Uh oh

[SeanC]

Hi, I'm new to the forum.

 

I was recently deported from China for a visa violation. Oops.

 

So I returned to Hong Kong and married my girlfriend. Our plan was to apply to for the green card and wait out the 1-2 years and all the nonsense. But I just found out she's 6 weeks pregnant. We were in Ko Samui six weeks ago. Doin' it.

So it seems my options are to

1) let her raise the kid for a year or more by herself while we wait for a green card or

2) meet and live in a country neither of us are familiar with, and live and work there while waiting for a green card.

 

I really don't want to wait until my kid is over a year old to meet him/her. I don't want him/her getting diluted vaccines. Without a mainland marriage document, the baby cannot have health insurance. And living in a country neither of us is familiar with has all the obvious problems and pitfalls. And I would like my baby to be a natural born citizen of the United States.

 

We want to be together and be safe. Does anyone know if there are any other options? Thanks.

[Randy W]

Welcome to CFL.

 

The first thing to mention is to apply for a CRBA - Consular Report of Birth Abroad - at the consulate. You can apply for an American passport at the same time. The CRBA is not necessary, but will serve as a birth certificate for proving the American citizenship of the child. I expect that your wife can do this by herself, but will need your passport. If not, you might look into whether this is doable in Hong Kong. As a Chinese citizen, the American Citizen Services ARE available to her and the child.

 

Your wedding certificate should be valid in China, but I'm not sure if consular certification is required. You might shop around for insurance. Expat insurance of course is available, but it may be cheaper to live without it.

 

For getting the baby out of China, you will need an exit visa from the PSB Entry and Exit folks. Be sure to renounce their Chinese citizenship, if you are allowed to do so. If they require YOUR presence, that may cause some headaches. Taking the baby to Hong Kong may be doable, however.

 

If you get a Chinese passport for the child, you can apply for what is termed a "pro-forma" visa - actually a visitor's visa for an American citizen - to be placed in the Chinese passport. YOU (as the father) will need to return to China at some point in the future to renounce their Chinese citizenship - only travel documents (NOT visas) will be available from the Chinese embassy until you do.

 

If you need legal services in China, there are English-speaking law firms you can contact, such as Gary Chodorow Law Firm.

 

You don't say how long the ban is for, but having both a ban in effect and a baby in the oven at the same time is HIGHLY unusual.

[SeanC]

The ban is 5 years. I will not be able to return to China until May 2024.

 

 

 

Please tell me what you know about this idea:

 

If I brought my wife to the US on a tourist visa and kept her here long enough to have the baby, would she be deported for immigration fraud or overstaying, or would they grant a waiver of legal forgiveness and let her on the path to a green card thereafter?

 

I absolutely do not want her to be separated from the baby under any circumstances. But the advantages of the baby being born in the US are legion. So I'm wondering what are the risks and dangers of doing it the not-entirely-legal way? I've looked all over immigration websites, and there is nothing related to this issue.

 

We have been together nearly 6 years already. We have years-old photos and wechat threads, common friends, we have our photos published in an expat magazine in China several times over a 4 year period. Piles of concrete evidence of a long term relationship. So this isn't a sham marriage or an attempt at an anchor baby. We were married before the date of conception. We just want to be together and safe.

 

Having the baby in China means she will be alone through the pregnancy and I won't even meet the kid until he/she is walking. And doing all the Chinese paperwork and red tape to get the baby out will be excessively expensive and time consuming. Even if I could go back to China now, I can't work there.

Is bringing her to the US under false but moral pretenses an option?

[Randy W]

First of all - the baby will be BORN an American citizen, since you, their father, are an American citizen. There is no such thing as an American citizen anchor baby. That term DOES NOT apply to your child.

 

 

But the advantages of the baby being born in the US are legion.

 

. . .

 

Having the baby in China means she will be alone through the pregnancy and I won't even meet the kid until he/she is walking. And doing all the Chinese paperwork and red tape to get the baby out will be excessively expensive and time consuming.

