Kim_G

I can't express how sympathetic I am with your situation; it must be very difficult to deal with the betrayal by someone who you thought you could trust. I'm sure you could either write to your local USCIS office or schedule an InfoPass appoint with them in order to inform them of the situation.

HI

i just applied for the I360 last tuesday based on abused or battred husband i been abused menthaly and phisicly to

the problem is that i dont have statment from poeple that they know us because was all her friends and the refuse to say truth or even answer my call but i stumbit

1 report police

2 my medical record because i attempting suiside when i find out that she was cheating on me

3 officer counslor for marraige statment

4 proof of resident togather like insurance and bills

5 proof of good moral charectar

but the problem i am worried about that i dont have statment from people that they know us like friends because the refuse to say the truth

my question if that enough proof or must that i have statment from other people ? please help me out

In order to qualify under VAWA you need to demonstrate battery (bodily harm) or extreme cruelty by your spouse. In other words, you need to prove wrongdoing on the part of your spouse. Cheating in a marital relationship will not be considered as a sufficient reason for USCIS to approve you self-petition. As much as I sympathize with your situation, your case will require solid evidence of battery/extreme cruelty to be considered for approval.

Regards,

KG

________________________________________

Hello Kim,

Thanks for your helpful information.

I would like to let you know that my I-360 got approved and now I am scheduled for an interview in 2 weeks for my pending I-485. Could you please share your interview experience. What kind of questions they asked you and what kind of documents you took with you. Also, would you suggest taking a lawyer with me? What do they do with my I-94? My date of birth on my I-94 is incorrect but I filed my I-360 with the correct date of birth. I have my original birth certificate as well. Please advise! thanks in advance!

The immigration officer is not supposed to ask you questions about your I-360 which is already approved, so basically the adjustment of status interview comes down to raising your hand, swearing to tell the truth, and answering questions such as "have you ever been arrested/helped someone enter the country illegally, etc". You might be asked about manner of entry to the US - for instance, when and on what type of visa you entered US. You should be fine without a lawyer, although having one, of course, adds to the sense of confidence and security. The lawyer, the good one at least, will make sure that the officer doesn't ask you unlawful questions pertaining to I-360 petition. This is a matter of individual choice. I personally did not have a lawyer for the interview.

You should have your passport and I-94 for the interview, but if you don't (for instance, passport may be lost or expired), it's not a problem. These days, green cards only take a month to produce and mail out, so the stamp in a passport is not a huge issue. I-94 serves as proof of having entered US legally, so you should definitely bring it. You can politely explain the discrepancies between the dates of birth to the officer. I'm not sure how the wrong DOB could have ended up on the I-94, but for as long as everything else coincides (e.g., your full name), it can be logically explained.

Good luck on the interview!

Hello,

I got approve on the I-360, after that i apply for my permit to work, i got it too. but my lawyer says i am no elegible to apply for my green card now because my ex-husband is aresident alien. what i can do?

There's nothing you can do but wait until your immigration visa number becomes available to you. Keep checking USCIS processing times online to get an idea of how long the wait is. At least you can legally work..

Hello,

I got approve on the I-360, after that i apply for my permit to work, i got it too. but my lawyer says i am no elegible to apply for my green card now because my ex-husband is aresident alien. what i can do?

Wait until a visa number becomes available for you, or find out if he naturalized since you separated that way you are eligible to adjust status immediately.

I don't see any use in a reply like this, much of what USCIS is doing is subjective, but that doesn't mean that they are not looking for any specific things. Examples of compelling evidence of bona fide marriage are birth certificates of children and financial sharing. You could think whatever you like about what constitutes good faith marriage, but these are the things that USCIS is looking for in particular. It doesn't have to make sense, it's just how it is!

I simply disagree. Your are certainly entitled to that.

In my observations, It comes down to the USCIS covering their rear ends and to show others up the pole that do diligence was made in each and every case.

I'm trying to help others see objectivity from many angles on cases how they may be seen from others. For Example, if you were the one sitting in the chair looking at an I-360 case and RFE information given back to you;

Your examples given above..

1. Birth Certificates of Children - In my opinion and others I have read and heard from recently, proves nothing that a marriage was NOT entered into to only gain papers. Many people today have babies without being married. You can even adopt children without being married today. So a birth certificate proves what? Remember not all I-360 cases involve children. What if the fathers name is not on the BC?

2. Financial Proof - US Banking Laws require a person to have either a SS # or resident documents from USCIS to open a personal or joint bank account per Patriot Act 2001. MANY if not an overwhelming majority of I-360 fall into this category. So to produce banking documents is extremely difficult and impossible in many cases.

