I know a Dominican woman who attended high school in the USA for a short period of time (sorry, do not have the specifics) but she was a minor while attending. Currently she lives in the DR, definitely a barrio gal, family doesn't seem to have a lot of money... would anyone know what her visa status would be? Would she have a green card (still)? I am not American so don't know too much about the residency/visa/citizenship situation. Would she be able to go back to the US if she wanted to? Thanks in advance if anyone can shed any light on this. The only other info I have is that her father is "en el exterior" but I do not know if he is in the US or another country.
- Thread starter nanita
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Any idea what her visa status is?
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asked that way, this question can not be answered.
is she USA Born? under what "status" did she attend highschool? under a "student visa thingy" or as a US born child or...?
if she is an adult now, what kind of papers/documentation does she have? passport of which country?
Mike
is she USA Born? under what "status" did she attend highschool? under a "student visa thingy" or as a US born child or...?
if she is an adult now, what kind of papers/documentation does she have? passport of which country?
Mike
No, a green card is a permanent residency card, it is not a visa. They are good forever, as long as the holder does not commit a serious crime or leave the country for a long time.
The answer probably lies with the person that got her visa in the first place. It matters if dad is a citizen or resident. It's more likely that dad was a resident, and didn't follow through on residency or adjust her status. Age and marital status matters, too. He may have also decided it wasn't working, and sent her back. Her visa depended on him, so any chance of re-establishing it would probably depend on him.
Take a look at this:
Family of Green Card Holders (Permanent Residents) | USCIS
Then there's the possibility that paperwork was not entirely legit.
She is not likely the child of a citizen, or she would know it.
My step daughters green card is valid for ten years and must be renewed if she does not obtain her U.S. citizenship.
The rules are complicated and then there are even more complicated ways to get around them. For instance my wife has a green card but doesn't much care for the U.S. so she also has a re-entry permit that allows her to remain out of the U.S. for more than 6 months at a time. She travels with a Dominican passport. From what I understand Dominican passports are relatively quick and easy to obtain. In the OPs friends case, if she didn't have U.S. citizenship, she could easily get a new Dominican passport if her old one has expired but would probably have a hard time getting through immigration in the U.S. using her green card if she has been out of the country for long. If she does not have a green card the problems multiply.
Right, I'm assuming that she only has a Dominican passport. To be clearer if she has her (old) Dominican passport, you could tell what type of visa she had. But that would probably be too easy.
The problem comes in that a child, obviously, depends on the adult to do paperwork, and after all this time really doesn't know what her status was.
To even begin to reapply, you'd have to start with basic information, which likely she doesn't have.
She can visit the USCIS office at the US Embassy in Santo Domingo. Once there, she can fill out a form to find out what her "A" number is. Once she has that, they should be able to check the system to determine her status. The office is open Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8-11am. No appointment is necessary.
Many thanks. She was not US born. Wondering how she was able to attend high school in the US; perhaps it was through her father. No idea if he is a US citizen or resident… Again, since I am unclear on US immigration policy, I was hoping to find out if she could go back to the US or not; maybe I don't have enough information to determine a clear yes or no on this.
Seems weird you want to get detailed information about someone you can provide little information about, it doesn't really add up?!?!?
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