I need a help. I live in Alabama in a country. where is now good immigration lawer here to ask.

Here is my case. I was a student here on J-1 from 1998 to 2001. When i'd got my degree. I went home to my country to fulfill my two year residence requirement and left my future wife here. After 6 months I came back to visit here on B-1 visitor visa. While being here we've married about 5 months ago. I went to local immigration office to apply for permanent residence. They told me that my 2 year term is not finished yet and i have to go back and stay for remainig 1.5 year at home. I love my wife and i can't leave her for such a long time. Besides i might have a problem coming back because i was paid by my company at home country. In imigration office they told my ask for no objection paper from the embassy, but i refused to call there because i think they wan't give me no objection since i had a contract with my company.
What should i do in this situation?
thank you

The way I see it, you have one of two options. You can either take the advice of the INS and get a letter from your embassy or go back to your native country and complete the 2 year home rule. The J-1 visa is clear when you apply/obtain it......you cannot adjust to immigrant status unless a) your country of origin is not on the list that requires a two year home rule or b) you have a letter from your country of origin stating that they will waive it.

The way I see it, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain by calling your country's Embassy in the USA.

Sorry to sound harsh, but it is reality.

Thank you fro reply LOZ.

What if my embassy will reject give me a letter. Will I have any other way to adjust my status. Or the the only way to go back?

I have every sympathy with your plight. It is difficult not to think five steps ahead, but you must try and focus on one task at a time otherwise it will drive you mad. For what it is worth I did exactly what I am telling you not to do and in the end it all worked out well, all that worry was for nothing. Firstly, go to the embassy, see what they can do for you. Explain that you have married a USC etc...and how much you are in love etc....and that you couldn't stand it if you had to be seperated. It might sound like you are going to have to say things that most men don't like to say in public, but remember you WANT TO STAY and besides don't worry about making a fool of yourself (maybe turn on the tears for good measure......an oscar peformance maybe required), you will probably never see these people again anyway, so speak from the heart.

If that fails, get a good lawyer and see what options are available in terms of a waiver. Waivers are VERY difficult to obtain, so don't build your hopes up. I think your best bet is with your embassy in the USA and you throwing yourself at their mercy.

goodluck

Hi, this is the post I posted earlier for another person in similar situation. I'll post it for you again.


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My boyfriend is also a Greek on J1 visa, subject to two-year home residency requirement. Yes, it's true that he needs to either fullfil the requirement or have it waived before he can change his status to any other immigrant visa (or even H1B). There are several ways to do so: 1. Have his government (or the agency sponsoring his J1 visa) agree to write a no-objection letter; 2. the U.S. government can sponsor him for the waiver, if he's employed by the goverment (e.g. if he's a professor in a university then the department of education can be his sponsor); 3. extreme hardship; and 4. political asylum (which I don't think applies to you since he's from Greece).

My boyfriend's friend, who's also a J1 visa holder, was lucky enough to be selected by the green card lottery, but at the end got denied because of her status.

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There is really no other way around it, unless you can obtain the waiver.