IMMIGRATION
Consular Processing
Most people seeking immigrant or non-immigrant visas must, at some point, visit a U.S. Consulate or Embassy outside the United States. A U.S. Consulate or Embassy’s work in reviewing these visa applications and interviewing intending immigrants is called “consular processing.” For family members that are residing outside of the United States, or for those currently present in the United States but who entered without inspection, consular processing is the method through which your family member is legally admitted using a petition to the U.S.
Our Atlanta immigration lawyers are experienced in helping clients obtain permanent residence through consular processing, as well as applying for non-immigrant visas through U.S. Consulates and Embassies abroad.
Use the links below to navigate other areas of Family-Based Immigration:
CONTACT POTRA LAW FIRM ABOUT FAMILY-BASED IMMIGRATION
My family member petitioned for me and it was approved, can I get a green card through consular processing?
Maybe! If your approved immigrant visa is either immediately available or current according to the visa bulletin, you may be able to begin the process of obtaining your permanent residency as long as you are eligible for it. Everyone’s case is a little bit different, and certain conditions in your history may require that you complete your immigrant visa interview at a U.S Consulate or Embassy abroad. This is generally the U.S. Consulate or Embassy located in your home country (country of birth or citizenship), but in certain circumstances—such as safety conditions in that country—your visa interview may be scheduled at a U.S. Consulate or Embassy elsewhere.
After the approval of your immigrant visa petition and any associated waivers, the National Visa Center should automatically receive notice from USCIS, and issue correspondence—including a request for visa processing fees—to the Petitioner and/or Beneficiary. For this reason, it is very important to keep your address updated with each immigration agency at all times. Before your interview is scheduled, you will need to complete certain forms and submit documentary evidence to the National Visa Center. Sometimes, however, USCIS (a part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security) and the National Visa Center (a part of U.S. Department of State) do not communicate efficiently, so you should consider consulting with an attorney if you sense any unusual delay. The lawyers at Potra Law Firm can help you submit the necessary evidence and ensure that you are prepared for your visa interview by the time it is scheduled.
Once the National Visa Center (“NVC”) confirms that you have submitted all the necessary documents, you will be scheduled for an interview abroad. If you are inside the United States, you should plan to leave at least one to two weeks before the interview date, depending on the country. Please remember that exiting the United States could automatically trigger serious immigration consequences, so you should consult with an attorney before doing so.
Following your successful completion of the consular interview, you should receive documents allowing you to enter the U.S. as a Lawful Permanent Resident. Your permanent resident card (“green card”) typically arrives by mail after a few weeks once USCIS has processed your approval and you have submitted the proper documents and fees. Consular processing is a multi-step endeavor that requires close communication and submission of documents to two different agencies, and hiring an attorney to handle your case is often the best way to avoid unnecessary stress. To ensure that the process is handled correctly the first time, visit Potra Law Firm today.
Do I have to leave the United States in order to get my permanent residency?
Maybe. Some immigrant visa applicants qualify to obtain permanent residence inside the U.S. through a process called Adjustment of Status. Adjustment of Status usually requires that the applicant entered the U.S. after being inspected and admitted or paroled by an immigration officer, and may require that the applicant have lawful status at the time of the application. There are many exceptions to these rules, however, and the attorneys at Potra Law Firm are trained to find all the possible options in your case, and help you determine the best path to residency.
In general, if you were not inspected and admitted or paroled at the time you entered the U.S. (for example, a B1/B2 Visa, Student Visa, Work Visa, Visa Waiver Program), and you do not qualify for a benefit that forgives an illegal entry or provides parole, you will likely have to complete your residency journey via consular processing abroad. Most immigrants can expect to leave the United States for two short weeks in order to complete a medical exam and the interview. Those with unique issues in their case may be advised of a different timeline in the event that certain waivers are required to cure inadmissibilities.
For many people, it can be a scary thought to leave the United States without knowing whether or not the U.S. Consulate or Embassy abroad will allow you to return. Our attorneys know that this big decision cannot be made easily and will help you understand all of the reasons and risks involved. While adjustment of status may be the preferred method because eligible applicants will not have to leave the U.S., the majority of our clients only qualify to obtain residency through consular processing. That means that we file hundreds of consular processing cases a year, and our attorneys are very familiar with the requirements, risks, and are able to advise you of changing trends occurring at the consulates and embassies involved.
