Immigration Site

Hi All

Hoping to get some advice.

I am a UK citizen and came to the US on an H1B, I applied for AOS under EB3, and filed concurrently on 8/2007. On 9/2009 I started a new job working under my EAD that I was eligible for while my AOS was pending.

Now that Im married to a USC (10/2009) I would like to get my green card sooner as it will probably take a few more years to get my EB3 application Im wondering if I can apply through an I-130. Will the 2nd application for a green card void my first application? I believe Im only eligible to be here and work while my first AOS is pending, I cant afford to risk cancelling it and having to leave the country or stop working.

Is it safe to have two applications and is there any extra paperwork I need to file. We were planning to file: I130, I485, G325a x2, I864

Thanks so much!

S

You can have both running at the same time, and benefit from whichever one gets completed first. However, when they are about to approve one I-485, they might ask you to withdraw the other one.

Note that since you have been already married for one year and have a valid EAD and a job, you might want to consider delaying your marriage-based application until about August of next year. That way, you will have completed 2 years of marriage by the time your interview occurs, so you will get a 10-year green card instead of a conditional 2-year green card (which will later involve another round of paperwork and interviewing to extend it to a 10-year card).

What is the priority date of your EB3 application? It might get approved within the next year, depending on the priority date and whether you were born in India/China.

Hi Jackolantern

Thanks for your comments. Im not sure of my priority date to be honest, Im from the UK so that helps. My I-485 was received 8/2007, and the company started working on my green card about a year earlier, so it must be within the 8/06 to 8/07 window. I had expected it to be another 3 years at least before I got it as it was filed under EB3.

My main motivation right now is to save money and be done with immigration worries. Every year Im paying the fees for EAD and AP and those will quickly add up to be more than filing for a green card again.

Are there extra fees to pay after the 2 year "probationary" period vs waiting 1 year and filing for the ten year "normal" green card?

Thanks again for your help

S

Are there extra fees to pay after the 2 year "probationary" period vs waiting 1 year and filing for the ten year "normal" green card? Yes, there is another fee for the I-751 which must be filed close to the end of the 2-year conditional period.