 

You can file an I-130 for her NOW which MAY come through in time to get her into the US for the birth. Yes, she can file for a tourist visa in the meantime, and stay legally for as long as 6 months, but would need to go back to China for the interview, most likely without the baby, but only for a few weeks at the most. The stay for the visitor's visa can be extended, and the I-130/CR-1 interview can be delayed, if necessary.

 

What advantages are you thinking there are to being born in the US ? Unless you really DON'T want her to have the baby in a Chinese hospital, think this through

 

She won't be alone - she has FAMILY in China. The baby can LEAVE China as soon as it's old enough to travel. The I-130 would allow your wife to travel to the U.S. The only paperwork the baby would need is the American passport and CRBA that your wife can get by herself at the American consulate, and an exit visa (a travel document from the PSB).

 

If you're concerned about getting the passport and an exit visa without you, the father, being present, you may want to do what you can to get the tourist visa so that she can travel within 6 months of the due date and stay for the birth.

 

So it seems there are TWO paths that would work without having to go to "false but moral pretenses". Make sure the consulate is fully aware of what you are doing. They will most likely work with you on this.

 

You can worry about renouncing the baby's citizenship AFTER the 5 year ban has expired. Travel documents will do just fine if the mother wants to take the baby back to China in the meantime.

[fluffyballs]

I would suggest having your wife apply for a B2 visa.To be honest, I don't think her chances of obtaining it are going to be great, but it's not impossible. The biggest issue for her to overcome will be the presumption that she'll come in on a B2 with the intent of adjusting status, being married to an American. Contrary to popular belief it's actually not illegal to travel to the US specifically for the reason of giving birth, provided one has sufficient funds to pay for the medical care.

 

FYI I130s are now taking 14-16 months. Maybe on a K1 she'd be able to arrive in the US within 8 months, but that option is no longer available and would have its own issues anyways. I do agree with Randy that you may be overstating the benefits of being born on US soil. However.....

 

I can understand SeanC and think it's an awful situation, but it is what it is with the 5-year travel ban. I would have been beyond miserable had I not been able to witness the birth of my daughter alongside my wife, and been there to support her during those first few difficult post-birth months (as well as spending time with the baby...). And the medical care my wife received in a middle-of-the-road hospital here in the US was far better than the care her sister received when she gave birth at the "best" hospital in her city (a T3/4 city fwiw).

 

 

 

She won't be alone - she has FAMILY in China.

 

Maybe she does, maybe she doesn't, or isn't on good terms with them. I don't think this is a given.

Edited August 9, 2019 by fluffyballs (see edit history)

[Randy W]

I would suggest having your wife apply for a B2 visa.To be honest, I don't think her chances of obtaining it are going to be great, but it's not impossible. The biggest issue for her to overcome will be the presumption that she'll come in on a B2 with the intent of adjusting status, being married to an American. Contrary to popular belief it's actually not illegal to travel to the US specifically for the reason of giving birth, provided one has sufficient funds to pay for the medical care.

 

FYI I130s are now taking 14-16 months. Maybe on a K1 she'd be able to arrive in the US within 8 months, but that option is no longer available and would have its own issues anyways. I do agree with Randy that you may be overstating the benefits of being born on US soil. However.....

 

I can understand SeanC and think it's an awful situation, but it is what it is with the 5-year travel ban. I would have been beyond miserable had I not been able to witness the birth of my daughter alongside my wife, and been there to support her during those first few difficult post-birth months (as well as spending time with the baby...). And the medical care my wife received in a middle-of-the-road hospital here in the US was far better than the care her sister received when she gave birth at the "best" hospital in her city (a T3/4 city fwiw).

 

 

 

She won't be alone - she has FAMILY in China.

