Filing if the Couple is Married

If the couple is still married, the I-751 must be filed jointly within the 90 days immediately before the end of the second year of conditional permanent resident status. Ideally, the couple is still together and happily married. They file their joint I-751 and show that their marriage is on-going and bona fide. Evidence submitted should include updated documentation of their joint address, any joint assets / liabilities, evidence of any children, and any other proof that they are living like most married couples.

Filing if the Couple is Separated

More troublesome is if the couple is still married, but separated or otherwise not getting along. With limited exception, as long as the couple is legally married, it is necessary to have a joint petition. Thus, troubled marriages often need either to be reconciled or terminated in order to file the I-751. As explained below, the I-751 can be filed by divorced individuals, and may be approved, as long as there is sufficient evidence that the marriage was genuine when initially entered into. It is more difficult to satisfy the USCIS in such scenarios, however.

Joint-Filing Waived in Limited Cases

There are two situations in which a person who is still legally married can file the I-751 without the spouse. The first is if the person entered into a marriage in good faith, but has been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty by the petitioning spouse. The second is if termination of permanent resident status and removal from the U.S. would result in extreme hardship to the foreign national. Extreme hardship is a high standard and can be based only upon conditions that arose after the conditional residency was acquired.

HI ALL,

I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO...

MY GREEN CARD EXPIRES 06/01/2008, I DON'T HAVE THE MONEY TO FILE FOR DIVORCE OR REMOVAL OF CONDITIONS...

I LOST MY SECOND JOB, BECAUSE I WAS REARENDED AND I HAVE A DISLOCATED DISK ON MY BACK...

DO YOU KNOW IF IMMIGRATION CAN GIVE AN EXTENSION ON THE DEADLINE TO FILE TO REMOVE CONDITIONS???

MY BOSS ALREADY TOLD ME THAT IF I DON'T HAVE A LETTER OR SOMETHING FROM IMMIGRATION SAYING I CAN WORK AFTER 06/01 I WILL LOOSE MY JOB...

I NEED SOME ADVICE, PLEASE...

HELP?

THANKS

MY GREEN CARD EXPIRES 06/01/2008, I DON'T HAVE THE MONEY TO FILE FOR DIVORCE OR REMOVAL OF CONDITIONS...

DO YOU KNOW IF IMMIGRATION CAN GIVE AN EXTENSION ON THE DEADLINE TO FILE TO REMOVE CONDITIONS???
MY BOSS ALREADY TOLD ME THAT IF I DON'T HAVE A LETTER OR SOMETHING FROM IMMIGRATION SAYING I CAN WORK AFTER 06/01 I WILL LOOSE MY JOB...

Can and will you two file together? If yes, I recommend borrowing the money. Talk with your bank or credit union; they have better rates than credit card companies. They might get you an even lower rate if they see your documents and borrow only the money for the application.

If you won't file together, you have a bigger problem. Normally, I recommend seeing a lawyer, but if you don't have money, a charity should be your first contact. I have heard that some charities offer legal immigration consulting to poor people. They should be also more familiar with hardship waivers for fees than most people here.

Last, please avoid using ALL CAPITALS in your postings, shouting doesn't help.

HI,
THANK YOU FOR THE ADVICE...
AS FOR NY WRITING, I ONLY WRITE IN CAPITALS, MY HANWRITING IS THE SAME.
I MEAN NO OFENSE TO ANYONE.
TAKE CARE AND THANK YOU.

USCIS doesn't care. It's a legal requirement that you have a sponsor when you file AOS. Ask your
sponsor to pay for your I-751. If they won't pay, you can sue them for support. Divorce doesn't
exempt them from the requirement to be your sponsor.

As for your boss, he's breaking the law by demanding to see a renewed green card. If you still
have the same job (i.e. it's not a new job), no further checks are allowed.

HI,
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR HELP.
DO YOU KNOW WHERE I CAN FIND THAT LAW???
ABOUT MY BOSS???
I WOULD REALLY LIKE TO HAVE THAT INFORMATION
TAKE CARE!

As for your boss, he's breaking the law by demanding to see a renewed green card. If you still
have the same job (i.e. it's not a new job), no further checks are allowed.

I am not sure if I follow. After reading the documents it looks like the employer (page 10) must reverify at the expiration of the green card. However the employer can't not deny you a long term job/position because your green card is going to expire is x amount of time. If he does that that is discrimination. But THEY MUST REVERIFY when it expires, so I don't think you can sue your employer, although in this sue happy society I am sure you will find some lawyer who would like to try. It states "when an employee's work authorization expires, you must reverify his or her employment elgibility...if the employee cannot provide you with proff of current work authoriztion, you cannont continue to employ that person"

The is a fine for an employer to employee someone who is not eligible (expired GC) to work in the states. At the begining of the employment each employee has to fill out an I-9, so the employer will now when the greencard expires. As with all government documents there is a bit of confusion in there. I am not sure what the true answer is, but I know USCIS is not going to look favourable on someone working with an expired GC (that hasn't previously been granted extensions). I think we can all agree on that.

Just look what a pain the process is when you do have all your ducks lined up and doing everything by the letter. Throw any variation in there and you are looking for trouble. I would try you hardest to get the money and things straight before the gc expires.