What Is Required for a Green Card if I Entered Illegally?

In your research for obtaining a green card in the United States, you may have learned that your spouse, child, or parent who is a citizen or lawful permanent resident may sponsor your application. Or, you may find an eligible U.S.-based employer willing to file for labor certification and an immigrant petition on your behalf. This opportunity may still stand even if you overstay your temporary visa. However, this may not be possible if you never legally stayed in the country to begin with, and you crossed the border without proper inspection. Well, continue reading to learn what is required for your green card application if you have a history of entering the U.S. illegally and how an experienced Lyndhurst green card immigration lawyer at the Law Offices of Salvatore A. Falletta, LLC, can help you get the legal status you want without having to suffer any harsh consequences.

What is required for a green card application if I entered the U.S. illegally?

According to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), you may already be deemed inadmissible for entering the country illegally. And so, if you are applying for an adjustment of status, you must file Form I-601A, Application for Provisional Unlawful Presence Waiver. Here, you must demonstrate how certain immigration protections may apply to your case, such as the following:

• You may be protected under the Grandfathering Provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).
• You may be protected under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA).
• You may be eligible for asylee status or temporary protected status.

This waiver is important to avoid the standard three- to 10-year ban from re-entry due to your illegal entry and unlawful presence. This would jeopardize your pending green card application. Also, with this waiver, you must establish that exiting the U.S. for this long would cause an extreme hardship to your citizen or permanent resident spouse, child, or parent.

How long does the green card process take if I entered illegally?

Obtaining a green card may take longer if you originally entered the United States illegally. Nonetheless, it is doable if you follow the appropriate steps. To reiterate, you must request forgiveness for your illegal entry and unlawful presence via Form I-601A before leaving the country for your consular interview. That said, it may take the USCIS anywhere between 12 to 18 months to process your I-601A waiver.

From here, your interview may take six to 12 months to be scheduled with a U.S. consulate or embassy abroad. Lastly, after finally being approved, you may receive your green card within two to six weeks. In total, the estimated time most applicants, with a history of illegal entry and unlawful presence, spend is two to three years on this process. Of course, this is better than three to 10 years with a re-entry ban.

While we understand that you may not want to deal with any of this right now, it must be addressed for the sake of you and the life you have built in the U.S. So please allow a skilled lawyer from our Lyndhurst family & individual immigration law firm, the Law Offices of Salvatore A. Falletta, to make this legal process less burdensome for you overall. We will be happy to help and give you much-needed relief.