Tag Archives: Admissibility to the U.S.

10 Immigrant Categories With No Financial Ability Restrictions!

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Money and Gavel

You may not be required to prove your financial ability to be eligible for immigration benefits!  There are certain groups of people who are either exempt from public charge, or may get a waiver for public charge when applying for a green card or other benefits with USCIS.  These include:

  1. Refugees  (or current refugees applying for adjustment to permanent resident status)
  2. Asylum applicants (or current asylees applying for adjustment to permanent resident status)
  3. Amerasian Immigrants (for their initial admission)
  4. Individuals granted relief under the Cuban Adjustment Act (CAA)
  5. Individuals granted relief under the Nicaraguan and Central American Relief Act (NACARA)
  6. Individuals granted relief under the Haitian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act (HRIFA)
  7. Individuals applying for a T Visa or have one and are trying to become a permanent resident and get a green card
  8. Individuals applying for a U Visa or have one and are trying to become a permanent resident and get a green card
  9. Applicants for Temporary Protected Status (TPS)
  10. Certain applicants under the LIFE Act Provisions

If you have any questions or concerns regarding if you need to prove your financial ability or file an Affidavit of Support, feel free to contact us at Your Immigration Angel!

Can USCIS Reject MY US Green Card Based on My Financial Ability ?

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Man with money glasses

Inadmissibility based on the public charge ground is determined by the totality of the circumstances.  This means that the adjudicating officer must weigh both the positive and negative factors when determining the likelihood that someone might become a public charge.  At a minimum, a USCIS officer must consider the following factors when making a public charge determination:

  • Age
  • Health
  • Family status
  • Assets
  • Resources
  • Financial status
  • Education and skills

The officer may also consider any affidavit of support filed on behalf of the individual.  In assessing the totality of the circumstances, including the statutory factors above, an officer may consider the individual’s receipt of certain publicly funded benefits.  Not all publicly funded benefits are relevant to deciding whether someone is likely to become a public charge.  When determining whether someone is likely to become a public charge, USCIS will consider whether the individual is likely to become primarily dependent on the government for subsistence as demonstrated by either the receipt of public cash assistance for income maintenance or institutionalization for long-term care at government expense.  Short-term institutionalization for rehabilitation is not subject to public charge consideration under existing field guidance.

Do I Have to Prove My Financial Ability to Get a U.S. Green Card?

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guy counting pennies

For immigration benefits adjudicated by USCIS, whether a person is likely to become a public charge is often considered when someone is trying to become a permanent resident and obtain a U.S. green card.  It is also considered when someone applies for certain non-immigrant or other temporary benefits, for example by extending non-immigrant status within the United States.

According to the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), if you are seeking admission to the United States or seeking to adjust status to become a lawful permanent resident, you are inadmissible if  “at the time of application for admission or adjustment of status, you are likely at any time to become a public charge.”  If an individual is inadmissible, admission to the United States or adjustment of status is not granted. Public charge does not apply in naturalization proceedings.

Financial Support and Obtaining Your Marriage Green Card

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Fountain Pen on Ledger

U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents (LPRs, or green card holders) are the only U.S. residents with the rights to obtain permanent residence or green cards for their spouses.  Anyone who immigrates to the United States through a petition filed by a family member must be able to prove that he or she has financial support from the family member in the U.S.  The financial sponsor must file an Affidavit of Support.  An Affidavit of Support is a form that a qualified individual (a sponsor) files on your behalf when you are applying for a green card through your marriage to a U.S. Citizen or LPR spouse.  The purpose of the form is to show that you have the financial means to live in the United States without needing welfare or financial benefits from the U.S. government.  The law requires that the sponsor demonstrate that he or she is able to assist you financially.  The sponsor must show that he or she has an annual income of not less than 125 percent of the federal poverty level.  Failure to file a qualifying Affidavit of Support showing sufficient income levels with your Adjustment of Status makes you inadmissible as a public charge.  USCIS will not allow anyone to immigrate if they do not have financial means to live in the U.S. and will reject anyone who will become or is currently a “public charge.”  If you have any questions regarding your marriage green card application or Affidavit of Support, please feel free to contact Your Immigration Angel!

Did You Enter Without Inspection? YOU May Be Eligible for the LIFE Act 245(i) Exception!

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family immigration pic

Noncitizen spouses who have entered the United States without inspection may still be eligible for immigration benefits under section 245(i) of the LIFE Act.  Many people who have either never had valid immigration status in the U.S. or who have fallen out of valid status are allowed to apply for adjustment of status in the U.S. if they pay a penalty fee.  Without this type of waiver, many people who do not have valid status in the U.S. would be unable to seek a visa while in the United States.  Without this waiver, they would be required to seek their immigrant visa from within their home country.  However, due to the status violation, they also would be barred from reentering the U.S. for at least three years.  In many cases, they may even be banned from re-entering the U.S. for ten years!

To be eligible for this waiver, you must:

  • have been present in the U.S. before December 18, 2000, and
  • have either filed a family or employment based residency petition on or before April 30, 2001, or you must have been the derivative beneficiary of such a petition.

