Deportation Waivers (I-601/212)

Our client, a Russian citizen, arrived in the US on June 19, 1998 with an F-1 Visa. On July 17, 2003 he married a US citizen. On July 31, 2003, our client filed I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence and adjusts status based on his marriage to a US Citizen. On November 20, 2006 USCIS issued a Notice to Intent to deny his application. The notice required that our client file Form I-601, Waiver of Grounds of Inadmissibility. Our client was considered inadmissible to the US due to his admission of committing acts which constitute elements of crimes of moral turpitude as well as his alleged misrepresentation of failing to state that he had committed a crime of moral turpitude such as using a fraudulent driver's license to obtain a firearm. I-601 was filed on February 14, 2007 and a formal decision issued by CIS denied his I-485. The waiver was denied due to the fact that he did not show "extreme hardship". Our office filed a Motion to Reopen or Reconsider this denial within 30 days. The Motion argued that the decision by CIS was incorrect and inconsistent with the applicable statutes and regulations and no waiver of inadmissibility was necessary. Our client was scheduled for a second interview and his case was approved in April, 2008. Mr. Scott Bratton handled this case for Margaret Wong & Assoc.

Our client is a lawful permanent resident who was applying for immigrant visas for his mother and father in the Philippines. His mother was granted an immigrant visa, but his father's application was denied because of a criminal conviction that occurred more than 30 years ago for which he spent time in prison. He had a ten-year bar to entering the United States. We filed an I-601 Waiver of the bar to demonstrate that his wife and son would experience extreme hardship should he be forced to stay in the Philippines for 10 years without him. We prepared extensive documentation with affidavits, photos, medical records, bills, and articles in support of our argument. The waiver application was filed on November 4, 2009, and the application was approved on December 8, 2009! The waiver application was approved in little over one month!! Now the family will be reunited for the new year. Our attorney Deborah Lee handled the case for the firm.

Our client from the Ukraine entered the U.S. without inspection. She fell in love with and married a U.S. citizen. Her husband filed an I-130 Petition on her behalf which was approved. The client applied for her green card because she did not know she was ineligible to apply due to her illegal entry. The green card application was denied, and she was issued a notice to appear to be put into removal proceedings. The client never received the notice to appear or a hearing notice. She missed her hearing and received a final order in abstentia. In the mean time, she had hired an attorney to help her to start consular processing so she could apply for an immigrant visa outside the U.S. Neither the client nor her attorney found out about the final order, and she left voluntarily to the Ukraine to attend her immigrant visa interview. She submitted an I-601 Waiver for unlawful presence with her immigrant visa application which was denied. She hired our firm to prepare a new waiver application. While our firm was doing research on her case, we found out that she had a final order and filed a motion to reopen in abstentia based on the failure to receive a Notice to Appear and a hearing notice. Even though she had already left the country, we argued that by statute the Immigration Court had jurisdiction to reopen the case. The Immigration Judge agreed with our argument, rescinded the final order, and reopened her case. We refiled the I-601 Waiver demonstrating the significant hardship that our client's U.S. citizen spouse was experiencing as a result of the separation from his wife. Our client's spouse suffered from depression and great financial distress. Not only did it impact our client's spouse, but her husband's family members in the United States and the client's child. The Vienna Consulate approved the waiver, and our client was issued an immigrant visa. She has now been reunited with her spouse after three difficult years. Deborah Lee and Scott Bratton handled the case for the firm.

Our client came to us after his I-485 was denied when USCIS found he needed a waiver and that he did not establish eligibility for a waiver. We filed an appeal with the AAO and argued that no waiver was necessary and that CIS' decision was incorrect. The AAO agreed with our position and remanded the case to CIS for further proceedings on the adjustment of status application. After another interview CIS granted the application. Scott Bratton handled the case.

Indian CL who had previously tried to cross Canada/US border as a Canadian, who was returned to Canada and removed from Canada, later married a USC , and misrepresented himself during his IV interview in India by not disclosing the previous "misrepresentation," is now overjoyed to receive the approval of his waiver application. His wife retained us and after the thorough review of all materials , information, and advising on the type of documentation most favorable to the case, we filed I-601 Waiver in May 2006 to the US Consulate in Mumbai, India. Case got transferred to New Delhi 's office within two weeks. After constant inquiry and return communication from the US Consulate in New Delhi , India, in late September of 2006, our office was informed that file was lost and we were asked to resubmit the complete file. File was resubmitted twice to the US Consulate in India . Every two weeks our office would request an update on CL's case. No additional evidence requested other than provision of the initial I-601 waiver packet. Case was just granted in December 2006 and CL is waiting for processing of the immigrant visa to join his USC wife and newly born USC son. Lori Pinjuh, a senior attorney in the firm, worked on this case, with the assistance and research of Karim Berdiev.

We were retained to work on an I-601 waiver for an Indian client who was removed in 2005 from the US.  The client had an IV interview in New Delhi on 10/18/06 during which he submitted the waiver application prepared by our office.  The client subsequently was approved in mid 2007 and entered the US in June 2007 with a green card.  Margaret Wong worked on this case with assistance from paralegal Brian Marek.