Looking for a bit of advice for a friend

[wawster]

Hey guys,

This one is a bit convoluted, but it's for a friend who needs some help.

I think the answer is to have him contact Marc Ellis or someone similar, and I might need that contact info for him.

 

My buddy is married to a Chinese woman, and they are both here in the states. She claimed asylum, and then they were married. She has her green card now, and they are doing well.

 

She has 2 daughters in China, who are living with friends of hers. They have been there for 3 years. She sends support to them constantly, and talks to them every day on video. Now that she has her green card, they are working to get her daughters here in the US. The daughters are ages 6 and 12. Within the last month, my buddy and her traveled to China to get the daughters their passports, so that they can work through the process. They have already submitted I-130's, and those are at the NVC stage.

 

The problem here is that the friends now want $20 k for my buddy's wife to bring the girls to the US. They never let the mother see both of the girls at one time - in effect, they are holding the girls hostage for a cash payout.

 

The mother has never signed anything giving these people the rights to her kids, but the kids have lived there for 3 years. Although they are well taken care of, they really want to be with their mom.

 

No knowing the laws in China, my buddy is pretty confused, and doesn't know where to turn, so he asked me if I knew of anyone that could help.

any ideas? My first thought was to get him in contact with someone familiar with the laws in China, and also familiar with immigration law in the US. To me, that would probably be Marc Ellis or someone similar.

[Randy W]

I'm not seeing an immigration question here - just a custody issue. The mother needs to regain physical custody of the girls from this 'friend'.

 

A visit, to include the police, would seem to be in order. Of course, she would need to have something she could do with the kids NOW so they wouldn't have to go back. Chinese law, of course, grants custody of the children to their parents - I don't see a question there.

 

- OR - well, I WAS going to say wait until they're 18 and would no longer need permission, but that's true even NOW.

 

The question seems to be simply how to wrest the children out of their hands and back to the parents.

[dnoblett]

As far as the visas are concerned, the paperwork is straightforward case of visas for stepchildren of a US Citizen.

 

Not too sure about how the Chinese authorities and the interviewing officer at the US consulate treat the matter of custody.

 

One option since spouse has a green-card would be for her to file an I-131 for a travel document and return to China and work it out, and take custody of the children while waiting to the petitions to process through to a visa interview. I say file an I-131 and get the travel document just in case the visit to China goes longer than 6 months.

[Randy W]

As far as the visas are concerned, the paperwork is straightforward case of visas for stepchildren of a US Citizen.

 

Not too sure about how the Chinese authorities and the interviewing officer at the US consulate treat the matter of custody.

 

One option since spouse has a green-card would be for her to file an I-131 for a travel document and return to China and work it out, and take custody of the children while waiting to the petitions to process through to a visa interview. I say file an I-131 and get the travel document just in case the visit to China goes longer than 6 months.

 

 

LEGAL custody is not a question here, and will not delay the visa processing, unless the children are not allowed to interview.

 

The problem here is PHYSICAL custody - getting them OUT of the hands of these 'friends' without paying the ransom.

 

But your friend needs to figure out if maybe they're not just making a demand for compensation for their services - figure out how to somehow come to terms with them.

[wawster]

Thanks for the advice, guys. I'll pass it on.

Her sister lives about an hour away from where the kids are now, so maybe that's an avenue for her to proceed . I'll let my buddy know.

As always...thanks, fellas

Warren

[Randy W]

To be clear here, for immigration purposes, she only needs to make sure they get their passport photos and medical exam. She will NEED to accompany them to the Consulate on the day of their interview, and then get them on the plane when THAT day comes.

 

Everything else is a domestic issue between the parents and the "friends".