Archive Sections: letters | music | index | features | photos | arts/lit | satire Find Iranian singles today!


Disclaimer

September 28, 2004
iranian.com

Ask your legal question

Coming to U.S. for PhD

My friend just finished his masters and while he could start his PhD in Iran, he would really like to come to the US. We were told that he should try to contact different professors in American universities and then apply to the schools but I also know that admissions to a university does not imply that one will get a visa.

What is the best way to carry this out successfully? Would a letter from a professor help him to get a visa?

Also I'm wondering -- just in an attempt to sort this out for myself -- what are the factors that lead to one student getting a visa and another not? In other words what should we stress in our application?

Thanks so much for the help!

S.

Dear S.,

You have been given the correct advice in that you must first apply to a school in the United States before applying for a student visa. Two things to make clear when contacting the admissions committee right off the bat is to ensure they accept foreign students and to ensure that they have been recognized by U.S.C.I.S. (formerly I.N.S.).

The process of what makes one student get accepted rather than another is simply one left to the discretion of the school. You have to carefully study the criteria in the application process and I would venture to say as a general rule, submitting letters of references from former professors may be afforded much weight in determining a successful application.

Once you are accepted, the school gives you USCIS Form I-20 A-B/ID (Certificate of Eligibility for Nonimmigrant (F-1) Student Status - for Academic and Language Students) which you should take to the nearest U.S. consulate to obtain a student visa.

You must prove to the consulate that you have the financial resources required for your education and stay in the United States and that you intend to stay there on a temporary basis only to pursue your studies. So bring all your financial documents showing that you can support yourself as well as any additional documents showing your ties to your home country.

If you want to bring a copy of your application to the school including letters of references from your professors, you certainly may since it is at the discretion of the consular officer to request and examine any documents having to do with your future student status.

Top

Haven't been back since 1999

Dear Mr. Taheripour,

I got my immigrant visa in 1996 through my father. However I left the U.S. in 1999 to attend university and I have not been back since. Now I want to apply for citizenship.

Right now both my parents are in U.S. and they are both waiting for their oath ceremony. I mentioned this because I wanted you to know that they can apply for a re-entry permit passport for me , so I can wait until I receive it but before I want to make sure if there is any other ways.

In addition, I need to know what would happens if I come to U.S. having only my Green Card, and Iranian passpport.

I am looking forward to receiving your advice as soon as possible. I thank you in advance.

Dear Anonymous

Given that you have been out of the United States for more than a year and have not been back since, there is a presumption that you have abandoned your lawful permanent resident status.

So if you travel to the United States right now with your Green Card and Iranian passport, the border officer will more likely than not either refuse you entry or parole you in temporarily for purposes of a removal hearing before an Immigration Judge where you will have the burden of showing that your intention was not to abandon your lawful permanent resident status.

They will look at factors including but not limited to the length of your residence in the United States before departing, and whether you have filed income tax returns in the United States.

I am not clear on what you mean by your parents being able to apply for a re-entry permit for you. A re-entry permit has to be applied by the very person who requests it. What’s more, a re-entry permit has to be applied for BEFORE you depart the United States. Even then , the re-entry permit is only valid for travel less than 2 years.

The possibility that you have right now, since you are out of the country, is to apply for a returning resident permit from the nearest consulate. But the standard is very high. To qualify for a special immigrant visa as a returning resident, an applicant must establish that he/she has continued to maintain an unrelinquished permanent residence in the United States and his/her absence abroad beyond the permitted limit was due to circumstances beyond his/her control. You have to contact the nearest consulate for information on how to apply and to obtain the application form.

Please note that even a re-entry permit or returning resident permit does not guarantee admission into the U.S. Aliens with re-entry permits are still subject to the inspection process at the port of entry. It is also important to note that travel outside of the U.S. for more than one year will under most circumstances break the continuous residence requirement for later naturalization purposes. Travel for over 6 months may break the continuous residence requirement. See Section 316 (b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.

Top

Can I marry a foreign student?

I have recently met a guy who has been in the USA for about 3 years. He has a F1 visa, and he would like to continue his studies which will require him to have a Green Card statues (because of some special test he has to take). I have been here for about 7 years and I got my Green Card in November 2003.

