I-751 ROC--- Questions on presentation/content details

[Villanelle 4,121]

The instructions and memo are awkwardly worded in some parts.  A lot of it is because USCIS does not acknowledge separation as a marital status. You are either married, divorced, or widowed. So the overall statute says for them to issue a 2yr conditional card when first issuing the GC if the marriage is under 2ys at the time. You then need to remove conditions which technically requires a joint 751 unless you qualify for a waiver. The provisions that allow for a waiver allow the waiver to be filed at any time where the regulations for a joint require it to be filed in the 90 day window. (All 751s need to be filed before the card expires or else they assume you are not filing because you no longer want the GC. If you do not file before the card expires it is also possible to file late as well but that is N/A to your situation.)

 

Now the memo was supposed to clear up confusion for those using waivers but again because USCIS does not acknowledge 'separated' as a marital status its written in a way where the petitioner is either 1-separated but still legally married hence filing as and married filing jointly -OR -2 divorced so filing alone with waiver.  Unfortunately some people are neither 1 or 2 but it doesnt matter. They have to get on train 1 or 2. 

 

So you can either apply as or hop on train 1 and file jointly. When they see you are in divorce process they are suppose to RFE you and ask if you want to remain in the joint or switch to the waiver. They can approve you as a joint as long as you are still legally married. There are various reasons for not filing this way. In which case or alternatively you would initially apply as/ hop on train 2. Technically you dont have a divorce decree but one is not required to board this train. You need it to get off/be approved though- so metaphorically you would ride the train until you get your decree or USCIS kicks you off and has you sit in front the court until you can show it in which case the court puts you back on the train when you get the decree and when the rides over you get your 10yr card. 

 

Reading the memo with this in mind it can make a lot more sense.  As for the specific questions- the interview for ROC can be waived in both joint and waiver cases. In general interviews are given for a small percentage of cases for quality control purposes, so even the best case has a chance of having an interview. When theres a situation of pending divorce and a joint 751 is filed they are almost always interviewed- this is because this is a unique situation and anything unique is typically interviewed. Overall divorce waivers are interviewed more frequently then joint waivers but at the same time plenty of people get approved w/o interview with divorce waivers. 

 

As for the confidentiality stuff. When you file a joint waiver it belongs to both of you. When you file a divorce waiver 751 it is your petition alone. They can not contact your former spouse for their input on your 751- however if you send any evidence like a statement from your former spouse then you open the door for them to speak to them to verify the contents as they can do with any statement you send from friends/family/employers etc. 

 

 

[InhaleExhale 28]

50 minutes ago, Villanelle said:

When theres a situation of pending divorce and a joint 751 is filed they are almost always interviewed- this is because this is a unique situation and anything unique is typically interviewed. Overall divorce waivers are interviewed more frequently then joint waivers but at the same time plenty of people get approved w/o interview with divorce waivers. 

Ok, so pending divorce and joint waiver = almost always an interview.

But what about NO pending divorce (=married but separated) and joint waiver -> is this considered pretty much the same in terms of uniqueness and that is why there is an almost 100% chance of interview? Just trying to understand...

I am also wondering: Lets say USCIS determines the evidence of a couple (regardless if happily married or separated or divorced) is satisfying their bona fides of entering into their marriage, then for what reason(s) would USCIS still want to interview?

  

1 hour ago, Villanelle said:

They can not contact your former spouse for their input on your 751- however if you send any evidence like a statement from your former spouse then you open the door for them to speak to them to verify the contents

Got it. As for emails of him I understood the same applies. What about texts? Are these also considered statements and could likewise open that door?

 

 

[da95826 387]

Whether or not you get an interview depends a lot on how you got your green card in the first place, did you adjust your status in the USA or did you go through consular processing out of the USA. Best chance of an interview is if USCIS has never interviewed the green card holder before in the USA, if you have a weaker case, or you set off any flags for marriage fraud. If you file an joint i751 and live separately from your spouse you are much more likely to get an interview. Remember USCIS does check your background themselves to confirm your evidence.