 

Maybe she does, maybe she doesn't, or isn't on good terms with them. I don't think this is a given. - My guess is that he knows which it is

 

 

Filing the I-130 REMOVES any doubt as to their intent, and allows applying for the B2 while waiting. She will need to return to China for the I-130/CR-1 interview - adjusting while in the U.S. is not possible. The B2 would allow multiple entries while waiting for the I-130, if necessary.

 

Birth in China would be a fallback, if the B2 is denied. You can check I-130 processing times from VJ here - http://candleforlove.com/forums/topic/45641-links-for-visa-information/?do=findComment&comment=610915.

 

They can also CHOOSE to have the baby in China, if this is more expedient toward the goal of bringing both to the U.S.

 

The I-130 is what will ultimately allow your wife to STAY in the U.S., without any false pretenses anywhere. Filing it NOW will get it done sooner.

[SeanC]

K1 visas are no longer a thing? @fluffyballs

 

The principle advantage of giving birth in the US is that we will be together. Her family is not prepared or able to take a care of a baby. My family is very well prepared. I don't want my baby getting diluted or ineffectual vaccines. I want to be with my wife and my kid. US immigration policy and enforcement is absolutely maddening.

[Randy W]

K1 visas are no longer a thing? @fluffyballs

 

The principle advantage of giving birth in the US is that we will be together. Her family is not prepared or able to take a care of a baby. My family is very well prepared. I don't want my baby getting diluted or ineffectual vaccines. I want to be with my wife and my kid. US immigration policy and enforcement is absolutely maddening.

 

 

K1's are not available to married people, for obvious reasons

 

But the B2 is the only sure way to get her to the US for the birth. There is always the possibility of denial, but I think your odds are better after filing the I-130. AND you will eliminate any implication of fraud.

 

Just be prepared, either way.

[SeanC]

https://www.uscis.gov/family/family-us-citizens/k-3k-4-nonimmigrant-visas

 

Maybe a k-3, k-4 visa is a possibility.

[Randy W]

https://www.uscis.gov/family/family-us-citizens/k-3k-4-nonimmigrant-visas

 

Maybe a k-3, k-4 visa is a possibility.

 

 

K-3 and K-4 are separate visas. The K-3 would be the visa for your spouse, the K-4 is for foreign step-children of the spouse.

 

Your child, as an American citizen, will not be eligible for a K-4 visa.

 

K-3's are VERY rare, but applying for one is free and has been thought to speed up state-side processing on the I-130. Once the I-130 is APPROVED in the United States, the K-3 will no longer be available.

Edited August 10, 2019 by Randy W (see edit history)

[SeanC]

Thanks a lot Randy. God, I hope I can find a way to get her over here.

Some application prep questions....

 

1)We just got married, and obviously are living far apart now. The i-130 asks for evidence of a bona-fide marriage, such as joint bank account, common address of residency, etc. We don't have anything like the examples listed by the USCIS. All we have is the marriage certificate.

 

We have years of dated photos of ourselves, and of me with her family. I have a copy of the sonogram, although it is all in Chinese (do I need to get a translation, or does highlighting the name on the report suffice?) Do these count for anything? Are there any other ways to support a bona fide marriage? I feel like our application is pretty weak, and I am really concerned about getting rejected and having to start all over again.

 

2) I just mailed my current passport away to get a new one. So I wonder, is a copy of my passport that is in the process of being replaced sufficient for the application, or will it get flagged as invalid when the application is being processed? It will be 5-7 weeks longer before my new one arrives.

 

3) Should I include a letter explaining my situation, or call a USCIS office and talk to an officer about it? I've read all over the USCIS website, but no direct answer to this question.

 

Sorry for the lengthy post. Life has gotten really complicated very suddenly.

[Randy W]

I feel - and understand - your concern. Hang in there.

 

Evidence is what you HAVE, not what you DON'T have. You HAVE a bonafide marriage - submit what you can to demonstrate that.

No, they'll know what the sonogram is - no translation should be necessary.

 

Your current passport is fine - no need to wait for the new one.

 

Yes, an 'evolution of relationship' letter would be a good idea, including a mention of why you are now separated.