Case Status Update: Check out our latest approvals from green cards to EADs to re-entry permits to visa petitions and more!
The hard-working attorneys at The Shapiro Law Firm, LLC have been getting cases so fast that we barely have time to post them! Here are a bunch of recent approvals with more to come as soon as possible! Congratulations to all of our wonderful clients!
I-751, Petition to Remove Conditions on Residency Approvals - The following clients had their conditions on their residency removed and received their 10-year Green Cards:
Waiver of Joint-Filing Requirement:
Client, (hereinafter, client “U”), is a native and citizen of Poland. U Initially submitted timely joint petition to remove conditions on residency with U.S. Citizen Spouse without the assistance of an attorney.
After the I-751 submitted, U’s spouse became abusive and the couple separated.
U came to us after she received a Request for Evidence, (“RFE”), for additional proof that she and her U.S. Citizen Spouse were still married and living together. At that point, she had already fled the marital home.
We prepared a new application that requested a waiver of the joint filing requirement based on a marriage that was entered into in good faith, but during the marriage, she was the subject of battery and extreme cruelty by her U.S. Citizen Spouse.
U’s I-751 was approved and she is already eligible to file for citizenship!
Form I-797, Notice of Action. I-751 Approval Notice
Jointly-filed- Native and citizen of Nigeria who:
Entered with K-1 fiancé visa;
Received conditional green card because he was married less than 2 years at the time of his adjustment of status interview, and;
Is now eligible to apply for citizenship!
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-751 Approval Notice
Jointly-filed- Client, (hereinafter, client “T”), is a native and citizen of Mali":
T’s joint I-751 was approved at the interview, but when he received his 10-year Green Card, he noticed that it had the wrong date of issue. The date of issue on the Green Card was the date of the I-751 interview, but it should have been the date T’s conditional green card was issued (thus making him immediately eligible to naturalize).
T had plans to travel abroad, so he was worried about traveling with a Green Card that contained an error. He was also eager to file for citizenship and was worried that it would take a long time to fix the error.
The error needed to be fixed, so we filed a Form I-90 to get the card corrected. Fortunately, it only took few weeks for USCIS to correct their mistake. T has already filed for naturalization and is awaiting his interview.
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-751 Approval Notice
Jointly-filed- Client, (hereinafter, client “S”), is a native and citizen of Brazil.
S Entered with a B2 Visa in 1994.
S previously-filed for adjustment of status based on a previous marriage, but his was denied.
S remarried years later, and we made sure to include plenty of good faith marriage evidence. S received a conditional resident card because he and his wife were married for less than 2 years at the time of the adjustment interview.
S and his wife then filed a joint I-751, which was approved after an interview. S now has been a permanent resident for over 3 years, is still living with and married to his U.S. Citizen wife and is eligible to apply for citizenship!
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-751 Approval Notice
I-130, Petition for Alien Relative - Approvals for Spouse of U.S. Citizen - The following clients had their marriage petitions approved and became 1 step closer to becoming a permanent resident:
Client, (hereinafter, client “Q”), is a naturalized U.S. Citizen who filed for his wife who is a native and citizen of Togo:
Q’s wife currently resides in Togo. Q filed an I-130 marriage petition or his wife without the assistance of an attorney.
Initially’s the I-130 petition was approved and forward to the embassy in Lome, Togo. Q’s wife then completed the immigrant visa application, underwent a medical examination, gathered her civil documents and attended her interview at the Togo embassy.
At the interview, it was revealed that Q’s wife had a “class B” medical condition, so she was asked to provide additional evidence of Q’s capacity to provide health care for his wife’s “class B” medical condition.
Q came to us after he learned that the Department of State sent the file back to USCIS for review.
We then entered our appearance as Q’s attorney and provided proof that Q is gainfully employed as a correction officer fo the NYC Department of Correction and has health insurance that covers his dependent Spouse’s “Class B” medical condition.
A few months after receiving our package, USCIS reaffirmed the I-130 approval and sent it back to the National Visa Center, “(NVC”).
Q’s wife then re-did the NVC process, had a new interview and was approved! She is now in the U.S. as a lawful permanent resident.