 

If you are separated from your spouse you must file a waiver case. You don’t need to file for a devorce waiver. You can file for an abuse waiver, extreme emotional abuse waiver, humanitarian waiver, or if your spouse has passed away a widow waiver. The down side of the abuse, extreme emotional abuse, or the humanitarian waiver you need to provide adequate proof of reason that qualify you for the waiver, but none require you to have a devorce but all require proof of good faith marriage.

 

The easiest waiver is the devorce waiver; you only need a devorce decree (no fault devorce almost everywhere in the USA) at some point during the i751 case along with good faith marriage proof all waivers require.

[InhaleExhale 28]

 

Just now, da95826 said:

Whether or not you get an interview depends a lot on how you got your green card in the first place, did you adjust your status in the USA or did you go through consular processing out of the USA. Best chance of an interview is if USCIS has never interviewed the green card holder before in the USA, if you have a weaker case, or you set off any flags for marriage fraud. If you file an joint i751 and live separately from your spouse you are much more likely to get an interview. Remember USCIS does check your background themselves to confirm your evidence.

My husband and I were both interviewed in the USA for my adjustment of status.

It sounds like a joint filing but being separated will more likely get an interview than a waiver filed - regardless of how satisfying the evidence for a bona fide marriage is.

I'll see if I can find any examples of a jointly filed I-751 and being separated that was approved without an interview...

[da95826 387]

6 minutes ago, InhaleExhale said:

It sounds like a joint filing but being separated will more likely get an interview than a waiver filed - regardless of how satisfying the evidence for a bona fide marriage is.

If you live separately from your spouse and file jointly you will definitely set off marriage fraud flags with USCIS and get increased attention and much more likely to be interviewed and will require real strong proof of a bona fide marriage.

[Villanelle 4,121]

From my understanding - certain benefits can be issued with no interview- like EADs. For N400 interviews are always required. For the GC or ROC the policy states interviews are required but can be waived (you posted a snippet about reasons they can use to decide to waive). Overall cases are divided into 3 letter categories. A, B, and C. A is for perfect submissions. We're talking masterpieces. Absolutely no doubt in approving it. A very small percentage of A's are given interviews for quality control. Then theres B- where most people fall. B is a petition that meets all the requirements but theres still something about it that doesnt quite make it a masterpiece. A slightly larger but still small percentage of interviews for B are done again for quality control purposes. Then there is C. C is when there is a problem. C is always set for interviews. It can be a significant problem- like suspect of fraud or not such a significant problem- like something that wouldnt cause a direct denial - mismatching addresses on a joint petition because you dont actually live together due to work or school. Or having very little co-mingling evidence. They usually try to resolve these types of concerns with the RFE, but if your RFE still didnt convince them or they otherwise feel an interview would be beneficial then you will be interviewed. From your snippet- "complex facts or issues to resolve questions or concerns"- a joint 751 when the couple is separated or has divorce papers pending is an 'issue' that would cause them to 99.999% do an interview. Currently with the pandemic less interviews are being done but they are still conducting interviews as needed. 

 

Other common issues for interviews can be as mentioned above- mismatching addresses on various paperwork. Lack of financial documents with no explanation. Unusual documentation like bank statements where one person is depositing or receiving large amounts of money and no explanation is given. Now USCIS can not tell you how to live your life or how to spend your money. You are not judged on such. But if I am the Officer and I am looking at your paperwork and I see that both spouses earn about the same amount but one spouse seems to be paying for everything and the other spouse is either accumulating a large savings account or is sending their money overseas to an unknown person- or is receiving large sums of money from an unspecified source- I would wonder what is going on. If the paperwork in the case file shows your brother married and sponsored an immigrant and now you are sponsoring that immigrants sibling or cousin it can lead to suspicion that you guys are running a low level GC scam ring. Evaluating petitions is a skill and theres no master list of things that might raise a red flag to them. But generally people can instinctually tell when someone is lying to them and if your petition gives off a vibe like that then they will most likely want to interview you to resolve their concerns. Also often people who had a previous visa like a student or temp work visa that was close to expiring and quickly married to apply for the GC (or was out of status for a significant amount of time prior to the marriage) can be looked at harder because theres a chance the marriage was motivated by wanting a valid status/GC and not because you truly wanted to marry the person.

