When your US timeline tightens, it’s easy to treat immigration like an emergency purchase: “What can I do fast?” That mindset creates avoidable mistakes—bad filings, missed deadlines, and reliance on unregulated intermediaries. This guide gives you a clear triage method and a Plan A/Plan B framework that includes backup residencies as a practical risk-reduction tool, not a last-minute escape hatch. Key takeaways  Start with timeline triage (I‑94, trigger events, dependents) b