Need help "withdrawing" my participation from spouse i-751 (AOS)

[NYC1123 1]

Hey everyone, havent been on here since i filed with my spouse for his green card back in 2012... now im back to see if anyone can guide me..

Some background:

My husband and I have been married for almost 4 years. As a born U.S citizen, I petitioned for him with the i-130 and he was granted a conditional green card. He has since submitted his i-751 to remove the conditions as a joint petition over a year ago. He submitted it without documentation which is why it has been so long. We have been separated for 2 years. The first two years of our marriage I faced constant physical and emotional abuse from him. Now I currently have a divorce case pending. He has threatened that he will not sign the divorce until his green card is approved. A process which has been difficult on its own. I have everything documented from recordings to texts where he admits his abuse and states his threats. There are also 2 restraining orders against him. We dont have children and barely had any evidence to show USCIS with the 751. I know the best option is to obtain an attorney but I am not able to do so financially.

The issue:

I've spoken to many reps from USCIS and they all give me different answers. I can't withdraw the 751 because only my husband can do that. Some have told me that I can send USCIS a statement of withdrawal of my participation and that I can refuse the interview if there is one. Does anyone know where I can mail such a statement. We are filing from New York.

[Darnell 8,478]

i would suggest a meetup via infopass at your local USCIS office,

giving over the statement of withdrawal

and getting a signed hand-receipt for it,

signed by the floor shift-supervisor.

[Boiler 43,419]

Seconded.

[Penguin_ie 5,984]

***** Moving from Adjustment of Status forum to Removal of Conditions forum *****

[NancyNguyen 1,657]

If it has been pending for more than a year, I believe it can't be adjusted without an interview. Without you, this guy will have hard time.

Schedule an InfoPass and please talk to an officer to explain your situation. Good luck.

[NYC1123 1]

i would suggest a meetup via infopass at your local USCIS office,

giving over the statement of withdrawal

and getting a signed hand-receipt for it,

signed by the floor shift-supervisor.

Thank you guys for your feedback. I have requested a infopass appointment for next week and will see how that goes... just want this over with.

If it has been pending for more than a year, I believe it can't be adjusted without an interview. Without you, this guy will have hard time.

Schedule an InfoPass and please talk to an officer to explain your situation. Good luck.

[tuckin14 58]

You can withdraw the I-751. Your husband can then refile if he chooses with a divorce waiver. At that point, you are no longer part of the process.

If the petition remains joint and there is an interview and you do not attend, the petition will be denied. However, USCIS will likely allow your husband to change it to a waiver petition.

You can, if you wish, provide USCIS with information you deem relevant to the question of whether your husband entered the marriage in good faith. His being abusive is probably not relevant. In my case, I told USCIS that when my wife moved to the USA she instructed me to ensure that her paycheck was deposited in her individual (i.e. not joint) account, and that she told me to leave the house she had bought within days of us moving in together for the first time. These bear on the questions of cohabitation and co-mingling, which USCIS considered indicative of a good faith marriage. I did not tell USCIS that she had been verbally or physically abusive.

Your husband can "refuse" to sign divorce papers, but he cannot prevent a divorce. You can go to court and with proper grounds, get the marriage dissolved. If there are issues of property division or custody, that may complicate things.

[NYC1123 1]

You can withdraw the I-751. Your husband can then refile if he chooses with a divorce waiver. At that point, you are no longer part of the process.

If the petition remains joint and there is an interview and you do not attend, the petition will be denied. However, USCIS will likely allow your husband to change it to a waiver petition.

You can, if you wish, provide USCIS with information you deem relevant to the question of whether your husband entered the marriage in good faith. His being abusive is probably not relevant. In my case, I told USCIS that when my wife moved to the USA she instructed me to ensure that her paycheck was deposited in her individual (i.e. not joint) account, and that she told me to leave the house she had bought within days of us moving in together for the first time. These bear on the questions of cohabitation and co-mingling, which USCIS considered indicative of a good faith marriage. I did not tell USCIS that she had been verbally or physically abusive.

Your husband can "refuse" to sign divorce papers, but he cannot prevent a divorce. You can go to court and with proper grounds, get the marriage dissolved. If there are issues of property division or custody, that may complicate things.

Hi, thanks for your response. USCIS told me that only he has the right to withdraw at this point but I can refuse the interview which I am planning to do given there is one. Besides the leases that were submitted (of which he was in and out of the house) the other evidence holds little weight as they were just pictures of us and two affidavits from his family members.

The recordings i have and text messages have him even offering me money to let him get his greencard in which I DEFINITELY refused (no amount of money could ever make me agree). Yes, he has a right to not sign papers but not to blackmail me for a greencard.

I have since started the process to continue the divorce without him since he refuses. Also I scheduled a infopass for next week where I will present the proof that I have and make them aware of the actual situation.

We were married in 2011, restraining order issued in 2012 expires at the end of this year. I am hoping that his character and actions are enough to prove that there wasnt even an opportunity for him to enter in good faith. Any tips?