 

I wouldnt worry too much about being selected for an interview because you didnt do anything wrong. You qualify for ROC because you had a bonafide marriage- it just didnt work out and thats OK. 

 

Any evidence that includes another person can be verified. So if you have text messages and feel they are important enough to include yet do not want to include them- a work around is for you to not include the actual messages but to simply reference them in your affidavit. You can also include a statement from a trusted friend or person who is considered to have GMC like a priest, therapist, Dr, etc- describing in their statement how they saw these text messages - verifying the contents and the circumstances in which they saw them. Ex- if you have a friend who has been supportive during the break up they can discuss how the break up happened- how you were heartbroken, how you guys had a long discussion about what the messages from your ex said- perhaps they were with you when a message came in. Perhaps you called them later and told them you got a message from ex earlier saying they dont think the problems can be fixed. I really dont know exactly what happened in your relationship. You did mention having a therapist at some point and they are probably the best person to get an affidavit from. They may charge you a fee to prepare a letter in addition to having you come in for a session to discuss them possibly writing such a letter and may even make you sign a waiver allowing them to speak to USCIS if USCIS does choose to contact them (they rarely contact Drs like that).

 

Their letter can be brief and does not have to disclose all the personal details you shared in therapy. Its typically a basic letter saying I am Dr Whoever and I have been seeing/seen the Smith couple in couples therapy from X date to Y date. They were struggling with various issues about whatever- one spouse spending too much money on things the other disagreed with, one spending too much time at work, arguing about chores being divided or one is messier then the other. Whatever it was. And how they attempted to help you with therapy tools but it was decided the best thing for both of you is to separate. There is no right or wrong in writing an affidavit. It just needs to include things the writer has direct knowledge about and explain how they have such knowledge.  A therapist should know how to write such a letter properly and if you are not happy with the contents of it you can ask them to rewrite it or choose not to include it. 

 

Again you do not need to show a happy marriage. Not all marriages are happy. You have to show it was bonafide- which means you entered it in good faith and not for immigration benefits. As a divorce waiver you only need to show good faith on your part. What the other person did or how they behaved is not on you. 

 

In a divorce waiver case the divorce decree is in itself a very important piece of evidence that includes a lot of information like the dates you lived together and the date you separated. It also lists out any assets and debts and how they are divided. The decree is an official document which was either created by both spouses and signed off by a Judge to be accurate or if any parts were contested the Judge ruled on it. So the contents are considered to be factual. It seems you already divided assets and such so the divorce should be pretty easy to file and there probably wont be any issues you guys disagree on. The divorce can not include any wording of fraud (by you) because that will be held against you. Most divorces are done under the 'incompatibility' type reasons and thats fine. Sometimes people arent who they say they are or they just werent ready for the responsibilities of marriage. Maybe they are in denial about who they actually are vs who they want to be. There are thousands of reasons why marriages just dont work out. The 'why' doesnt matter so much, its more about your intent when you married. So personally I feel in divorce waiver cases its important to include in your affidavit the history of your relationship- the courtship and the reasons why you chose to marry and have that balance out how it broke down. Dont put all the focus on the breakdown. 

 

I do not know if you will find any examples of cases where a joint was filed during a separation and the interview was waived. I believe there are 1-2 threads on VJ of those who filed such a way and they both did in fact have interviews and were ultimately approved. Again these were couples on very good terms that still cared about each other but simply realized marriage was not for them. They had an assortment of evidence supporting the good faith and in the interview they appeared to be genuine in what they were saying and answered all questions honestly so it was clear to the Officer there was no fraud involved- just a sad situation of two people who werent meant to be.

 

Also because of the long processing times some couples that file jointly but are separated end up getting a final divorce decree before approval. If you do choose to file jointly and then subsequently file for divorce you MUST notify them of the pending divorce if you didnt in the original submission and you also MUST send them the divorce decree and ask to be switched to a divorce waiver prior to approval. If you mentioned pending divorce in the initial submission its unlikely you would be approved w/o interview but it can happen. If it does you will have a big problem if you are approved as joint w/o interview but were technically divorced at the time of approval. 

