I-751 / Divorce circus show

[Mobius1 175]

Hey Team,

 

Have a concern, if someone can enlighten. I will lay it out in a timeline below:

 

• Nov 2019 - Jointly applied for I-751
  • 1 year, 2 months go by
• Feb 2021 - Time went by, things went bad in marriage and Ex filed for divorce. Back then divorces were taking too long due to COVID caused backlog.
  • 4 months go by
• July 2021 - Joint I-751 approved without an interview due to a mountain of evidence.
  • 3 months go by 
• Oct 2021 - Divorce finalized

 

As far as marriage goes, nothing can be more real than this. We have an ocean of evidence ranging from having a child, house, financial co-mingling, 1 million pics, taxes, and other items

 

Now what concerns me is that will this be a problem for N400? Would I be accused of misrepresentation?

 

I consulted about 4-5 lawyers if I can go ahead and convert my case to I-751 divorce waiver based on good faith marriage. All said no, "You cant do that until you have the decree in hand." As does USCIS website too. 

 

As per USCIS website, separation is not a basis for I-751 denial, nor are u obligated to inform of divorce until you have it finalized.

 

Your thoughts?

[da95826 387]

42 minutes ago, Mobius1 said:

 

Now what concerns me is that will this be a problem for N400? Would I be accused of misrepresentation?

Yes it is likely to be an issue. You divorce decree likely indicates you were separated months before your joint i751 was approved.

 

43 minutes ago, Mobius1 said:

I consulted about 4-5 lawyers if I can go ahead and convert my case to I-751 divorce waiver based on good faith marriage. All said no, "You cant do that until you have the decree in hand." As does USCIS website too. 

You need to find better lawyers, you should have refiled with an i751 waiver application. Any yes you could have filed an i751 waiver or written a letter to USCIS to convert your joint i751 ROC case to a i751 ROC waiver case before the final devorce decree was ready, USCIS would have sent you a RFE request for the divorce decree months after your application or letter.

 

You should consult a good immgration lawyer to look into how to fix the issue. I would not apply for naturalization without consulting a competent immgration lawyer first on how to address the issues in your case. You will likely need to defend to USCIS that your case was approvable anyway and you would have gotten your conditions removed anyway with an i751 waiver application.

 

 Sorry this happened to you but you got bad advice on how to handle your ROC waiver case.

[Mobius1 175]

I think at the end it boils down to how lawyer A translates the guidance differently than lawyer B.

 

While the safer bet is to have it amended, memo also says that separation / initiation of divorce proceedings isn't a basis for denial, as shown in the screen grab from the memo (https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/document/memos/i-751_Filed_ Prior_Termination_3apr09.pdf)

 

Technically, one is still married until the day the judge issues a final dissolution of marriage. For my part, I kept trying until the end to save that marriage.

 

I am not saying this to make myself feel better but perhaps find guidance for someone who might be in the same position.

 

Either ways, I have already spent my good years being worried about these insanely harsh and convoluted immigration laws. I will take whatever the fate brings and be happy with it.

 

 

[Crazy Cat 39,317]

8 hours ago, Mobius1 said:

All said no, "You cant do that until you have the decree in hand." As does USCIS website too. 

That is not entirely true.  You could file with a waiver before the decree, but you would definitely receive an RFE requesting the decree.  I have seen people do it both ways.   If you file a joint ROC, but were separated or a divorce was pending, it might raise some questions.

Edited June 17, 2022 by Crazy Cat

[Nat&Amy 623]

It might come down to dates. If your divorce decree shows that your marriage was over in February 2021, it will definitely cause you problems because USCIS will see that your Removal of Conditions was inedequately approved, since it was based on marriage to a USC and at the time of approval that no longer applied to your case. If your decree states your marriage ended after July, you might not have issues at all. Regardless, such a big change in circumstances (end of marriage) should have been reported, no matter how much bonafide evidence you presented.

 

That said, yes, RoC with divorce waivers have a tricky timing. It is true that you should notify immigration of a divorce but when they issue an RFE requesting the decree it's not as if you have all the time in the world to submit it. And if you don't submit it, you get a denial. At the same time, you don't want to risk having it approved with incorrect information on file, because it is likely to cause you problems in the future.

 

Edited June 17, 2022 by Nat&Amy

[Rocio0010 5,567]

I am not a specialist in this area, but I think it comes down to “at least show that you were trying to be transparent” in the eyes of USCIS. You said ex filed for divorce in February 2021, and then in July 2021 (four months after) your ROC was approved. What you should have done is to switch to a divorce waiver as soon as you learned that your ex filed. They would have issued a RFE for the final decree, which, if you didn’t have, would have lead to a denial. But I think that this will show that you’ve tried. Then, with the denial for the joint I-751, you could have filed a new one with the divorce waiver once you did have the divorce decree.

Yes, it would have been an expensive hassle, but you’d have now peace of mind for filing N400.

Edited June 17, 2022 by Rocio0010

[Mobius1 175]

I agree with you guys. Perhaps this would be a good post for someone who is or will be experiencing my kind of situation. 

 

43 minutes ago, Nat&Amy said:

If your divorce decree shows that your marriage was over in February 2021

Yea the decree only shows the date the marriage ended i.e. Oct 2021, 3 months after joint i751 got approved.

