How long does the entire process take?

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Nephalim - 23 Aug 2008 07:43 GMT

If someone, who is in the US, applies for a spouse visa (with a US citizen
spouse), I assume starting with an I-130 and then the adjustment of status
second part (I assume that is the case), and any other pieces I am leaving
out, how long can I expect the entire process (not including the 2-year
provisional period) to take (assuming everything is approved)?

Also, can someone without a permanent residency visa take non-matriculated
college/university classes and possibly get the credit? Work isn't nearly as
important ($$ wise), although they can get employer sponsorship if it is
relevant.

(Before the criticism: This person entered the US with an extremely valid
reason and intention to leave, and did not attempt or expect to get a short
cut through immigration or stay there at all. To leave and apply outside the
US would change things dramatically and make $$ a huge consideration, and
cost far more than they could afford.)

Thank you.

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J Moreno - 23 Aug 2008 19:56 GMT

> If someone, who is in the US, applies for a spouse visa (with a US citizen
> spouse), I assume starting with an I-130 and then the adjustment of status
> second part (I assume that is the case), and any other pieces I am leaving
> out, how long can I expect the entire process (not including the 2-year
> provisional period) to take (assuming everything is approved)?

Currently being in the US, they have no need of any kind of visa. They
simply apply to AOS.

> Also, can someone without a permanent residency visa take non-matriculated
> college/university classes and possibly get the credit? Work isn't nearly as
> important ($$ wise), although they can get employer sponsorship if it is
> relevant.

If they can take the class, they'll get the credit for it of course --
for most people the catch would be the cost of the class.

Apply for AOS, and then go to the school -- shouldn't be a problem.

Signature

J. Moreno

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Nephalim - 24 Aug 2008 09:44 GMT

>> If someone, who is in the US, applies for a spouse visa (with a US
>> citizen
[quoted text clipped - 19 lines]
>
> Apply for AOS, and then go to the school -- shouldn't be a problem.

----- Original Message -----
From: "J Moreno" <john@invalid.invalid>
Newsgroups: alt.visa.us.marriage-based
Sent: Sunday, August 24, 2008 4:56 AM
Subject: Re: How long does the entire process take?

>> If someone, who is in the US, applies for a spouse visa (with a US
>> citizen
[quoted text clipped - 19 lines]
>
> Apply for AOS, and then go to the school -- shouldn't be a problem.

Thanks, J. Moreno.

They can apply for AoS even though they don't have an immigrant visa number
(isn't the I-130 required for that)? (Do they even have 'status' in the
first place, from a visa waiver?)

Again also, if someone can tell me how long this typically takes, depite it
obviously being a grossly generalized guess, it would be appreciated.

Thanks once more.

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Capt. Tuttle - 24 Aug 2008 16:03 GMT

Nephalim formulated on Sunday :

>>> If someone, who is in the US, applies for a spouse visa (with a US citizen
>>> spouse), I assume starting with an I-130 and then the adjustment of status
[quoted text clipped - 55 lines]
>
> Thanks once more.

It is impossible for anyone to give you a guess on how long the process
will take. Some take months (if lucky). Some take years.
It depends on where the application is sent, what type of visa, from
what country, etc..... There are just too many variables.

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J Moreno - 24 Aug 2008 19:25 GMT

-snip-

> Thanks, J. Moreno.
>
> They can apply for AoS even though they don't have an immigrant visa number
> (isn't the I-130 required for that)? (Do they even have 'status' in the
> first place, from a visa waiver?)

If they entered the US by going through customs, then they have status
-- that status may be "out of status", but it's enough to Adjust Status
(only those who entered without inspection are banned from adjusting
status except under very specific circumstances, for example Cubans).

Anyway, assuming that this person entered within the past couple of
years and did so the normal way, there should be no problem in applying
for AOS.

As for whether they need an immigrant visa number and whether the I-130
is necessary -- yes, to both questions, but....

In the case of immediate family in this case a spouse, there is no wait
for a number to become "available". The wait is for the case to be
adjudicated.

> Again also, if someone can tell me how long this typically takes, depite it
> obviously being a grossly generalized guess, it would be appreciated.

There is obviously an average and a mean, but we don't have the stats
to give you those numbers. Ballpark is probably 6-18 months for the
AOS (i-485 and i-130).

What you will probably want to do is this:

File for Immediate Relative (i-130), file for Adjustment of Status
(i-485) and file for Work Authorization (I-765).

The spouse should receive a notice of receipt within a few weeks, the
765 will probably take a few months, the 485 will take longer and
depending upon how long it may be conditional (which means the spouse
would have to remove conditions 2 years after getting the green card).

The 485 is the one that may take a long time, and no one can really
tell you just how long it will be.

Signature

J. Moreno

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Immigration Forum / USA Marriage Base / August 2008

How long does the entire process take?