 

There are many variables to filing with a divorce waiver when you are not divorced yet- or switching from joint to divorce. I would suggest you create a timeline (you dont have to use the VJ feature where it appears under all your posts though), but just a basic timeline for reference on what you filed and when and the dates of when things happened like marriage, separation, divorce papers filed, RFEs received etc.  This will make it easier for people to give you advice w/o having to look through your previous posts and piece it together themselves. I would also recommend keeping active on VJ as things progress in your case. It can be helpful to think of the process like a flow chart. You know one of those where each box has a question or statement and depending on the yes-no answer you move to the next box. The exact path you take down the flow chart will impact what you need to do so be cautious of comparing your situation to others. The advice for their case may not be the same for yours. 

 

For you specifically you can either file as joint (letting them know you are separated) or you can file as a divorce waiver (w/o having the divorce). I understand how you can be looking at these two choices and unsure which is the better one because neither are ideal. There are  "hazards' on both paths that you need to be diligent in navigating but overall the divorce waiver path is the safer one. Anything that 'goes wrong' on that path you can easily deal with- because the things that can go wrong are all related to paperwork- ie not having the decree in time. That can be rectified and yes, it may cause you delays or cost money in filing subsequent 751s or needing to hire an attny if you do end up in court- but again thats all paperwork nonsense, more formality then anything else. Going the joint filing way is much more hazardous. You dont need the divorce paperwork- in fact you can not have a divorce decree. So the hazards referenced are about establishing good faith and you are foolishly relying on your former spouse for such. Again theres a reason why you are divorcing. If you had 100% trust and faith in your spouse you probably wouldn't be separated right? 

 

You also cant control what happens in the future. Your ex might get a new partner. They may oppose to him helping you. Then what? It was also mentioned the aff of support (864). This stays in effect until you either naturalize or no longer have the GC. Money can be a huge factor for some people. Does he trust you to not come after him for support? Could someone easily plant the idea in his head that its best for him to sabotage your case to get out of the 864? Would he be OK if you meet the man of your dreams during the processing and still appear in the interview supporting you? And lets say you do meet the man of your dreams- do you really want to explain to him how you are still technically married and will remain married for the next 1-2 years because why? You cant stay married simply to be approved for a joint ROC and the longer you go with out officially terminating the marriage the more questionable it becomes as to why you arent terminating the marriage- hence the interview. 

 

Im not sure how old you are of where you are from or what has happened in your life in general that makes you reluctant to file for divorce. But being married has various legal ramifications and benefits. When you are married your spouse is generally your 'next of kin' That means if you suffer an accident they are generally responsible for making medical decisions for you. If you win the lottery your separated spouse may have a claim to such. If you get pregnant in most states your spouse is going to be listed on the birth certificate regardless if you say he is not the dad- and its a whole big thing to resolve. When you apply for loans or if you need financial assistance it becomes more complicated to have to check off married and explain their income is not available to you to be considered. In some states when you buy property your spouses name is automatically added to the deed or they have to sign off when you sell. You do not give someone power like that that you are no longer in a relationship with. The only logical reason why people would stay married is for benefits (health, tax, etc) - which is not how you want USCIS to look at it. There are emotional reasons for staying married but do you really want to have to establish to USCIS that you are not divorcing because of emotional issues and not because of any benefits you get from remaining married? 

 

I really dont want to keep posting the same things and Im not sure if there is anything anyone can say to convince you that you should  use the divorce waiver option and file for divorce. But if you truly feel you are not ready to divorce and wish to move forward with the joint filing I wish you the best of luck for it to go smoothly, you can later amend to a divorce waiver if things change. I suppose at this point its on you to make your decision on how you will file and if you need help / have questions about the path you chose or how to switch paths if you regret what you chose-  please feel free to continue to post them here and keep us updated on the case progress- but you have to make a choice soon as it seems your card is near expiry. 

