How A Tampa Immigration Lawyer Can Help With Adjustment Of Status Petitions

Under current immigration law, many foreign nationals who come to the United States will need to adjust the type of visa they hold in order to legally remain in the U.S. For instance, foreign nationals living in the United Sates under a K-1 visa (fiancé visa) may need to adjust their status. If a foreign national marries a United States citizen less than two years before being admitted into the U.S. their resident status will be considered conditional. The K-1 visa will only permit the alien spouse to reside in the United States for up to two years. In order to lawfully remain in the U.S. for more than two years the alien spouse must file a petition within 90 days of the K-1 visa’s expiration. The petition process can be very intimidating and require a thorough understanding of current immigration law. Therefore, if you need to file a petition to adjust your residency status you should contact a Tampa immigration lawyer for help. The Tampa immigration lawyer can advise you on the law and prepare the petition on your behalf.

The petition to adjust a K-1 visa must be done on a Form I-751. The petition must also accompany records and evidence to support the assertions declared in the petition. The Tampa immigration attorney preparing the Form I-751 should meticulously review all pertinent documents to ensure they are complete and accurate before submitting the petition. If the Form I-751 is incomplete or inaccurate the petition may be denied by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

U.S. immigration law presumes that marriages involving foreign nationals were entered into solely for the purposes of immigration. The Tampa immigration lawyer representing the petitioning spouses has the burden of proving that the marriage was entered into in good faith. If the Tampa immigration attorney fails to prove the marriage was entered into in good faith The Tampa immigration lawyer representing the petitioning spouses has the burden of proving that the marriage was entered into in good faith the petition will be denied. In order to meet this burden the Tampa immigration lawyer will typically submit financial records showing joint ownership of assets and joint responsibility for liabilities. Another compelling piece of evidence often used by Tampa immigration lawyers is birth certificates of children born to the marriage. If neither financial records nor birth certificates are available, the petitioning spouses may rely on other evidence to help prove the marriage was not entered into for illegitimate reasons. However, other documents will most likely not be as persuasive as financial records and birth certificates.

If you or your spouse is living in the U.S. under a K-1 visa you should contact Florida Law Group for legal advice. Our experienced Tampa immigration lawyers can answer all your legal questions and help you adjust your residence status.