r/askimmigration

I live in the U.S. and my fiancée lives in India. We’re a lesbian couple and her family basically disowned her because she is a lesbian, thus she has very little to no contact with her parents and she recently found out that her brother burned her birth certificate and there are no other copies of it.

I am in the process of gathering all of the required documents to submit our K1 visa packet, but we are both now panicking because she does not have a copy of her birth certificate.

Upon researching whether or not she can just request a replacement birth certificate, we are becoming even more disheartened because she needs to submit copies of her parents photo IDs (again, they do not speak to her) in order to try to obtain a replacement copy in India.

Has anyone had any experience where their foreign fiancée did not have a copy of their birth certificate to provide for the K1 visa? If so, was providing their passport enough as evidence? Or what other documents would be accepted in lieu of an actual copy of her birth certificate?

Any tips or information would be greatly appreciated! 🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼

Currently employed and living in the US, received a green card through an L-1A, around 3 years ago with my current company. A third party interested in me, US based company that would keep me in the US payroll, but would expect me to commute daily to a Mexican facility. I live in the US in a border town. I would continue to live in the us, obviously pay taxes in the us, mortgage, banking, etc. I’m worried accepting this job offer might jeopardize my green card/resident status or naturalization application in the near future. Sorry if this has been asked before, reddits search feature not the best.

Hello pls excuse if I’m all over
My wife is USA citizen got married 8yrs ago now I’m at post d260 waiting for my interview letter from Mumbai consulate I have few questions or getting cold feet need advice or help
1.im aware its not right time to leave but I’m at stage of my life i can’t continue things changing for betterment (immigration)
2.had Canada peace bond for domestic violence charges dropped signed peace bond wich was for 12months since then 16yr zero record
3.while answering question about arrest on i601a said never arrested it was error on lawyer side
4.while filing d260 admitted about arrest n attached all records
Now my questions
1.any lawyer who is familiar with Canada criminal and USA immigration
2.should I get opinion letters to show to visa officials Wich cost 1500$ for 1
3.my current lawyer not familiar with complicated cases like mine
4.recommendations on attorney who can help with this unique n complicated case
Thank you n good luck to all

Me and my fiancé were traveling within the USA but Puerto Rico area and they happened to do a secondary check then took him and booked him to a detention center there in PR.
No criminal history, didn’t come here illegally, came on a b1b2 visa then his status changed to advanced parole when he left the country and came back in previously.

What is the likelyhood of him getting out of the detention center , it’s been 3 weeks and just filed a habeas corpus today.
😭
I am a us citizen and we plan to get married soon

Well I want to know If as an Indian right now I want to move to the USA, what is my best bet right now, and how long it will take me to step in there. If I put a plan, then I am currently studying about networking (CCNA) and I am preparing myself to get a job in the next 2-3 years. Will any MNC like Cisco, get me there in the next 2-3 years from when I get the job?? or I am being in Fantasy. What do you guys suggest, help me please I just don't want to get demotivated.

I must tell you I am currently 18 years old. I am not expecting people to say I am too young to think about life right now, rather I need answers. I am trying to get an answer or a plan that may help me reach there. Its my dreamto go there, experience a whole new world out to the wilderness.

Expecting appropriate answers.

Thanks to anyone who helps.

Dubai’s wealthy expat appeal is being disturbed by regional conflict and missile risk, pushing some to leave. Italy and Singapore are emerging alternatives due to stability and tax/wealth regimes. But both have trade-offs, so many may still return to Dubai if/when this is over.

Hello is there a lawyer anyone may know who can asnwer this question please. Names are alias not real names

The situation is:

​A friend of mine, Susana, was traveling to the U.S. from the Dominican Republic (she is originally Venezuelan but resides in the DR). She holds a valid U.S. tourist visa.

​Yesterday around 4:00 PM, she landed at the airport, but immigration (CBP) stopped her and sent her to secondary inspection. Ultimately, they revoked her tourist visa.

