Hi guys, here to help with any questions.

Hey guys. I'm a 26 year-old U.S. Citizen. I decided to join this forum because my wife like many people here, came to the United States illegally. Like many of you guys she went through the DACA process a year ago and just last week she received her green card. Her case was rare because she was a DACA student who married a U.S. Citizen. The lawyers at our attorney's office even called her the guinea pig because she was the first such case in their buffet. Here's a timeline of her past year:

February 2013: Approved for DACA
April 2013: Got married (after 7 years together)
July 2013: Submitted request for Advanced Parole
September 2013: Approved for Advanced Parole
September 2013: Left to Mexico for 4 days to see sick mother. Legally re-entered the U.S. with Advanced Parole
December 2013: Submitted paperwork to become U.S. Resident through marriage
February 2014: Interviewed at local immigration office
March 2014: Received green card

If any of you have questions about anything and I might be able to help, feel free to ask. But my one advice for everyone will be that before you make any decision consult a trustworthy lawyer. Sure they can be expensive, but going into this whole process both my wife and I were clueless about immigration laws, so we have them to thank for my wife's achievements.

Cool, congrats to you and your wife on that wonderful success!!

I wonder how long the process might be if a DACA beneficiary marries a green card holder? would it even be worth submitting an I-130 form or would it be better just to wait until the green card holder becomes a citizen? or would the whole thing be a bad idea to begin with? i'm just curious to know if you know anything regarding this

To my understanding, the green card holder can petition for their husband/ wife and if they get their citizenship during the waiting period, they can upgrade the petition. Now in our case, my wife can apply to become a U.S. Citizen in 3 years, but I understand that for other people it's 5 years. So if the green card holder will become a citizen soon, in my opinion, it'd be better to wait.

Spouses of permanent residents are categorized as F2A preference under immigration law. Currently the wait time for non-Mexicans is about 6 months from the moment the I-130 is submitted until you can file for adjustment of status (green card). For Mexicans the wait time is about 2 years. While it's not a short time, it's much better than waiting until he/she can file for citizenship, which could be as long as 5 years. I say file it right away.

http://travel.state.gov/content/visa.../bulletin.html

Care to go a bit more into detail about the interview? I think it's great that your wife is now legal.

Thank you. The interview was pretty easy. I think it varies depending on who interviews you. My wife's cousin actually had her interview 6 months before we did in the same office and her interview was very different from ours.

Our interview was about 15 minutes long. The only thing they asked me (the petitioner) was my name, my parents' names and my phone number (that was literally it for me). As for my wife, they asked her how long we had been together, about her entrances into the U.S. and about her entrance through AP. Then they asked her questions (more of a formality) like of she had ever sold drugs, been part of terrorist group, etc. They do ask you to prove your marriage is not a sham. Our lawyer put together a packet that had all our stuff including pictures of us together from 7 years ago and bills that we had together under both names and joint bank accounts. Even with our lawyer's packet we still took the originals to the interview just in case.

My wife's cousin's interview was different though. I'm assuming because they went a less prepared, she said their interview took about 45 minutes. They asked them which side of the bed each one sleeps on and what was the color of each other's toothbrushes. They didn't take any evidence with them (even though their lawyer did), so my wife's cousin got a huge lecture about how they need to act more like a married couple because they didn't even have pictures of each other in their cell phones. They still got approved, but their interview wasn't as easy as ours.

I guess it just depends on the interviewer and what evidence you provide. If you do submit the application through a lawyer, ask your lawyer for a copy of everything you submitted before the interview just to be safe because most of the things that they ask you will be based off your application such as dates you entered the country, places where you've lived, etc.

A list of the evidence we provided:
- marriage license
- 15 to 20 pictures of us together (with date)
- lease agreement with both of our names
- 1 joint bank account
- taxes that we filed together as married (1 year)
- 2 billing statements with both of our names

I had heard that they asked about that, but didn't want to believe it. I guess if they see you go prepared they know that it's not a sham (or that if it is, they won't be able to prove otherwise), that might be why they didn't ask you that much. Now for your wife to wait the five years so she can become a USC.

She only has to wait 2 years. She received a 2-year "probation" period. Our lawyer told us that when she renews her residency after 2 years, she can apply for U.S. Citizenship right after (during the 3rd year). Because we're married, she falls under this category:

"Exception to Five-Year Rule for People Married to a U.S. Citizen

You need to wait a mere three years to apply for U.S. citizenship if, during that time, you have been a permanent (or conditional) resident married to, as well as living with, a U.S. citizen. (See the Immigration and Nationality Act at I.N.A. Section 319(a) or 8 U.S.C. section 1430(a).) You will need to provide proof that you qualify along with your application."

Oh, wow, that's news to me! That's great, one step closer to getting the right to vote and fight for rights.

Wow, your wife's case is very similar to mine. Here's my timeline:

December 2008 - Married pemanent resident
April 2013 - Got approved for DACA
March 2013 - Husband became US citizen/Filed I-130
November 2013 - Traveled out of the country with advance parole
January 2014 - I-130 got approved
February 2014 - Sent Adjustment of Status application, form I-485
April 2014 - Will have biometrics


How long did it take to get an interview appointment after she did the biometrics?