http://public.findlaw.com
|
http://public.findlaw.com
|
| Thursday, Jul. 24, 2008 |
A nonimmigrant temporarily enters the United States for a specific purpose such as business, study, temporary employment or pleasure. When you are admitted into the United States, a U.S. official will assign you a nonimmigrant category according to the purpose of your visit. If you want to change the purpose of your visit while you are in the United States, then you or (in some cases) your employer must ask the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to change your nonimmigrant status. For instance, if you arrived here as a tourist, but want to become a student, you must submit an application to change your status with the USCIS. If you do not apply to change your nonimmigrant status, you will be breaking U.S. immigration laws. Proof that you are willing to obey U.S. laws may be important if you want to travel to the United States as an immigrant or nonimmigrant in the future. You may also become subject to removal (deportation) if you break U.S. immigration laws.
In general, you may apply to change your nonimmigrant status if you were lawfully admitted into the United States with a nonimmigrant visa, your nonimmigrant status remains valid, and you have not committed any crimes that would make you ineligible.
You may not apply to change your nonimmigrant status if you were admitted to the United States in the following visa categories:
(VWPP) - Visa Waiver Pilot Program
(or the Guam Visa Waiver Program)
D - As a crewman
C - As an alien in transit or in transit without a visa
K - As a fiancé(e) or spouse of a U.S. citizen or dependent
of a fiancé(e) or spouse
S - As an informant (and accompanying family) on terrorism
or organized crime
If you are an international exchange visitor (J visa category) you may not change your nonimmigrant status if you were admitted to the United States to receive graduate medical training, unless you receive a special waiver. In addition, some exchange visitors must meet a foreign residence requirement before they are allowed to change status.
If you are a vocational student (M visa category), you may not apply to become an academic student (F visa category). You also may not apply to change from the vocational student visa category to a temporary worker visa category (H) if it was the training you received as a vocational student in the United States that made you qualified for the temporary worker position.
You do not need to apply to change your nonimmigrant status if you were admitted into the United States for business reasons (B-1 visa category), and you wish to remain in the United States for pleasure before your authorized stay expires.
If you are in the United States as the spouse or child of someone in the following nonimmigrant visa categories, you do not need to apply to change your status if you wish to attend school in the United States (as long as your parent or spouse maintains their original nonimmigrant status).
A - Diplomatic and other government
officials, and their families and employees.
E - International Trade and Investors
G - Representatives to international organizations and their
families and employees.
H - Temporary Workers
I - Representatives of foreign media and their families
J - Exchange Visitors and their families
L - Intracompany Transferees
If you are in the United States as the spouse or child of someone in the F (Academic Student) or M (Vocational Student) visa category, you do not need to apply to change your status if you wish to attend elementary, middle, or high school in the United States. If you wish to attend post-secondary school full-time, you must apply for change of status.
For the following categories of nonimmigrants, your employer should carefully read and file a USCIS Form I-129 (Petition for Nonimmigrant Worker) and any required supporting documentation:
E - International Traders and
Investors
H - Temporary Workers
L - Intracompany Transferees
O - Aliens of Extraordinary Ability
P - Entertainers and Athletes
Q - Participants in International Exchange Programs
R - Religious Workers
TN - Canadians and Mexicans Under NAFTA
If you are in the following nonimmigrant categories, you should carefully read and complete USCIS Form I-539 (Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status) and submit any required supporting documents:
A - Diplomatic and other government
officials, and their families and employees.
B - Temporary visitors for business or pleasure.
F - Academic Students and their families
G - Representatives to international organizations and their
families and employees.
I - Representatives of foreign media and their families
J - Exchange Visitors and their families
M - Vocational Students and their families
N - Parents and children of the people who have been granted
special immigrant status because their parents were employed by an
international organization in the United States.
The application and correct fee should be mailed to the USCIS Service Center that serves the area where you are temporarily staying. If your nonimmigrant category is work-related, then the application and correct fee should be mailed to the USCIS Service Center that serves the area where you will work.
If your employer files USCIS Form I-129 (Petition for Alien Worker) for you, then your spouse and child must carefully read and complete USCIS Form I-539 (Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status) and submit any required supporting documents to change to a new nonimmigrant category. It is best to submit both forms at the same time.
You may include your spouse and any unmarried children under the age of 21 in your USCIS Form I-539 application if you are all in the same nonimmigrant category, or if your spouse or children were given derivative nonimmigrant status. Derivative nonimmigrant status means that your spouse and children were given nonimmigrant visas based on your nonimmigrant status. For instance, if a student is given an F-1 "Academic Student" visa, then the spouse and child are given F-2 "Spouse and Child of an Academic Student" visas.
You should apply as soon as you determine that you need to change to a different nonimmigrant category. Please note, you must apply to change your nonimmigrant category before your current nonimmigrant status expires. Also, do not start new employment without first being approved for your change of status. The date your status expires can be found in the lower right-hand corner of your Form I-94 (Arrival-Departure Record). You should have received a Form I-94 when you legally entered the United States.
If you are late filing for a change of nonimmigrant status and your current status has already expired, you must prove that:
If your application to change you nonimmigrant status is denied, you will receive a letter that will tell you why the application was denied. You will not be allowed to appeal a negative decision to a higher authority. However, you may submit a motion to reopen or a motion to reconsider with the same office that made the unfavorable decision. By filing these motions, you are asking the office to either reexamine or reconsider their decision. A motion to reopen must state the new facts that are to be provided in the reopened proceeding and must be accompanied by affidavits or other documentary evidence. A motion to reconsider must establish that the decision was based on an incorrect application of law or USCIS policy, and further establish that the decision was incorrect based on the evidence in the file at the time the decision was made.
Source: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services