Conditional Resident Wants a Divorce - This is a common consultation scenario. The conditional resident immigrant has a 2 year green card because their marriage to their US citizen spouse was less than 2 years old at the time the green card was granted (approved). The conditional LPR will lose his or her green card if s/he does not petition with… Read More »
Proving Extreme Hardship in Immigration Waiver Cases - What Does “Extreme Hardship” Mean in a Waiver? A immigrant spouse who has accumulated unlawful presence in the United States may trigger a three- or ten-year bar after leaving the country. In some cases, a waiver may be available if refusing admission would cause extreme hardship to a qualifying U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident… Read More »
What Happens if Your Conditional Green Card Expires Before You File Form I-751? - Section 216 of the Immigration and Nationality Act creates a system where immigrants who have attained their conditional permanent residency are granted a green card for two years. Within 90 days of the two-year anniversary of the initial grant of conditional status, i.e. a green card, the immigrant and the immigrant’s spouse must file with… Read More »
Entry on a Fiance Visa but Marry Someone Else: What Happens Now? - Under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), a fiance visa holder has 90 days upon entry with a fiance visa to marry the US citizen petitioner before the visa expires. A K-1 entrant has 90 days after admission to marry the U.S. citizen petitioner. If the couple does not marry within that period, the immigration… Read More »
Can a Long Stay Abroad Cause You to Lose Your Green Card? - I had this situation arise in a consultation. A wife had received her green card based on her marriage to a US citizen. He left to live in another country. She followed him. What she expected to be a short stay turned into years in the foreign country. She wanted to return because the relationship… Read More »
Grandfathering under 245(i): Avoiding leaving the US to obtain a green card - Under INA 245(i), if a family or employment-based immigrant visa or labor certification was filed for an immigrant before the cut off date of April 30, 2001 and the immigrant was physically present or living in the US (legal or not legal), the immigrant may nott have to leave the U.S. to process and pick… Read More »
VAWA Abused Spouse Green Card Filings Can Halt DACA Approvals - In the latest news from AILA (American Immigration Lawyers Association), filing a DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) case – which doesn’t lead to a green card but the chance for a two year work permit – at the same time as a VAWA (Violence Against Women Act) immigrant visa case may slow down the… Read More »
Snowbirds face new challenges in staying in the US as visitors - Snowbirds are usually those in their 60s and above who are retired and live in the US for part of the year when the weather is bad in their home country during the winter months (common for Canadians). Traditionally, it has been easy for many Canadians to do this, often spending 6 months at a… Read More »
U Visa May Offer Unlikely Solution to Sponsoring an Undocumented Spouse - I have been approached more frequently since March 2013 by adult US citizen children wanting to sponsor their undocumented parents for green cards, now that the new “provisional waiver” law is in effect. I unfortunately have to explain the provisional waiver program is a policy, not a law change, and more importantly, that it doesn’t… Read More »
Moving in Mom: Potential Problems for Conditional Green Card Holders - In many cultures, allowing the parent to stay in the spare bedroom for months at a time while visiting the immigrant in the US from their foreign country, is a given. It would be expensive and insulting to stick mom at a hotel or motel. But allowing mom to stay with you and your US… Read More »
How to Choose: Sponsoring Your Spouse as a Permanent Resident or US Citizen - Whether to sponsor a spouse now when you are a permanent resident or later when you become a US citizen does not have a black and white answer and depends on many factors that must be weighed in the particular immigrant’s situation. It’s important to ask: (1) How long will it take for the Petitioning… Read More »
Challenges to Marrying an Immigrant for Those Facing Retirement - Must you choose between preserving your legacy and assets for your children over securing your immigrant spouse’s green card? Keeping Your Assets Private The Affidavit of Support requires that if you are sponsoring your spouse for a green card, you must be willing to reimburse the federal government for any public assistance benefits made to… Read More »
Warning! Filing Good faith marriage conditional green card waivers late increase odds of denial - “Help! My conditional green card expired over a year ago and I’ve been separated from my spouse and I don’t know what to do.” I hear this a lot. If you are separated and you have a conditional green card, you can still file a waiver petition late (after the expiration of your two year card)… Read More »
Hedging your bets? Filing different family immigrant visas at the same time - It is possible to have more than one type of Immigrant Visa petition filed by a family member for the same person pending at the same time. Huh, you say? The filing of one immigrant visa petition does not invalidate or stop the other from being processed by USCIS assuming it’s not the same type… Read More »
Tips for Surviving Your Marriage Green Card Interview - The marriage green card interview can be extremely intimidating process. You have a lot on the line, your future together, the ongoing ability of your spouse to work and stay in the US, and you can have little notice from CIS to prepare for it (averaging 7-30 days depending on the work load of the… Read More »
Your Spouse Withdrew Your I-130 but Now You’re Back Together: What Now? - Sometimes a spouse can get angry or make a rash decision such as withdrawing the I-130, Immigrant Visa petition based on marriage, for the immigrant spouse. So what happens when to your immigration case if all is forgiven and you’re back together? Once an Immigrant visa is withdrawn, it is denied and there is no… Read More »
Is it Possible to Live in Separate States, Be Sponsored by a Spouse, and Get a Green Card - I often come across couples who are not living together but want to obtain a green card for the immigrant spouse based on the marriage. Even the Immigrant Visa form for family sponsorships request to know how long one has been living with their spouse; there’s really no way around it, no way to hide… Read More »
Provisional Waivers May Be Impossible for Those with Even a Minor Crime - In an April 14, 2013 meeting with USCIS Headquarters, the American Immigration Lawyers Association asked USCIS to clarify when a provisional waiver applicant’s criminal past will automatically exclude the applicant from the provisional waiver process. The current standard under the regulation requires CIS to deny any case filed under the provisional waiver program if USCIS… Read More »
Green Card Holders Wanting to Sponsor Spouse Need to Watch Out for Abandonment Issues of their Own - Obtaining a green card is a dream come true for many immigrants and the last thing any green card holder would want is to loss his or her permanent resident status. Many people apply to become citizens through naturalization as soon as they are eligible to avoid the possibility of ever being stripped of their… Read More »
Special Immigrant Juvenile Status May Be Faster Route to Green Card for Kids Instead of Adoption - In 1990, the U.S. Congress established Special Immigrant Juvenile status (SIJS). SIJS is designed for non-U.S. citizen children who do not have permanent residence and have been abused, neglected or abandoned by one or both parents and need a green card. It is an alternative to an otherwise, potentially lengthy and sometimes, impossible, adoption process.For… Read More »