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-130 Affirmation Notice
Client, (hereinafter, client “P”), is a native and citizen of Mexico:
P entered the U.S. unlawfully, (“EWI”), when he was a young child and eventually applied for and received DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals). P timely renewed his DACA.
P eventually married a U.S. Citizen, who he was 2 U.S. Citizen children with. P’s wife filed the I-130 petition on P’s behalf, which was approved after their interview.
Because P entered the U.S. illegally, he now needs to filed a Form I-601A, waiver for unlawful presence. Once the I-601A waiver is approved, P will then depart the country for his visa interview abroad in Mexico, and assuming all goes well, he will re-enter the country a few weeks later as a permanent resident.
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-130 Approval Notice
Client, (hereinafter, client “O”), is a native and citizen of Ecuador:
Like P, O initially entered the U.S. illegally as a child and eventually married a U.S. Citizen who has has a child with.
O’s U.S. Citizen wife filed an I-130 marriage petition on his behalf that was approved.
O now also needs to file a Form I-601A waiver, based on the extreme hardship that his U.S. Citizen wife will suffer if he is removed from the country.
Once the I-601A waiver is approved, O will depart the U.S. for his visa interview in Ecuador.
As with P, assuming all goes well, O will re-enter the U.S. a few weeks later as a permanent resident.
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-130 Approval Notice
Client, (hereinafter, client “N”), is a native and citizen of Mali:
N’s I-130 petition is based on his marriage to a U.S. Citizen. This is the second time that N and his wife filed the I-130 petition.
N and his wife initially filed the applications without the assistance of an attorney. N hired us when he received the interview notice for the first filing.
We attended the interview with N and his wife, but the lack of evidence and inconsistent responses to questions by N and his wife resulted in a denial.
N then hired us to do the second filing from scratch. We assisted N and his wife in correctly filling out all of the applications and collecting the requisite evidence to prove that they entered into the marriage in good faith.
This time, N’s I-130 petition was approved and he is now a lawful permanent resident.
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-130 Approval Notice
I-130, Petition for Alien Relative - Approvals for Children of U.S. Citizen - The following clients had their alien relative petitions approved and became 1 step closer to becoming a permanent resident:
Client, (hereinafter client “X”), is a naturalized U.S. Citizen whose two children are natives and citizens of, and reside in, Sierra Leone:
X initially filed without a lawyer and received a notice of intent to deny, (“NOID”), the petitions first because X did not realize that her name was wrong on both children’s birth certificates, and because she failed to list her children on her own immigrant visa application that she filed over 10 years ago.
X and her children were required to do DNA testing to prove the relationship in light of the birth certificate error and omission.
After we contacted USCIS and explained the confusion the petitions were swiftly approved.
Concurrently-filed I-130, Marriage Petition and I-485, Adjustment of Status, (“AOS”), Approvals for Spouses of U.S. CItizens - The following clients are now lawful permanent residents based on their marriage to a U.S. Citizen:
Native and citizen of Serbia, who:
Entered on B2 visa;
Married naturalized citizen, and;
Received a 2-year green card (His AOS interview was 1 month before he and his wife’s 2-year wedding anniversary).
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-130 Approval Notice
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-485 Approval Notice
Native and citizen of Germany, who:
Initially in U.S. as an E-2 visa holder;
Subsequently married U.S. Citizen, and;
Now has a 2-year conditional Green Card.
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-485 Approval Notice
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-130 Approval Notice
I-485, Application for Adjustment of Status for Spouse of U.S. Citizen who entered with K-1 Fiancé(e) visa:
Native and citizen of Mexico, who:
Entered U.S. with K-1 fiancee visa;
Married her fiancé within 90 days of entering U.S. and applied for adjustment of status, and;
Now is a lawful permanent resident.
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-485 Approval Notice
I-539, Change/ Extension of Status Approvals:
Client, (hereinafter, client “R”), is a native and citizen of Colombia who was here on a B-1 visitor visa. R then decided that she wanted to attend school, so she needed to change her status to a F-1 student.