Do I need a waiver before I leave the country for consular processing?
Maybe. Before you are approved for residency, the immigration officers at the U.S Consulate or Embassy abroad will be assessing your eligibility for a green card. This means that almost anything is on the table, and the questions will not be limited to your immigration filings and criminal record. U.S. Immigration laws include inadmissibilities for certain diseases, alien smuggling, certain crimes, your immigration history, public charge, gang affiliation, fraud, and the list goes on. It is in your best interest to consult an attorney especially at this step in the process, as a denial at the interview can result in unplanned—and possibly severe—legal consequences.
Each attorney at the Potra Law Firm is well trained in finding potential inadmissibilities and advising about any required or available waivers before you plan on leaving the country. Some issues can be resolved without a waiver through a well-formed argument, and others will require a separate form (a waiver or permission to re-enter) to be filed and approved before you are granted your permanent residency. Because not everyone is eligible for each waiver, it is important to have an experienced legal team handling your case. Please visit our page on waivers for more information.
If you are denied at your immigrant visa interview, you may suffer from as little as a delay in your case, or as much as a finding from an immigration officer that you are permanently ineligible for residency. It is very difficult to contest a decision from a consular officer, as there is no formal appeal process, so making sure things are correct in the first place is very important.
Do I need to find a sponsor?
Aside from limited categories of immigrants who are either eligible for a waiver or are not subject to the bar for “public charge,” most intending immigrants need to find a financial sponsor for their residency process. Whether you are adjusting status in the United States or completing your immigrant visa interview abroad, this financial sponsor is required in order to show the government that you will not be admitted into the United States only to rely on government benefits such as welfare or food stamps.
In most cases, your petitioner that filed the I-130 giving you an immigrant visa will also be your sponsor. He or she must show the National Visa Center and U.S. Consulate or Embassy that his or her current income meets the poverty guidelines released each year by U.S. Health and Human Services. These numbers can be found here. The required amount is dependent on the sponsor or joint sponsor’s, household size, which includes:
- The intending immigrant;
- The sponsor’s spouse;
- All minor children, regardless of whether the sponsor has legal or physical custody, unless parental rights have been lost;
- All other dependents included on the sponsor’s taxes;
- Previously sponsored immigrants who are lawful permanent residents that have not naturalized to become U.S. Citizens, or who have not earned 10 years’ worth of social security credits;
Please note that the intending immigrant should not be counted twice in the above categories.
If your sponsor is unable to meet the requirements on his or her own, you may elect to find a joint sponsor that meets the income requirements. A joint sponsor must be over 18 years of age, a U.S. Citizen or Lawful Permanent Resident, and must meet the income requirement on his or her own. While legally your joint sponsor can be anyone, including friends, co-workers, and employers, the U.S. Consulate and Embassies tend to favor a joint sponsor that has some sort of familial tie with you.
What is an Affidavit of Support?
Each sponsor or joint sponsor must commit to their responsibilities by submitting Form I-864, Affidavit of Support, which should be considered a legally binding contract with the government. This may have serious consequences, as the government or even the intending immigrant may be successful in obtaining financial support or compensation from a court in order to uphold the contract. Keep in mind that this contract will survive events such as divorce, and a sponsor’s obligations only cease when the sponsored lawful permanent resident abandons his or her status, dies, naturalizes to become a citizen, or has accrued 10 years’ worth of social security quarters.
Recently, statistics for the year 2018 show that there has been a 316% increase in denials based on “public charge” by the U.S. Consulates and Embassies as compared to the year 2017. This is a clear indication that the government intends to impose high scrutiny on Affidavits of Support moving forward. Because of the seriousness of a denial and the chance that it may nullify any previously approved waivers, you should contact an experienced immigration attorney to prepare, review, and submit your documents for consular processing for you.
We at Potra Law Firm understand the stress and pressure that must be on every immigrant’s shoulders as you approach the last step in your path toward lawful permanent residency, which may have taken years. Our attorneys are readily equipped to handle your case with efficiency and will always be honest and upfront with you about any potential weaknesses or risks in your case.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should I expect at my immigrant visa interview?
Receiving an interview date from the U.S. Consulate is a big deal, and you have likely waited months for this event. There are many things that you need to do prior to your appointment in order to ensure that it goes smoothly.
