Editor's note: This is the second in a series of occasional stories about a Ventura County couple going through the immigration process.
"What's going to happen if she doesn't come back? Have you thought about that?"
The questions to Angel, a 21-year-old Moorpark Community College student, weigh heavily on his mind as they are asked by the woman preparing his wife's immigration file.
While most of his peers eagerly awaited spring break, Angel was planning to spend his week off school gathering legal documents, undergoing a psychological evaluation, preparing financial records and writing the most important paper of his life.
The essay would not result in a simple letter grade. His words would help determine whether his wife, who has been living in the country illegally since she crossed the border with her sisters at age 11, may stay in the U.S.
"When you find the right person, you do not let them out of your sights, and that was exactly what I did," Angel wrote about his 23-year-old wife, Estela. "We haven't been separated since we were married on August 11, 2012 — that was the happiest day of my life."
Angel completed the letter last month, along with compiling personal information and legal documents for an application requesting that the federal government temporarily waive punishment for the time Estela has spent illegally in the U.S. The couple's middle names are being used to protect Estela's identity.
The Department of Homeland Security's revised policy improves the pathway to legal residency for immigrants who live in the country illicitly and are spouses or children of U.S. citizens. If Estela is approved, she may stay with her husband until her scheduled visa interview in her native Mexico.
The old system would have required Estela to wait in Mexico until the DHS decided she should not be reprimanded for having lived in California illegally for more than half of her life — a process the agency said could take more than one year. Local immigration attorneys and advocates, however, say some families were separated for as long as three years.
While the couple have expressed gratitude for the new rule, they say the process to complete the application has been anything but easy.
ONGOING STRUGGLE
They started working on correcting Estela's legal status in October, and her petition to immigrate to the U.S. was approved in December. Anticipating the implementation of the new waiver rule in March, Estela and Angel stopped pursuing her case to avoid being separated.
The so-called provisional unlawful presence waiver became available three months ago, but Angel and Estela could not mail the application until earlier this month.
They had to juggle preparing the application with school and work. Angel is a full-time student, and Estela works six days a week. They worried about the paperwork and wanted to make sure it was as thorough as possible so it wouldn't be denied and progress as fast as possible.
But they experienced setbacks: canceled consulting appointments; a $600 psychological examination; and a wait on proof of payments from the U.S. State Department. They also had to file income tax receipts, write personal statements, compile photographs and enlist people they knew to write letters of support.
During that time, Angel was diagnosed with a major depression disorder and extreme anxiety, and Estela was admitted to the emergency room with stress-induced acid reflux and severe migraines.
Because the U.S. has a vested interest in Angel, a legal citizen, the key to permitting Estela's illegal presence rides mostly on his health.
Angel, who was born and raised in California, needs to show he would face "extreme hardship" if Estela is forbidden to live with him in his native country.
But extreme hardship is loosely defined and varies from case to case. It can include health problems and loss of educational or employment opportunities.
The mounting pressure and significance of Angel's personal letter took a toll on the aspiring radiology technician.
"There's a lot that's involved with the hardship letter, and I don't want to give them any reason to deny her," he said. "I always want to be on the positive side, like this is going to happen. What are we going to do after she gets her papers and all that ... but I'm always thinking also: What if it doesn't?"
Without the waiver, Estela would face a 10-year ban from immigrating to the U.S., a penalty for having lived in the country illegally for an extended period.
COST OF CITIZENSHIP
Like many others in Ventura County, the couple are working with La Hermandad Mexicana, a California-based immigrants' rights nonprofit in Oxnard.
Nearly 60 people seeking immigration advice inundate the small office near downtown Oxnard every day. Having the nonprofit's executive director, Alicia Flores, oversee their case has had its share of challenges for Angel and Estela.
Flores is stretched from running the organization and leading the local movement for a change in immigration policy.
"We have the experience, and we are credited from U.S. CIS (Citizenship and Immigration Services), and as soon as something comes up new, I take the training right away," Flores said. "I'm concerned with the communities."
After discovering he would have to pay nearly four times as much for professional legal representation, Angel was fine with relying on La Hermandad, despite dealing with rescheduled meetings and unanswered phone calls. Including the fees charged by La Hermandad, Angel and Estela have paid $3,600 for applications, service charges and psychological evaluations to adjust Estela's legal status.
Flores told Angel about a Catholic Legal Immigration Network training session she attended in Omaha, Neb., after the waiver was released in March. In a group of more than 60 with 17 states represented, Flores said the seminar leaders asked which organizations were charging less than $1,000 to process the waiver. She said very few hands — other than hers — went up.
"They said: ‘Good luck. See if you guys can support yourself,' " Flores said. "It's a lot of work."
But Flores is confident the hassles will all be worth it for Angel and Estela.
"So far, we haven't had any waiver denied," she said.
Flores said Citizenship and Immigration Services has been taking about three months to process waivers, putting the expected response date for Angel and Estela around early September.
If the waiver is approved, Estela will receive 30 days' notice before her visa appointment in Ciudad Juárez, possibly as soon as October — one year after the couple started the immigration process.
Now, all they can do is wait and hope that Angel's words are enough to keep Estela here.
"I think day and night: What if my wife's admission to the United States is denied. What would I do?" Angel wrote in his letter. "I made a vow — for better or worse until death do us part. I made a promise to God and my wife and I do not have any intention of breaking it ... Please give us the opportunity with our goals and stay together as we promised each other."