Overseas waiver requests to be filed in the US

Starting June 4, 2012, people applying for immigrant visas at the Embassy, but have been found ineligible ( or inadmissible) by a US consular officer, will now file their waiver requests in the US, vs. filing them in Manila. ( In the past when applicants applied for immigrant visas, but were found to be “inadmissible” at the US Embassy (i.e. they had committed fraud, were subject to the 3/10 year bar, had been ordered removed and subject to a ten year bar, etc.), they would submit their waiver requests to the USCIS in Manila. The officer in Manila would then review the waiver requests, and either grant or deny the waiver.)

Under the new procedure, the waiver requests will no longer be filed in Manila, but instead would be filed at the USCIS’s lockbox facility in the US. The reason for this change is that people around the world were filing waiver requests at various US Embassies and Consulates. Some waiver requests were processed in one month, and others took more than a year, depending on the filing location. By centralizing the filing location and having the waivers processed in one place, USCIS hopes to “provide customers with faster and more efficient application processing and consistent adjudication.” The waivers affected by this change are:

• Form I-601, Application for Waiver on Grounds of Inadmissibility

* Form I-212, Application for Permission to Reapply for Admission into the United States After Deportation or Removal

• Form I-290B, Notice of Appeal or Motion (if filed after a denial of a Form I601 or Form I-212).

Even though the filing location for these waiver requests has changed, the standards of proof will remain the same, meaning that the person must still demonstrate “extreme hardship” to a US citizen or green card holder spouse or parent. And proving and documenting extreme hardship can be very complex and difficult. Many people try to file these waivers on their own, without knowing what the actual factors or standards are, and soon find that the waiver was denied. That is why I strongly recommend that if you are required to seek a waiver (whether in the US or abroad), you obtain the services of a reputable attorney, who can assist in the preparation of that waiver. While having an attorney will not “guarantee” approval, I think it will greatly increase your chances for success, since the attorney can package a waiver request based on the legal standards and factors that are relied on by USCIS in approving cases.

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