OC Immigration Attorney

We received the good news that our I-485 adjustment of status application was approved for a Huntington Beach client, who is originally from Canada. He has been married to his wife for 8 years, and they have a 7 year old daughter together. He entered the United States in 2001 legally, but without a visa (because Canadians are not required to have a visa). After he arrived in the United States, he never left.

He has worked as a contractor since that time. Finally, his driver’s license was set to expire, and he could not renew it unless he obtained his lawful permanent residence, which is why he finally came to me to finalize the green card process.

At the interview, everything went smooth, with a small setback, that we suspected might occur. Unfortunately, his wife lost her job after we filed the paperwork, but before the interview; therefore, we were asked to locate a joint sponsor and file the I-864 before the officer could approve the case. Once we filed the I-864, we received an approval on the I-485 within a few weeks.

The couple is extremely happy that his status is secure, and they can continue living in Orange County indefinitely. If you are married to a US citizen and are considering the adjustment of status process, contact The Nunez Firm to schedule a free consultation. Managing attorney Jay Nunez has helped countless married couple with the adjustment of status process, and he will personally discuss your case with you in a confidential manner.

A client from Huntington Beach was approved for a green card and granted lawful permanent resident status today in Orange County. He should receive his green card within the next two weeks or so. He is originally from Italy, and he came to the United States as an F-1 student. After graduating, he obtained a non-immigrant employment visa and worked in Irvine for several years.

He started dating his wife, who is a US citizen in 2007. The couple married in 2009. After the marriage, they came to The Nunez Firm to discuss the adjustment of status process. His wife petitioned for him to adjust his status and obtain lawful permanent residence without leaving the United States. The couple was interviewed by USCIS in Santa Ana, and the case was immediately approved. Because they have been married less than two years, he was granted conditional permanent resident status, which means they will need to file the I-751 form to remove the conditions on his permanent resident status in about two years from now.

If you are considering adjusting your status to lawful permanent resident, contact the Nunez Firm to discuss your case. Managing attorney Jay Nunez will personally discuss your situation with you and help you better understand your options.

A naturalization client in Huntington Beach had her N-400 application for naturalization approved today despite being convicted for a DUI five years ago. Due to the Driving Under the Influence misdemeanor conviction, she was sentenced to three years probation, which ended two years ago. She did not have any other convictions on her record.

Generally, a naturalization applicant must show good moral character over the last five years. However, because my client has been married to a US citizen for the last three years, the good moral character period applies only to the last three years. Because her DUI conviction occurred outside the three year statutory period, I argued that USCIS should not consider the DUI conviction. During the interview, the examiner pointed out that my client was on probation during the three year period in question. I argued that because a DUI is not considered a crime involving moral turpitude under Matter of Lopez-Meza (BIA 1999), the probation that resulted from the DUI cannot logically be considered a mark against my client’s moral character.

Additionally, I pointed out that 8 CFR 316.10(c)(1) states “An applicant who has been on probation, parole, or suspended sentence during all or part of the statutory period is not thereby precluded from establishing good moral character, but such probation, parole, or suspended sentence may be considered by the Service in determining good moral character. An application will not be approved until after the probation, parole, or suspended sentence has been completed.”

I argued that because my client was no longer on probation and the DUI misdemeanor was her only conviction, she should be considered to have good moral character and her naturalization application should be approved.

We provided USCIS with extensive documentation regarding my client’s good moral character including letters from employers, friends and her pastor. Ultimately, the examiner agreed that my client proved good moral character and approved the case. My client was extremely happy with the outcome, and she looks forward to her oath ceremony, which should occur in the next month or so.

If you are considering naturalization, but you are worried about previous convictions and how they might affect your naturalization attempts, contact The Nunez Firm to schedule a free consultation. Managing attorney Jay Nunez will personally discuss your case with you and explain the risks, options and chances of success so that you can make an informed decision.

We received news today that the fiance visa petition we filed for a Huntington Beach man and his fiance was approved by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. The fiance lives in Thailand, and the couple met in Thailand three years ago. They have dated since that time, and he has visited her several times over the last few years.