Because R’s B-1 status was likely to expire before the change of status to a F-1 would be approved, we had to also apply to extend her B-1 status so that she did not fall out of status while she was waiting for the F-1 to be approved.
Applications to change status to F-1 have been taking a very long time lately, which can leave applicants in a tough spot if they do not properly plan for the long processing time.
R’s extension of her B-1 status was approved, but while she was still waiting for the F-1 to be approved, she decided that she no longer wished to attend school at this time and withdrew the change of status application. R remained in legal status throughout and thus will be able to come back to the U.S. in the future to visit or study at her leisure.
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-539 Approval Notice
I-131, Advance Parole Approval for Asylee:
Native and citizen of Cote d’Ivoire, who:
Was granted asylum by USCIS and applied for Green Card a year later, and;
Now has a travel document based on his pending adjustment of status application that will allow him to travel abroad (but not to Cote d’Ivoire or he can lose his asylum!) and return to the U.S. while he waits to become a lawful permanent resident.
Form I-797, Notice of Action. I-131 Approval Notice
I-131, Re-entry permits for Lawful Permanent Residents, (“LPR”):
Client, (hereinafter, client “V”), is a native and citizen of Philippines, who:
Is a LPR;
Applied for a re-entry permit but had to leave the country for work in Indonesia before the required biometrics appointment;
We then arranged for V to have his biometrics appointment taken abroad at the U.S. embassy in Indonesia, and;
V’s application was approved and he does not have to worry about involuntarily abandoning his LPR status because he is out of the U.S. for an extended period of time.
Form I-797, Notice of Action. I-131 Approval Notice
Native and citizen of Malaysia, who:
Is a LPR;
Was relocated to the United Kingdom for work, but she did not want to lose her LPR status, and;
Does not have to worry because her re-entry permit was approved!
Form I-797, Notice of Action. I-131 Approval Notice
Native and citizen of Cote d’Ivoire, who:
Is a LPR;
Is a businessman who travels abroad often on business but does not want to lose his LPR status, and;
Does not have to worry because his re-entry permit was approved!
Form I-797, Notice of Action. I-131 Approval Notice
Natives and citizens of Iraq, who:
Consist of an entire family (mom, dad and two minor children);
Dad is a businessman who has to spend considerable time abroad for work, but did not wan to leave his family behind, and;
Now Dad and the rest of the family can all be together and not have to worry about losing their LPR status!
I-765, Employment Authorization Document (“EAD”) & I-131, Advance Parole Document Initial Approvals for Violence Against Women’s Act (VAWA) Petitioners:
Client, (hereinafter, client “K), is a native and citizen of Grenada:
K initially entered the U.S. with a B2 Visitor Visa. Years later, she married a U.S. Citizen. After K’s Husband filed an I-130 marriage petition on her behalf, he became abusive, causing her to flee the couple’s marital home in Boston, MA. K returned to New York and her marriage petition and initial green card application were denied when the couple did not show up for their marriage interview.
K then came to see us, but she did not realize that she was a victim of abuse, despite the horrific physical and sexual assault that she endured from her husband. As is often the case with domestic abuse victims, K was too scared to seek help and had never told anyone how brutal her husband was. We helped K start counseling and filed a VAWA petition concurrently with an application for adjustment of status.
K was excited to have a new EAD so she could continue working legally again and was able to use the travel document to travel home and see her family in Grenada for the first time in years. She is now waiting for her VAWA petition to be approved and then her green card.
I-765, Employment Authorization Document (EAD) Approvals for Asylum Applicants (initial and renewals):
Natives and citizens of Nigeria, who:
Are a family, including mom, dad, twin daughters and a son (who did not request an EAD since he is very young, and;
Are still waiting or their asylum interview since they filed before the policy change that mandated asylum applications be decided within 30 days of filing.
Client, (hereinafter, client “H”), is a native and citizen of Nigeria:
H’s initial EAD application was erroneously denied. USCIS incorrectly claimed that 150 days had not yet passed since H filed his asylum application.
We re-filed H’s EAD application immediately with a letter explaining that H had enough days since filing and the re-filed application was granted in just 10 days!
