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The Federal Register Comment Period for a Proposed USCIS Fee Schedule began May 4, 2016. The actual fee increases have not been published yet but the Office of Management and Budget is reviewing a proposed weighted average of fee increases averaging 21%.

USCIS, part of the US Department of Homeland Security is not taxpayer funded. They are required to review all costs and continue their status as funded directly by fee collection. In the past, the service has shown itself to be unable or unwilling to keep costs under control. For example, they proposed and implemented fee increases of approximately 300% in late July, 2007, citing the need to hire a significant number of new employees, in order to shorten processing times.

The service did hire a massive number of new employees, and once they were trained, we started seeing modest to excellent improvement in processing time for petition based immigration processes. Unfortunately, the improvement was short lived, and we have been back to similar processing times to those we saw prior to the 2007 tripling of fees, since only a few months after seeing the improvements. By late 2008, at least for the family based immigration processes for which we offer consulting services, USCIS petition processing times have nearly all gone back to the approximate five month standard.

Fiancé and fiancée petition processing has been a mystery, with most petitions being approved within several weeks, and the remainder taking the previous normal processing time of four to five months. Spouse petition cases have actually been averaging closer to six to eight months, instead of the five month standard USCIS regularly publishes.

In the past three years, we have not been able to point to any concrete reason for either the several month differential in processing time for Fiancé and Fiancée petitions, or for the longest processing times since 2005, for spouse petitions. In general, the Executive Branch’s initiatives have taxed the USCIS processing force from time to time, because those initiatives have received priority over existing processes. However, we have been unable to tie delays directly to those initiatives.

If you are considering starting a process that involves USCIS, (That includes all processes for which Platinum Immigration Services offers Consultancy.) then it would seem wise to avoid delay in getting started, as it appears the fees are sure to increase by approximately twenty percent, with no reason to believe the increased fees with impact processing time.

Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, you are permitted to apply to the USCIS to have your immigration status changed to permanent resident. When you are granted permanent resident status, you receive a green card. In most cases, the application is approved after a few months at the conclusion of your immigration interview, and your green card arrives in the mail. But in some cases, applying for an Adjustment of Status may result in an RFE (request for evidence).

The USCIS issues an RFE when there are concerns over the state of the sponsor’s finances or not enough evidence was provided to support the petitioners request. It doesn’t necessarily mean that your application will be denied. You are merely being asked to supply additional documents to support it. It is important not to be intimidated by the RFE and to read it carefully. You must respond with all of the required documents or your application may be denied.

Who Is Eligible for Adjustment of Status

Not everyone is eligible for Adjustment of Status, which is why you may be asked to provide more evidence to prove that you indeed meet the basic criteria. In order to apply for adjustment, an applicant must currently live in the U.S, cannot be in the country illegally and have an approved or concurrently filed petition for alien relative ( either work or family based). Your sponsor must also be able to demonstrate that they are able to offer you sufficient financial assistance. The documents requested in the RFE will vary from case to case.

Sponsor’s Ability to Provide Financial Support

Most RFE requests are triggered by concerns that the sponsor cannot provide the applicant with sufficient financial assistance thus increasing the likelihood that the alien will require government support. Your sponsor must provide evidence that they exceed the minimum financial requirements. In lieu of income, liquid assets such as stocks, bonds, IRAs are acceptable but only one-third of the value of these assets can be applied to the income threshold. Simply “meeting” the minimum requirements is not a guarantee the immigration officer’s judgment call on the “public charge issue” will go in your favor.  Officers also consider whether the sponsor has a compelling motivation to act as your sponsor.  This is particularly critical when using a joint sponsor.

Sponsor’s Tax Returns

A sponsor’s tax returns will be closely scrutinized to determine income level and whether or not they have over-deducted to avoid a higher tax bill. They should be prepared to provide returns for the last three years to prove they meet all of the necessary requirements. Your sponsor may not be required to file taxes but they need be able to show why they are exempt. If a sponsor has an unstable work history, with fluctuations in income from one year to another or unsustainable sources of income such workman’s compensation, the USCIS could deny the application. Improper deductions are also problematic. Additionally, a sponsor must produce 1099s, even if they’re retired or disabled and derive their income from non-taxable sources such as Social Security benefits.

