steUK

hi guys
new here......and not sure where to start !
so i will try to just be honest and HOPE that someone can point me in a direction where i can not only get help, but wont get kicked out of the glorious US.

info:
had a 7 year old business in the UK.
profitable, decided to try making it in the US as a much larger market.
saw an immigration advisor in the US (not a lawyer) who said that i can apply for some kind of 5 year business visa to start a company in the US.
so we paid him $7600 ($3800 for myself and the other 3800 for my Canadian fiance) to apply for us. he said he will apply for mine first - and once approved they add my fiance as a worker for the company.
he said with a strong biz in the UK, and starting the same biz in US is kinda easy and i should easily be accepted. have to invest $500k here in assets as a good start - so we did that (imported product, bought 2 cars, and paid a $100k deposit for a new house build).
so he then set up a CORP for me, we opened a business bank account, filed prev year taxes to get a ITIN number, and wanted to start trading.
couldnt start as we didnt have social sec number and couldnt get a c.card machine, so we have opened the website and started trading on amazon and ebay while this is all going on in the background.

so to confirm our commitment to making it work in the US, we sold our house in the uk, and 'moved' here last May. renting til our house is built, travelling from the UK and canada for family etc, using the visa waiver scheme, every 3 months. each time we came back it was more questions at passport control but they let me in each time as i showed them paperwork for the biz and house we are building.

now comes the problems. and i think they are bad, but also hoping fixable.

went back to the UK october 07. lots of hassle with the biz, my workers in the UK were stealing, and screwing the business up so badly, i had to close it in november 07. there was minimal debt. so now i dont have a UK company any more. however i had lots of stock, had no choice and brought ALL my stock to the US worth some 1/2 mill dollars futher (so total $1m approx in assets here now). its here, cleared customs, and in storage.

now, the immigration guy did NOT send my application in on time, even tho i paid, he didnt even start it til i got back here in October teling me his worker (who had been fired) didn t mail it and he would do it for me. so i trusted him, waited, and finally in January he got a letter on our behalf asking for data about connecting the US and UK companies.

next problem, because he has dragged his heels, for whatever reason, i am now WAY beyond my 90 day visa waiver. so in january 2008 before the 90 days were up, we went to see him, paid $700, and he applied to extend our stay until july. so far NO letter from the US saying we can stay, or go. nada. remember i am a UK citizen and my fiance is canadian (she had 90 days more than me i think on B1....anyways).

its now june, still no letter from the US saying its OK to stay after the 90 days, no word about our business visa application, and i got very worried about not hearing anything at all so called immigration directly. they told me my 90 day visa waiver is not extendable under any circumstanes, even tho the immigration advisor i have been seeing said its OK to be here while i am 'in process' so im very confused about that.

however the next guy tells me that coz im here and not supposed to be, i can get a ban ! and i already sold my house in the UK, invested my money, stock and time into the US hoping to make it work, intending to employ amercians as required (i have 2 peolpe ready to start work but cant do anything yet as i dont have status or SS#).

on top of that we had until 29 march to file our docs for the UK/US connection, they were sent in, and we dont have an answer about that either.

so the situation is so way off course from what it was a year ago, im stuck.
no UK business any more, no UK home any more, all stock here, overstayed my waiver, no reply about the visa app or the extension, cant trade properly as reliant on c.card machine for website and cant get it yet, stuck basically surviving on ebay and amazon until the paperwork comes thru by using bank account and paypal, house builder wont start our new home now since we dont have a perm loan in place (all the mortgae rules changed, a year ago we were good, but the regs have changed and so has my situation) as no SS# or uk company to back it, no way to get even a basic mortgage, oh and my kids are coming here in 3 weeks for 7 weeks and hope they wont get crap at the border. they are aged 7 and 12, flying with a BA chaperone. will customs ask them who they are visiting and why not with a parent ?

so lots of problems, situations, and questions.