Even if your initial petition was not successful, but was filed on or before April 30, 2001, you may still be eligible for the 245(i) waiver.   Under certain circumstances you may apply again for residency through another family petition.   Immigration law is one of the most complicated areas of law, with a constantly evolving and changing laws and regulations.  At Your Immigration Angel, we are committed to staying on top of the most recent changes to help you better follow your immigration path! Let us guide you on your path and assist you in achieving your immigration goals!

Do You Know the Limitations of the K-3 or K-4 Spouse Visa?

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kissing couple with kid

While the K-3 and K-4 visa offers many benefits, there are some other considerations to think about, depending on your personal situation.  For example, did you know that even though an immigrant visa is immediately available when a K-3 Petition for Alien Relative reaches the Department of State, but then your spouse’s children are no longer eligible for K-3/K-4 nonimmigrant status?  In that situation, the children must immigrate as lawful permanent residents.  If the K-4 visa holder does not have an approved Petition for Alien Relative at the Department of State at that time, he or she will be ineligible to immigrate with the spouse of the USC.

It is advisable that the U.S. citizen petitioner file a separate green card petition on the child’s behalf concurrently with the green card petition that is filed for the spouse.     While there is no requirement that a separate application needs to be filed for the child’s petition, it is advisable if a K-4 visa is desired.

K-3 or K-4 nonimmigrant visa holders are only admitted for a 2-year period.  A K-3 or K-4 nonimmigrant visa holder may apply for an extension of status in 2-year increments as long as the marriage-based green card visa petition or a corresponding application for adjustment of status or visa application is still pending adjudication.  A K-4’s authorized stay automatically expires when the K3’s status expires.

If You or Your Spouse “Entered Without Inspection,” There May Still Be Options!

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Border and IDs

All noncitizens entering the U.S. are required to present themselves to a USCIS immigration officer for inspection.  This inspection meant that they will be assessed and that they must demonstrate the right to enter the country based on approval obtained prior to entry in the U.S.  If you do not have an approved means for entering the United States, then the Customs and Border Patrol or USCIS officer may refuse entry to you.

If you have entered without inspection (EWI) and without the proper documentation, there are a limited number of legal immigration options available to you.  If you or your spouse EWI, that means that you do not have legal immigration status in the United States.   That also means that you cannot file to change or adjust your status, as you do not have a legal status to begin with.  It is not possible to adjust status even if you marry a U.S. citizen or have U.S. citizen parents or children that will petition for them. However, there are a few exceptions that might allow an adjustment of status. The two most common are the LIFE Act and a waiver implemented in new immigration law as of 2012.

Why are United States Visa applications for Permanent Immigration (Green Cards) Backlogged?

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Multi-Ethnic Hands Reaching For American Flag Umbrella

Every hopeful immigrant knows that there are constraints on the availability and issuance of United States Green Cards.  The limited availability of U.S. visa creates the main backlog on green card applications.  Employment-based green cards for foreign workers and their families are also limited by the United States government, and the 2015 cap has been set at 144,000 per year, world-wide.  Family-sponsored preference categories for 2015 are limited to 226,000 visas per year.  USCIS also places a total annual cap on the amount of visas that can be issued to foreign nationals from any particular country.  For 2015, no country can receive more than 7 percent of the total annual number of family-sponsored and employment-based visas or approximately 25,600 visas.

Check the Numbers on Naturalization!

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naturalization certificate

Did you know that in 2012, USCIS naturalized 757,434 LPRs in 2012?  According to 2012 DHS data, of the 40.8 million people who comprise the foreign-born U.S. population, 18.7 million immigrants are currently naturalized U.S. citizens.  This sounds like a lot, but accounts for only 6 percent of the total U.S. population!

So where did our newly naturalized citizens come from, you ask?  Immigrants from the following countries accounted for approximately 49 percent of all naturalizations that year:

  • 13 percent were born in Mexico (102,181)
  • 6 percent each in the Philippines (44,958) and India (42,928)
  • Dominican Republic (33,351)
  • China (31,868), Cuba (31,244)
  • Colombia (23,972)
  • Vietnam (23,490)
  • Haiti (19,114)
  • El Salvador (16,685)

USCIS estimates indicate that 13.3 million LPRs were residing in the United States as of January 1, 2012. This means that 8.8 million or more people may be eligible to naturalize currently!  Are you among them?

To become a naturalized U.S. citizen, LPRs must meet a number of criteria, including being at least 18 years of age, having resided in the United States with LPR status continuously for at least five years, and passing a basic English and civics exam.  For any questions about naturalizing, please feel free to contact Your Immigration Angel!

The United States has Historically Provided a Safe Haven for Many Immigrants:  How Many May Seek Refugee Status in 2015?

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welcome refugees

In a memorandum on Immigration, President Obama said up to 70,000 refugees may be admitted to the U.S. during the 2015 fiscal year.  The President stated that this number was well justified due to humanitarian concerns and national interest.

The number of people eligible to receive refugee status is split into an uneven quota by region.  The slots available to people from various regions is as follows:

  • the Near East and South Asia region received the highest allocation with 33,000.
  • Africa received 17,000
  • the East Asia region was allocated 13,000
  • the Latin American and the Caribbean region was assigned a total of 4,000 available slots
  • Europe and Central Asia was allotted 1,000
  • the “Unallocated Reserve” has 2,000 slots, to be allocated as needed

The State Department can allocate the 2,000 unallocated refugee numbers to another region if the need is warranted but only after notification to the Judiciary Committees of the Congress.