Immigration Site

Hi All,

I had filed for I-130 petition for my wife about a year back and received the wac# for the same. Next week I become eligible to apply for N-400 naturalization process. Meanwhile, my wife who has been on H1B is completing 6 yrs with NO recapture possible. So here are my questions

1. What are the timelines for Oath from the date of applying N-400 (I live in San Jose)?.

2. What form should I file for "re-prioritizing" my wifes pending I-130 petition?. (Is it I-539?)

3. If answer to question 2 is I-539, then what is the change of status for my spouse (she is not eligible for V-1 under LIFE act because I-130 has not been pending for 3 years!)?.

4. We are expecting our baby in early dec07 but my wifes H1B 6 yrs expires in Oct07, can we take a chance and have my wife stay back for the delivery?. If yes then what are its implications ?.

5. Assuming that I am able to get my citizenship within 6 months (by Oct07), then if I apply for re-prioritization of my wifes I-130 and also for I-485 simultaneously along with I-131(advance parole) and I-765(EAD), will we able to go to San Jose UCIS and get the EAD by paying $200 at the counter (can such a thing be done, according to some folks it can?)?.

6. I am inclined to go with pre-paid legal (www.prepaidlegal.com) as they charge only monthly subscription because most of the other lawyers charge over $250/hr and mostly just repeat the same things that we already know. Any advice related to ppl?.

7. Any other advise (gotchas?.) to look out for?.

You time and help are deeply appreciated. Thanks

-Nath

2. What form should I file for "re-prioritizing" my wifes pending I-130 petition? there is no form. You can either mail a copy of your naturalization certificate to the Service center, or you can file I-485 with a copy of the same +a copy of notice of receipt for I-130. Thatll save you time.

You dont need a lawyer to fill out rather simple forms.

You have to mail the application for EAD with the AOS papers.

Your wife should stay put and apply for AOS as soon as you get your citizenship.

Thanks Lucy, a few more questions:-

If my wife stays put after Oct wont she be out-of-status if EAD/485/AP has been filed but not yet approved?.

Does filing for AOS alone entitle a person to stay back in U.S, isnt it illegal?.

Does I-539 still need to filed against pending I-130?.

Thanks again

-Nath

Nath,

Your best bet for finding current N-400 timeline for San Jose , CA would be the tracker thread over in the Citizenship forum. As you might imagine, that topic comes up quite a lot... From what Ive read, it looks like an 8-10 month wait assuming you dont fall into the namecheck blackhole.

While I certainly dont condone illegal behavior, I do think you need to be aware that if your wife overstays her current visa, the fact that she is being sponsored by a USC will mean her time out of status will be forgiven once her I-485 is approved. The catch is that she must not leave the country while she is waiting for the AOS approval (i.e. she cannot take advantage of AP).