Divorce after i751 interview, while pending

[forAfriend 0]

This is for a friend...He submitted a joint i751 with his spouse. They had an interview and he submitted biometrics. The paperwork is still being processed.

Their relationship ended rather suddenly a couple months after the interview-- turns out the USC spouse is extremely vindictive, likely has narcissistic personality disorder, and has harassed and abused my friend emotionally and financially. A judgment of divorce was granted; the service center is currently processing i751 forms filed 2 months before my friend's.

 

My friend called to check on his status and was told there is a complaint in his file, but he could not get any details as he doesn't have the complaint number. What type of complaints could be made to a pending i751 application and by whom? As part of the divorce case, allegations of violence were made by my friend's ex, but not found to have occurred. The ex has contacted my friend's colleagues with these false allegations, so it would be no surprise if these allegations are in the complaint, if possible. Could they be, and if so, what might the repercussions be? What can my friend do?

 

Should a i751 waiver be proactively filed? Or should he wait to see if further information is requested? Hire an immigration attorney now or? Thank you.
 

[Villanelle 4,122]

It is suggested that your friend come and ask questions because there are often details missing when information gets passed along. Is there a reason why your friend can not join and post here?

But anyway- some of what you stated is confusing (which would be helped by the friend directly posting). When you submit a 751 ROC petition typically a few weeks later you get a biometrics appt. They then continue processing your petition and its either approved w/o interview or you get an interview notice. If you are interviewed then typically you are approved or denied in the interview (or shortly thereafter). Unless there is some kind of major issue- you arent in a 'pending decision' state for long after the interview. 

 

According to your post- they had an interview for the 751 and no decision was made at the time and still has not been made as of now which is months later. Is this correct? Because its strange. And you also state they are working on petitions filed 2 months ahead of your friends filing- which makes it even odder that they had an interview already for the 751- but it can happen.
 

So can you first confirm that the above is correct (or have your friend join the thread) before we go on. The specifics here really matter. There are different things that need to be done if the divorce is final and they havent gotten to the petition yet, or if as you stated, they reviewed the petition and interviewed them and its still awaiting a decision. 

[forAfriend 0]

Thank you, Damara. My friend is with me now - so we can clarify, and I was incorrect. 

 

There was an interview shortly after my friend originally applied for the greencard - the 2 year conditional greencard that has since expired (but he has the extension letter). Prior to its expiration, they filed the i751 last year. About 2 months after submission of the i751, my friend submitted biometrics. My apologies - there was one interview and it occurred years ago. It was not for the i751. The website states simply that the case was received and a receipt notice sent (which he received)

 

The service center is processing applications now that were filed 2 months prior to his, so the timing seems to be in line with those who applied at the same time as him (ie not processed yet).

 

Thank you

[Villanelle 4,122]

Okay. So when you say the divorce was granted you mean he has a "final divorce decree" correct? The divorce is not pending, its totally done- he is now considered single and would be free to marry again if he chooses to- correct?

 

If that is the case then he absolutely MUST let USCIS know that he is now officially divorced. (He can send a letter with the divorce decree). USCIS can NOT process his joint application if he is divorced. Oddly USCIS will not know he is divorced unless he tells them. I know its strange because they do so much investigating that you would think they would verify the marriage is still intact- but they do not. So it is HIS responsibility to notify them it is not.

If he doesnt and they approve his joint petition he is making a huge situation. Later on if he applies for citizenship or petitions again they will see he was approved incorrectly as a joint petition and revoke his approval. 751s can be approved with out interview- so he must contact them asap before they potentially approve him w/o interview.

 

Hes going to want to send them a letter asking to be switched to a divorce waiver petition and include his divorce. He can also include additional evidence he may have. They can approve his divorce waiver w/o interview but they often interview waiver applicants. (He doesnt need to fill out a new 751 or pay additional fees- they will switch the petition he currently has over to a waiver one and use the same fee he already paid).

 

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However the timeline you described is a bit funny. When did they actually get divorced? Immediately after the greencard was issued apx 2 years ago? Did they file a joint 751 (requires both spouses signatures) and check off "married". Because that is incorrect if they were no longer married. Its also odd that the 'abusive' spouse would agree to sign a joint petition if they were divorced and they were in fact 'abusive'. He would have to clarify in his letter things like this- ie that he mistakenly filed as joint when he has been divorced for a very long time. Most likely he will have an interview if this is the case.

 

If they divorced more recently then its less of an issue. Many people will file as joint and then divorce while its pending. Its unheard of to file as joint when you are divorced. You would purposefully be entering incorrect info into the form.

 

Regardless- he needs to submit evidence from the entire duration of the marriage- however long that was. The sooner after the GC was issued they divorced the more suspicious it looks that the marriage was only to obtain the GC. This doesnt mean you will be denied- it just means you need as much evidence as you can to overcome the suspicions. Any documentation he may have about the break down of the marriage will be useful. Anything you claim you ideally want to have documents to back it up.

 

I am also going to mention since 'abuse' was brought up that he has the option of asking to be a divorce waiver, an abuse waiver- or both. It is generally recommended that if you are divorced and abused that you only file under divorce. If you file under both you have to prove both. Proving a divorce only requires the divorce decree + evidence of marriage- proving abuse requires evidence of marriage + a lot more evidence that it is unclear if he has. Some people opt to file under abuse when they have little to no evidence to support the petition DUE to the abuse. 

