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Esteban

Sep 25, 2003, 2:12 PM

Post #1 of 4 (517 views)

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US immigration procedure....

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I'm posting this for a friend because I'm hoping to find the person who had brought his wife into the US and who knew the most efficient way to do it. I've read here, in the past, that it's very important to do everything in a certain way so as not to impede the quickest method. Anyway, here is the message and I'd appreciate any help or advice:

Help! any info on this subject will be greatly
appreciated.I've lived here in Mazatlan for about
seven years now and it's time for a change. I'd like
to know how to go about getting my wife permanent
residence and a green card in the U.S. We've been
married about 3 1/2 yrs. My wife is a dentist by
profession and has a passport and a current tourist
visa. She's had a visa since early childhood. Any
ideas on how long it will take ?, how much it will
cost ? , will we need an immigration lawyer ? anything
else I need to know? Thanks

TomG

Sep 25, 2003, 7:51 PM

Post #2 of 4 (492 views)

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Re: [Esteban] US immigration procedure....

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I am not a immigration worker or professional, and there are a lot of people who know more than I.

She can apply for a green card as a medical professional, which is a non-quota position and preferential (as part of NAFTA there are special open immigration categories for healthcare professionals, religious workers, and social workers). These guidelines are posted on the INS site. I think that she will have to pass an English test that relates to the profession. There is such a special test for nurses, for instances. Many Filipino nurses fill the ranks in the US in this fashion. (I think that it is disappointing that I don't know of many Mexicans who use this conduit. I did meet a young nurse from Salamanca, GTO at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN last year.) The advantage of this method is that she could probably readily move into a well paying position. The are a lot of Hispanics up here who want and need Spanish speaking medical professionals. For clarification, there are doctors in the USA from various countries with a green card who are home healthcare workers for an aged or incapitated person helping with feeding, bathroom assistance, and so forth. If they can't pass the English test, then doctor or no doctor one could be cleaning floors in a nursing home for $6/hr......with or without a green card. I think the English requirement is more aimed at medical record keeping than patient communication, and thus is more stringent than just speaking.

He can also apply to have her paperized because she is the wife of a US citizen. Many people up here who they cannot afford immigration lawyers do this successfully, so it can be done with and without big expenditures. I do not know if it is more efficient to do it from the north side or the south side of the border.

If they are in a hurry they can move up here using her visa on a 6 month permission. Then they can file for her papers and take their sweet old time. I know someone on their 3rd 6-month visa in a 13 month period who isn't a professional like his wife.

(This post was edited by TomG on Sep 25, 2003, 7:52 PM)

Guapo Gabacho

Sep 26, 2003, 4:38 AM

Post #3 of 4 (461 views)

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Re: [Esteban] US immigration procedure....

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I got my wife in on the Life Act (K-3 visa) and it only took nine months. They say we will have to wait another two years for the "green card" because of the backlog (9/11 you know). All processing from Mexico is done in Cd. Juarez. Read:

How Do I Bring My Spouse (Husband or Wife) to Live in the United States?

from:

http://www.bcis.gov/...owdoi/spouselive.htm

One may, after studying the references not follow the requirements, need an immigration lawyer at $3,000.00 USD. You will also find that Mexicans are not treated the same as Europeans by B.C.I.S.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
We do not inherit the Earth from our Ancestors, we borrow it from our Children.

(This post was edited by Guapo Gabacho on Sep 26, 2003, 4:53 AM)

Carron

Sep 29, 2003, 12:08 PM

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Re: [Guapo Gabacho] US immigration procedure....

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Four years ago my daughter married a young man from Chiapas, where we were living at the time. When they tried to emigrate to the US as a married couple, there were millions of problems and delays, both at the US Embassy in Mexico and within the 50 mile border in the US. Finally one of the immigration guys at Del Rio, Texas, suggested that--in the interest of haste--they enter the US separately without telling anyone they were married. Her husband would get an automatic 14 day tourist visa since he had been in the States before to visit friends and relatives. If they married again in the US, within 14 days of his arrival, he would be granted an automatic extension of six months, during which time he could apply for permanent residency, future citizenship, and a work permit. She went north on the bus with her father. Her husband followed by plane. They were married again by a justice of the peace in Houston who asked for nothing more than identification from each of them and a verbal assurance neither had been married before. It was expensive getting the paperwork through official channels, but it has worked out very well. We did not use a lawyer. The case workers at INS were very helpful, always available to answer questions.

Once remarried in Texas, the rest went through like a freight train.