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Houston Green Card Attorneys
ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS – GREEN CARD APPLICATION
Adjustment of Status (AOS), Form I-485, is commonly known as the green card application. AOS is an application filed by a foreign national who is physically in the United States seeking to adjust status to become a permanent residence. To file for adjustment of status, the applicant must show eligibility. Further, the person must also not be statutorily barred from adjustment (see below for “Statutory Bar”). Adjustment of status is “discretionary”. That is, even if the person met all requirements, the USCIS can still deny the case, providing there are legitimate reasons for the denial such as misrepresentation of material facts, application fraud, or prior criminal convictions that show bad moral character but are not removable.
The following information will assist you in your understanding of the requirements for adjustment of status and in filing an application for a green card. Should you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact our Houston green card attorneys and our Houston green card lawyers. Our Houston immigration law firm is experienced in filing adjustment of status applications and will assist you in every step in preparing for the application, as well as assist you in your interview. Contact our Houston green card attorneys and our Houston green card lawyers at 713-492-0337.
To qualify, the applicant must be physically present in the United States. If the foreign national is not residing in the United States, the person must go through immigrant visa processing at a U.S. consulate abroad. In that case, the U.S. consular office will interview the foreign national after the USCIS in the United States already approved an I-130 petition for alien relative or an I-140 petition for alien worker by a U.S. employer. Unless the applicant is an immediate relative of a U.S. citizen or a visa is immediately available for the alien worker, there is a waiting period for visa availability. It is important to remember that foreign nationals who do not have an immediate relative or the visa number is current under the Department of State’s Visa Bulletin must maintain their nonimmigrant status while their immigrant application is pending. There are some exceptions to the requirement above. A refugee may file for adjustment one year after arrival or after receiving an approved asylum application in the U.S. For naturalization purposes, the date of adjustment for refugee is the date of entry into the U.S., and for asylee will be the date of approval for I-589.
In addition to the foregoing, the foreign national must not be an “unlawful foreign national” or “Entry Without Inspection” (EWI). To be adjusted, foreign nationals must have been inspected and admitted in to the U.S. An issuance of an I-94 or the USCIS’ Stamp in the passport are indications that the foreign nationals have been admitted legally. There are certain exceptions to this rule. Under the LIFE Act of 2000, Section 245(i) of the Immigration and Naturalization Act, an foreign national who has an I-130 immigrant petition by a U.S. residence or U.S. citizen or a labor certification application filed by an employer on or prior to April 30, 2001 may apply for adjustment of status, provided that a visa is available at the time applied, by filing form I-485(A) and pay $1000.00 penalty to USCIS. Additionally, an unlawful foreign national that has an approved I-130 petition by an U.S. citizen or permanent resident who has been ordered to appear in immigration court for removal proceedings can apply for Houston green card law firm at 713-492-0337.