Hey guys, in this video, we're gonna talk about adjustment of status and a case, um, in which
the government approved the green card for this couple, for the wife after waving the interview,
they just decided we're not gonna have an interview with this couple. We're gonna just make
a fast decision and we're gonna approve her of the green card adjustment of status. So I'm gonna talk
with you in this one about what we did, how it worked, and hopefully you'll have some takeaways
that you could apply to your case as well. And if this doesn't apply to you, be sure to share
it with other people, because you never know who needs this information. It's been a, a long
time since we talked about adjustment of status, it's a very complex process that allows people to
apply for a green card while they're here in the United States.
At McBean law, we see a lot of adjustment of status cases, but very complex scenarios.
And we work with people who have been denied. People who need to refile, uh, a better case.
People who want to appeal a decision, um, parents filing for children, children, filing for parents,
spouses, filing for, you know, a spouse and, um, removal of conditions in all of those different
scenarios. So reach out to us@mcbeanlaw.com or at 5 1 6 8 6, 6 3900 to discuss your case with
us and, um, how we might be able to help you with getting your green card for those of you who are
new to me, welcome to my channel. I'm Latoya McBean POY and immigration lawyer in New York,
working with clients all over the world on complex immigration matters. Be sure to subscribe to my
channel before leaving today and also hit that notification bell. So that you'll be the first
to get notice of these videos each week. So let's talk about this wonderful testimony that
we shared through our newsletter. Um, just a couple of days ago, and it's a wonderful
story involving a woman who came to the United States when she was only 12 years old
and she was not eligible for DACA because she had entered the United States after 2007, she met her
husband while in high school, and they were just friends in high school. They lost contact after
that. And then fast forward to 2019, they met up, uh, met each other again at a reunion party or
retirement party, I should say for one of their teachers. And they became close, started Dayden
and they became engaged. And then, uh, shortly thereafter, they got married a couple of months
later, they got married and then they came to us to work on their case.
So they got married in July of last year. And then we filed their adjustment of status
case in September of 2021. Now they didn't have a lot of evidence because as you can imagine,
they were newly married and they had not shared their life together for very long.
And so what we were able to do is we honed in on their story. We told a wonderful story about this
couple who came together and the genuineness of that relationship story is so important
immigration story. And you guys may have heard me talk about stories, being able to tell your
story with immigration in a way that they can understand and appreciate it's super important.
So we put together the whatever evidence they had. We told their story and we, uh, filed their case.
And then, uh, in July on I'm sorry, on June 27th of this year, the I one 30 was approved.
And when we saw the I one 30 approval, come in without an interview notice, we said,
wait a minute, what's going on here? It looks like the government has decided
they're just gonna wave the initial interview. And surely they did. They waved the initial interview,
which is typically, um, a step that they take in marriage cases. So they waved the interview. And
then the wife's, I 4 85 adjustment of status application was approved on July 28th. And so
we're really thrilled by this, um, this fast, uh, adjustment of status case, marriage case. Now,
guys, what can you take away from this? Well, firstly, again, your story is key. Being able
to tell your immigration story is so very, very important. You wanna hone in on the aspect of your
story that, um, shows the government, how you guys came together, right? How you met, what is the,
how did your relationship progress from, uh, your date, from your meet in to all the way up to the
proposal. And then of course the marriage you tell that immigration, you tell your story to them and
share with them how you guys are living your life together, sharing your life together.
Even if you have not yet officially come together under one marital address, it is
possible for you to still obtain your green card and get through. And we've been able to do that
for others in the past. And you've gotta just show the government and answer their question of,
well, why aren't you guys living together? What's keeping you apart. Um, and do you have an intent,
uh, to come together under one marital resident? And the answer must be of course, yes. Here's what
the plan is. Right? So tell your immigration story. And I have some resources out there.
Um, some courses where I teach folks how to write, uh, a declaration and tell their story. I'm gonna
put the link below so that you guys can go into my online store and see some of my materials and my
marriage prep. My marriage course, uh, I, I, one 30 course and the I 4 85 adjustment of
status course. So check the link below. Now, the second thing that you need to understand
is you could still win your case, even though you don't have a lot of evidence. And this ties right
back to telling your story, you may think, well, um, you know, you see the long list of evidence
that the government is asking you for, and it is long. It's a lot, you know, uh, evidence to
show that you guys have really commingled your assets and it's a genuine marriage. It could be
very intimidating, particularly if your marriage is very young, don't be intimidated by that.
