TONY entered the U.S. as a crewman in 2003. While visiting his mother, his family convinced him to jump ship and overstay, so he remained in the U.S. and met his future wife, Georgia. However, because he was a crewman, he could not apply for his green card in the U.S.
Provisional Waivers (PW) became available in 2016. This would forgive Tony for having overstayed. However, his visa must be approved and issued at the U.S. Embassy in Manila.
Tony’s provisional waiver was immediately approved in 2017 after leading U.S. Immigration Attorney Michael J. Gurfinkel proved to the USCIS that Tony’s wife and his mother, both U.S. citizens, would suffer extreme hardship if Tony would not be admitted back to the U.S.
Tony already had a scheduled interview at the U.S. Embassy in Manila, but since the Embassy was taking a hard stance on crewmen with provisional waivers and charging them with fraud, Atty. Gurfinkel decided to postpone Tony’s trip to the Philippines.
In 2022, Tony saw an episode of Citizen Pinoy where Julie, another crewman, took the risk and flew back to the Philippines with her provisional waiver. Julie was able to obtain her immigrant visa.
Inspired by that success story, Tony told Atty. Gurfinkel that he was willing to take his chances and apply for his visa in Manila.
Watch this success story on a brand-new episode of “Citizen Pinoy” on Sunday, November 26 at 6:30 PM PT (9:30 PM ET) through select Cable/Satellite providers, right after TV Patrol Linggo. Citizen Pinoy is also available on iWantTFC. Viewers may download the free app.
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