Travel of elderly parents in current coronavirus situation, I-94 expiring

[User09]

Hi,

My parents have travel plans to go to India by end of March, ( their I-94 will expire by April 1st week). With the current widespread of Corona Virus affecting the elderly. What can I do? Is applying for I-94 extension possible and advisable ??  Is preponing their travel better? What are my options? please help

[JoeF]

They need to leave the country before the I-94 expiration. An extension because of COVID-19 would not work.

[newacct]

They can try to apply for extension.

[hmaster]

On 3/11/2020 at 5:19 PM, User09 said:

Hi,

My parents have travel plans to go to India by end of March, ( their I-94 will expire by April 1st week). With the current widespread of Corona Virus affecting the elderly. What can I do? Is applying for I-94 extension possible and advisable ??  Is preponing their travel better? What are my options? please help

Extension can be filed under emergency. Corona is a global emergency. I would certainly not risk my parents lives. Can surely consider extension. Apart from the risk of infection itself, they could be quarantined at the airport for 14 days. 

[User099]

On 3/11/2020 at 8:19 PM, User09 said:

Hi,

My parents have travel plans to go to India by end of March, ( their I-94 will expire by April 1st week). With the current widespread of Corona Virus affecting the elderly. What can I do? Is applying for I-94 extension possible and advisable ??  Is preponing their travel better? What are my options? please help

You can apply for an extension. I think there is no other option with the current travel restrictions. 

[Attorney_15]

Someone in the United States in B status can apply for an extension of that status before the I-94 Card expires. Because it is B status, the I539 can only request 6 months. It should state the reason being the pandemic. It is important though to calendar a reminder for when the requested/anticipated 6 month period will end. Even if the I539 is not approved yet because it is still pending, the Applicant should either leave the US no later than the requested end date or file another I539 for an additional extension of 6 months because of the pandemic if that is the reason.

Given that USCIS is still operating but may have reduced staff, preparing for the I539 to still be pending for 6 months is important. USCIS is operated by people who can get infected with COVID-19. This could slow down processing.

[MurthyIndia_Lawyer]

Hello,

Please note that India has imposed a ban on international commercial airlines until April 14, 2020. It is best that an extension is filed at the earliest to ensure your parents do not accrue any unlawful presence. Should you need help, you my reach out to Attorneys at the Murthy Law Firm (https://www.murthy.com/contact-us/)

[aithalakadi]

16 hours ago, MurthyIndia_Lawyer said:

Hello,

Please note that India has imposed a ban on international commercial airlines until April 14, 2020. It is best that an extension is filed at the earliest to ensure your parents do not accrue any unlawful presence. Should you need help, you my reach out to Attorneys at the Murthy Law Firm (https://www.murthy.com/contact-us/)

Hello,

My in laws are in the same situation. I94 expired on April 2. We sent out I539 request for extension on March 13th.

We got back a response saying the filing fee was incorrect ($540 fee which is mentioned in the USCIS website seems incorrect now!).

Now, my in-laws are out of status.

I am trying to reach USCIS for the correct fees to be paid and will be sending the application tomorrow.

Do you know if I need to send in anything else to ensure they won't deny the extension now or in the future?

[MurthyIndia_Lawyer]

5 hours ago, aithalakadi said:

Hello,

My in laws are in the same situation. I94 expired on April 2. We sent out I539 request for extension on March 13th.

We got back a response saying the filing fee was incorrect ($540 fee which is mentioned in the USCIS website seems incorrect now!).

Now, my in-laws are out of status.

I am trying to reach USCIS for the correct fees to be paid and will be sending the application tomorrow.

Do you know if I need to send in anything else to ensure they won't deny the extension now or in the future?

Hi! 

Thank you for your question. Our practice is limited to consular matters. It is important to submit the application at the earliest along with proof that you had originally filed it on time and request to excuse the delay now - attorneys at the Murthy Law Firm (www.murthy.com) in the U.S. would be able to help address this issue. 

Hope this gets resolved soon. Take care and stay safe. 

[navish]

Hello -

I have similar situation where my elderly parents (one of them has medical conditions too) have valid i94 until 1-Jun-20.

In 2018, they visited us and their stay was extended until Mar'19 (Visitor Visa I-539 was approved).

With the current pandemic situation, we do not want to risk their health and so want to request for extension again ( in order to avoid risk of infection and quarantine at airport)

However we have below questions -

1. What are the chances of approval, considering they already had an extension approved in 2018?

2. If the extension is approved, can this be an issue for their future visits ?

3. Other recommendations to handle the current situation effectively ?

Thank you.

 

 

[curious80]

On 4/13/2020 at 9:26 PM, aithalakadi said:

Hello,

My in laws are in the same situation. I94 expired on April 2. We sent out I539 request for extension on March 13th.

We got back a response saying the filing fee was incorrect ($540 fee which is mentioned in the USCIS website seems incorrect now!).

Now, my in-laws are out of status.

I am trying to reach USCIS for the correct fees to be paid and will be sending the application tomorrow.

Do you know if I need to send in anything else to ensure they won't deny the extension now or in the future?

I'm in a similar situation. Could you please confirm what filing fee you paid? I would've assumed $540 too ($370 for applicants filing jointly + $85 per applicant for biometrics).