The USCIS has extended the validity of most medical examinations previously submitted in connection with adjustment of status to permanent residence (I-485) cases which remain pending. Without an extension of validity, the medical examination would expire after one year. The current extension, issued December 30, 2009, authorizes the medical exams to continue to be valid through January 1, 2011.

IMMIGRATION Q&A

Question: I got my Green Card in 1980. About 14 years ago, I was arrested in N.Y. for disorderly conduct. The case got dismissed and I didn’t even have to pay a fine. I filed for my naturalization myself last year and the officer asked for papers about the case. I didn’t have anything, so I wrote a letter asking for more time so my brother in N.Y. could get something for me. But I just got a denial letter saying that I failed to give them the papers. My question is can I appeal the denial, since I requested more time? Also, they took my fingerprints, so the Immigration should have that information about arrest, so why should I have to give it to them? If I get the criminal case expunged, do I still have to say yes to the question asking whether I have ever been arrested?

Answer: Whenever a foreign national is applying for immigration benefits, including residency and naturalization, he or she is always required to provide certain documents to the USCIS regarding any criminal arrests, even those which do not result in convictions, including dismissals, probation, diversion, etc. Documents required are certified Police Reports from the police dept that made the arrest AND certified Court Disposition documents showing the final disposition of the case.

I always advise clients to obtain two original sets of certified documents before any case is filed to avoid denial. If the case is so old that a Police Report is no longer available, an official, stamped letter from the police dept to that effect will often be accepted by the USCIS.

Even though your fingerprints were taken by the USCIS and your record likely came with the arrest, that does not provide the USCIS with any documentation about the case. The burden is on you to provide it to them. Even when criminal records are sealed (expunged), it has no effect on immigration applications. An applicant must still answer “Yes” to a criminal issue and still provide the USCIS with the documents.

Finally, although USCIS denials allow you to request an appeal or hearing, the fact that you CAN does not necessarily mean that you SHOULD. In immigration cases, the burden is always on you to prove eligibility at the time of filing the application. If you fail to provide any documentation requested by the USCIS by the deadline, a denial is considered justified. Naturalization applicants can request a hearing of the denial by filing form N-336 and paying a $605 Fee. However, since you did not provide the USCIS with the documents by the deadline, you will likely lose the additional $605 fee and your case will remain denied. The best approach is for you to obtain the criminal documentation first, then have the case properly filed again.

Question: I met this American guy in Jamaica and he proposed and got me here on a K-1 visa. Once I got here last year we had lots of problems because we had to live with his mom and she doesn’t like me. In December he told me to move out and that he doesn’t want to get married anymore. I tried to get back with him but he won’t and says he is going to have me sent back home. I want to know if he can make me go back home or can I stay and go to school here?

Answer: Immigration laws are extremely strict about K-1 (fiancé) & K-3 (Spouses) of U.S. Citizens. Unfortunately, under the regulations, K-1 fiancés are required to marry the U.S. Citizen within 90 days and file to adjust immigration status, which is the only way to obtain a Green Card in the U.S. for K-1 & K-3 visa holders. If the marriage to that exact U.S. Citizen does not take place or Green Card status is never obtained through that marriage,  both K-1 & K-3 visa holders are barred from obtaining a Green Card through another or changing status to any other type of visa in the U.S. In such cases K-1 fiancés must return to their home country since there is no other option available to obtain any kind of immigration status. K-3 spouses must also return home except in cases where abuse exists (battered spouses).