​During her interrogation, the officers found out that Susana was planning to stay with her best friend, Mariela. Mariela is also from Venezuela, lives in San Antonio, and currently has an ongoing asylum case and a valid U.S. work permit.

​The immigration officers told Susana that she was coming to stay with someone who "is not here legally" and claimed that Mariela's work permit "does not make her legal." They asked her about Mariela and who she was staying with, and personal information

​Will what happened to Susana at the airport have any negative implications or consequences for Mariela's ongoing asylum case or her status in the U.S.?

I recently had my I-526E denied but we believe due to unfair / unclear reasons. We're looking to appeal this decision, but I'm aware that it may not affect the timeline for the I-485 review. Due to certain circumstances, I am still in US and am in a sticky situation to get another non-immigrant status in case my I-485 goes away. As such, I was curious how long I could have to legally remain in the US with a still pending I-485.

This is specific to a previous post I heard about I-485 verdict being delayed up to 8-11 months after I-526E. Any input would be greatly appreciated!

I submitted i485 but I realized I did not disclose that I had a dismissed case of possession or delivery of drug paraphernalia back in 2022 in Texas. I was driving my friends car and the officer found a smoked marijuana blunt in the car. I panicked and said it was mine being stupid. This was less than 30g and was my first and last.

I also have 3 speeding tickets which were also dismissed after i paid the fine and completed defense driving course and was taken off the record. I thought if the case is dismissed it would not need to be reported.

I have received the disposition document from the county clerk saying that the case was dismissed after I paid the fine.

Can I write a letter to the USCIS saying i made a mistake? Has anyone faced this situation before and how was it resolved? Was the i485 approved or denied? Whats the best route to go from here?

Hello,

My fiancée (28F) overstayed her initial tourist visa in the US by more than 1 year. She ended up leaving the US back to Brazil 1.5 years ago, which likely triggered a 10-year ban.

The reason she left was that she incurred documented physical abuse from her previous partner (also a Brazilian citizen) here in the US. The reason she left is that her and her ex have a 5-year old child together and she did not want her ex to take their son from her.

She now wants to reenter the US and we are trying to figure out if the above is grounds for “extreme hardship”? Only issue is that I believe her ex-partner also is a Brazilian citizen but has been in the US for years.

Every immigration lawyer I call immediately tells me, even before I explain the documented abuse, that we have to wait 10 years. I was physically home when a State Case Worker came over to check on my fiancées son as they were documented victims of abuse.

I’m feeling defeated and it’s taking our toll on our relationship. We have proof in pictures of being together for several years and are willing to get a marriage certificate in Brazil to support our case. Thanks for reading.

TLDR- I (39M US citizen) want to explore options to get my Brazilian fiancée (28f) back in the US prior to 8.5 years from now. Overstayed her visa and left US to escape domestic-violence relating to her son’s father.

You think you’re just having a bad Tuesday — your badge is heavy, the line is long, so you smirk, delay, toss a folder, and say the quiet part out loud: you don’t belong here. To you, it’s a Tuesday. To them, it’s the day the ledger opens.

You were taught to see a supplicant — someone weak, someone begging. You missed the part where desperation is a mask. Underneath is a human being with a memory that does not fade; it gets passed down like heirlooms. That “weak” immigrant you humiliated is going to outlive your policy, outlearn your language, outwork your citizens, and outlast your administration. And they will never, not for a single second, forget the face of the person who decided power meant pettiness.

Here’s what you don’t understand about trauma at the hands of a state: it doesn’t break people the way you think. It doesn’t create grateful subjects; it creates meticulous historians. Every slight gets logged, every lie from a case officer gets a timestamp, and every night in detention gets carved into the stories they tell their children, their communities, their networks.

You thought you processed a file. You minted an enemy. You comfort yourself with the myth of immigrant gratitude — that they’ll forget once they get the visa, the green card, the passport. Some do; the ones you treated like humans do. But the ones you degraded assimilate into your schools, your companies, your government agencies with a ledger still open.