It is important to note, that unless the sponsor is self employed, their qualifying “current income” must be documented as well.  Tax returns document past income.  Pay stubs and/or employer letters are what document current income.  Tax return information and current income declarations are separate issues on the affidavit of support.

You can greatly reduce the likelihood that you will receive an RFE by taking care to provide all of the correct documentation, in its entirety, and fully translated when filing your initial application.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service has begun cracking down on so-called “green card” marriages. These marriages are entered into strictly for the purpose of securing a green card for one of the parties involved. Unfortunately, couples in legitimate relationships are sometimes asked to submit sufficient evidence of the relationship in order to avoid revocation of the green card and possible deportation. You know you’re in a “bona fide” relationship but how do you prove it?

Here are a few ways you can help authenticate your marriage or other relationship if you are interviewed by the USCIS.

Basic Proof

When immigration authorities look into the validity of your marriage or relationship, how far they proceed is determined by the quality of the information you can supply. The more documentation you can provide, the better. At the very least, you will be asked to provide a statement testifying to the validity of the relationship. A marriage certificate and birth certificates for any common children may also be required depending on the nature of your relationship.

Remember to bring along any documents or personal identification (driver’s license, employee or student ID) that verify your relationship through a shared address or phone number.

Communication History

You may be reluctant to share the private communicate between you and your partner for obvious reasons, but it may very well determine whether or not your partner or spouse remains in the country or not. Letters, notes, and electronic communication (e-mail, text or social media) are all acceptable means of proving the intimacy of your relationship. Having a stranger examine your personal correspondence may be awkward but if helps your case it will be well worth the embarrassment.

Joint Ownership of Property

When a couple owns or rents property together it is usually a good indication that the relationship is genuine. Be ready to produce documents such as the deed, rental or purchase agreement, home inspection, closing, and mortgage agreement. Include utility bills and insurance paperwork for further proof that you are indeed entering into these agreements jointly.

Relationship Related Expenses

In the excitement of the event, many couples may forget to hang onto receipts for engagement or wedding related costs. These provide additional proof that the relationship isn’t a sham. Hang onto the receipts for your rings, wedding photographer, honeymoon expenses and any other costs that verify the events leading up to the wedding and the ceremony itself. A quickie marriage with little to no additional expense may raise a red flag with immigration officials. Non-financial evidence such as the engagement and wedding announcements from your local newspaper, the guest list, and the wedding video can also be helpful.

Joint Assets & Liabilities

Married couples are bound by more than just wedding vows, they also accumulate assets and debts. Be prepared to show documents related to any joint bank accounts or investments such as statements, deposit slips, and reports. Shared liabilities may include credit card debt, bank loans, and large purchases like property, vehicles, or appliances. In the case of purchases, receipts and warranties may provide sufficient evidence.

The family immigration process, is no less filled with its own somewhat proprietary terminology, as you might find in other government or private industry setting. While we do everything we can to stick to generic descriptions that are easy to understand, there are some acronyms and other terms that often come across as confusing, or even ominous.

Here are a few terms and acronyms that often come up, and the simple explanations to go with them.