Just be confident and, uh, pull together as much evidence as you possibly can. And
don't forget things, um, such as text message communications to show how the relationship
did progress over time and bring in some letters of support from other people in your life as well,
who can attest to your story and the fact that your relationship is genuine.
And certainly if you already have a bank account joint bank account together,
you wanna show that you're using this account. It's not just there line dormant, right?
It is a real account with real transactions on both sides, you and your partner are using the
joint account. So you wanna be able to show that you also wanna be able to show that, you know, if
you have children or you have stepchildren in, in the relationship, how each of you are responsible
for the children, what do you guys do around the daily routine with involving the children? Um,
also you wanna be able to show that you guys have some insurance together, car insurance,
health, insurance, life insurance, um, and don't just go out and get insurance. Um, you know,
after you go on a green card interview, the first one and it doesn't go so well, then you say, okay,
well, you know, we need more evidence. Let's go out and get a life insurance.
I've seen many times how immigration calls people out for stuff like that. You wanna make
sure from the beginning of your marriage, as you're starting your journey together,
that you guys get the, bring your right type of, um, bring the right type of evidence together
from the very beginning, um, to show that you're serious and certainly, uh, file, you know, having
taxes jointly filed is also a very important piece of evidence to show that you're sharing
in the responsibilities, the responsibilities that you guys have. And so just just know that
it is possible to, uh, pull together, you know, many different types of evidence. Um,
even though the marriage is young, there's still a lot of things that you can do. And, you know,
for some people they say, well, we can't open up a bank account yet because I don't have my social
security number and it's not gonna work. That's understandable. Of course, that is
definitely understandable. But typically in, in the very beginning of the adjustment of status
process, you, uh, you would receive a work permit along with a social security card and number. And
so once you get that in that social security card, you could absolutely, at that point,
even after filing, at that point, you can get your bank, your joint bank account with your
spouse. And if the government asks for additional evidence along the way,
at least you'll have that taken care of. Okay. So just, uh, keep that in mind that there are
many different types of evidence. It doesn't necessarily have to be the traditional ones.
And if you don't have all of the evidence, don't stress about it, um, focus in on your story and
telling a very, very solid story. Okay. And then, you know, lastly guys, I wanna also mention that,
you know, there are complex scenarios, there are a lot of complex scenarios that couples
face during the adjustment of status process. It's, you know, if the government doesn't feel
like it has enough evidence to approve your case and the case is then you then receive a notice of
intent to deny. And after getting that notice of intent to deny, it's not responded to properly,
then of course the government can deny the case. Once that happened, don't lose heart because
there are ways of recovering from that, uh, doing a refiling. And in some cases, the decision can
be appealed. Okay. So speak with an attorney, a licensed attorney about a denial, um, reach out
to us. We work on denials all the time. Okay. So don't lose heart and then just know that for
some people, for, if you decide to do a refiling, just know that the issues that the government had
with the first case, you can't ignore them. And I've seen people make this mistake, they ignore
the first file in and they don't do they just go ahead and quickly do a refile in and the
government comes back and say to them, um, you know, we still have all of these issues that
need to be addressed, right? Because we didn't think that maybe
that previous file, uh, marriage that you had in the filing, we didn't think it was bonafide. We,
it wasn't, it didn't look genuine to us or you didn't have enough evidence, or we found
all these inconsistencies, or maybe you, there was false statements that you gave during interviews
in the first CA with the first case, they will still have it, those issues guys, with the second
case. So know that you've got to prepare that second case with a professional to skillfully
tackle the issues that the government had problems with with the first filing. If you haven't heard
anything else I've said in this video, I want you to hear this point very carefully and closely do
not ignore what happened with the first filing. If the government had problems with it, particularly
if you had received, if you had a Stokes interview previously, um, or if you've had a notice of
intent to deny previously, you've gotta address these issues in the second filing guys.
I hope this video was helpful to, you know, that it is possible to get to the point
of get in a green card. Look at our client who has been here since she was 12 years old,
and now she has a green card. And so it's possible that your change can come in time. So don't lose
heart if you're out there and you're thinking, well, I don't have anyone. I don't have anyone
to help me. I'm alone. I don't have any family here. I'm not in a relationship. What can I do?
Don't lose heart. It is possible for you to get to the finish line in the right season. Guys. I
hope you found this helpful. Be sure to share it with other people. Comment below subscribe also
to our firm's weekly newsletter, McBean law.com. And I will see you in the next one. Bye. Bye.