special attention to the requirements for supporting documents; failure to include even one of them can result in denial of your application or in a long delay of its processing. The filing fees are noted in the instructions; basically, you need to be ready to pay $420 for I-130 petition and $1.070 for everything else. Should you find yourself averse to the task of unraveling the instructions, or to the risk of making a mistake in the application package and the resulting loss of the filing fees (when USCIS denies an application, it does not refund the filing fees), retaining an immigration attorney would cost you about $3000 (+$500 if you want the attorney to accompany you and your wife to the interview with USCIS officer). If the paperwork id done right, your wife should receive employment authorization card in about 3 months after filing; and you and your wife are likely to be summoned for the interview sometime between 3 and 12 months from the date of the filing. If USCIS approves the case, your wife will receive her conditional green card, valid for 2 years, within 1-2 months after the interview.

In order to locate a record of entry, you can file form I-102 for a replacement I-94 or I-94 W with U.S.C.I.S. Once you have that, you may be able to file for adjustment of status through a US citizen spouse. I do note that there has been trouble in the past with adjustment of status for those who came in and overstayed under the visa waiver program, although it is my understanding at this time that U.S.C.I.S. will continue processing cases of this type. You may wish to consult with a local attorney to see what the local practice of the U.S.C.I.S. field office is in dealing with your particular kind of case.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.  

The form to use is the I-864 affidavit of support since you are petitioning for him in a family based case. Although you earn nothing, your husband may be able to show his assets in order to immigrate under your affidavit of support. In a U. S. citizen spouse case, assets are counted at one third of regular income in meeting the poverty guidelines. As you live in Germany with your husband, you will also have to show the consular officer that you still have ties and bonds to the country in order for the affidavit of support to be effective. Such items as property in the States, a job offer in the States, a record of voting, etc. would be helpful in establishing your continued domicile in the country.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.