What Happens When You Overstay Your Visa?
Overstaying your visa happens and when it does, it helps to know what the legal consequences are in order to make the necessary legal and transportation arrangements. As an El Paso immigration law firm, we see many cases of this occurring and it boils down to the fact that when you find yourself in the United States with an expired visa, you are here illegally. There is not much wiggle room for those who enter the country illegally without a visa at all and someone who has overstayed their visa time restrictions.
Whenever you overstay and your visa expires, you become “out-of-status”. The way this is determined is by the U.S. Immigration. When you arrive at the port of entry, an immigration officer decides whether to allow you to come into the country and, if so, how long you can stay. The officer makes the final decision. Coming into the country with a visa only allows you to travel from your own country and into the port of entry into ours for an extended amount of time. In other cases our El Paso immigration law firm has seen individuals whose visas have been cancelled. This happens when you stay past the date on your I-94 Form. If you find yourself in the country illegally, this could prevent you from getting another visa in the future.
Further complications occur if you ever wish to obtain a green card. In some cases, you might have to wait between three and ten years, depending on how long you overstayed. Allow our law firm to assist you in getting the help you need with all your immigration issues and questions.
If you are interested and would like more information on an El Paso immigration law firm, then feel free to contact Cynthia R. Lopez today at (915) 996-9070 or visit our office located in Central El Paso at 915 Huckleberry El Paso, Texas 79903.
