I-601A WAIVER TO OVERCOME PAST UNLAWFUL PRESENCE

Our office has had many successful I-601A waiver cases approved.
One such case involved the spouse of a U.S. citizen who had entered the United States in 1999 without inspection. He walked across the U.S. border without being inspected. He entered without inspection (EWI).
Many years later, he married his U.S. citizen spouse, who then petitioned for him. We filed the I-130 petition for alien relative with USCIS, and once this was approved. We were now permitted to file the I-601 waiver application, which was also approved. This triggered the National Visa Center (NVC) to review the case and schedule the interview for our client in Mexico. The entire process, from start to finish, took four and a half years.
Our client departed the United States for his interview in Mexico. He was absolutely terrified because he had been inside the United States for over 20 years. He had entered in 1999 and had lived in the United States unlawfully. He had always filed his tax returns, but he had lived in the shadows. Now, he and his U.S. citizen spouse departed for his interview at the consulate in Mexico.
I prepped him, and they were both terrified, concerned about whether he would ever be able to return. What if the officer denied him? I advised him that there was nothing in his case that would warrant an officer denying his entry. He had no other inadmissibility grounds besides his initial entry without inspection.
After a tense ten days outside the United States, he had his medical examination and was interviewed and asked various questions. During our prep session, we had gone into great detail about the documents to bring. He received notice from the consulate that his immigrant visa had been approved. He was issued his green card and re-entered legally as a green card holder.
Many months later, he received the physical green card in the mail. It was an unbelievable experience for him because he had not seen family members for nearly 20 years. He could not leave to see them without triggering a ten-year bar, and they could not enter the U.S. because they didn’t have a visa.
This situation had disrupted his entire family. His father had passed away, but he was able to see some siblings and his mother. It was a huge victory, and we’ve had many similar cases in our office where I-601 and I-601A waivers have been approved.