We have decided to get married. I'd like to know that if we do get married right away, is there a possibility for him to stay here in the U.S.? If that's the case how long does the process take for him to obtain the Green Card or at least be considered a 'Green Card holder' so he can continue his studying? Is it even possible to do this since I do not have American passport yet?

Please do help me on this. Can you also give me some information on some sites that we can check out this matter?

I WILL REALLY APPRICIATE THIS!

Thank you

Honestly, I do not understand why your friend needs to have a Green Card status to continue his studies. Being a foreign student in the U.S. is by definition a temporary NON-immigrant status so I would definitely need more information on this “special test” that requires him to obtain a lawful permanent resident status in order to continue being a student.

My best suggestion is that if he wants to continue his studies and he has completed the program for which he was initially admitted, he should as soon as possible apply for permission from U.S.C.I.S. (formerly I.N.S.) to extend his student visa or transfer schools if the program he has been accepted at is a different school. Of course he should talk to his school’s designated official dealing with foreign students and the U.S.C.I.S. to ensure he is complying with all the laws and does not fall out of status.

If you get married simply for the sake of him staying in the United States, you would be committing fraud against the United States government and this will have severe legal consequences on both your status so I cannot stress enough the importance of entering a bona fide marital relationship.

If your intention is to enter into a marriage in good faith, then you have to petition for an immigrant visa number for him. Given that you are only a lawful permanent resident, your intended spouse will not be able to obtain an immediate visa number. Right now, they are processing visas in his category for petitions that have been filed on or about May 1, 2000 so you are looking at more than 4 years wait before he is eligible for a Green Card based on marriage.

There are a lot of websites out there from private practitioners and companies that purport to assist you in immigration matters. While I cannot endorse any of them, all I can do is point out the official government websites which are pretty user-friendly (they have FAQ sections, as well as information in processing times and internet versions of immigration forms) such as the U.S.C.I.S. website and the Department of State website.

Ali Taheripour, Esq.: a_taheripour@yahoo.com
Law Offices of Ali Taheripour
12754 Ventura Blvd, Ste D
Studio City, CA 91604
Tel: (818) 754-6777
Fax: (818) 754-6778

Main areas of practice are civil litigation (including personal injury) and immigration law.

Top

DISCLAIMER

The materials on this web site are provided for informational purposes only. The use of information contained on this web site does not constitute the offering of legal advice and accordingly, neither this web site nor use of information from the web site creates an attorney-client relationship.

The law is constantly changing and the information contained herein may not necessarily be complete or correct on the date of access and accuracy depends on the date of the generated information and its application to your particular legal problem: Each legal problem requires that it be addressed on its own set of facts and different jurisdictions observe different laws and regulations.

You should not act or rely on any information on this web site without seeking the advice of a competent, licensed immigration attorney. This Law Office makes no representation nor warranty that materials on this web site are appropriate or available for use in jurisdictions other than the United States of America and accessing them from jurisdictions where their content is illegal is strictly prohibited.

This Law Firm assumes no liability for the use or interpretation of information contained herein. The information provided on this web site is provided "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, OR NON-INFRINGEMENT OF THIRD PARTY RIGHTS.

This web site contains links to other resources on the Internet. Those links are provided solely as aids to assist you in locating other Internet resources that may be of interest to you, and as such, the inclusion of these links are not intended to state nor imply that this Law Firm sponsors or is in any way affiliated or associated with such linked sites.

The hiring of a lawyer is an important decision that should not be based solely upon advertisements. Before you decide, ask us to send you free written information about our qualifications and experience.

* *

COMMENT
For letters section

* Advertising
* Support iranian.com
* FAQ
* Reproduction
* Write for Iranian.com
* Editorial policy

MORE
Legal Ali
Latest

Other advice columns

Qanoon
discontinued legal column

Horoscope
magical astrology

Abjeez
advice column

Kobra Khanom
discontinued advice column

Book of the day
mage.com

Lost Treasures of Persia
Persian Art in the Hermitage Museum
by Vladimir Loukonine

© Copyright 1995-2013, Iranian LLC.   |    User Agreement and Privacy Policy   |    Rights and Permissions