• Petition: A package including government forms and supporting documentation, filed to begin a family based immigration process.
• Petitioner: Simply means the US Citizen or Lawful Permanent Resident who starts the process of bringing fiancé, fiancée, or relative to the USA by filing a “Petition”.
• Beneficiary: The person or persons, for whom a Petitioner, petitions for an immigration benefit.
• RFE: This is short for “Request For Evidence” often received as a “Request for Initial Evidence” The keyword is “Request”, so although it is critical to properly respond to any RFE, it really is nothing but a request, which is often for something USCIS already has and has overlooked or which was inadvertently left out of an initial petition package.
• I-797: This is just a template used for any “Notice of Action”, or “NOA” from USCIS
• NOA1: The first notice of action usually received is a “Receipt Notice”, meaning USCIS received the initial petition.
• NOA2: Often the second notice of action is an Approval Notice, indicating the petition is approved, but an RFE, is also a kind of Notice of Action, as is the receipt of your response to an RFE. In a case that has an RFE, it will likely be the fourth Notice of Action that indicates petition approval.
• AOS: This acronym is used equally as often to mean “Affidavit or Support” or “Adjustment of Status” depending on the context. For all family based immigration processes, (including “Adjustment of Status”) an Affidavit of Support in one form or another, is a required document, we complete on the Petitioner’s behalf.
• NVC: The National Visa Center handles the initial visa processing steps for the US Department of State, for all family or “petition” based “Visa” cases.
• POE: The Port of Entry is the where the arriving foreigner presents themselves, passport and required documents, for entry into the USA. By air, this will be the first US Airport the foreigner’s plane reaches. By land, it is the border crossing station. Each POE has a name and a code. In the case of airports, it’s the airport code, such as LAX or JFK.
• USCIS: This is the acronym for United States Citizenship and Immigration Service, which replaced INS, the Immigration and Naturalization Service.
• ICE: Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or the Immigration Police, part of USCIS. ICE and USCIS are both part of the US Department of Homeland Security.

Since this issue has recently been raised again in the context of politics and eligibility to be the President of the United States of America, I thought this would be a good time to address the issue in the Platinum Immigration Services Blog.

Clients and potential clients can rest easy knowing that for the categories of Immigration for which we offer Immigration Consulting services, a US Citizen qualifies to petition for any of those benefits in behalf of their spouse, fiancée, or fiancé, regardless of how their citizenship was obtained. However, since it is a timely subject due to current events, I’m going to explain the difference in terms that are easy to understand.

I’ve heard several well meaning commentators on radio and TV, just today, use the terms Natural Born and Naturalized, as if they were the same thing. They definitely are not. Marc Levin, an attorney who should know better (and likely does) was the most disappointing of them, to me, when he stated, “Any child born to a US Citizen Parent, no matter where they are born, is a Citizen of the USA and is qualified to be President of the USA.” Neither of those assertions are correct, as spoken, due to the use of the word “any”. That word made the statement too general to be true. Some children born abroad to US Citizen mothers or fathers will qualify as Natural Born Citizens, none will be “Naturalized” Citizens and some will have a third category of Citizenship, called “Citizenship through Parents”.

There is even Citizenship through grandparents. I’m not going to go into the details of the various and sundry ways one might qualify for citizenship through parents or grandparents, except for the most common way, so you can get the gist. The wife and two step children of one of my clients immigrated in 2006 as the spouse of a my US Citizen client. In 2009, when the foreign spouse became eligible to apply for citizenship (To Naturalize) she successfully did so. Since both her children were under age 18 at the time, both her children received citizenship through their Naturalized parent, automatically. Neither the mother or her children qualify to be President. 🙂

In the context of Ted Cruz, yes, he qualifies as a Natural Born Citizen because his mother was a “Natural” born in the USA Citizen and lived in the USA long enough in total AND long enough after age 14, for any of her children to be Natural Born US Citizens (Citizens at birth) no matter where they were born.

John McCain is a Natural Born Citizen for the same reason except that BOTH parents were US Citizens, in McCain’s case. John McCain, for example would not have a US birth certificate, as evidence of his US Citizenship because US States issue birth certificates, not the Federal Government. His parents would have applied for a “Consular Report of Birth Abroad” in his behalf, followed by applying for his US Passport.

A born in the USA Barack H. Obama is a Natural Born Citizen because he was born in the USA, even IF his mother wasn’t a US Citizen. Had his 18 year old US Citizen mother given birth to him in Kenya instead of the USA, then his US citizenship (at birth) would depend on whether his mother lived in the USA for at least ten years with the applicable number of years of continuous presence after age 14. I’m not arguing the current President’s eligibility, just explaining the ramifications of various assertions to assist the reader in understanding the answers to the questions posed as the title of this Blog Post.