Pictures with letters from people who attended the events such as wedding, baby sitters, teachers speak louder than anything. Pictures from a trip together and a letter from those with you on the trips are good. Proof is placing people together, who, where, what, how and when. Example In Florida with him and her, his brother and wife mom and dad. He purchased tickets and Disney day by working extra time. I arranged to have friends and family meet us. Here is there account of the weekend pictures attached of us in the park and family together. This says more to many people reviewing a case of "were they really married" than numbers.

You really should look at the stats on uscis website relating to I-360 denials, many adverse decisions state that the applicant failed to show good faith marriage. Then the officer would engage in a lengthy explanation that while the picture shows that the two people were in the same place at the same time, it,however, does not prove the intent of the two to live as a married couple. I'm not discounting other types of evidence, all I'm saying is that there is primary evidence of good faith marriage that they will look at in first place.

Of course, affidavits from family and friends should help establish bona fides, but depending on the situation it may or may not be sufficient.

I would like to comment regarding confusion with the medical report and I-485. The general guideline is that the report is valid for a year.

However, it is incorrect to state that one should not include a medical report with initial I-485 filing since it will expire before I-485 gets adjudicated. I don't know where this information comes from.

What I'm about to say was given to me by an immigration officer. So, when I brought an updated medical report with me to the local office that had my I-485 file, the officer said it was not necessary for me to do that, BECAUSE the medical report initially submitted with AOS application will NOT expire in a year, it will be acceptable even if your AOS takes more than a year to adjusicate. If your AOS gets denied and you decide to re-file, then you wil have to obtain a new medical.

Hello Kim,

I married my fiancee but it turned out that she had HIV.. she told me abt that the day she married me and we had been sleeping together before that although with protection.... but i got scared.. and i had to run away..... i left even my luggage there..... so basically i have no evidence to support my vawa... please help me out

All i know is that name of her tablets and the fact that her doctor who was giving prescriptions to her for her HIV control was a nepalese doctor.... he had a long name which i cant pronounce.... she never told me abt her HIV and even her kids didnt know abt it.... so tell me what should i do... i dont live with her anymore... i have moved to live with some friends in a different state... am waiting for yr reply...

Hi loneman,

You have to provide the details about where you are in the immigration process - are you a conditional resident trying to remove conditions on your green card, or are you a beneficiary of an approved I-130? Or, perhaps your I-485 is pending, but you don't know how to pursue it now? That might help me give you an appropriate answer.

If you are determined to file a self-petition under VAWA, you will have to prove certain elements of your relationship with your spouse (1) qualifying relationship (marriage certificate) (2) residence (proof of having lived together) (3) good faith marriage (as opposed to marrying for immigration benefits) (4) battery or extreme cruelty (in your case you would have to convince USCIS that your spouse intende to infect you with HIV)

(5) and finally, your good moral character (police clearances for the past 3 years from each location you resided at)

I'm not sure what you need help with precisely, so just be more specific

Wow...I am still amazed. I spoke with so many people about my initial case being closed and not even one person said I could re-open it. I can't believe $1010 went down the drain. I am going to see another lawyer to go with to the interview.

Hi, konjo

Motions to reopen a case cost money - just under $600 now, but it still is cheaper than giving another $1010 to the government. Usually, lawyers charge a big fee to handle motions to reopen, perhaps that was the reason why your attorney did not offer it to you. It just seems to me that way too many lawyers charge clients for doing nothing!

hey kim _g can you share with us what type of evidenc did send for your vawa ...? and after how the take action on your pitition ... did send any letter to VSC

im just kinda worry no word on my vawa yet since i filed it. its been 1 year .... one prima facie .

thank you in advance

Sure, you have to ask specifically what type of evidence you're interested in - residence. good faith marriage ...etc? Waiting can be pretty exhausting, i can totally understand you. What you can do first is check whether your case is withing normal processing time or not, that's something USCIS website would have. Now, if your case has been pending for too long, the best thing to do is call customer service and tell them that you want to request electronically a status update on your case. That way, VSC will send you something faster. With my case, I didn't hear anything for a long time (about a year), then I noticed that my case was beyond normal processing time posted on their website, so i called and within the next 10 days, VSC sent me something in the mail (it was an RFE though, but still...)

I'm sure you will be getting something from VSC soon if it has been a year already!

Dear Kim_G,

No need for sorry. you're give us the correct information.