They learn your systems not to serve them, but to understand the machinery of their humiliation. Then they use that knowledge — not with violence, that’s your vocabulary, not theirs — but with cold, patient precision. They become the lawyer who specializes in grinding your agency to a halt; the journalist who archives your abuses; the voter who never flips; the technologist who makes your surveillance obsolete; the parent who raises children who know exactly what your flag cost them.

They don’t need to commit a single act you can prosecute to damage you. They just need to stop believing your myth. One person stopping belief is a tragedy. Thousands is a structural failure. Millions is the end of the soft power you took for granted.
You thought they had no rights. They believed they did. The gap between those two truths is where resentment breeds, and resentment fed by righteous certainty is the most patient weapon in the world. It waits for promotions, for citizenship, for the moment your country needs talent, loyalty, or silence. Then it answers with a smile that says: I remember Tuesday.

You want to know the real threat? It’s not a revolt, and it’s not some shadowy plot. It’s the quiet certainty of someone who was wronged by a state and now wakes up every day with a reason to see that state diminished. You took someone who wanted to build with you and taught them you only understand strength, so they got strong — not for you. Against you.

The revenge isn’t a weapon you can confiscate. It’s a pivot. It’s a lifetime of choices made in the shadow of your desk. It’s the moment your country begs for loyalty and hears, in perfect, unaccented English: You should have been kinder when you thought no one was watching.

The ledger stays open. The interest accrues. And you are never collecting.

im in alexandria on h1b visa and recently married a us citizen so im looking into adjustment of status for green card. i need help with forms timing and avoiding common pitfalls that could cause delays or denials.

i plan to work with a lawyer, is it worth? what was your experience with the process and would you recommend them?

Hi everyone,

I’m trying to understand my situation and whether anyone has experienced something similar.

I previously had an F-1 visa for university in the U.S. I was academically dismissed for one semester due to health-related academic issues, which resulted in my SEVIS being terminated at the time.

Later on, I visited the U.S. on ESTA for a getaway. My ESTA stay was supposed to expire on April 16. I had flights booked for April 13, 14, and 15, but they were cancelled. On April 15, I became very unwell, got tested, and tested positive for COVID. About a week later I tested again and was still positive. Around 5 days after that I finally tested negative, booked the next available flight, and left the following day.

So overall I overstayed ESTA by around 20 days.

A few days ago I received an email from the U.S. Embassy stating that my visa had been “prudentially revoked” under INA 221(i) because information had come to light suggesting I “may be inadmissible.”

I’m outside the U.S. now and my school may issue me a new I-20/SEVIS soon, but I understand I’d likely need to reapply for a new F-1 visa.

My questions are:
•Has anyone here dealt with a prudential revocation like this?
•Were you able to get another F-1 approved afterward?
•How heavily do officers usually weigh a short ESTA overstay when COVID/medical issues were involved?

I know nobody can predict the outcome, but I’d appreciate honest experiences or advice from anyone familiar with similar cases.

Context:
- I previously had TPS, but it expired recently (around April 2026).
- I have NOT been detained.
- I already checked EOIR and my case appears in the system.
- My understanding is this first Master Calendar Hearing is mostly administrative/procedural.
- I’m considering filing asylum defensively through the court (I-589) instead of affirmatively with USCIS.

Trying to understand my realistic options BEFORE spending $15k-$20k on attorneys.

Questions:

1. Is there any realistic procedural basis to challenge, terminate, reconsider, or dismiss the NTA in a case like this where TPS existed previously?
2. Has anyone successfully requested VTC/video appearance for Miami Immigration Court master hearings? If yes, what was the process/motion?
3. Is requesting continuance/postponement usually better strategically to prepare a defensive asylum filing?
4. For people who went through defensive asylum after TPS expiration/overstay, what should I be preparing NOW to avoid mistakes later?
5. Any relevant case law, EOIR practice memos, or USCIS/INA provisions worth studying for self-representation at the early stage?

Not looking for “hire a lawyer immediately” one-line answers. I’m already researching INA provisions, EOIR procedures, NTAs, continuances, and defensive asylum mechanics myself. Looking for practical experience and legally grounded guidance from people who actually went through this process or litigated similar cases.

