CASE: Marriage-Based Adjustment of Status
CLIENT: Filipina
LOCATION: Las Vegas, NV
Our client, a J-1 teacher from the Philippines, was subject to the two-year foreign residency requirement. She wished to file for adjustment of status concurrently with her spouse’s I-130 petition, but the requirement necessitated obtaining a waiver first.
Unlike other J-1 clients, she couldn’t pursue a waiver through a No Objection Statement or Interest Government Agency. Instead, she pursued a J-1 waiver based on her spouse’s exceptional hardship.
After retaining our firm, we filed an exceptional hardship waiver request with the Department of State on July 13, 2021. Our office prepared a comprehensive brief, an affidavit from our client, and other supporting documents, including extensive medical records for her spouse. On July 16, 2021, we filed an I-612 application with USCIS, arguing that her spouse would face exceptional hardship if she returned to the Philippines for two years.
On November 23, 2021, USCIS issued a Request for Evidence (RFE) for additional documentation regarding her husband. Our office responded to the RFE on January 24, 2022, and USCIS approved her I-612 waiver on July 12, 2023. While the J-1 waiver was pending, our client retained us for her green card application. Our firm filed the I-130 Petition and I-485 Application on March 20, 2023. On June 8, 2025, her green card application was approved.