My counselor said, if you're in dange with your husband and you're not in a position to save yourself and how come you can able to get his previous marriage certificate. If you have the marriage certificate between you and you're husband its ok and you can write a letter explaining the situation and its not possible for you to get the information.

Anyhow I don't know how much they are trained on this VAWA. As a person who gone through all these nonsense knows much better than anybody.

Thank you for your information.

Honest,

The problem with the counselor's advice is that s/he is trying to tell you that you don't have to stress about the missing evidence of a legal divorce. But for USCIS it is important to know if an abusive spouse terminated previous marriage legally or not - you can't say that because you were abused you cannot get a necessary document because all marriage and divorce records are PUBLIC. It means that you can actively search for those and retrieve them, without the help of your abusive spouse. USCIS position is that whoever applies for an immigration benefit has to prove that they are eligible, it's not like USCIS is going to look for missing evidence for you. If they don't get what they want to see, they will deny you!

Filing a motion to reopen/reconsider is costly, but the advantage is that while it is being considered, you will not be removed. You cannot work legally though during this time.

If you want to stay in the country with a loved one, you should get married and have your spouse file a family petition. I would not rely on a successful appeal, as it happens very rarely, just look up the statistics off USCIS website. Filing an appeal gives you extra time, but that's about it. I would look at it as a temporary solution to your problem.

Thank you for the advice. We are planning on getting married in a month and filling through family. May be you know when should I withdraw my appeal ?

My lawyer told me appeal won't cost me anything. That's why I agreed.

Alla,

If your lawyer is not charging you for handling the appeal, you may as well let him/her follow through with it. Should you decide to withdraw the appeal, just send a letter to administrative appeals office and let them know you don't want to pursue it anymore. I would say, just to be on the safe side, do not do anything until your husband files an immigration petition and you file your I-485.

I wish you best of luck! Have lots of patience!

Really? Very interesting. This is what we requested but it ended up being administratively closed but not denied and no one could explain why. My lawyer then told me it's coz we took too long to file the I-360 (almost 2 months). I don't know what I paid that woman to do for me!!!!

Adminsitrative closure is not described in regulatory law, so basically USCIS goes by their internal guidelines with regard to that. It is known though that after you request to hold I-485 in abeyance, you need to file a self-petition ASAP, even if you don't have all the supporting documents (these can be added at a later time or USCIS will request them from you).

Since they did not actually deny your I-485, you can file a motion to re-open that case.

My two cents...

I think there is a time limit that they can hold the I-485 in abeyance. I think it's something like 30 days - please verify . If you take too long then the I-485 will be administratively closed and then you will have to refile that and the I-765.

You request them to hold I-485 in abeyance pending determination on VAWA, which means you're asking the district office not to touch your I-485 file until they hear back from Vermont.

she is a poor girl without any financial resources.....

She married an American! Just like winning the Lotto.

Apart from him, what about Igor&Veronika in USA who she was visiting when she met him and got married.

She was visiting us....

And besides we never supported her decision from the very start. Not to mention that she got married behind our backs on a day we were suppose to return from vacation....

If your sister in-law just wants to get divorced and go back to her country, she can ask someone to take care of her court case. Her physical presence is not required, unless the divorce is contested. She can leave tomorrow and you could mail her a signed divorce judgment later on. Now, the more important issue is that her ADHD husband may not be willing to sign her divorce papers. That is a problem. If obtaining his signature is an impossible mission, then you shold look into divorce by publication. It is a complex procedure, but it might work. You sister in-law then would have to say to the court that she does not know where her spouse is, and that instead of serving him with summons, she is going to publish it (for extra $$) in the newspaper of the judge's choice. The only thing is that she would have to do a search with Board of Elections, DMV, and all branches of US Armed Forces and obtain certifciations from all the agencies saying that they have no record of this individual. With that pile of evidence, she may qualify for divorce by publication which will not require his signature.

my thoughts to you, find the way for him to sign her divorce papers. Much easier and cheaper option. If he is mentally incompetent (as one of Igor&Veronika's posts suggests) the court may appoint a person to represent his interests.

Dear MulanJohns,

I checked with my counselor and she said its not needed for your VAWA application. You can always say that you don't have any other details about him.

I hope you provide your marriage certificate, bills, health, insurance. auto insurance with you name and your hubby, etc.

Don't worry, take it easy.

