Dream Act Eligibility Question

[dreamact_hope]

I have a very important question please help me out.

I read the whole Dream Act bill, but I am not sure if I qualify for it !
I have been in the U.S. continously since age 14 and graduated from High school here.
I will also be graduating from a top-tier 4-yr College next summer. I have not been involved in
any illegal activity. I think I qualify for the Dream Act but there is one problem.
I have been legal !!...throughout my stay here. I am currently on a F1 (international) visa.
Is Dream Act just for undocumented aliens ?

I am in similar situation as others. I dont know where/how/what I will do outside U.S. !
Not like I had a choice when I was 14, I had to come here on a dependent visa !

Do I qualify for the Dream Act ? :(

[juang]

I'm afraid that you dont qualify for DREAM Act since you're legal. But talk to a lawyer and explain the whole situation. I could be wrong, but as far as I know, DREAM Act is for currently undocumented aliens, or people who became undocumented before DREAM Act was enacted.

Guchi Sama is onl the same situation as you. He has been legal for a number of years, but recently he lost his status.

You'll be better off talking to a lawyer.

[dreamact_hope]

Thanks for the reply. Ya, I will contact some lawyer soon.

Wow if I'm not eligible...then this must mean that this Act is not interested in helping legal children who are in same situation...it only helps students who are undocumented! In other words it is more of a legal/illegal immigration bill ! Why punish students who are legal ? Excuse my language, but that will be pure Bull Shit !

[Abaddon]

You are not in the same situation because you were not a creation of ignorance. We were, because of the interests of corporate America and the suffering economies of Latin America.

I am not saying we deserve to be pardoned. It really is a difficult question... people see it as a reward/punishment thing but it goes beyond that.

[dreamact_hope]

Well, I cannot argue for or against your behalf. But the way I see my situation, I had no control over my decision to come here. I had to come here because I was dependent on my parents' visa. In addition, I was forced into this situation due to the Government's immigration action delays. So if it is not a question of reward/punishment, then what is it ?

[Abaddon]

This is not punishing those who follow the laws. It is very important to consider what kind of people this Bill will benefit.

Now, the way I see it, those that were brought here ilegally had no intention of breaking the law--this happened as a result of the broken immigration system and the lack of enforcement. So we have been caught in this political fiasco for quite some time now. However, we endured and we persevered in goodness by learning English and indeed becoming an American, not by political definition, but by a cultural one.

We speak the language and we have done our best to graduate from high school. Now we are willing to contribute to American society, whether it is through military service or attending college.

Our situation is quite unique. It is only a matter of giving a chance to those who have learned to appreciate the meaning of hard work in America.

[juang]

Thanks for the reply. Ya, I will contact some lawyer soon.

Wow if I'm not eligible...then this must mean that this Act is not interested in helping legal children who are in same situation...it only helps students who are undocumented! In other words it is more of a legal/illegal immigration bill ! Why punish students who are legal ? Excuse my language, but that will be pure Bull Shit !

First of all, are you currently undocumented or in your visa, if so, when will it expired?

Now, legal children (like you) and us (like me), are not in the same situation.

Why? Because:

**You can get a driver's license.
**You can apply and get any job you're qualify for
**Legal immigrants over time can apply for a green card and eventually for citizenship, I don't know how your visa works, but I'm assuming its like the rest
**You can go to college and actually use your degree
**You can have a normal life without the fear of deportation.

I know there are a lot more of differences when it comes to being here legally (like you), and undocumentally (like us), but those were the ones that came to mind.

I don't see how this bill, or in fact the WHOLE immigration system is punishing those who are here legally. Can you please explain? I'll be expecting your explanation to this question.

Your language is excuse, but please don't come here saying that the DREAM Act is bull shit, or I'll ban your butt out, got it pal?

I'm sorry if I sound threatening, but I'm not going to let anyone come and say that the DREAM Act is unfair or "bull shit", because it is not.

[Gocchin Sama]

Well, with the current Priority date retrogression and the hardship to keep a job for 6 years under H1, the F1 - H1 road doesn't have much of a future. F1 international students cannot legally work. Even tho they have a 1-year grace period after graduation to legally remain in the country, most employers won't hire them. Ever since 9/11, it has becoming increasingly hard to get an unauthorized-to-work SS# as a F1 visa student, much less get a driver's license.

And they have just as much fear to be getting deported, or at least it was like this when I was under my F1 status. After the 9/11, the govt required all international students to be registered and pass with 12 credits/semester (if we are not spending enough time studying, we must be out there planting bombs, makes sense right?) As a result, the school counselor would encourage everyone to register for at least 15 credits as insurance in case you fail one class. To make matters worse, the NYS had a massive tuition hike. Unlike in-state students, when you take more than 12cr, you will only be charged for the tution of 12cr. In international students' case, there is no maximum tuition. We had to pay by the number of credits regardless of whether you are part or full time. But wait a minute, aren't we required to be fulltimes or face deportation? As a result, my tuition nearly tripled during the semester I took 20 credits.