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-765 Approval Notice
Native and citizen of Mali who is in removal (deportation) proceedings.
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-765 Approval Notice
Native and citizen of Guinea who is currently in removal (deportation) proceedings.
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-765 Approval Notice
Native and citizen of Guinea who is also currently in removal (deportation) proceedings.
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-765 Approval Notice
Native and citizen of Indonesia who is also currently in removal (deportation) proceedings.
Form I-797, Notice of Action, I-765 Approval Notice
Native and citizen of Indonesia who is filed before the policy change and has been waiting over 2 years now for her asylum interview.
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-765 Approval Notice
I-765, Employment Authorization Document (EAD) Renewals Approved for Adjustment of Status Applicant:
Client, (hereinafter, client “G”), is a native and citizen of The Gambia:
G’s EAD is based on his pending I-485 Adjustment Applicant, which is based on marriage to his U.S. Citizen Spouse.
G came to us after he received Notice of Intent to Revoke, (NOIR), I-130 Marriage Petition because USCIS claimed he lied in marriage interview about his previous marriage and divorce. G, however, honestly stated he was previously married and divorced and showed the officer his original divorce certificate at the interview.
We replied to the NOIR with a copy of the divorce certificate and explained the above. USCIS agreed with us and did not revoke the I-130 approval, but then tried to claim G was inadmissible based on fraud/ misrepresentation for lying at the interview and denied his I-485, Adjustment of Status application. We then filed a Motion to Reconsider the I-485, based on the fact that he did not lie. Our motion was granted and his I-485 application was reopened.
G has been waiting 3 years now for USCIS to issue a new decision on the I-485 and approve his Green Card. In the meantime, he can continue to legally work.
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-765 Approval Notice
Client, (hereinafter, client, “L”), is a native and citizen of Nigeria:
L’s EAD is based on her pending adjustment of status application, which is based on the marriage petition filed by her U.S. Citizen Spouse.
However, after filing, L’s spouse became abusive towards her and they have since separated when L fled the marital home.
As a result, we substituted a Violence Against Women’s Act (VAWA) petition for the I-130 petition filed by L’s husband. We requested that USCIS hold open the adjustment of status application while the VAWA petition is adjudicated to save L from re-filing and to allow L to continue working legally.
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-765 Approval Notice
Native and citizen of Mali, who:
Has an adjustment of status application pending based on his approved I-130, marriage petition filed by his U.S. Citizen Wife, and;
Is currently in removal (deportation) proceedings and is set to adjust his status before the immigration judge in March 2020.
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-765 Approval Notice
Native and citizen of Cote d’Ivoire, who:
Has an adjustment of status application pending based on his approved I-130, marriage petition filed by his U.S. Citizen Wife, and;
Is currently in removal (deportation) proceedings and is set to adjust his status before the immigration judge in in October 2019.
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-765 Approval Notice
I-765, Employment Authorization Document (EAD) Renewals Approved for Cancellation of Removal applicants:
Native and citizen of Trinidad and Tobago whose removal proceedings are administratively closed.
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-765 Approval Notice
I-765, Employment Authorization Document (EAD) Renewals Approved for Clients Granted Withholding of Removal:
Native and citizen of Mali.
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-765 Approval Notice
Native and citizen of Indonesia.
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-765 Approval Notice
Native and citizen of Mali.
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-765 Approval Notice
Native and citizen of Mali.
Form I-797C, Notice of Action. I-765 Approval Notice
I-765, Employment Authorization Document (“EAD”) & I-131, Advance Parole Document Initial Approvals for I-485, Adjustment of Status Applicants:
Native and citizen of Haiti, who:
Has a pending adjustment of status application based on her marriage to a U.S. Citizen, and:
Can legally work and travel abroad while she waits for her green card interview.
We wish all of our recently-approved clients the best of luck!
**If you need representation in Removal/ Deportation proceedings or with help filing for immigration benefits, contact an experienced immigration attorney at The Shapiro Law Firm today to get started!**
(*please note that all identification information has been removed in order to protect our clients' privacy and in order to fully comply with attorney advertising rules and regulations*)