Do it yourself vs. paying an immigration lawyer

[Hemyock100]

I am looking from some input on the K1 (and K2 for the child) visa application from those who have gone through the complete process in the past.  Is it better to do it yourself (if so what the typical pitfalls and what resources do I have) or is it better to pay an immigration lawyer (if so do anyone have any recommendation from personal experience)?

Also does anyone have any idea of the most recent processing times?

Thanks in advance for your help

Cheers

Hemyock

[GoodOlBoy]

Hello Hemyock100. If you are interested in a lawyer, PM (personal message) a member on this forum by the name of William3rd. He will steer you in the right direction. Good Luck.

[bgreed]

Can to read English and comprehend what you read? Can you follow written directions? Is filling out simple forms too difficult a task for you emotionaly or intellectually?

If your answers to the first two are yes and the last no. Then you have your answer. You don't need a lawyer to complete this process. I have done it and so have many others without their assistance.

[Turboguy]

I would highly recommend doing it yourself.   Using a lawyer will slow the process, add a lot to the cost and put you at risk for major problems.   I have heard more horror stories about using a lawyer than you could shake a stick at.

Doing it yourself you fill out the forms and mail it in.  Filling out the forms is as easy as answering the questions they ask such as her name, address etc.  There is really nothing to it.   You have to have the same info using the lawyer but instead of just filling it out and sending it in you send the info to the lawyer where it sits on his desk until he gets around to it then he fills it in and sends it in.  You are out of the loop since the correspondence comes to him.  They do so many they don't seem to be careful so there seems to be a very high incidence of RFE's (request of evidence). 

A good one to ask about the pitfalls of a lawyer is Son of Clyde.  He used two.  The first he fired after a few months of doing nothing and the second who came highly recommended had him pulling his hair out and the RFE he got became a real snag because of the poor communications.   With my first fiancee SOC and I had our applications filed the same day.   I picked up a lot of time in the early stages because of the extra leg in the communications and the mess up with the RFE he got (I have never had an RFE)  SOC did end up getting his visa faster than me but only because Kiev was scheduling interviews faster than Moscow.

If you do decide to use a lawyer there are only two I have much faith in.   One would be William who has already been recommended and the other I have heard good things about is John Roth.  (hopefully I recall the name correctly)

If you want to do it yourself I would highly recommend spending time at www.visajourney.com where all the procedures are laid out in a simple and concise manner and there are a lot of helpful people who will hold your hand and answer even the most stupid questions. 

[Chicagoguy]

I did the K-1 and it was not too bad. Just the time was all I invested. I think the California office is taking about 6 months. Maddening.

I do know a reliable immigration lawyer here in Chicago but I will use him only if I hit a snag - which is always a possibility.

[roykirk]

I filed the initial K-1 petition package myself just recently.  It took me most of a day to compile everything, label everything, sign everything.  When I was done it was 64 pages thick.  But at least I know I did everything myself and I can't blame anyone for not catching an error that could delay the whole process for 6 months.  You will find proponents of using an immigration attorney, but my anecdotal experience from visajourney.com is that a majority of people seem to feel using an attorney is a waste of time and money, and it can actually significantly increase your time line (if you get the wrong one). 

[groovlstk]

If you're going to file yourself, make sure you take the time to do it right the first time. One thing I see on VJ too often is the attitude that if you screw up, it's "don't worry, they'll just send you an RFE and you can resubmit." Meanwhile, you clog up the system for others.

I filed myself and in retrospect the single biggest plus was not $ or time saved, but the crash course in the immigration process and the confidence it gives you as you deal w/the inevitable next steps. You can't help but learn the purposes of the different forms and form #s, how to deal w/the USCIS, what your wife can and can't do as far as work and travel before she gets her green card, the difference between her SS# and Alien Registration#, etc. All of this is like warmup for when you eventually file for AOS. AOS is much more complex and involving than the K1, so if you go w/a lawyer for the K1 you should probably prepare to use a lawyer for AOS too because IMHO you'll probably be lost trying to start from scratch.

[William3rd]

Turboguy- I appreciate your recommendation.

John Roth is also good. He is a personal friend of mine from many nights at Kamelot, Hollywood Nights, and Marstall in St. Petersburg over the years

[Turboguy]

You are welcome William.  I have never used your services first hand to know if you are really good or not but I do respect you for the time you devote here and your willingness to help people.   I just don't think you would do that if you were not a good guy and good at what you do. 

I do think that using an attorney will generally slow things down no matter how good he is.  It adds an extra link in the chain and things that could go right to the USCIS have to go through the attorneys office and get acted on when he has time.