[NYC1123 1]

You can withdraw the I-751. Your husband can then refile if he chooses with a divorce waiver. At that point, you are no longer part of the process.

If the petition remains joint and there is an interview and you do not attend, the petition will be denied. However, USCIS will likely allow your husband to change it to a waiver petition.

You can, if you wish, provide USCIS with information you deem relevant to the question of whether your husband entered the marriage in good faith. His being abusive is probably not relevant. In my case, I told USCIS that when my wife moved to the USA she instructed me to ensure that her paycheck was deposited in her individual (i.e. not joint) account, and that she told me to leave the house she had bought within days of us moving in together for the first time. These bear on the questions of cohabitation and co-mingling, which USCIS considered indicative of a good faith marriage. I did not tell USCIS that she had been verbally or physically abusive.

Your husband can "refuse" to sign divorce papers, but he cannot prevent a divorce. You can go to court and with proper grounds, get the marriage dissolved. If there are issues of property division or custody, that may complicate things.

Hi, thanks for your response. USCIS told me that only he has the right to withdraw at this point but I can refuse the interview which I am planning to do given there is one. Besides the leases that were submitted (of which he was in and out of the house) the other evidence holds little weight as they were just pictures of us and two affidavits from his family members.

The recordings i have and text messages have him even offering me money to let him get his greencard in which I DEFINITELY refused (no amount of money could ever make me agree). Yes, he has a right to not sign papers but not to blackmail me for a greencard.

I have since started the process to continue the divorce without him since he refuses. Also I scheduled a infopass for next week where I will present the proof that I have and make them aware of the actual situation.

We were married in 2011, restraining order issued in 2012 expires at the end of this year. I am hoping that his character and actions are enough to prove that there wasnt even an opportunity for him to enter in good faith. Any tips?

Also, if he chooses to file on his own thats fine with me but I want no participation in any of this.

Edited March 10, 2015 by NYC1123

[tuckin14 58]

His offering you money for a greencard is a major, major issue.

Keep in mind that laws on recordings vary. If you made a recording of him without his knowledge, this could be a violation of the law. It varies from state to state. If it is a voicemail, that is probably different (bear in mind that I am NOT a lawyer) because when you leave a voicemail, you know you are being recorded. Same with a text message, you know it is being recorded.

Paying someone for a green card is pretty much an automatic denial, period. A standard question is whether anyone has been paid in connection with the application other than an attorney.

I'm not sure who at USCIS told you that you could not withdraw. If you called 800-375-5283, you are sometimes talking to basic customer service reps who are not especially knowledgable. You will often get incorrect information from them.

Your husband of course has the right to present his side of the story. You can provide the text messages and, if legal, the recordings, and they will go in his file. You can withdraw the I-751. You can provide any other information that you think bears on whether he entered the marriage in good faith. For example, I told USCIS that my wife never attempted to move to the USA until she thought I would be living overseas (and thus she would not have to cohabitate with me) and that as soon as I returned from overseas sooner than she expected,she told me to leave. Some things here are factual (for example, the dates of when I lost m job in the USA, when I took the job overseas, the dates my wife first applied for her professional licenses in the USA, the dates she first applied for jobs in the USA) are kind of hard to dispute. But USCIS can still construe the effect or motives behind the actions according to their judgment.

[NYC1123 1]

His offering you money for a greencard is a major, major issue.

Keep in mind that laws on recordings vary. If you made a recording of him without his knowledge, this could be a violation of the law. It varies from state to state. If it is a voicemail, that is probably different (bear in mind that I am NOT a lawyer) because when you leave a voicemail, you know you are being recorded. Same with a text message, you know it is being recorded.

Paying someone for a green card is pretty much an automatic denial, period. A standard question is whether anyone has been paid in connection with the application other than an attorney.

I'm not sure who at USCIS told you that you could not withdraw. If you called 800-375-5283, you are sometimes talking to basic customer service reps who are not especially knowledgable. You will often get incorrect information from them.

Your husband of course has the right to present his side of the story. You can provide the text messages and, if legal, the recordings, and they will go in his file. You can withdraw the I-751. You can provide any other information that you think bears on whether he entered the marriage in good faith. For example, I told USCIS that my wife never attempted to move to the USA until she thought I would be living overseas (and thus she would not have to cohabitate with me) and that as soon as I returned from overseas sooner than she expected,she told me to leave. Some things here are factual (for example, the dates of when I lost m job in the USA, when I took the job overseas, the dates my wife first applied for her professional licenses in the USA, the dates she first applied for jobs in the USA) are kind of hard to dispute. But USCIS can still construe the effect or motives behind the actions according to their judgment.

Okay thanks, I'll look further into withdrawing the joint i-751 and also in regards to the recordings Im almost sure that here in NY it is legal but I will doublecheck. And I get what youre saying, I'll try to gather my documents to tie into dates and actual hard evidence. Thanks.