 

(There is plenty more info that can be provided- but since it is unclear when they actually divorced I am not going to outline things that may be unnecessary- If you all need more help or more specific info please dont be afraid to ask)

[forAfriend 0]

Thank you so much! This is very helpful.

 

The divorce was granted end of 2016. They were married 2013, when the greencard was issued. The joint i751 was filed Spring 2016, both spouses signed -- at that point the marriage was being worked on.

 

He submitted a lot of evidence of a bona fide marriage with the joint I-751 petition. Does it need to be resubmitted with the waiver request? That may actually be a problem as he doesn't have access to their shared files, and the ex spouse not only won't cooperate but will act in any way to damage my friend. 

 

I appreciate your advice re abuse -- why open up more cans of worms than necessary. The divorce judgment is 100% final and he is free to marry others etc.

 

I appreciate any other advice you can give. What about the complaint in his file that was mentioned when he called about his case status? Who has standing to make a complaint? Does USCIS look at anything regarding the applicant, or only information regarding marriage fraud? (The fear is that the vindictive ex spouse shared (false) allegations of violence). My friend was told that without the complaint number, he could not obtain information about the complaint. 

 

My friend will submit the final divorce judgment with a request to convert the i751 to a waiver. How does this language read for a cover letter?

R

e: Request to treat previously submitted I-751 joint petition as waiver

Dear Sir or Madam:

 

I am respectfully requesting that my currently pending I-751 petition treated as an I-751 waiver, due to the recent termination of my marriage, and the enclosed divorce judgment be added to my file. My marriage irretrievably broke down, even though we had been very much in love. I tried to make it work, but this proved impossible. The divorce was granted November 17, 2016 and as such, the marriage has been terminated. Should you require any further information, please do not hesitate to contact me.

[Villanelle 4,122]

The letter you proposed seems fine to me. Include the divorce decree with it.

As for 'complaints'--- well, people often make complaints for a variety of reasons. I personally have NEVER heard of someone at USCIS (via phone rep or in person at infopass) tell the immigrant 'theres a complaint in your file'. So I find it very odd that this was told to him. Im not saying it didnt happen- just that its extremely rare.

 

If or when the ex-spouse notified them of the divorce or otherwise stated the marriage was terminating, USCIS would treat that as the spouse withdrawing from the joint petition and automatically convert the joint petition to a waiver. Has he kept his address current with USCIS? He shouldve notified them if his address changed after the divorce. If he hasnt then he needs to do such immediately. Any correspondence will be sent to the address they have on file for him. So if they got a letter from the spouse and it was considered a withdrawal of the joint petition on her side- they would send an RFE to him at the address they have stating he is being automatically changed to a waiver and requesting his divorce decree. He had/has limited time to reply if an RFE was sent. (it would also show it (the rfe) on the online system- just that one was sent, not its contents)

 

Anything he sent in with his joint petition USCIS will still have and use when they adjudicate him. He can send in additional info with his request to switch to a waiver if he has any. Im sure there is something he can come up. He may want to write his own affidavit of the relationship and its break down that led to divorce. Many divorce waiver applicants do this so that the Officer reviewing it understands what went on timeline wise. Any additional evidence he has to support was he says he should include. 

 

Otherwise- a 'complaint' can really be anything. It doesnt HAVE to be about his 751 but it may be. Does he have any skeletons in the closet that need to be addressed? If not, he really shouldnt worry about it. If an allegation of marriage fraud was made by the ex or someone on her behalf, USCIS may investigate it. Often they brush off complaints from ex spouses. The complaint would have to include actionable verifiable evidence. Most spouses DO NOT have such- again unless there was legitimate fraud.

 

Most likely he will have an interview for his 751 based on the fact there is a complaint. They will assess him based on a number of factors including their belief that he can make a sworn statement of "I entered the marriage in good faith". For almost everyone being believed is not an issue. Its only if the USCIS has evidence that they have made false statements before (in any legal matter) or some other type of evidence they can 'not be trusted'. So again- is there anything legitimate out there that can harm him? It has to be more then the ex's statement and view of things.

 

When you say the ex may have shared a 'false' allegation of violence- what does that mean? That they may have sent a letter outlining stuff that never happened or do they have documentation of things? 

 

 

[forAfriend 0]

Friend decided to hire a lawyer before sending information regarding his divorce, despite this advise here. The lawyer advised that no information can be sent to USCIS unless USCIS requests evidence or an interview. Neither were requested, and his 10 year permanent greencard was issued. Now the lawyer is advising my friend to submit a new i-751 to inform USCIS of the divorce so that he won't run into issues when he applies for citizenship, as stated here. 

 

Is there a USCIS publication or rule which states applicants may send in unsolicited information?

 

Can an i751 be submitted after someone has a 10 year greencard? If so, what effect might this have on his residency? Would an additional fee need to be submitted? Anyone with this experience?

 

Thanks

[mindthegap 2,590]

1 hour ago, forAfriend said:

Is there a USCIS publication or rule which states applicants may send in unsolicited information?

Yes - it even says it on the original I-751 extension letter / receipt notice.  The lawyer is an idiot.

Proof once again that not all lawyers and law degrees are created equal.

 

If he does nothing it could potentially affect his N-400.

Edited February 15, 2018 by mindthegap

[Scazy 78]

Wow, seriously after posts like this i believe more and more that VJ has much more valid information for no fee rather than a lawyer that charges 3000 and up.p

Please update how you decided to proceed