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"Cancelled Without Prejudice"...the full story. Can my husband get a green card now?
Hi everyone. I've got a long story made short with hopefully enough information. I'm trying to find out the answer to question 16 on the I-130 form.
A year and a half ago, my then-boyfriend came to the US (from Argentina) to visit me. We ended up getting married while he was here, and we planned on going to live in Argentina after. We were going to wait a year or so to start the process to get his green card in the US. About a week before he was booked to go back to Argentina, we went to Mexico for a day because his Argentine visa allowed it (a silly mistake after doing more research). As we were crossing the border to get back into the United States, my husband was taken aside and questioned. He was forced to stay in the jail cell at the border for two nights until he was told to buy a new flight and was escorted to Los Angeles in hand cuffs to fly back to Argentina.
Although the officers didn't give out any information while my husband was in the cell, we found out afterward that we were supposed to adjust his status after getting married even if we weren't planning on starting the green card paperwork yet. So technically his visa expired as soon as he left the US to go to Mexico (if I understood everything correctly). The day before he left, the immigration police told him that if he buys his own flight then they would not put this incidence in his records and he would be able to apply for another visa and enter the US again. They stamped "CANCELLED WITHOUT PREJUDICE" on his visa and he left. Now, I've been reading up on this a lot and I'm worried that they put notes in their system about the reason for the visa cancelation (even though they said it wouldn't be on his record); I don't trust their word too much after everything that happened.
The reason all of this is relevant is that I want to apply for him to become a permanent resident here. Question number 16 on the I-130 form asks if the relative (my husband) has ever been under immigration proceedings. If I select yes, my options are the following: Removal, Exclusion/Deportation, Rescission, and Judicial Proceedings. He doesn't necessarily fall under any of those categories...the closest would be "Removal," but from what I understand that also implies he is barred from entry for 5 or 10 years, which he's not. And I don't know if I should put "No" because he supposedly has a "clean" record and they wouldn't have any information about the incident. Any help would be appreciated...I don't have much money to my name at the moment, so I'm attempting to find an answer without having to hire a lawyer. Any suggestions for other ways to get cheap lawyer help is also appreciated. Thank you, and cross your fingers for us!
A year and a half ago, my then-boyfriend came to the US (from Argentina) to visit me. We ended up getting married while he was here, and we planned on going to live in Argentina after. We were going to wait a year or so to start the process to get his green card in the US. About a week before he was booked to go back to Argentina, we went to Mexico for a day because his Argentine visa allowed it (a silly mistake after doing more research). As we were crossing the border to get back into the United States, my husband was taken aside and questioned. He was forced to stay in the jail cell at the border for two nights until he was told to buy a new flight and was escorted to Los Angeles in hand cuffs to fly back to Argentina.
Although the officers didn't give out any information while my husband was in the cell, we found out afterward that we were supposed to adjust his status after getting married even if we weren't planning on starting the green card paperwork yet. So technically his visa expired as soon as he left the US to go to Mexico (if I understood everything correctly). The day before he left, the immigration police told him that if he buys his own flight then they would not put this incidence in his records and he would be able to apply for another visa and enter the US again. They stamped "CANCELLED WITHOUT PREJUDICE" on his visa and he left. Now, I've been reading up on this a lot and I'm worried that they put notes in their system about the reason for the visa cancelation (even though they said it wouldn't be on his record); I don't trust their word too much after everything that happened.
The reason all of this is relevant is that I want to apply for him to become a permanent resident here. Question number 16 on the I-130 form asks if the relative (my husband) has ever been under immigration proceedings. If I select yes, my options are the following: Removal, Exclusion/Deportation, Rescission, and Judicial Proceedings. He doesn't necessarily fall under any of those categories...the closest would be "Removal," but from what I understand that also implies he is barred from entry for 5 or 10 years, which he's not. And I don't know if I should put "No" because he supposedly has a "clean" record and they wouldn't have any information about the incident. Any help would be appreciated...I don't have much money to my name at the moment, so I'm attempting to find an answer without having to hire a lawyer. Any suggestions for other ways to get cheap lawyer help is also appreciated. Thank you, and cross your fingers for us!
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