The law allows a parent, child or spouse of a US Citizen to apply for a waiver of the grounds of Inadmissibility for prior unlawful presence by submitting the I-601-A application from within the US. Approval of the waiver significantly increases the likelihood that the applicant will be able to return to the US after a mandatory interview with the US Consulate in their home country. A Denial of the application means the applicant can likely never adjust status to gain Lawful Permanent Residence.

Our client, a Citizen of Mexico is the spouse and father of US Citizens. He had entered the United States without Inspection and needed to secure a waiver based on exceptional hardship that would befall his spouse and children if he was removed or unable to return to the United States.

Prior counsel who had prepared and submitted the I-601A application previously represented the couple, but this application was denied by the USCIS on the grounds that the couple had not been able to prove sufficient hardships. The couple came to meet us distraught and terrified for their future and that of their children with the father, the main financial supporter facing removal and separation from his family.

Our team worked with the couple to understand their life history. We reviewed their financial status in detail; spoke to the husband and wife separately to get a better sense of what they thought would happen in the event of a separation, and examined all the medical and school records for the spouses and the children.

We prepared and submitted a new application for I-601-A Waiver and soon received a letter of provisional approval for the previously declined application. The applicant was required to leave the U.S. and appear for an interview at the US Consulate in Ciudad Juarez. He appeared for his interview, and was pleasantly stunned that his case was approved in 5 minutes! He returned to the United States as a Lawful Permanent Resident and is happily reunited with his family who no longer live in fear of separation from their loved one.