> I know this is a forum mostly for British expatriots but I was advised
> to ask for help here.
>
> To give a little background, I'm American and my wife is Canadian. We
> met on the intraweb and got married, and she moved here. Her
> immigration is still pending. She doesn't have a visa, we decided to
> go right for her green card. This allowed her to move here right away
> rather than waiting for a few months but it came with one hitch. Even
> though she's here legally, she doesn't have a residency status in the
> US so she's not allowed to leave and come back without prior
> permission called advance parole. We were wondering what we could use
> as a reason for her to visit her family for a while and unfortunately
> we got a very good one this morning.
>
> Her grandmother died last night and the funeral is on Wednesday. If we
> go up to Canada without advance parole it's possible, but not
> definite, that she won't be allowed back in the US. If she had a visa
> or green card then she could come and go as she pleases. But without
> either and without advance parole, the border guards could refuse her
> re-entry and the US governemnt could force her to apply for a visa and
> stay in Canada for about 90 days while it's pending. With the death
> certificate it's possible to get emergency advance parol but that
> could take at least a week and we'd have to leave tomorrow. Our lawyer
> tells us it's possible to go and then he could submit the request for
> advance parole and if she has trouble getting back in, it might only
> be a week or two until the advance parole is approved and she can come
> back. However they have the right to say, "You left without getting
> permission first, sucks for you, you have to wait in Canada for a few
> months."
>
> We're going to the USCIS to see if there's any way to get advance
> parole tomorrow, even if it's just for a day or two. I don't want to
> be the reason why my wife can't be with her family during a tragic
> time such as this, but I also don't want to risk losing her for
> several months and potentionally causing trouble for when we have our
> interview for her permanent residency. Right now we have to wait until
> the morning unless we can think of something else.
>
> We talked about this and while we don't want her to have to not be
> there, we don't want to cause problems down the line, whether is just
> a couple months or if it presents a problem during the interview for
> her LNP. We're going to the USCIS in the morning to see if somehow we
> can get advance parole before going anyway. If by some miracle we can,
> then there won't be any complications. If we can't get it, I'd rather
> not risk causing problems with a bad border crossing. As much as my
> wife wants to be with her family right now, I think she knows it's not
> a good thing if we can't do it on the up and up.
>
> Does anyone have any experience with something like this, trying to
> get last minute permission to leave the US while a visa or green card
> is pending? Thanks in advance.
Leaving without advanced parole is considered abandonment of her AOS. I
wouldnt even think of doing that - and her lawyer is giving some crappy
advice by saying "Go ahead and leave - and ill try getting you back in!"
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