Lawsuit: Little-known benefit backfires in green card denial

SAN DIEGO (AP) — A man being denied permission to return to the United States from Mexico has filed a lawsuit, saying he was misled by a waiver he obtained before traveling there.

Marco Villada, who was brought to the U.S. illegally as a child, says he traveled to Mexico to be interviewed by the State Department there about obtaining permanent legal status after marrying a U.S. citizen.

He says U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services granted him waiver that would have allowed him to quickly return to the United States, instead of waiting a long time in Mexico.

He says he told authorities about a prior visit to Mexico for his grandfather’s funeral, but was denied a green card.

Citizenship and Immigration Services and the State Department declined comment.