[Villanelle 4,121]

1 hour ago, da95826 said:

 

 

If you are separated from your spouse you must file a waiver case. You don’t need to file for a devorce waiver. You can file for an abuse waiver, extreme emotional abuse waiver, humanitarian waiver, or if your spouse has passed away a widow waiver. The down side of the abuse, extreme emotional abuse, or the humanitarian waiver you need to provide adequate proof of reason that qualify you for the waiver, but none require you to have a devorce but all require proof of good faith marriage.

 

The easiest waiver is the devorce waiver; you only need a devorce decree (no fault devorce almost everywhere in the USA) at some point during the i751 case along with good faith marriage proof all waivers require.

Just FYI-

-divorce requires bonafide marriage + divorce decree

-abuse requires bonafide marriage + proof of abuse.  A divorce is not required but it can be concerning if you are not separated and are still living in 'marital union' with your abuser. There is only 1 abuse box which is used for both physical and mental abuse scenarios by your spouse, you check the box and need to explain in your evidences the type of abuse you are claiming, it can be physical, mental or both. The other abuse box is for derivatives (if you got your GC based on your parents marriage and the citizen/LPR is abusive or if your conditional GC holder parent is the abusive one and will not file ROC for you) 

-widow waiver requires bonafide marriage + proof of death of your spouse

-hardship waiver requires hardship, nothing else. You do not need to show bonafide marriage nor a divorce. If fraud is suspected or alleged then of course you need to overcome such, but you are basically saying similar to an asylum claim that they can not take away your GC because if they do you cant go back to where you are from - so they look at that and not at the marriage/marriage break down. It can be very difficult to establish hardship and almost always requires an attny to assist. 

 

 

[da95826 387]

Not sure you understand that the conditions on your conditional green card is you remain in a bona fide marriage. A bona fide marriage is one where you are together with a spouse in a full marital relationship. If you are no longer together with a spouse in a marital relationship then you are not meeting the conditions of your legal permanent residence.

 

Those who remain in a marriage but are separated by school or work have an added burden to show that they are still in a bona fide marriage together with your spouse. (Showing proof that they spend time together, that they communicate, continue support one another and have a good explanation of what is going on)

 

A joint i751 application is you saying yes I have been and continue to be in a full bonafide marriage with my spouse. YOU CANNOT BE APPROVED FOR A JOINT ROC IF YOU ARE NO LONGER IN A BONA FIDE MARRIAGE this also includes the process time of the i751.

 

The i751 waivers waive your bonafide marriage requirement after the point in time after the start of your marriage and after a conditional green card was issued through the point in time you file the i751. You can only have an i751 case approved and you are no longer in a marital relationship if you file an i751 waiver. 

 

The whole point of an i751 waiver is you are no longer in a marital relationship with your spouse and you are qualified to waive the continuing bona fide marriage requirements of the ROC at this point in time. 

 

If you are no longer in a marital relationship with your spouse you need to file a waiver case and work toward being qualified for the i751 waiver of your choice.

[Villanelle 4,121]

21 hours ago, da95826 said:

Not sure you understand that the conditions on your conditional green card is you remain in a bona fide marriage. A bona fide marriage is one where you are together with a spouse in a full marital relationship. If you are no longer together with a spouse in a marital relationship then you are not meeting the conditions of your legal permanent residence.

 

 

YIKES. ... No, just no. 

 

Many people mistakenly believe what you described above. I know the term 'bonafide marriage' and proving such is used a lot when discussing what is needed for ROC. From USCIS ( https://www.uscis.gov/green-card/after-we-grant-your-green-card/conditional-permanent-residence/removing-conditions-on-permanent-residence-based-on-marriage)

Your permanent resident status is conditional if it is based on a marriage that was less than two years old on the day you became a permanent resident. We give you conditional permanent resident status when you are either admitted to the United States on an immigrant visa or adjust your status to that of a permanent resident.

Your status is conditional until you prove, after a specified period of time, that you did not enter the marriage to circumvent the immigration laws of the United States. 

 

You do not technically prove bonafide marriage, you prove you did not enter the marriage to circumvent immigration laws. How do you do that? By showing good faith/bonafide marriage. So you can be divorced and show you did not enter the marriage to circumvent immigration laws. You can be still legally married but separated and have a divorce pending and show you did not enter the marriage to circumvent immigration laws. 

