If you are currently in the United States illegally after having been given a bar from immigration to the United States due to not obtaining the appropriate travel documents while waiting for your green card to be approved, you may be able to file for what is called a I-601 waiver, which is also referred to as a hardship waiver. Here's what you need to know about how to improve your chances of getting approved for this special waiver so you can become a legal resident of the United States.
Determine Why Have You Been Deemed "Inadmissible"
First, it's important to understand exactly why you've been deemed as "inadmissible" before you can feasibly move forward in applying for legal resident status in the United States. There are a number of different types of reasons why someone will be deemed as inadmissible and different ways to attempt to remedy the various grounds of inadmissibility.
For example, if you have not gotten the necessary vaccinations to legally immigrate to the United States, you would only be permitted to adjust your immigration status after you've proven that you've updated your vaccinations. Another example of why someone would be inadmissible is if they leave the U.S. before their green card status is approved, such as to attend the funeral of a parent in their country of origin without first obtaining an advance parole document. By doing so, they abandon their green card application in the eyes of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
Other examples of inadmissibility include possible connections to security risks, criminal activity, and crimes of moral turpitude, none of which are easy to overcome when going through the process of becoming a legal resident of the United States. The best thing you can do if you are in any of these types of situations is to seek the counsel and assistance of an immigration attorney.
Your Family Must Prove a Hardship for You to Get a Hardship Waiver
In order for you to get an I-601 waiver, you and your family must prove that there is a hardship affecting your immediate family member in some way by you not being permitted to be a legal resident of the United States. It's important to understand that the hardship must affect your family member, whether that's your spouse, your parent, or your child, not you. Also, the family member(s) who would suffer a hardship without your presence must be either citizens of the United States or legal residents of the United States.
For example, if your spouse has a debilitating health condition and they require someone in the home at all times as a caregiver, you may be able to get approved for a hardship waiver. Another example where you can show your family is suffering a hardship without your legal presence is if you have minor children who need monetary support from you and you are unable to provide the same amount of monetary support for them while working and living in your country of origin.
To be clear, the hardship must be suffered by someone in your family, and that someone needs to be a U.S. citizen or a legal resident.
Consult With an Experienced Family Immigration Attorney
While it is possible to apply for a hardship waiver without the help from a lawyer, it's highly recommended to have a family immigration attorney on your side to guide you through the lengthy and arduous process, particularly since your family is already going through a hardship. You don't want to prolong your illegal status any longer than necessary so you can begin living and working in the United States legally to support your family member.
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