Waivers of Inadmissibility

To qualify for a green card, you must be admissible to the United States. Certain circumstances, such as fraud / willful misrepresentation of a material fact, unlawful presence, criminal convictions, and more, may render you inadmissible to the United States. If you are inadmissible, you may be eligible to file a waiver of inadmissibility to request USCIS grant your waiver application so that you may obtain your green card.

Waivers of inadmissibility can be filed with USCIS whether you are processing your green card inside or outside the United States.

Whether a waiver is available to you and the eligibility requirements for a waiver of inadmissibility depends on the specific ground(s) of inadmissibility that applies to you. The most common reasons a waiver may be required before you are able to obtain your green card are the following:

Unlawful Presence:

You will trigger the unlawful presence inadmissibility bar and be barred from returning to the United States for either 3 or 10 years, if you have remained in the United States past your period of authorized stay for more than 180 days and you depart the United States. You are eligible to apply for a waiver of the unlawful presence ground of inadmissibility if you can show extreme hardship to your U.S. citizen or Lawful Permanent parent(s) and/or spouse. Children are not included as qualifying relatives for a waiver involving unlawful presence.

Provisional Unlawful Presence Waiver:

If you have been sponsored for a green card by your spouse, child, parent, or employer, but are ineligible to file to adjust your status in the United States because you entered without inspection, you overstayed your visa, or you entered the United States as a K-1 fiancé or crewman, you may be eligible to file an application for a provisional unlawful presence waiver with USCIS while you are in the United States. Approval of the provisional unlawful presence waiver will allow you to travel outside the United States to attend your Embassy interview without triggering the unlawful presence bar and then return to the United States as a green card holder once the Embassy issues an immigrant visa to you. You are eligible to apply for a provisional unlawful presence waiver if you can show extreme hardship to your U.S. citizen or Lawful Permanent parent(s) and/or spouse. Children are not included as qualifying relatives for a provisional unlawful presence waiver.

Fraud / Willful Misrepresentation of a Material Fact:

You are inadmissible to the United States if you have ever committed fraud or willful misrepresentation of a material fact to obtain a visa, attempt to obtain a visa, other documentation, admission into the United States, or any other immigration benefit. You are eligible to apply for a waiver of the fraud / misrepresentation ground of inadmissibility if you can show extreme hardship to your U.S. citizen or Lawful Permanent parent(s) and/or spouse. Children are not included as qualifying relatives for a waiver involving the fraud / misrepresentation grounds.

Criminal Convictions:

Certain criminal convictions may render you ineligible for a green card. This is true regardless of whether the convictions occurred inside or outside the United States. Depending on the criminal conviction(s), you may be eligible to file a waiver of inadmissibility. You are eligible to apply for a waiver of the criminal ground of inadmissibility if you can show extreme hardship to your U.S. citizen or Lawful Permanent parent(s), spouse and/or children. Your children can be included as qualifying relatives for a waiver of this ground of inadmissibility if you are eligible for a waiver.

Prior Deportation:

If you have been previously deported or removed from the United States, you will be ineligible to return to the United States for a period of time. Generally, this period is 5, 10, or 20 years depending on the circumstances and reasons for deportation. You may be eligible to file a waiver requesting consent from the United States government to apply for lawful re-admission to the United States without having to remain outside the United States for the required period. You may also need to file an additional waiver application if any other grounds of inadmissibility, such as unlawful presence, fraud / misrepresentation, or criminal convictions, apply to you.

If you are subject to one or more of the grounds of inadmissibility and are eligible for a waiver, it is important that you have an experienced attorney, such as Law MJ Kim LLC, by your side because you will only be able to obtain a green card if your waiver application is approved. The Attorneys at Law MJ Kim LLC can evaluate whether any of the grounds of inadmissibility apply to you. If so, Law MJ Kim LLC can assist you in preparing and filing the waiver application with USCIS. Contact us to schedule a consultation.