I am trying to say life as a F1 student is hell. It would be kind of a punishment if the Dream Act only benefitted the undocumented, while the legals are left out in the cold waiting for their visas to expire and become illegals themselves.

[rock steady]

While I don't disagree with the argument that having an F1 visa may not be as cheery as it sounds, I will say that having any valid visa is preferable to being undocumented. True, it may be difficult to progress through the immigration bureaucracy with an F1 visa, but there IS a legal means with which to do so. Undocumented students have no legal recourse to address their issue save perhaps 245i, and even then the process would be just as tedious. I understand Gocchin, that perhaps employers are hesitant to offer jobs to F1 visa holders, but that does not mean that it is impossible. And no matter what, having a valid visa affords the visa holder a degree of security, even if only just a tad bit more as you guys might point out, that an undocumented student simply does not have.

I can see why one would see the DREAM Act's exclusivity to be a punishment to those legally here, but as we all know, the DREAM Act is not a law, and who knows if it will even become a law. So these "rewards for the undocumented" and the "punishments for the legal" are not being put into play at the moment, and at the moment, I'd much rather be in your shoes Gocchin and dreamact_hope.

[dreamact_hope]

Why are you guys trying to compare the position that the undocumented aliens are in V.S. the the position legals are in ?
By "similar situation" I mean, even I came here as a child and due to the immigration backlog fuck-ups I lost my GC and now I have to pay twice or three times the tuition and I will be $60,000 in debt ? Did I have a choice, no ? This is the punishment I refer to. If the bill's aim is to help children who are in trouble because of the systems mess-ups...then why not include legals. I am not asking you to include all legal students but students who match the Dream Act's guidelines. Juang please think about this one. Even after considering this you want to ban my butt off, then I wont give a living .... !

Don't think we have it easy !! Not only this, they will kick me out after my F1 because my stay on a different visa maxed out...I will have to try my luck later ! It is very hard to earn so much money and pay it off esp when you can't work in the U.S.. Now Abandon, aren't some of us (NOT all of us) the result of this broken immigran too ? It is not only you guys ! At least, you guys dont have to pay out-of-state fees. There are several things to worry about. It is very easy to say "oh you are legal...you will somehow manage !" Trust me rock steady, you don't want to be in my situation. I would rather be in your shoes so I can soon Dream of living and working here !

[juang]

wait, how did you get your visa? and how did you loose your green card?

[Gocchin Sama]

Rock Steady: I canceled my F1(long story), hench I am illegal now. ;)

Juang: I am pretty sure he was referring to the priority date retrogression that is currently going on. In a nut shell, almost no one is able to submit employment-based immigration applications for the next few years until the backlog is over. It has sort of screwed me over too. My family could have submitted another petition under a different employer if it wasn't for this backlog.

Currently, F1 and H1 holders are in the worst situation here being stuck in the middle between legal residence and illegals. The retrogression won't be over for the next 2-4 years. Those graduating F1 students cannot file to become a H1 worker even if they find an employer willing to sponsor them; and the H1 holders have no way to submit their I-485 for greencard. Basically if the priority dates do not become current, we will be seeing alot more undocumented ppl in a few years.

The bottom line is, legal or not, there is currently no way to get gc unless it's through political asylum, relatives, marriage, or few very specific types of professions.

[GOW125]

Yeah life it's unfair what the fuck are you going to do? make your own moves fuck everything else Stop bitching, you are legal.

[rock steady]

Oh, my bad Gocchin.

[juang]

Yeah life it's unfair what the fuck are you going to do? make your own moves fuck everything else Stop bitching, you are legal.

Ok, they do have a point. Please understand that they are in a situation, not like ours, but theirs is bad too.

I almost understand everything you said Gocchin, but how do you become an F1 visa holder? As I see, it, that visa was only for education purpuses, that is, you study here for undar that visa, and when you graduate you try to get a job in here, but if you dont find it, youll have to go back to your country and use you're degree there. Am I wrong? If so, please let me know.

[Gocchin Sama]

On paper yes, but I can tell you that 99.9% of F1 holders came here to stay and eventually get gc.

[juang]

and how do you get get a green card if you're a F1 visa holder?

[Gocchin Sama]

You'd have to find an employer willing to sponsor your H1 visa upon graduation. If you can't find one, it's illegal time. And if you do find one, it's 6 years of underpaid wage. If the employment immigration backlog doesn't become current by then, it's illegal time.

[dreamact_hope]

wait, how did you get your visa? and how did you loose your green card?

I came on H4 visa (dependent on parents visa). Applied for green card but it got delayed for more that 4 yrs...then I turned 21. They said you either go back to your country or get a student visa, finish your education, and then go back. Oh well...Sometimes we just have to let it go and move on.

Gocchin Sama, how do you cancel a F1 ? Wont I get deported immediately or something like that ?

[Gocchin Sama]

On paper yes. But nobody is really enforcing it. Simply go to your campus' international student office and tell them some bs about how you are applying for gc with mom. Then go to registrar and adjust your tuition to in-state.