A Naturalized Citizen has exercised their option to apply for citizenship after meeting the requirements to “Naturalize”. No Naturalized Citizen was ever or will ever be a Natural Born Citizen. Natural born citizens are citizens due to the circumstances of their birth, not something they opt for AFTER birth.

With those short explanations of “Naturalized Citizen” and “Citizenship Through Parents” the groundwork has been set to explain the meaning of “Natural Born Citizen”.

This is actually a very frequent question. The truth is, that a visitor, with a B1, B2, or B1B2 visa or who is either visiting using the Visa Waiver Program (ESTA) or the Canadian Visitor Privilege, may choose to marry in the USA, while visiting. Even two foreigners may enter the USA and marry wherever the local jurisdiction allows it. This happens often in Las Vegas, or other “Destination Wedding” locations in the USA. A “fiancée or fiancé visa” is not a requirement for marriage in the USA.

These visas are used when the foreigner intends to both marry in the USA…AND…adjust status to Lawful Permanent Resident based on that marriage. While it would be reasonable to conclude that since there is a visa specifically for this purpose, that obtaining it is the only way to accomplish being together in the USA, if not already married outside the USA.

In practice, this is far from true.   I regularly tell my clients who are adjusting status based on marriage to a US Citizen without having obtained a fiancé or fiancée visa, that on the day they interview for their status adjustment, there will be a hundred or more other couples around the USA in other USCIS offices, successfully obtaining Lawful Resident Status, under the same of virtually the same circumstances as their own.

Even so, there will be those who say this is “cheating” or even illegal. Usually, those persons are either expressing sour grapes, because their own circumstances did not allow them to take this route, or they simply do not understand how US Immigration works. Please note that I am not offering any of this information as “legal advice”. I’m not an attorney, so I’m not interpreting laws. I’m informing the reader about what, in fact, does happen every day local USCIS offices are open.

In fact, people are just as successful adjusting status without having obtained any special visa to do so, even after significant overstays past the time allowed by the visa or other visitor status they originally used to enter the USA.   Some of them having overstayed many years before even meeting their US Citizen Spouse. Noted exceptions would be marriages entered into, specifically to avoid deportation, or even legitimate marriages entered into after removal proceedings have begun.

All that said, when entering the USA knowing you might possibly marry and apply for Lawful Resident Status, you still need to expect to be asked the purpose of your visit. If you answer, that your purpose is to get married to your US Citizen fiancé or fiancée, and stay to adjust status, you can also expect your entry to be denied, and whatever visa or visitor privilege you were using to be revoked. There are other truthful answers to that question, that will raise no flags and get you a quick, “Welcome to the USA.”

How to avoid such problems is part of what we help with, in any of the Immigration Consulting Services we offer.

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Along these same lines applicants often ask “Should I first try to obtain a visitor visa for my loved one, in order to avoid the more lengthy family immigration processes?” The answer is Absolutely Not. I’ll be discussing why it is difficult to impossible for many people to obtain visitor visas, in another blog post very soon.

Why would I need help filling out forms? That’s all the immigration process is about, right?

First, addressing the second question, the U. S. Immigration processes we discuss here and assist with are “about” a whole lot more than filling out forms. We’ll discuss more of that later. As to the first question, here are a couple of the most common mistakes in filling out forms, just so you get a little of the context.

1. When filing for the spouse, the main petition form asks you to, “List spouse and all children of your relative.” Quite often when we review forms people have already started before hiring us, or when we read about the problems of others, on self-help sites, we see the foreign spouse’s name listed there, and the US Citizen’s children. The correct answer is to enter the U.S. Citizen “petitioner’s” name as the spouse of the foreigner for which they are petitioning, along with all children of the foreign spouse, regardless of age, marital status or whether they intend to immigrate to the USA.
2. The couple is currently living together abroad, and the visa application asks if the foreigner’s spouse is immigrating with them. This one sounds easy. Since the couple will be traveling to the USA together, “yes” is the answer often given. However, a U. S. Citizen does not and cannot ever, “immigrate to the USA”. Immigration is for foreigners.