As different as one country is from another, each U.S. Consulate or Embassy operates a little differently and you should follow instructions belonging to each country-specific consulate or embassy. Another important benefit of allowing our attorneys to file your documents and help prepare you for the visa interview is that we are highly involved with each consulate, and are familiar with the specific rules, requirements, and operations in each country. Although there may be similar steps in preparing for your interview, you should always refer to each consulate’s instructions for any added or different rules you will be required to follow.
First, you need to schedule and complete your medical examination, along with any required vaccinations, in the country where your interview is scheduled. All embassy-approved physicians are available on the Department of State’s website, as well as a comprehensive list of the required vaccinations.
Second, many U.S. Consulates and Embassies require visa applicants to pre-register for courier services so that any original documents and visas can be returned to the applicant as efficiently as possible following the interview.
Third, you should prepare for your interview by gathering all required documents, even if you previously submitted photocopies to either the National Visa Center or the Consulate. In hiring Potra Law Firm to prepare your case, not only will our staff and attorneys submit the documents, schedule your interview, and sit with you to prepare, we will provide you with a duplicate packet of all documents submitted to the consulate. Your job will be to appear with the originals of the documents in case an officer requests to see them.
When attending the interview, you should be prepared to answer basic questions about yourself, your immigration history, and your criminal history. You must answer truthfully in order to build credibility with the officer and to prove to the officer that an exercise of favorable discretion is warranted in your case. Because these interviews are oftentimes so subjective and highly dependent on the discretion officer, it is very important that the whole process goes as smoothly as possible, that all documents requested are available, and that there are no inadmissibility issues that haven’t already been explained and/or waived.
As a client of Potra Law Firm, you can be sure that you will not leave the United States with confidence that you will return with no issue. We rely on your honesty and the information that you disclose, and we in turn will advise you of any risks and guide you in the right direction. Through this method, we have successfully obtained permanent residency for hundreds of clients over the years.
I was denied at my visa interview, what do I do?
First of all, do not panic. A denial at your visa interview can mean extra delay in getting your case resolved, but it is not the end of the world. It is very important at this stage to consult with an attorney if you have not already. If you already have an attorney, consider getting a second opinion from another attorney who will assess your case once more from the very beginning. Remember to write down all of the details you can remember of what occurred at the interview and what was discussed.
At the end of the interview, the officer should have provided you with documentation regarding the reasons for denial and include his or her suggestions of how to cure the issues. For most people who are just missing a document or two, the officer may give you an opportunity to submit the requested documents directly with the consulate or embassy. In other, more complicated cases, you may be required to file a waiver in order to overcome a specific bar or inadmissibility. The attorneys at Potra Law Firm can help you diagnose the issue, and walk you step by step through how to solve it.
In rare, but not entirely uncommon cases, some individuals may be found permanently ineligible for residency. Unfortunately, this may ultimately mean you or your family member must remain outside of the United States unless the laws change, or you become eligible to file Form I-212, Application for Permission to Reapply for Admission, after spending ten (10) full years outside of the U.S.
A visa denial is a very complicated issue that requires an experienced attorney’s review to determine what must be done and very quickly. If you or your family member has been denied at their interview, please call Potra Law Firm immediately to schedule an appointment with an attorney.
Can I apply for a visa directly with the consulate?
Maybe. Most visas require a –sometimes lengthy– application process with USCIS before the applicant is scheduled to visit the consulate. But outside of USCIS, most consulates do handle all processing for certain visas. For example, visas for visitors for business or pleasure (B1/B2 Visa), as well as E-1 or E-2 visas, are normally based on applications that are filed directly with a consulate.
Immigrant visas, on the other hand, cannot be filed directly with a U.S. Consulate or Embassy, and the immigrant visa petitions must be filed with and approved by USCIS. Once approved, USCIS will send word to the National Visa Center, which is the central agency that distributes visa documentation to the U.S. Consulates and Embassies conducting the interviews abroad.
While we cannot assist you in attending any visa interviews or hand-delivering documents to the consulate, Potra Law Firm welcomes clients wishing to file everything from non-immigrant B1/B2 visitor’s visas to things as complicated as employment-based visas. We are well equipped to handle your case, so call to make an appointment today.
Let one of our Atlanta immigration attorneys evaluate your case today.
The immigration attorneys of Potra Law Firm can help you determine which petition to file and help you put your case together in a way that offers the best chances for approval. Don’t delay any longer, contact us today… we’re ready to help you.