I think someone who is not good at forms and following directions might be better off with an Attorney.   I think too one of the bigget mistakes is taking it too seriously although that might be better than taking it too lightly.   The first one I did I spend forever on and worried about stupid little stuff that I should never have given a thought to.  The last one I did I whipped out in no time and even had to do an extra waver request in that one. 

If someone goes to visa journey and reads how to do it, they should have no problems doing it themselves.

[Son of Clyde]

Hello, Turboguy and others. I wanted to clarify what Turboguy mentioned.

I am one of those who is not great at forms. I write in the space that says "for office use only." But seriously, I used the lawyer because there was some communication problem. My wife spoke very limited English. I was worried about not being able to obtain all the necessary documents in time and I worried about how she would sign the forms. It ended up with me doing all the legwork myself and the second lawyer only filling out the forms and sending them in.

The first lawyer had been keeping my application in his desk drawer for about two months. He never seemed to be available when I called him. I am not one to pester people, I only wanted him to finish what he started. After two months I had gotten nowhere with this guy.

The second lawyer was better and a very nice guy but he blamed the USCIS for losing the translated divorce decree. I personally think the lawyer just misplaced that one document. He gave some sound advice but I really would only have needed him for the more complex stuff.

So I filed for the adjustment of status and the removal of conditions myself and saved a lot of money.

[Goombah]

I agree with the most here, do it yourself!

www.visajourney.com has a LOT of useful information, timings, etc.

Kevin

[kievstar]

Depends on the person.  I liked the attorney process as my wifes friends went that why and all where in the USA in 6 months. But you do end up doing most of the forms anyways yourself and I did catch errors by the secretary.   

[tfcrew]

.. you do end up doing most of the forms anyways yourself.. 

Exactly.

[bobb]

If you want to do it yourself I would highly recommend spending time at www.visajourney.com where all the procedures are laid out in a simple and concise manner and there are a lot of helpful people who will hold your hand and answer even the most stupid questions. 

Visajourney really is the way to go.  Just don't listen to anyone who is speculating.  There are enough people who will answer your question with experience to not be misled.  From many stories I've read, if a person is capable, and there are no out of the ordinary issues, an attorney is not necessary.  If you do have some special circumstance it might be wise to at least consult initially with an attorney.  I recommend you visit the Russia, Ukraine, Belarus forum for the best answers.  For the initial filing of the K-1 the main K-1 forum is highly recommended.

An acquaintance of L's from Izhevsk has met an American from Wyoming.  This guy knew nothing and a women friend at work suggested an immigration lawyer who specialized in working with Mexican immigrants.  The guy tells him if he does bring her over on a tourist visa and they decided to marry the government probably wouldn't deport her!

He should be receiving his NOA2 shortly.  I told him I will help him through the interview.  I'm going to send examples of the completed DS-156, DS-156k, DS-230, maps and photos I had sent to L showing her where the embassy was in Moscow and the medical clinic.  I've given him the fiance visa website page at USEM for him to review what will be required for the interview, and he will see what will be sent to his fiancee, and what is necessary for him to send to her before the interview.

The only issue I ever had with the example forms at VJ is they only show a fiancee, with no children, from an English speaking country.  There are no examples of someone from a country that does not use Cryllic, or Chinese, etc., characters.

My timeline:

19 Nov 2008 - NOA1
03 Apr 2009 - NOA2 approval (email)
09 Apr 2009 - NVC received
13 Apr 2009 - Sent to Embassy Moscow
23 Jun 2009 - Interview date USEM - Posted USEM website 30 Apr 2009
 
It doesn't appear the timelines at VJ are increasing.  If anything they might be decreasing slightly.
   

[Son of Clyde]

Just wanted to mention that my wife is taking her citizenship test on Thursday.

I only used a lawyer for the K1 visa and in many ways I am sorry I did.
 
The only advice I can give is to keep copies of all your documents. I would suggest making 8 or 10 photocopies of the more important ones such as her divorce decree and birth certificate and the translations. You normally need copies of the most recent three year tax returns and the years will change as you advance to the next step. USCIS will be asking for the documents over and over again so it helps to have the extra copies. And the translations are very important. Your lawyer will not get these documents anyway, he will ask you to get them before he files. And the lawyer may charge up to $1,800.00 as a fee just for typing up a few forms.

[tfcrew]

  I would suggest making 8 or 10 photocopies .... And the lawyer may charge up to $1,800.00 as a fee just for typing up a few forms.

And they have a clerk do the typing. Check them...
Wow 10 copies! One for everybody.

[JR]

Back in the early 90s I did my ex's K1 all by myself and it was pretty smooth. Also did the MIL's & FIL's tourist visas and again, it's no big deal. Just dot your eyes and cross your teethe