im not a crook or otherwise negative influence. im a solid entrepreneur of 15 years.
i am trying to make what was a very successful UK biz work as a startup in the US, but with so many situations and rules/regs changing and a bloody slow immigration advisor, im not sure if ive shot myself in the foot because other people have failed on me.
i cant go home to the uk - its sold !
i cant leave the US cuz they prob wont let me back as i overstayed, so really, im looking for help !
serious help.

i want to stay here - i love america and will make my business succeed here, however im unsure where i stand with all the above going on and all the changes to my circumstance.

will the US be lenient ? will they understand i ahve been shat on ? will they want me to get rid of all my investment and stock here ? will i have to leave ?
this is an odd case and i am pretty desperate....

i dont want to be deported, i didnt do anything wrong, i have paid for services that havent been delivered, and the guy even told me, if my app is unsiuccessful, we apply again and while in process they cant ship me out.

im confused, concerned, and even more so now that my kids are coming here, im afraid the customs guys at the passport control will ask too many questions and not let them in OR somehow get hold of me when all i have done is wait, pay, and survive as best i can untll i know what to do.
i dont want them to deny entry to my kids.

im desperate.....
thanks
J

PS, my fiance has dual citizenship (canadian and italian). she is going to italy in august. she will jave outstayed here 6 months by the time she has left. will customs prevent her from coming back in ? could or should she use her italina passport instead of canadian ? again not trying to dodge anything here, just until we get our paperwork thru IF it comes...... thanks

ian-mstm

Sadly, this is where the problem started.


I believe this is correct.


To ease your mind a bit... if you are in the US after the 90 day expiry date on the VW but *prior* to 180 days beyond that date, there is no ban. If you are in the US beyond 180 days but prior to 365 days, you face a 3-year ban. If you are in the US beyond 365 days, you face a 10-year ban.


Without getting too personal, do you think it's wise to have the children come to the US when you yourself have no idea of your own status? Things may very quickly go belly up for you (yes, even worse than it is now) and the children may get stuck in the middle.


Seriously, you need to speak to a qualified immigration attorney. This is not a do-it-yourself project, and you need advice well beyond that which you can get in a forum populated mostly by lay persons.


Sadly, US immigration is not known for its compassion.


Canadian citizens can stay in the US up to 180 days with no formal paperwork. On an Italian passport, her allowable time in the US would be far more restricted.

Good luck to you!

Ian

MsElui

i totally agree wth Ian. This is far more complex than the likes of us could ever hope to get our heads fully around.


See an immigration lawyer asap. You need to sort out your status so you lessen the chance you incur a ban. and before you bring the kids over.

take every piece of paperwork too. good luck!

Tracym

www.ailalawyer.com

Make sure you get an attorney experienced in US immigration.

fatbrit

Liquidate what's left of your assets and go home.

steUK

HI IAN THANK YOU.
IN FACT THANKS TO YOU ALL.

i got here at the middle of october - i believe the 180 days are already up, however prior to the 90 days we did pay and apply to extend the stay with no reply thus far.
does this mean i am now facing this 3 year ban ? or because i paid for the extension and didnt get a reply yet, does it mean i have some time at least ?

thank you
J

meauxna

There is NO extension of the VWP entry. B visa entries can get an extension, but you do not have a B visa. You'd know if you did; you would have interviewed for this in London. You also would have most likely been given a 6 month entry.

Do you have copies of your own of everything that has been filed on your behalf so far? If not, can you get them?

Octang Frye

I am amazed by the number of people who visit these boards who have the gumption to run a successful business, yet are woefully ignorant of the US immigration laws. All of this information is available by doing a couple of hours of research on the web. It's very simple.

To the OP, you've put the cart before the horse and this is going to be a costly mistake for you.
You can't do the things you have been doing under the visa waiver programme. You have violated the terms of the programme.
You cannot "pay to extend it" - that's a nonsense.