 

Certain benefits or processes do require you to show an "active" bonafide marriage. ROC is not one of them. ROC requires you to show you entered in good faith. The marriage can subsequently break down and thats OK. You dont need to show a happy marriage, just a legit one you entered in good faith and not to circumvent immigration law. Here is a link to the more detailed code of regulations for reference- https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=6e2b2e04d5811884e715092ad40d44aa&mc=true&node=pt8.1.216&rgn=div5

 

 

 

[da95826 387]

56 minutes ago, Villanelle said:

You do not technically prove bonafide marriage, you prove you did not enter the marriage to circumvent immigration laws. How do you do that? By showing good faith/bonafide marriage. So you can be divorced and show you did not enter the marriage to circumvent immigration laws. You can be still legally married but separated and have a divorce pending and show you did not enter the marriage to circumvent immigration laws. 

 

Certain benefits or processes do require you to show an "active" bonafide marriage. ROC is not one of them. ROC requires you to show you entered in good faith. The marriage can subsequently break down and thats OK. You dont need to show a happy marriage, just a legit one you entered in good faith and not to circumvent immigration law. Here is a link to the more detailed code of regulations for reference- https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=6e2b2e04d5811884e715092ad40d44aa&mc=true&node=pt8.1.216&rgn=div5

With an i751 waiver all this is true and I totally agree with you, with an i751 waiver filed you only need to show the marriage was entered into in good faith. There is no time period of good faith marriage just that you enter the marriage in good faith; really good faith after you got your conditional green card (assuming you got your original green card in good faith). 

If you filed a joint i751 case you are saying your enter into and continued to be in a bonafide marriage. You and your spouse are together and are required to participate in the process of removing your conditions (if your spouse does not attend the interview you will be denied). The joint i751 the standard form with NO WAIVERS requires for there to be a good faith marriage underway when filed and while it is being adjudicated at least if you get an interview. 

What happens if you separate after applying for a joint i751 petition gets approved with no interview?  You keep the green card but USCIS will likely look at your i751 case to see if there were any misrepresentations or fraud at your next USCIS benefit application most likely when you naturalized.

So in a standard ROC case without a waiver you are expected and required to be in an ongoing bonfield marriage, to be together with your spouse in a marital relationship. The whole point of the waiver is you are no longer in a marriage with your spouse but can still legally remove your conditions on your LPR by meeting the conditions of the waiver.

So I stand by my statement that in a standard ROC case without a waiver you are required and expected to be in a bonafide marriage until your i751 is adjudicated.

Edited April 25, 2021 by da95826

[InhaleExhale 28]

On 4/24/2021 at 9:47 AM, Villanelle said:

From your snippet- "complex facts or issues to resolve questions or concerns"- a joint 751 when the couple is separated or has divorce papers pending is an 'issue' that would cause them to 99.999% do an interview.

That makes sense, thank you for clarifying.

 

On 4/24/2021 at 9:47 AM, Villanelle said:

Any evidence that includes another person can be verified. So if you have text messages and feel they are important enough to include yet do not want to include them- a work around is for you to not include the actual messages but to simply reference them in your affidavit.

I see...though, what would possibly keep USCIS from calling my husband even if I don't submit any direct statements from him in a waiver petition? After all, they have all his contact details from the adjustment of status application, so they can always choose to call him, no?

(it's not that I am too worried for them to call him, I doubt he would be so vindictive to flat out lie or make things up, but again, there is no 100% guarantee he won't)

 

On 4/24/2021 at 9:47 AM, Villanelle said:

You did mention having a therapist at some point and they are probably the best person to get an affidavit from.

I have bills and emails describing our issues and giving us home work from our marriage therapist. I also have an affidavit from my own therapist which I started seeing right after my husband broke up.

 

--------------------------------------------------------

Another question I am pondering now - if I do choose the waiver option - does it make any difference whether we file taxes for 2020 jointly or separate? 

Would USCIS consider it an additional financial evidence if we file a joint return? Or would they find it odd that we filed a joint return even though I am filing a waiver petition right after?

