Doubts in status adjustment - out-of-status tourist visa married to American

[Ericobaloni]

Dear friends of the group.

I am in the USA with a B2 tourist visa. I entered the USA in February 2018. I had applied for a tourist visa extension last year and this extension was denied. After this request my friend directed me to pay a paralegal who filed a motion request to reopen the case and prevent me from being called by the court. I filed the motion request to request the extension of the tourist stay in June 2019, it was accepted, I received the protocol and after that I received no more letters.

During this time I got engaged and married in early October. I now intend to enter my status adjustment and apply for my Green Card. My question is, does anyone suggest that I apply for the Green Card with the help of an immigration lawyer, or I could apply and fill out these forms and documents on my own, as some people say they do not see the need for a lawyer, because what he does I would do just fill in the forms, as I have no pending deportation orders. Could someone guide me what I should do more safely?

Thank you all.

[bhunti]

Go through this thread, if you feel comfortable then prepare the forms. They are simple but need multiple attachments. Lawyer isn't required if you do not have any complicated immigration history and do not have any criminal records.

https://www.immihelp.com/forum/adjustment-of-status-i-485/178298-links-evidence-of-bona-fide-marriage-for-i-130-i-485-filing-interview-tips

Start with the threads, download all the forms and then start filling them. If you get stuck ask here. Folks are very helpful.

[Stormlead86]

Firstly if you are married to a US citizen, then you don't have to be in status, people pending deportation can also file new 130/485 if they are married to US citizen.

now for the documentation, a lawyer will charge upwards of 2500 USD, the documentation is not very complicated but one mistake and the entire set will be rejected by USCIS. So, some people prefer using attorney (like i did). its up to you completely.

bhunti shared a link, that and the other sticky posts here has a lot of tips about filing. go through them and see if you can fill up the forms like 130, 485, 765. 131, 130A, 864 and 864A.

Best of luck.