These are not trick questions, but neither of the two separate government agencies you’ll be dealing with, have designed their forms and instructions with the “first-timer” doing it themselves in mind. The forms ask many questions , where the intuitive answer for most folks, is simply not going to be correct. Most of the difficulties arise out of the difficulty of following intended context of the forms. To understand the context, one must first understand the process from beginning to end, along with the intended purpose of each form.

Neither USCIS, (United States Citizenship and Immigration Services), formerly INS or Immigration and Naturalization Services, or the U. S. Department of State, attempt to provide a description of the entire process, involving both agencies. They do a reasonable job of providing the information professionals need, in order to keep up with changes in the processes of fiancé visa, fiancée, visa, spouse visa, Adjustment of Status, Removal of Conditions or Naturalization, so we can effectively guide our clients through them.

Back to the second question: While there are many forms to complete, the immigration processes for which Platinum Immigration Services, offers Consulting Services (guides you through), where the rubber really meets the road, is in determining the correct required supporting documents to include in the package, and, (often even more critical to success) the case specific additional documentation or evidence to supply in addition to the required forms and documents.

Since, neither USCIS or the Department of State do a good job of letting you know what’s coming next, so you can be prepared and avoid delays, we use our knowledge of the details and timelines of each process, along with our familiarity with the potential pitfalls, to keep things on track and make certain you are ready with whatever is going to be needed next, in your particular process.

The Spouse Visa, Fiancé visa, Fiancée Visa, Adjustment of Status and Naturalization Processes, themselves are administrative processes, set for U.S. Citizens and their foreign loved ones to obtain an immigration benefit.

In the same way, getting a Driver License, Social Security Card, Security Clearance, or Food Stamps, or applying for Social Security Death or Disability Benefits, may seem complicated and require a lot of paperwork and forms, they too are processes set up to obtain a benefit from the U.S. Government.

Examples of where one would be highly advised to obtain legal assistance when seeking an immigration benefit might include cases where the U.S. Citizen has a Criminal Record involving a sex crime with a child, or the foreigner ever entered the US Illegally, and/or is still in the U.S.A. Illegally. These are clear legal matters that will benefit from legal “representation”.

Platinum Immigration Services does not “represent” our clients before judges or with immigration officials and we don’t give legal advice. We are consultants, who pro-actively guide you through the process of obtaining a benefit, you are allowed to seek on your own. The difference between hiring us to Consult with you and manage your immigration process, compares more to hiring somebody to service or replace your home heating or cooling system, automobile transmission, or re-roof your home. The difference being we already know how to do it, and you would have to take the time to learn a complicated process or procedure, you’ll use once in your life.

Our clients hire us because they would rather pay somebody who already learns than to take time away from their more important pursuits like, a demanding job, their family responsibilities, or simply building their new relationship, with a foreign fiancée, fiancé, or spouse.

Further, most “Immigration Lawyers” focus their practice on other kinds of immigration matters, such as representing illegal aliens in the process of being deported, helping Corporations, get work visas for their foreign executives and highly skilled workers they hope to hire from abroad.

Many of our clients come to us after their processes get bogged down, delayed or mishandled by so called, Immigration Lawyers, who seldom see a family or petition based immigration process, and rely on assistants who also have no such experience or knowledge to research and handle the case for them. Often they learn as they go, one step at a time, totally blind to what is coming next and how to be prepared for it.

At Platinum, we deal only with helping U.S. Citizens or Lawful Permanent Residents of the U.S. in obtaining the immigration benefit they seek for themselves and their loved ones.

Please don’t hesitate to call us for a free initial consultation.

Often, I first hear from a potential client only after their loved one has attended the interview and been given a letter indicating they are ineligible for the visa. “What do we do now?” There are really two kinds of visa denials.

The first kind, I like to call a “soft denial”. This is when the visa applicant receives a notice that they are found ineligible under some section of the Immigration and Nationalization Act, but the notice goes on to describe that further consideration will be given once the applicant or petitioner supplies some additional documents, described in a section with a box checked next to it below the initial notification.

