Legal Question in Immigration Law in California

I came to the US in 1984 as a visitor and have overstayed since. I have been here for 26 years without ever leaving the country. In 1995, my mother (permanent resident) petitioned me but she died in 1996. On January 1, 1998, in response to the Life Act, my sister (US citizen) filed a petition on my behalf. We received a notice from the California Service Center requesting our birth certificates with a deadline of November 4, 2002. We sent the required documents on November 1, 2002 (Overnight delivery) and complied with the deadline. The first week of November, we received a notice of decision dated October 28, 2002, denying the petition due to failure to submit the required evidence. On that same day, we wrote a letter addressed to the Director (CA Service Center) and informed him that we complied and met the deadline and that their decision was premature. We never heard back from the INS. However, I checked the status of my petition from 2002-2009 online (Case Status Search) and it said: "Response for evidence received and case has resumed". On June 6, 2009, my sister called the INS to inquire about my petition and the immigration officer said that the petition was denied on October 28, 2002. Online, they changed the status to 'Denied'. Last week, we sent another letter to the INS (with all the previous documentation) addressing the same issue and they returned our package with a form letter only referring to the death of my mother and that they had not received the petition back from the State Dept, etc. They did not even bother to address my sister's petition! What am I supposed to do now? In my letter, I also asked for their opinion on whether to apply for adjustment of status based on the Life Act (INA) since I meet ALL the requirements (even denied petitions are qualified granted the decision was based on circumstances beyond the petitioner's control). I do not want to file it and send more than $1000 as penalty, only to be denied again and not receive my money back. I seek HELP from anyone. Thank you.


Asked on 8/19/10, 9:23 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Luba Smal Smal Immigration Law Office

You need to consult a good immigration lawyer (not a 'notario') and not through this webforum. Your information is too specific and case is somewhat comlex to advise you properly on a public internet forum.

It appears that your case was denied back in 2002 and instead of filing a Motion to Reopen or Reconsider -- you simply wrote a letter which was disregarded (because it was not a Motion and not an appeal).

Organization formely known as INS doesn't exist anymore. In its place, there is the USCIS/DHS. They are not authorized to give you legal advice in response to your letters.

Note: The above response is provided for legal information purposes only and should not be considered a legal advice; it doesn�t create an attorney-client relationship. For more information or to schedule a consultation, please visit http://www.law-visa-usa.com/contact_us.html

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Answered on 8/24/10, 10:23 am


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