study permit refused; trying to determine whether to reapply

[artRose7]

I am writing on behalf of a dear friend who was brought to the United States by her father when she was 4 years old. Her biological mother had passed away when she was 18 months old and her father later remarried. Her father was admitted into the US on an F1 visa, and my friend and stepmother on an F2 visa. At the age of 8, her father abandoned the family (stepmom, stepsister and my friend) leaving them with no money and no way of returning to their home country. Soon after he left, my friend lost her legal status in the US. Frantic, her mother encourage her and her sister to write their father to convince him to come back. But, sadly, he refused and later passed away in 2007 leaving my friend in an unlawful status.

Over the years, she has been able to obtain her high school diploma, a bachelor degree in Information Systems and a master degree in Computer Science. But, due to her status, she is unable to work in her field of study. My friend looked into the eligibility requirements for DACA but was excluded due to the age limit. Over the years, the has consulted with many lawyers who either provided misdirection and/or misinformation. After all of those lawyers, she was able to find one that was able to submit a petition for a change of status in 2015. The petition is still pending.

She has solid family ties in the US such that she hasn't been more than a 30-minute commute from her step mom, sister and her new niece. Also, over the years, she has established a great relationship with her aunt and cousin in her home country. She wants to continue her education by obtaining a second master degree in Computer and Network security and has received a letter of acceptance from a university in Canada. In her first attempt at applying for a study permit, she was refused. I also should mention that prior to applying for a study permit, she did consult with a Canadian lawyer and was told that she could apply but later on told her that she would not be eligible because of her current status in the US.

I'm sorry that this is such a long post, but I hoping that the more details provided may help me to help my friend. She did not provide her history as described above regarding her status in her previous application attempt, so if she does this during her second attempt, would it make a difference?

Also, another thing that I should probably include is that my friend has managed to work throughout the years as an accounts receivable clerk and currently as a stock broker. Does my friend have any chance at all of obtaining a study permit?

 

[canuck78]

How was your friend able to apply without documents pertaining to her stay in the US? I assume she has renewed her passport from her home country or she must not have provided any documents. Given that she doesn't have legal status in the US she will receive a 10 year ban if she leaves the US. Considering she has no ties to her home country and will not be able to return to this US she would not qualify for any form of temporary visa because there is very little chance of her returning home. She could consider going back to her home country and working there for at a minimum a few years and then reapply. In general, you should be honest and upfront about any immigration problems you have had. How its your friend working without legal status?

 

[artRose7]

Her passport was renewed by her home country which is how she was able to apply. She still has her original I-94 (I think that's what it's called) from when she originally entered the US and her original passport. My friend made some mistakes on her original application; it was not intentional. As for work, I don't know all the details, unfortunately. Thank you for your feedback. I will pass this information along to her.

 

[canuck78]

She may qualify to immigrate as a permanent resident. If she does she must be very apologetic about not being open and honest about her immigration status and past history and never lie/omit again.

 

[artRose7]

She may qualify to immigrate as a permanent resident. If she does she must be very apologetic about not being open and honest about her immigration status and past history and never lie/omit again.

Like I mentioned in a previous response, she said the omission was not intentional. She was actually trying to follow all of the instructions and submitted the documentation requested in the study permit. A reason for her refusal was the lack of documentation concerning her immigration status in the US. This is why she was considering reapplying; in hopes of correcting that mistake. But, based on your feedback, it seems that reapplying would not be beneficial. I will pass that along to her. But, can you give me some example of permanent resident options that she may qualify for? She has considered Express Entry, but she is 39. So, even with a high IELTS score and her educational level, she doesn't have a high CRS score. Any suggestions would be much appreciated. Thank you for your time.

 

[canuck78]

She would have to look at the each provincial nominee program. Would look into them now because if she does qualify she should lock in before her score goes down again because of age. Yes no point in applying for a student permit.