 

16 minutes ago, Rocio0010 said:

I think it comes down to “at least show that you were trying to be transparent” in the eyes of USCIS.

Honestly speaking, a part of me was hoping that an interview would happen where I would go in alone and explain the situation. Which may either have it amended or denied and I would re-apply as solo.

 

 

It sucks that there is not a proper guidance nor lawyers who understand law very well and let people get screwed.

[Rocio0010 5,567]

2 minutes ago, Mobius1 said:

ea the decree only shows the date the marriage ended i.e. Oct 2021, 3 months after joint i751 got approved.

Then it should be fine, as long as you don’t get a picky officer that questions a fast divorce after an approval.

 

4 minutes ago, Mobius1 said:

It sucks that there is not a proper guidance nor lawyers who understand law very well and let people get screwed.

There are lawyers that understand it well, or that at least can guide you. What really sucks is that 751s are taking so long to be approved -a lot can happen in a marriage in the time they take to process it.

[Mobius1 175]

Well, I just spoke to another lawyer. According to her, they will grill on the relationship and how / why it ended esp 3 months after the 10 year GC was issued but since I have a child with my ex as well as overwhelming evidence, that will overcome any doubts as to the legitimacy of the marriage. 

 

She says she has had clients in this particular situation but with quite bad conditions and she considered my conditions "good".

 

Cant wait for this nightmare to be over...Immigration system needs to be overhauled instead of letting it be run by monkeys

[Wiks 3]

I am in a very similar situation, in a month or few I will get divorced, my i751 is still processing. I talked with lawyer, it seems like if you're getting divorce you have to notify USCIS, in that case you either have to file a new petition with waiver or adjust your current application.

 

I really understand what you're going through... stay strong.

[Mobius1 175]

12 minutes ago, Wiks said:

I am in a very similar situation, in a month or few I will get divorced, my i751 is still processing. I talked with lawyer, it seems like if you're getting divorce you have to notify USCIS, in that case you either have to file a new petition with waiver or adjust your current application.

 

I really understand what you're going through... stay strong.

 

Act quick please, even if you have to file a new I-751. You will be legal and still able to work. Dont take any chances.

[mindthegap 2,535]

If you have a pending USCIS petition and you are legally divorced, and you do not notify them, yes, it could cause problems.

If you are still legally married, there is nothing to inform them of because if you do inform them and as per policy they issue an RFE within 90 days for a final divorce that you can't fulfill simply because you are still married, then you have caused yourself a denial for no reason, and an uphill battle, because once they see a previous denial, you are in for a boatload of fun. Fun being decidedly NOT fun obviously. 

 

To the letter of the law, and USCIS, you are either married, or divorced. There is no middle ground. Divorce is not a reason for i-751 denial, and at the time of filing you were legally married, living in marital union, and as the immigrant your joint intent, and the intent of you was to make the marriage work.

That last part of the sentence is very very important, as the entire I-751 process is based on the intent of the immigrant. USCIS insane delays, the backlog in divorce courts - none of those are your problem. You were legally married. End of. 

 

I honestly wouldn't worry about it. When the time comes, file your n-400 and then deal with a small chance of problems or additional scrutiny if it happens. 

 

 

 

Edited June 17, 2022 by mindthegap

[Mobius1 175]

4 minutes ago, mindthegap said:

When the time comes, file your n-400 and then deal with a small chance of problems or additional scrutiny if it happens. 

 

Thanks, that's what I thought too. If USCIS cant recognize a child in the marriage as strong evidence then I have no words.

 

However, shooting down my own assumption, USCIS does look at it very strongly. In-fact, my AoS interview was won in literally first 30 secs when I handed the IO my child's birth certificate. 

 

As per his words (pretty senior officer there), "Even if this marriage is fake, it was real at one point to produce a child". Just for formalities, he took in a couple of documents and asked 2-3 questions regarding day of marriage and birthdays.

 

So I am ready for scrutiny. 

[Wiks 3]

12 minutes ago, mindthegap said:

If you have a pending USCIS petition and you are legally divorced, and you do not notify them, yes, it could cause problems.

If you are still legally married, there is nothing to inform them of because if you do inform them and as per policy they issue an RFE within 90 days for a final divorce that you can't fulfill simply because you are still married, then you have caused yourself a denial for no reason, and an uphill battle, because once they see a previous denial, you are in for a boatload of fun. Fun being decidedly NOT fun obviously. 

So when would you suggest to inform the USCIS that you're in the process of getting divorce?

 

It's tricky because of the divorce backlog, you can simply not get the final divorce papers on time and get denial cause you won't be able to send the final divorce decree within 90 days. 

[mindthegap 2,535]

16 minutes ago, Wiks said:

So when would you suggest to inform the USCIS that you're in the process of getting divorce?

If that was not the case at the time of joint filing, then at interview if called, or when it is final.

Anything else is a) not legally required, and b) playing with fire timeline wise. Trust me, you do not want to go through a denial and the hassles it causes. 

 

If you you have a 100% definite window circa 90 or days before your divorce being made final then by all means write and inform them of the switch and await the RFE for it (which may come quickly, or slowly but you MUST respond to with the final divorce), but caveat emptor. 

Edited June 17, 2022 by mindthegap