If I would like to petition for my husbands green card but he has been here illegally for 7 years, how will that effect our efforts?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
If I would like to petition for my husbands green card but he has been here illegally for 7 years, how will that effect our efforts?
We have been married 5 years, we have 2 daughters together. He has no criminal record. I would also like to know if he would be able to work and travel during the application process? Also, if he will have to go abroad at all during the process? And the average price of lawyers help?
Asked on February 29, 2012 under Immigration Law, Colorado
Answers:
SB, Member, California / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
If he entered the US unlawfully, under the current immigration laws, he will not be eligible to legalize his status within the US even if he is married to a US citizen. You would need to petition for him and when the petition is approved, he would have to go back to his home country for consular processing. However, by leaving the US, he will trigger an automatic 10 year bar to reentry because of his unlawful presence in the US, and that bar to reentry can only be waived by a showing of extreme hardship to a US citizen spouse, which is very difficult to do in most cases.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.