Legal Question in Immigration Law in California

If your mother's green card was revoked, she might re-apply for the green card if there is a immigrant petition (i.e. US citizen child petitions your mother). However, she might need to apply for a visitor visa to enter the US at the meanwhile.

If your mother's green card was revoked, your brother's green card application might be invalid since the petitioner (your mother) is no longer a green card holder.

We suggest you to consult with an immigration attorney.

You may visit our website at www.medinalawgroup.net or contact us via [email protected]. Thank you.

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This question involves many legal issues which MUST be reviewed by a competent immigration attorney. First, the green card was probably revoked due to your mother overstaying her time out of the US for more than one year w/o permission and thus she is considered to have abandoned her residency. There is a procedure available in the immigration court to request reinstatement of the card, but this is a trial, requiring an attorney who understands what are the legal requirements for reinstatement. In addition, if she loses her card, your brother's eligibility is indeed affected due to the fact that he cannot immigrate via a card that is withdrawn. I urge you to consult an attorney well qualified in this field and not try to handle this via the internet. The letter for the hearing with the immigration court will need to be used at the port to obtain a humanitarian entry to present herself at court. Since I do not know the time frame of the upcoming hearing, this notice should be presented to an attorney right away. If you desire to work with our offices, we would be pleased to help you. You can contact us at www.milner-markee.com.

Best of luck.

Attorney Nora Milner

It is important to reside in the U.S. more than 1/2 the time once a person obtains permanent residence. Your mother will likely have to start her permanent residence case all over again, including with a waiver (since she deported herself when she left the last time) and I hope her basis for eligibility still exists. Otherwise, she might not have a way to qualify. She might also win her case though if she has proof of her intent to not give up her permanent residence upon her departures, and/or she was gone longer than she planned when she left each time. This can be difficult to prove, but it can be done, depending on what happened to her. The most important question is, for each time she left, why did she leave and why did she not return sooner? I've been able to win a case like your mom's for a person who applied for a visitor visa and was gone for years after getting permanent residence. It really does depend on the facts of the case. If she had good reason for leaving for more than six months that was not planned and/or she was prevented from returning sooner, then she might win. But unless there were reasons for unexpected lengthy stays out of the U.S. that could not be avoided, then she will not. In such a case, she'd definitely need to re-qualify and get a waiver of her self-deportation approved.

Whether she could enter the U.S. on the court letter is very questionable as it is not a visa or travel document. The Customs and Border Protection officers at the airport would have to agree to do it if she didn't apply in advance. Applying in advance is preferable, as long as there is time before the hearing. They would do this with an application for humanitarian parole (humanitarian entry to the U.S.). This application can also be filed in Washington, DC or the District Director closest to where she lives in the U.S. Regardless of where she applies, it's important she have certain documentation when she approaches the port of entry and is counseled on what to expect. She also most certainly needs as good counsel as you can find for her hearing as this case is difficult.

If your mother cannot sort our her case, then your brother is affected. If she can, then he should be fine.

For more information, feel free to contact me directly for further information at 818 609 1953 or [email protected]. This case is complex and it's important to work with a lawyer to make it right. This brief information is not enough to work with and can't be relied on as there is much more for her to know and to do.

Sincerely,