In 2009, we filed an I-129F fiance visa petition with USCIS. After approximately six months or so, we received the approval notice for the fiance visa petition.

The next step is to collect the necessary documents and evidence and schedule the consular interview. At the consular interview, the consular officer will determine whether to issue the fiance visa and allow the fiance to immigrate to the United States in order to marry her fiance in Huntington Beach.

Assuming the fiance visa is approved by the consulate, the couple will have 90 days to marry beginning when she arrives in the United States. Then, the couple will file for adjustment of status to receive the green card.

Although there is substantial work to be done before the process is completed, the client was excited that the fiance visa petition was approved.

If you are considering filing a fiance visa petition for your future spouse, contact The Nunez Firm to schedule a free consultation. Managing attorney Jay Nunez will discuss your options with you and help you determine whether the fiance visa process is the right path for you.

Today I received notice that a green card was approved for my client from Orange County. The client is the foreign spouse of a US Citizen, and the couple lives in Irvine. The couple was engaged for over a year, and they married in 2008. After their marriage, they moved from Huntington Beach to Irvine. We filed the visa petition in the US Citizen’s name on behalf of the foreign spouse in late winter 2009. Along with the visa petition, we filed the adjustment of status application. I attended the adjustment of status interview in Santa Ana with both spouses over the summer, and everything went well. Today we learned that the foreign spouse received her green card. The couple is very happy, and they hope to visit her family in Mexico over the Christmas holiday.

The foreign spouse was eligible to adjust status and obtain her green card while in the United States because she entered the United States legally using a visitor’s visa in the late 1990s. Although she overstayed her visa by almost ten years, the US immigration laws allow her to obtain a green card without having to travel back to Mexico. If she had entered the United States illegally, she would not be able to obtain a green card through adjustment of status. She would have needed to travel back to Mexico to consular process. That would have been a much more difficult situation, because she would have needed an I-601 extreme hardship waiveras well. Over the last two years, I-601 extreme hardship waivers have become increasingly difficult to obtain from Ciudad Juarez.

If you are married to, or plan to marry, a US Citizen, and you hope to obtain a green card, contact The Nunez Firm. Managing Attorney Jay Nunez will meet with you personally for a free and confidential consultation. He will advise you of your options and likely chances of success.

My client received her employment authorization card today. She was married to a US citizen who abused her and their son. He beat her, and threatened her with deportation on several occasions.

We filed for VAWA in order to obtain a green card based on the domestic abuse she suffered. The couple is currently going through divorce proceedings. The husband refuses to pay any child support, but my client will now be able to work in order to provide for her son.

While we wait for a decision on the VAWA application, she will be attending school and working in Orange County. It will likely take another 10 months until we receive a decision from the Vermont Service Center of US Citizenship and Immigration Services.

If you or a loved one has been victimized by domestic abuse, contact The Nunez Firm to discuss your case. The Nunez Firm may be able to help you obtain a green card due to the domestic abuse you have suffered.

A Huntington Beach client who applied for a green card through his marriage to US Citizen just received his employment authorization. Although the green card application (I-485) is still pending and will not be decided for several more months, he will be able to work legally in the United States with his employment authorization.

If you are married to a US Citizen and are seeking a green card, contact The Nunez Firm to schedule a free and confidential consultation. Managing Attorney Jay Nunez will thoroughly explain your options and chances for success so that you and your family can decide which course of action is best for you.

A client from Huntington Beach was granted lawful permanent resident status today in Orange County. He should receive his green card within the next month or so. He is originally from Brazil, and he came to the United States as an F-1 student visa holder. After he graduated, he obtained an H-1b visa and worked in Orange County for several years.

He started dating his wife, who is a US citizen in 2007, and they got married in 2008. After the marriage, his wife petitioned for him to adjust his status to lawful permanent resident without leaving the United States. The couple was interviewed by USCIS, and we just received the approval today.

If you are considering adjusting your status to lawful permanent resident, contact the Nunez Firm to discuss your case. Managing attorney Jay Nunez has helped countless clients adjust status and obtain their green cards.