Depending on the actual circumstances, the soft denial is a simple matter of supplying what is requested. It can even be as simple as the medical results have not yet been completed or submitted by the clinic or hospital. Sometimes it’s a matter of follow-up testing that could not be completed prior to the interview. For Example his happens pretty commonly in the Philippines, when the TB skin test results are positive. Sometimes a supporting document to the affidavit of support is missing and needs to be sent in before the visa can receive further consideration.

Even so, this kind of ineligibility notice or visa denial can be shocking and distressful. Please call us for a consultation immediately, if this happens, whether you are already a client, or are just hearing of us for the first time. How you respond is likely to be critical, and the Consular Officers seldom explain the implications of the notice clearly. Don’t make the mistake of concluding all you have to do is properly respond, and the visa will be issued.

A “Hard Denial” is quite a different matter. For a fiance visa or fiancee visa case, the “Hard Denial” usually means there’s nothing you can do but start over, if you still wish to do so. For a Spouse Visa Case, there are sometimes extraordinary measures that can be undertaken to keep the case at the Consulate for further consideration.

The first step, in either a fiancé, fiancée or spouse visa case, even before you call us, and whether you are already a client or not, is to have ask your loved one to write their own detailed report of what happened from the time they arrived at the Consulate, until they walked out, including, to the best of their memory, what was said, by whom and in what order. Special attention should be paid to each question asked and the answer given, in order and in as close as possible, the exact words. The applicant should avoid inserting their analysis of what they think the questions meant or how the Offer reacted. This can be added at the end of the detailed report, but not a part of the facts themselves.

This detailed report is critical for us to understand the underlying reason for the denial, which forms the basis for any plan to effectively deal with the issues. This is also the time to have a “come clean with each other” talk, so nothing is left misunderstood between the couple.

Call me anytime though, whether the report is finished or even started. Due to time differences and the need for the detailed report to be as accurate as possible, it is often possible the applicant can complete the report, before the US Citizen petitioner can reach us during our extended business ours, in US Central Time Zone.

If your fiancé or fiancée has children that they intend to bring with them now, or to “follow to join” with a year, there are specific processes for each.  First, to qualify as a child of a US Citizen’s fiancé or fiancée, the child must be unmarried and able to arrive in the USA in time to complete their adjustment of status to Lawful Permanent Resident before their 21st birthday. If you are in the planning stage, not yet married and one or more of your fiancé, or fiancée’s children is already age 18 or over, please call us for a free initial consultation.

Qualifying children of a US citizen’s fiancé, or fiancée never need petitions filed in their behalf, but all for foreign fiancé or fiancée’s children must be listed on the petition filed for their parent, regardless of age and regardless of immigrant intent.

Once the US Citizen’s petition for alien fiancé or fiancée has been approved, the children, follow essentially the same path as their parent, meaning nearly all the same forms, documentation and fees are required, from the time the petition is approved, until the visa is issued, and they complete adjustment of status to lawful permanent resident, in the USA, after their parent’s marriage to the US Citizen petitioner . One exception, is for Children under age 14, adjusting status at the same time as their parent, as there is a discount for their government fee, in that circumstance.

All intending immigrants will need to have a medical exam before the interview and all but infant children should attend the visa interview with their parent. Once the visas are obtained, the children have the same six month window to organize their affairs and immigrate to the USA, with, after, but not before their parent. The fiancé or fiancée visa categories will be K-1 visa for the fiance or fiancee and K-2 visa for the child.

The child can obtain their visa at the same time as the parent, and travel to the USA with the parent, or after the parent, within the six month validity of the visa. If the child will not travel at the same time or within six months of the parent receiving their visa, they can wait, receive their visa later, and follow to join their parent up to one year from the date the parent’s visa is issued. Follow to join can seem complicated and be stressful, but we are happy to handle the complication and ease the stress.

Please call for a free initial consultation, if we can help with any questions.