(We have filed taxes for 2018 and 2019 jointly)

 

On 4/24/2021 at 9:47 AM, Villanelle said:

If you had 100% trust and faith in your spouse you probably wouldn't be separated right? 

I am not sure if this question was rhetorical but I'll answer anyways. I am separated bc my husband broke up with me. Had he approached me afterwards I would have been right there to fix our issues (which I was the entire time until end of last year when I realized he is done). I would have though needed him taking full accountability for the verbal abuse incident (which he has never really owned up to until this day) to proceed with our marriage. I did want to proceed and I did want him to own up to his actions. Both of which never happened. 

As for the trust, correct, I do NOT have 100% trust. I lost that after the abuse incident. And I realized, that is not the man I thought I married.

There are so many good points you are making regarding divorcing vs waiting and I very much appreciate your input. So valuable, thank you ❤️ 

On 4/24/2021 at 9:47 AM, Villanelle said:

I really dont want to keep posting the same things and Im not sure if there is anything anyone can say to convince you that you should  use the divorce waiver option and file for divorce.

I think you have posted a bunch of new things (in the post I am quoting from) which I wasn't even thinking about before. I feel you have given sufficient input and so many variables to consider to make a decision. Thank you so much!  

[InhaleExhale 28]

On 4/24/2021 at 10:48 AM, da95826 said:

YOU CANNOT BE APPROVED FOR A JOINT ROC IF YOU ARE NO LONGER IN A BONA FIDE MARRIAGE this also includes the process time of the i751.

 

3 hours ago, da95826 said:

So I stand by my statement that in a standard ROC case without a waiver you are required and expected to be in a bonafide marriage until your i751 is adjudicated.

 

Both statements are not correct as far as I am understanding the following memo: 

https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/document/memos/i-751_Filed_ Prior_Termination_3apr09.pdf

 

[mindthegap 2,538]

Correct.

That poster is not posting factual information. 

[InhaleExhale 28]

I have updates and an urgent question..

First of all, I regret not having followed the advice to file my I-751 as a waiver. What a mistake I made here 😕

I filed a joint I-751.

Right after another fight with my husband happened. I am honestly scared of what he might do as possible retaliation. The only thing we agreed on during the fight was that divorce needs to be done asap.

So I sent a letter to USCIS asking to convert my jointly filed I-751 to a divorce waiver because we are starting the divorce process. I told my husband that conversion to waiver will remove him as participant in this petition and therefore his signature.

My husband said he will contact USCIS to make sure that his signature is removed.

So basically USCIS has received my joint application. A few days later USCIS received a letter from me asking to convert. Possibly at the same time USCIS received a call or letter from my husband asking to withdraw his signature. Because the filing is so recent there is no receipt number yet.

My worry now is:

Is there any chance USCIS could straight out deny my petition because of his possible contact and asking to withdraw his signature (without looking at my letter)?

Or will they consider my follow up letter asking to switch to a waiver?

I am worried so much right now and I so regret not having filed straight out as a waiver.

 

[mindthegap 2,538]

25 minutes ago, InhaleExhale said:

Is there any chance USCIS could straight out deny my petition because of his possible contact and asking to withdraw his signature (without looking at my letter)?

No

If they received or processed his letter before yours, the standard thing would be to write to you anyway. It won't just be denied. 

 

Edit: having said that, there is definitely one potential option for him doing this in such a way that it would lead to denial - as it happened to me - but I am not posting it publicly as it may give others ideas. 

 

25 minutes ago, InhaleExhale said:

Or will they consider my follow up letter asking to switch to a waiver?

Yes. This is permitted. 

 

25 minutes ago, InhaleExhale said:

I am worried so much right now and I so regret not having filed straight out as a waiver.

No judgement, and no 'we told you so' posts - we all make mistakes. 

 

Protect yourself - gather EVERYTHING possible you can in terms of documents and evidence, that he may hide or take that you may need. He has already shown that he won't co-operate and intends on being an a*s. And protect yourself outside of immigration issues. 

 

And try to relax. It is not a quick process at the best of times. You remain a LPR at this time, that is all that matters. Deal with the 'ifs' if and when they happen. 

 

 

Edited May 26, 2021 by mindthegap