Oak Lawn Immigration Attorney | Lawful Permanent Residence or LPR Application

The most often asked question that an attorney receives regarding immigration is about the application for Lawful Permanent Residence. Many individuals prefer to this as a green card application. The application for Lawful Permanent Residence status or LPR status can be granted in one of a number of ways. You can apply for lawful permanent resident status based upon a family relationship, employment, asylum, for legalization for set group of people by an act of Congress. Most individuals use the family relationship status as the basis for their application as an LPR. Many individuals have their LPR requests denied because of improper applications or a lack of proper evidence supporting their application. Immigration attorneys will tell you they receive a good number of phone calls from individuals who are now having problems with USCIS because of improper applications or lack of proper evidence. Improper petition can create harsh consequences for the applicant and he may suffer a penalty period as a result of the improper application. Application for LPR status starts with the petition. The most common petition is a family petition. Under a family petition you'll need a family member to sponsor your application. In fact, the family member is treated as the actual application. For family-based immigrants there are five categories of applications. The best category to fall under is called an "immediate relative". As an immediate relative you are given the preferential option of adjusting your status. The main benefit of adjusting your status is that you can be physically present in the United States and still receive an approval on your LPR application which will allow your status to be adjusted to a lawful permanent resident.

After the "immediate relative" category comes the traditional preference categories for family based immigrants. The first preference category includes unmarried sons and daughters of US citizens. The second preference category include spouses and children of LPR's, and unmarried sons and daughters of LPR's. The third preference category includes married sons and daughters of US citizens. Finally, the fourth preference category includes brothers and sisters of US citizens. These four preference categories are used to determine when a visa will become "immediately available" for the individual applying. The preference category uses a concept called "priority date" in which the individuals application will be set as the applicant's priority date and that individual would have to wait until his priority date becomes currents in order for his application to be ready to proceed. For information on what priority dates our current for which category the Department of State posts on their website the current priority date statuses.

If you believe you have a family member would like to apply for LPR status and need assistance contact the Law Office of Jonathan W. Cole at 708-529-7794 and schedule a free consultation to speak with an immigration attorney to assist you with your application. LPR applications can be difficult and confusing to do not risk your chances of receiving the benefits of lawful permanent resident status by fumbling through the application alone.

Oak Lawn Immigration Attorney | Petitioning For A Family Member

This is going to be a quick post, but it is based on the frustration that I am finding with the job other attorneys have done with them. I have had a number of clients come into my office, asking about their petition for alien relative. It is mostly brothers and sisters of U.S. citizens who come to me and ask about the status of their I-130. I let them know that the priority date is what is crucial for these petitions. When they look through their paperwork for the priority date, I notice that they did not file a I-485 Application for Permanent Resident Status. I ask them how they applied, and the response was always: WITH AN ATTORNEY! I could not believe it. It is crucial that you speak to an attorney who handles immigration law. In most cases, you should file both your alien relative petition and your permanent resident card at the same time. This will expedite your permanent resident card approval and the time needed to become a full U.S. citizen. Speak to a qualified attorney by calling the Law Office of Jonathan W. Cole at (708) 529-7794.

Law Office of Jonathan W. Cole
5013 W. 95th St.
Oak Lawn, IL 60453
(708) 529-7794

Chicago Immigration Attorney | You Don't Have to Leave Because your Spouse Died!

The Problem: You Marry a U.S. Citizen and are living in the U.S. but your spouse dies in an accident. Your Spouse has not filed a qualifying family member I-130 petition.

The Old Result: TOO BAD. You do not Qualify for a self petition or adjustment of status.

New Laws Result: You Can Self Petition!


This is extremely exciting news for many widows and widowers throughout the  U.S. The reason is that many spouses who would otherwise receive their Permanent Resident Status if their spouse was still alive were being deported. Under the new law, if you Timely file your application for a "green card", you can ride on the application, or potential application, of your deceased spouse.

This will allow many families to continue their dream to live in America, even in the event of an untimely death of their U.S. family "anchor". Section 204(l) of the Immigration and Nationality Act now allows Immediate Family Members and Derivative Family Members the importunity to petition for permanent resident status.

The Caveat: You must be a resident in the U.S.

The residency requirement means that you must have established yourself inside of the U.S. before your spouse passes. In order to establish residency, things such as a home purchase, school registration or a job help show that you intended to remain inside the U.S.

What should you take from this law?

You can stay inside the U.S., even if your citizen spouse passes away. BUT You must act quickly to ensure that your time to petition does not expire. You should call an immigration attorney who can help you with your petition for lawful permanent residence status. If you are in the Chicago-land area call:


Law Office of Jonathan W. Cole
5013 W. 95th St. 
Oak Lawn, IL 60453
(708) 529-7794

Illinois Immigration Law | Family Sponsored Immigration

You would like to bring your family to live with you in Illinois. This post will help you figure out if you can do that. As always, I would recommend that you call me, Jonathan W. Cole, at (708)529-7794 to get personalized legal help. I have always said that when an issue is as important as family, you should always consult an attorney. You don't want to take any chances when you don't have to. In order to to be eligible to petition for for an immediate relative, the sponsoring family member must be able to provide evidence of citizenship or lawful permanent resident status, as well as evidence that he or she can financially support the immediate relative. The  sponsoring family member must be able to complete Form I-864. The department of State charges a fee of $70.00 when the affidavit of support is reviewed domestically. If the affidavit is filed abroad, there is no fee for this forms review.

Spouses - If you are attempting to bring a spouse to Illinois, you must first have form I-130 Petition for Alien Relative completed. This form helps the reviewers confirm that the marriage is bona fide, that property is jointly owned, and documentation of finacial comingling.

Children - All eligible children must also have a form I-130 filled out on their behalf. The filing fee for this form is $355.00.

Parents and Siblings - As above, Parents must have a I-130 form filled out on their behalf, filled out by a son or daughter. When the parents are not in the U.S., one the form is approved, the parent will be advised to go tothe U.S. consulate to complete processing for an immigrant visa.

In order to not give you information overload, I will cut this post off here. Look for more information in upcoming posts. I understand that the immigration process can be imtimidating and frustrating. Take your time and be thourough. It is better to make sure your application is perfect the first time than rush your application and make a mistake that will deny your request. If you would like to know more about immigration law. Contact me at:

Law Office of Jonathan W. Cole
5013 W. 95th St.
Oak Lawn, IL 60463
(708) 529-7794