Hello,

As the title suggests, I am posting here because I have questions on my standing.

Context: I came to US in 2002, got daca in 2012(or 2013 I don’t remember), and left US in 2013 after graduating high school for personal reasons. I was 18 years old. In 2025, I applied and received ESTA because of flight transfer in USA. During the application process, I checked all the ‘no’ boxes, which I now recognize may count as lying. I stayed in US for less than 24 hours.

I am well settled in my current country now, but I have started a serious relationship with an American man which has made me want to know if my actions have hurt any possible chance in a possible future in US with my partner. This doesn’t mean we will (nor do I particularly want to atm) but considering my partner has family in America and we don’t know what the future hold in the next 10-20 years, I would like to know my standing.

So my questions:
- Did I lie on ESTA and have that hurt my chances at a possible future settlement in the US?

- If I want to travel to US in the future to visit family, would I need to apply for tourist visa instead?

Thank you in advance! US and immigration seem to cause a lot of fear right now, and I hope your endeavors work out smoothly.

Ask me anything.

Hello, I need legal clarification regarding a potential CR1 visa case.
I entered the U.S. in March 2024 on ESTA (90 days). I stayed beyond the authorized period and filed an asylum application about 106 days after entry. The asylum case remained pending for over a year and was never denied before I voluntarily left the U.S. and confirmed my departure with CBP.
I am now married to a U.S. citizen and planning to apply for a CR1 visa.
My questions:
Do I trigger any 3-year or 10-year unlawful presence bar in this situation?
Does a pending asylum application stop unlawful presence accrual in my case?
Could this history create issues at the CR1 consular interview even without a formal bar?
Looking for input from immigration attorneys or experienced cases. Thank you.

No prior violations, no travel issues, married to a US citizen for 3 years. Most people tell me I don't need a lawyer but I keep reading about cases that seemed simple until they weren't. Has anyone here handled a clean case alone and regretted it later?

OK to start off with my mother moved to the UK with me and my sister in 2006 when I was two years old. I’ve spent since lived in the UK all my life and have never traveled out. I was born in Nigeria and since I haven’t gone back there, since the last Nigerian passport I ever had was from when I was two. For the first eight years of living in the UK, we were living here on an expired holiday visa. However, after a little while we were able to get on a limited leave to remain visa. I obviously have no idea what it’s like to live in Nigeria. I have lived most of my life in England and although I know I’m not, I would consider myself a British citizen. so we have been on the limited to remain visa since around 2014 renewing every 2 1/2 years I’m now currently 22 and at some point I would love to be able to go university and be able to apply for for government grant for student loan however, I can’t do that as we’re still waiting to process other stuff. I wanted to know as someone who doesn’t have a Nigerian passport. I only have a Nigerian photocopy birth certificate and that’s the only thing that tie me back to my home country. What steps do I take now to becoming a British citizen or at least being put on a Visa that isn’t required a 2 1/2 year renewal and with allow me to apply for grants for university. Thank you what do I do?

Edit- Also any tips or ideas on how to do it in a budget friendly way as were pretty broke and saving up 3k before August/September doesn't seem possible

Before anyone says marriage, I know marriage is the quickest way to get a GC. However I just got out of a relationship and so that’s out of the question right now.

I’m a DACA recipient. I accrued 2 1/2 years of unlawful presence from 18 - 20 (when I got my first DACA approval). No grounds for inadmissibility.

My USC sibling sponsored my parents. Once they got their GC, they filed my I-130.

My I-130 is now current and I got an email from the National Visa Center. I know that leaving to attend the appointment would trigger the 10 year bar.

I’ve heard I could file an I-601A waiver, but I’m not sure how successful it would be and how long it takes for a decision.

Questions:
- If I decide to try the waiver, how exactly would that work?
- If the waiver is approved, what would be my next steps?
- If the waiver is denied, what happens?
- Are there any other options for me to consider at this time?

Happy to provide any more details as needed.