Confusion over interview and I601

[teacherlynn]

I am hoping that someone knows more about this and can help me out. My husband was an EWI in 2001 from Albania. He filed for political asylum in the first year he was here but was denied and then appealed. We got married while his appeal was pending and then filed the I-130. It was approved shortly after we learned that his appeal was also denied.
In June he left to go back to Albanian (on his own at no expense to the US). I have filed the petition I864 and it has been reviewed. Currently we are waiting for him to get an interview date at the embassy in Albania.
My biggest confusion is this. I have read that someone who enters the US illegally and stays for more than 180 days can be barred from the US for 10 years without a waiver. While I know that he was considered illegal no matter what, since he filed for political asylum and had a case pending, does that mean that he didn't really stay "illegally?" Is he automatically going to be denied and then asked to submit an I601? Or will they possibly not deny him because while he was here illegally for more than 180 days he was waiting for the asylum decision?
If he is denied and we submit the 601 HSL, how long does that normally take? In the beginning, we had a lawyer who first of all never mentioned the possibility that my husband could be denied due to his EWI and lied to my face on several occasions about papers. I filed the DS230 and I864 on my own and had no problems. However, I am currently in the process of hiring a new lawyer to help me with the 601 waiver. I haven't met with this lawyer yet so have not been able to ask these questions yet. As it gets closer I'm getting more anxious. Did I mention that the lawyer originally told me my husband wouldn't be gone more than 3 months? Obviously I have had to do a lot of research on my own due to so much bad advice in the beginning. If anyone can answer any of these questions I would be truly appreciative. Thank you for reading my post.

Teacherlynn

[emt103c]

Did your husband apply for asylum immediately on getting to the United States or did he apply after some illegal presence or being caught. BTW the ten years without a waiver is actually after 365 days of illegal presence. . .if he was here less time than that he will be eligible for a waiver, good news!

Have you read about Laurel's chat? Is your new attorney EXPERIENCED in 601? You know from past experience that you have to be VERY careful about who you choose. There is a recommended attorney list here:

http://immigrate2us.net/forum/showthread.php?t=889

[teacherlynn]

Thanks for the response. He applied for asylum immediately. So the entire time he was here illegally he was waiting for a pending case. That's why I'm trying to figure out if by the embassy standards he will be considered here illegally or not. It took over 6 years for his asylum and appeal to finish. So pretty much the whole time he was here he was pending a case. He never got caught...he was in the system. Once the appeal was denied and our I130 was approved they (the INS) gave him a date he had to leave by. Any information greatly appreciated.

I don't know about the new lawyer. I'm going to meet with her to learn about her. So many immigration lawyers are slow getting back to you and such, so just the fact that she immediately responded is a good sign. We had a lawyer at one point that would take weeks to respond to a message...so we'll see after March 8th. Thanks again.

[Pinkpig]

Teacherlynn,

You really need to put all of your facts in front of a lawyer that knows what they are doing. Generally speaking if your spouse's case was winding its way through the system there probably was no illegal presence during that time. This really needs to be confirmed with a lawyer. There is no way that we can give you a definite answer. I would highly recommend that you spend the $150 to do a consult with Laurel Scott at visacentral.net. She can give you the right information to move forward with. I think that she has experience with this consulate as well. Since immigration law is federal she can help you and give you some guidance on how to proceed. She is a trusted resource on this site and she knows her stuff. She does a free chat on Wednesdays at 9 AM pacific time. You can ask her questions and she will give you answers. Or you can do a consult with her one on one. Please do not hire any other lawyer until you are sure that they have approved waivers with overseas consulates. There are a few experienced lawyers out there but there are still many others who do not have experience with waivers. Good luck to you and welcome to the site. Ask away and members will give you their opinions but remember that any advice that you receive here is not legal advice.

