janeth8711

Ryan (my fiance) was born in the UK in May 1983, when he was 8 he moved to the US with his mum and sister. His mum married a US citizen and Ryan and his sister were adopted and given a greencard.
The adoption was finalised when he was about 10, we are going to get all the paperwork together for true dates.
His sister still lives in the US, he says he can remember having a birth certificate which had something about New York on it, although his original was a Uk one.Would that be the case?
Can i just add that i have two children from a previous marriage (they both never have contact with there real so called dad as he moved and has given up rights to them, would Ryan have to adopt them? As i said before we are planning on getting married but would we have to do this before going to the US?

ian-mstm

Him moving and not having contact isn't sufficient. Do you have written proof that your children's father has "given up rights to them"? The father can assert his rights at any time, unless you have a court order (or his written statement) to that effect. You need to be sure about this, as you would normally be required to provide a written statement from the father to remove the children from UK jurisdiction.


No, he doesn't have to adopt them unless he wants to. It's his choice.

Ian

Rete

I'm aware that you and your fiancee are unfamiliar with the terminology and processing of green cards and as such it may only be this that is causing me unease about the above quoted paragraph.

FYI, when his mum came to the US and married, she and the two children did not get automatic green cards. This was obtained only by the filing for adjustment of status based on marriage to a US Citizen. Once approved the green cards were called conditional and good for only two years because the marriage was less then 2 years in length at the time of the interview and approval of adjustment of status. This co-incides with your statement that he was 8 when given the green card.

Now before the end of the 2 year period of the green card the mom and stepfather had to file to have the conditions removed. If approved the mum and kids were given full legal premanent residence status and received new green cards. This co-incides with the 10 year age you mentioned.

Adoption at the age of 10 would mean that he had a new surname and the green card would reflect only that change. And if he and his sister were truly adopted through the US Courts then he and she would have become US Citizens as they fit the critera as to birth date, living arrangements, etc.

What status does his sister have in the US at the present time? Is she still holding a green card or citizenship in the US?


Does his sister still have copies of the other birth certificate mentioning NY on it?

Won't go there for now as others have touched on it.

Your fiancee's case is froth with a lot of questions and seriously, we are more than happy to give a few hints and a path to try but he really needs to gather documentation and have a consultation with an immigration attorney (preferrably in person) to sort this out for him. Only then can you start thinking about what visa he might need if he is not a USC or what visa you and your blended family are going to need if he is a USC.

janeth8711

Im sorry i do understand the greencards terms etc im just trying to get so much information across i keep missing out key facts apologies.
I now have the certificate of foreign birth in front of me, it shows Ryans adoptive dad as the father, circuit court dated May 13th 1994,
the date the record was filed was july 1994.
As far i am aware his sister only holds a british passport but she has no intension to move back to the uk, she is American through and through.
As regards of my childrens dad i do have proof on the court paperwork that states he has no rights.

Rete

Not understanding isn't a problem, Jane, don't apologize. No one, me included, expects you to understand. It is a minefield out there.

A certificate of foreign birth? Wow didn't realize that would be issued for an adoptive child after the adoption. See, learn something new all the time. Was it issued by the UK Consulate?


You seem to have the money for an E-2 business. I really do want to see you consult with an immigration attorney in the UK who specializes in US immigration and naturalization issues. From my end it does seem promising that your fiancee and his sister are already US Citizens and if so that makes life a lot easier for you and less expensive ;-)

crg

Did he (while he had a green card and was also under tha age of 18) reside in the custody of the US citizen parent, on or after February 27, 2001?

janeth8711

Rete thanks for your input its very encouraging as we did not know we could do it this way until yesterday, so glad i joined this forum
I am just worried incase it wont happen as he handed back his greencard, and why didnt he know he was a US citizen??? this is very complicated and i will be looking around for an attorney tomorrow.
Ryans father was an attorney for many years before he retired so im sure he can put us in the right direction for one.
As regards the birth certificate i know he obviously has a uk one and on the florida birth certificate it states that its a certification of vital record!

Thanks again

yes CRG he did

Rete

Those of us who have dealt with immigration issues over a number of years know that you can't rely on the advice or word of anyone employed by the USCIS or its tennacle branches. They saw a green card and a PR who wanted to relinquish residency, they had no way of knowing that this particular person might well be a USC. Probably didn't even know that he was adopted.

Records are data based these days but prior to the war on terror, there was little communication between departments and data bases were minimal.

You can also do a search of the forum for the names of a few UK lawyers who deal with US immigration. It is a question that has been asked several times before and answered.

janeth8711

Thanks, yes were aware of this as we have spoken to the uscis on several occasions and each time given different options, thank goodness i found this forum.

crg

It sounds like he should get documentation together to prove the father adopted him, the father was a USC, he had a green card before, and that they lived together in the US during the time frame we discussed. Package it up and apply for a US passport at the consulate. An N-600 could be submitted after that if he wants stronger evidence of citizenship. It would be a good idea to get it.

Having surrendered LPR status should not matter. People have been ordered deported, lost their green cards, removed from the US, only to find out about this type of situation and then return with their US passport.

janeth8711

Well like i said we have his florida birth certificate and his Dad is sending over the other documents, is it that simple to just apply for a US passport?

crg

It can be that easy. Your fiance's school records may be needed to establish that he was residing there during the time frame in question. The consulate may be able to give him additional examples of documents he can use as proof.

janeth8711

Well thats an easy one as he attended a private catholic school and is dad attends the church, we even have forms to send our children there, fantastic news just keeps getting better thankyou

ian-mstm

I am so very glad for you! We've had the occasional good fortune to help someone come to terms with being a USC when they didn't know it.

Ian

janeth8711

lol thankyou for helping, if it wasn't for your suggetion we would have never known