Upon entering the United States, you must arrive at a lawful port of entry and undergo a valid inspection by a Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer. If you evade this formal inspection process in any way, you may be considered to have illegally entered the country and subsequently have an illegal presence during your indefinite stay. You may want to turn your stay into a legal one by obtaining a green card. Well, in this case, please read on to discover whether you can apply for a green card even if you enter the U.S. without proper inspection, and how one of the experienced Lancaster, PA green card lawyers at Lupton Law LLC can help you avoid trouble with immigration authorities.
Am I eligible to apply for a green card if I entered without inspection?
Generally speaking, you must meet specific eligibility requirements for a green card, such as having proper sponsorship from a family member who is a United States citizen or lawful permanent resident. However, even with the correct backing, you may be disqualified from this opportunity if you entered the country illegally. This is because to adjust your status from inside the country, you must have a legal status to start with. And so, this is impossible to have if you were not adequately inspected and legally admitted or paroled into the U.S. with a certain immigration status.
At this point, for an opportunity at a green card, you may have to undergo consular processing in a country abroad. But the legal risk here is that you may face a long-term reentry ban if your initial illegal entry is unearthed. Therefore, you may have to wait anywhere between three to 10 years to bring forward an application. And even here, given your history of entering without inspection, getting approval is not necessarily guaranteed.
What are the exceptions for unlawful entry into the United States?
Of note, there are very limited exceptions in which the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) may forgive your entry without inspection, making your chances of a green card a little more possible. They read as follows:
- You are protected under the Grandfathering Provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), so you can stay together with your family.
- You are protected under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) as a victim of domestic abuse.
- You qualify for asylum after you fled your home country because of persecution or fear of persecution.
- You qualify for temporary protected status after you fled your home country, experiencing war, disaster, or other unsafe conditions.
While we understand that you may not want to deal with any of this right now, it must be addressed for the sake of you and the life you have built in the U.S. So please allow one of the skilled Lancaster, PA green card lawyers from Lupton Law LLC to make this legal process less burdensome for you overall. We will be happy to help and give you much-needed relief.
