for rays expertise

[gcman1]

let me say Ray that ur knowledge in the immigration matters is a  great resource    i met a lady in china last June and we hit it off very well but between my business and her being a doctor seemd to be going nowhere
then she was invited to work on a project for diabeties at a great university medical senter in sept..well after making a trip each month to visit and her coming to see me in florida we have talked about taking this to the next level where i will spend time in her city and do my travels from there to see if living together is better than monthly visits
ok she has a j1 and the project is 5 years  they want to give her a work visa as she has come up with amazing results....so  if we want to marry  what is best for us  j1 and then aos or work visa and aos  with j1  she can have parents visit easy  not sure about work visa
thx again Ray

[Ray]

I assume when you say work visa, you are talking H-1B. I’m not that familiar with all the details of J-1 Exchange Visitor and H-1B Temporary Professional Worker visas.

Generally, if she is here on a valid non-immigrant visa and marries a U.S. citizen, she normally would be eligible to adjust status to Permanent Resident. There may be some consequences though, such as losing her J-1 or H-1B status while the AOS is being processed. I know that some H-1B’s can be sponsored as immigrants by their employers also.

If you do get to the point where you want to marry while she is in the U.S., I would sit down with an immigration attorney for a consult to discuss the various options available because some of this stuff gets very complicated. I think Gary Bala will do a 30-minute phone consult for only $50 (bargain!)

As far as her parents visiting, they would have to apply for visitor visas. Parents are not considered dependents for the purpose of derivative visas (e.g. H-4).

Your situation is pretty unique and sounds like an interesting adventure. Keep us posted on what happens.

Ray