We have several members on the site who have filed through Albania:

ridvani Vienna Tirana, Albania Approved Y 27-Jul-06 2-Feb-07

Rebecca Walker Vienna Tirana, Albania Denied 16-Aug-06 28-Mar-07

passion0075 Vienna Tirana, Albania Denied 28-Dec-06

cindy101 Vienna Tirana, Albania Approved Y 21-May-07 29-Nov-07

REDaja05 Vienna Tirana, Albania Denied 25-May-07 23-Jan-07

Kaitlyn Vienna Tirana, Albania Pending 2-Nov-07

Mosaic Vienna Tirana, Albania Y

czech Vienna Tirana, Albania Y

Control Vienna Vienna Den'd/Filed Appl 1-Aug-05 3-Jan-07

Anon823 Vienna (Frankfurt) Tirana, Albania Approved 30-Jun-05 13-Mar-06

Paul & Kerri Vienna (Frankfurt)Czech Rep Approved 1-Dec-06 9-Aug-07

Leeannjb Vienna (Rome) Tirana, Albania Approved 17-Jul-07 19-Oct-07

I think that Mosaic is a new member who was looking for others filing through Albania and I know that there is a thread on this site where many members from Albania post.

[emt103c]

I *heart* Pinkpig

[Pinkpig]

:) Thank you, Emt103c. You warm my soul.

[teacherlynn]

Thank you for your advice. The lawyer that I'm going to meet with has had waivers in Albania approved. I haven't hired her yet...I want to meet with her first.

The part that I'm most confused is whether or not he had illegal presence. As you said, he was in the system going through the motions. He had an alien number and social security. I don't know if that really makes a difference or not. I'm just curious if there is a chance he won't be denied since he only stayed while his asylum case was pending. He didn't stay after that. He left as soon as they told him to. I'm going to prepare a waiver just in case but I'm just wondering what the chances are that we will even need it.

[emt103c]

There is a good chance he will not, but only a good attorney who can see all of your paperwork and history is going to be able to tell you for sure.

We only have limited information provided over the internet and very limited knowledge about this aspect of the law. Just make sure you can trust your attorney and they will be able to tell you the answer. If he has no illegal presence, he shouldn't need a waiver.

[teacherlynn]

Thanks. The last lawyer that we used told us that he didn't think it would be a problem and didn't think he would be denied due to his pending asylum case. However, he was going to have us prepare a waiver "just in case." He made it sound like it was a simple form you filled out. The more I look into it I can't believe how much work it's going to be. I don't even know how I'm going to prove extreme hardship. I have some ideas but it just depends on which officer you get that day. I guess I'll know more after I meet with this new lawyer. I really hope it doesn't come down to needing a waiver. Our old lawyer made it sound as though you handed the officer the waiver at your interview and they approved it right then and there. I'm starting to think that's not the case at all. My husband has been gone for over 8 months already.... I really hope it doesn't end up taking too much longer.

[Pinkpig]

If at the interview the consular officer from the Department of State (DOS) decides that you are eligible to file the waiver, many consulates allow you to file it that day. Some do not and you will need to make another appt. to file the waiver, get fingerprints taken whatever. When you file your waiver it is sent on to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) who must approve all waivers. DHS will decide if your waiver will be approved but only after all of your FBI clearances and name checks have been done and all of your A-files (all of the paperwork from all of your experiences with immigration) have arrived and been checked. It is not a fast process. Each case is different and depending on how involved your case is it can take up from approximately 6 months to approximately 18 months for an answer. It at anytime the CO finds that you are not eligible for the waiver or that they need more information it can delay or stop your case. This is why it is imperative to know exactly what your situation is before you start this process. An approved waiver takes a great amount of time to prepare, both on the lawyer's part as well as the USC. Any lawyer that says that you will just prepare a waiver in case it is needed, or says they will prepare a waiver for you for $1500., or says that this process is fast or easy - run as fast as you can from that lawyer. They are not being honest with you. There is some room for interpretation but for the most part proving a hardship to the USC is pretty much spelled out in policy. It really does not depend on how the adjudicating officer feels that day. Some employees can be pretty nasty as times as you go through this process but if the proof is there and your hardships are strong you should be approved. They cannot decide to deny you just because they are nasty or having a bad day. They can make your process a bit harder and they can ruin your day but there are rules and legal precedent for getting a waiver approved. It can be done - it is not fast or easy. Good luck. I wish you the best in your process.