What Can Go Wrong With A Simple Adjustment Case? The Birth Certificate

anna sergeeva, esq.

Anna Sergeeva, Esq. JQKLaw.com Anna@JQKLaw.com

When a client comes to you for an initial consultation, and you quote a fee for a “simple” adjustment of status case, you still may not know what’s “there.” Only after getting documents and finding out that your client does not have a birth certificate or a birth certificate was late-registered do you realize that the case will require more work (which you may not get paid for). Many find themselves in this situation. Below, you will find some practical tips on what to watch for in a birth certificate.the extra time gained, he could focus on what he enjoys most: getting to know his clients and expanding his practice.

Get It In ASAP

One of the first documents you might want to look at is your client’s birth certificate (of course, assessing the client’s admissibility is crucial, but we are not discussing it here). You get this green, brown, or blue booklet or page, look at the translation, and realize that it may cause a problem for your case.

Why It Is Important

A birth certificate is one of the documents proving someone’s identity and relationships through their name, date and place of birth, and parent’s names.

USCIS views Birth certificates with delayed, amended, and midwife birth registrations as having a high potential for fraud and is much more critical of them than the Consulates. If USCIS does not accept the document, they will deny the adjustment of status application.

Things to Watch Out For

1. When the birth was registered: If there is more than one year between the birth date and its registration date, USCIS most likely considers the birth certificate “late” or “delayed.” However, the BIA in 2017 said that this one-year “bright-line standard has no basis in the regulations or our precedent.” Matter of Rehman, 27 I&N Dec. 124 (BIA 2017).

Once the “late birth certificate” determination is made, secondary evidence is required. In most cases, it is better to proactively submit secondary evidence and not wait for USCIS to send an RFE. General secondary evidence for the adjustment cases includes religious, medical, and school records and affidavits from people having personal knowledge of the birth.

was issued: As long as the birth was registered timely, USCIS will most likely accept the recently issued birth certificate.

3. The birth certificate must match the Department of State’s Visa Reciprocity Schedule for the country where the birth certificate was issued. Requirements are set for the format, issuing authority, security features, the title of the issuing person, and other features and vary significantly from country to country. Your client may present an acceptable birth certificate according to her country, but the U.S might not accept that birth certificate. For example, French nationals will typically provide you with their EU birth certificate with multiple languages on the document itself. However, the proper acceptable birth certificate should be issued by their local municipality at birth.

Another example is for South Korean applicants, where two documents have to be provided: the Basic Certificate (Detailed) “Gibon Jeungmyongseo (Sang Sae)” and Family Relation Certificate (Detailed) “Gajok Kwankye Jeungmyongseo (Sang Sae).”

Unfortunately, the Visa Reciprocity Schedule does not always match the reality of the birth certificate or the procedures for obtaining it. For some cases, including a highlighted Visa Reciprocity printout for a specific country may save you the hassle of dealing with the issue later.

4. Where required by the Visa Reciprocity, make sure to provide a long-form birth certificate. Your client may face trouble getting her long-form birth certificate in time from some countries. You must plan for it ahead of time, especially for adjustment cases based on a marriage to a lawful permanent resident.

3. Verify that the place of birth and parents’ names match on all client’s documents. Sometimes we see different places of birth or spellings on birth certificates and passports. That would raise a concern on the part of USCIS regarding the validity of your client’s documents.

5. Don’t forget to do the translations! Lack of translation will cause a delay in your client’s case. It might be prudent to supplement a translation even for a birth certificate with multiple languages, including English. We have seen that with the birth certificates from Ireland.

6. Make sure the names are spelled consistently throughout the paperwork, including translations. Translators may use different transliteration rules, and that may cause inconsistency.

7. For some adjustment cases, DNA testing may be needed to prove the qualifying relationship exists.

8. If the birth certificate is unavailable, in addition to secondary evidence, a Non-Availability Certificate might be required from the proper authorities, depending on the issuing country.

9. Finally, sending a simple color copy of a birth certificate instead of a black-and-white one is preferred. It may cost you an RFE.

Our job as zealous advocates include catching things before USCIS does. Also, considering the current state of play, immigration attorneys can help beat USCIS backlogs by presenting the most appealing and easy-toadjudicate cases. Anna is an associate immigration attorney at JQK Law Firm, headquartered in Los Angeles, CA. As a first-generation immigrant from Belarus, Anna is passionate about immigration law. She primarily practices in the fields of family and employment-based immigration. Before receiving a Master of Laws (LL.M.) degree from William & Mary Law School, Anna obtained her first law degree from Belarusian State University in Minsk, Belarus. Anna is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) and admitted to the District of Columbia Bar. Anna loves playing tennis, dancing, gardening, and going on hikes with her husband and two sons.

Resources

• Department of State’s Visa Reciprocity Schedule (https:// travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/ us-visas/Visa-Reciprocity-and-CivilDocuments-by-Country.html)

• USCIS Policy Manual, 7 USCIS-PM Chapter 4 A.3.: “Officers should check the Department of State’s Country Reciprocity Schedule to determine availability of birth certificates as well as acceptable secondary evidence of birth for specific countries.” (https://www. uscis.gov/policy-manual/volume-7part-a-chapter-4)

• 8 CFR 103.2(b)(2) and 8 CFR 204.2 (v) briefly talks about submitting secondary evidence.

• Matter of Rehman, 27 I&N Dec. 124 (BIA 2017) https://www. justice.gov/eoir/page/file/997411/ download

• Matter of Serna, 16 I&N Dec. 643, 645 (BIA 1978) https://www. justice.gov/sites/default/files/eoir/ legacy/2012/08/17/2681.pdf