You came here under false pretenses and your best bet is to liquidate your assets and go back to blighty. You say that you have been pooped on - not really. You pooped on yourself.

Good luck on your return journey and getting your old business back up and running.

steUK

no sir this isnt correct, nor an option.
we sought the advice BEFORE leaving the UK and buying a home etc.
he is either dragging his heels or lying. either way i was crapped on by him IF he is wrong.
i trust people that have ben in the industry like him for 20 years, what else can ya do.

anyways if there is any light at the end of the tunnel please let me know.
would marrying my canadian fiance be an angle ?
we plan to marry next year, if i bring it forward, do oyu think it feasible to make a new app in that scenario?

thanks

newXgate

Just to clarify what others have said:

1. There is no provision for extending the VWP at all.
2. Because of this you are out of status and technically illegally present in the USA.
3. From the point of view of the USCIS it is completely irrelevant that your immigration lawyer misled you about the visa extension, or that you applied for an extension believing their advice. You are out of status and that is that. There is nothing to be gained by trying to argue the point with them.
4. If you overstayed by 180+ days you are barred from the USA for three years from the date of your departure. No exceptions (at least in your case judging by the facts we have). Bear in mind that it is a TEN year ban if your overstay is 365+ days.

IMHO your best bet is to leave as soon as you can. You can contact AILA and get a short consultation with an immigration lawyer but any reputable one will reiterate what has been said here. Leaving quickly will prevent a ten year ban and will start the 3 year clock ticking down sooner. Hopefully you can restart your business in the UK and work towards moving to the USA when you are eligible to return in three years time if you still wish to do so.

You should also be aware that you can never ever enter the USA again without a visa (ie no VWP) because you overstayed in the past. Make sure you keep evidence of your departure such as a boarding pass for any future visa applications.

Sorry this has happened to you, it is not the first time people's lives have been messed up by dodgy immigration lawyers.

newXgate

Marrying your fiancé won't help your USA immigration status in the short term but have you considered living in Canada ? Might be easier to relocate your business assets there too.

Octang Frye

I'm just saying you could've availed yourself of a lot of correct information
on your own. And saying that you were admitted here under false pretenses is true from the UCIS standpoint, even though you were acting on good faith, albeit on bad advice.

Anyway, I don't want to pile on - I'm sure you've got a ton of things you're beating yourself about or are angry with. Please listen to the people here who have told you you can't extend the VWP. They're speaking the truth. This just isn't an option for you. Your only option is to return home and start planning how to come back the proper way.

Personally, I'd consider suing this clown who gave you patently absurd advice.

Tracym

I think perhaps the 180 days AREN'T up.

You had 90 days that were ok - so say middle of January.

Mid-jan to now is about 5 months - you probably aren't 180 days over.

Of course, do your own math - I don't have the dates

Good immigration attorney right away - and the probably leave the country pretty quick, to stay short of the 180 days.

meauxna

Agree--and use a date calculator to count every day.. a portion of a day in the US is a full day.

ian-mstm

This sounds right to me... it's entirely possible that if his current VW expired in January 2008 that he is still under the 180 day limit for a 3-year ban.

J - if this is true and you are not yet at 180 days, my best advice would be to leave the US before that 180 day mark. Your options are always better if you leave before an automatic ban kicks in.

If you are already over the 180 day mark, you still have a few months to play with since nothing worse will happen to you (vis-a-vis immigration) until you hit the 365 day mark when a 10-year ban will kick in.

Either way, please speak to an immigration lawyer before you leave the US. I really don't know how much wiggle room you have right now, but you must make the best of this situation before it gets any worse.

You've made a lot of very expensive mistakes and trusted the advice of someone who either doesn't fully understand US immigration law... or deliberately misled you. Either way, USCIS does not have a sense of humor or even fair play. USCIS will not care that your intentions were good and that you were, perhaps, misled from day one. It simply will not matter to them. So please, protect whatever options you now have... speak to an immigration attorney.

Ian