You are forgetting an important thing, all of you. In order to be eligible to self-petition, the person must establish a QUALIFYING RELATIONSHIP with either USC or LPR. To do this, you have to submnit a marriage certificate. On the marriage certificate each party has to disclose whether they were married before. Apparently, MulanJohns' husband part of marriage license says that he has been married beofre and got divorced. USCIS has every right to request proof of his divorce, otherwise they don't know if there is a qualifying relationship or not.

Dear Honest, I'm sorry to say that your counselor is undereducated for the job. He or she should know better

I don't see any use in a reply like this, much of what USCIS is doing is subjective, but that doesn't mean that they are not looking for any specific things. Examples of compelling evidence of bona fide marriage are birth certificates of children and financial sharing. You could think whatever you like about what constitutes good faith marriage, but these are the things that USCIS is looking for in particular. It doesn't have to make sense, it's just how it is!

I should mention this too- since the date for the interview is coming up, you may not be able to file your VAWA self-petition by that time. You should still go to the interview (failure to show up will result in denial of your AOS application and all immigration benefits, such as work permit and advance parole), explain to the interviewing officer that you are about to file VAWA and request that they hold your I-485 in abeyance until your VAWA is decided.

Request to hold I-485 in abeyance will result in preserving your AOS application along with your work permit. You will NOT have to apply for another work permit.

dear kim j

so how long ypur vawa takes to approve?

A year and a half including delay in processing due to RFEs

Whoever on this site needs tips on how to file VAWA self-petition, contact me. I've gone through a long battle with USCIS regarding my case, and have a load of experience to share with people who cannot afford to pay the attorney fees.

My piece of advice to everyone who is researching VAWA petition is - you CAN do it yourself.

Hello:

Can you please tell me is it better to file I-360,l-485 and I-765 together?

I was really hopeless so I hired an attourney but I think he is not that experienced on this VAWA cases. He said we should only file I-360? Can you please help me?

WOuld my work authorization through my husband will be revoked? once my I-485 interview is missed wiht my husband? the interview date is Nov 16th. Obviously we are not going to go together. We are separated. Please advise! THank you,

Musafir,

It depends on your situation - are you or were you married to US citizen? If so, you can file your I-485 packet together with your I-360 because you are not subject to prioritization of processing dates. I believe your spouse is a US citizen since you've mentioned the work authorization that you got through him. If he already filed I-130 family petition for you, and it's the basis of your I-485, then you simply file your VAWA self-petition with Vermont Service Center, and go to the interview alone and explain to the officer that due to domestic violence/abuse your spouse did not accompany you. Present the officer with a receipt of your VAWA application (if you already have it) and ask them to substitute VAWA for I-130. That way you Adjsutment of status application will remain pending until VAWA is decided. For as long as I-485 is pending, you can keep your work permit and be legally employed!

It took a year and a half including a delay in processing due to RFEs

eb1009, thank you for support and an answer!

Kim G thank you for the answer also. Some people say that marriage after removal won't do anything.

My lawyer (VAWA) filling a motion to reopen right now. It says I have 33 days to appeal. I don't know how long it will take (I found on one website 6-36 months).

I don't want to hire a lawyer. I am very unlucky in picking them and broke:(

Filing a motion to reopen/reconsider is costly, but the advantage is that while it is being considered, you will not be removed. You cannot work legally though during this time.

If you want to stay in the country with a loved one, you should get married and have your spouse file a family petition. I would not rely on a successful appeal, as it happens very rarely, just look up the statistics off USCIS website. Filing an appeal gives you extra time, but that's about it. I would look at it as a temporary solution to your problem.

3bvsla,

Good faith marriage can be proved by documents that attest to commingling of financial resources. For instance, you could present evidence of having a joint checking or savings account, such as bank statements or a letter from the bank. Or better yet, if you have copies of cashed checks that bear both names. This will show to USCIS that you and your spouse spent the money together, and if two people share financial resources they most likely have bona fide ties.

Affidavits from friends or neighbors can be helpful too, they do not have to be notarized, but they must be very detailed and contain the person's contact information. People providing the affidavits have to specify in which capacity they know you and what interactions they witnessed between you and your spouse.

Good luck!

I hope you will find some time to read my post and help me!

I came to US on student visa and later got married in 2006. I didn't apply for AOS (my husband was giving me many reasons to delay and didn't like any attorney). After one year living together he started biting and abusing me as he started drugs. In august 2007 I left him. After I escaped from my husband in November 2007 I met a guy,we were friends for 4 months, then started dating and in 1,5 year we got engaged. In September 2008 I filed for a VAWA as I didn't have money to file before. In October 2009 my VAWA got denied as not enough evidence. When I left my husband I took the most important stuff and he cleared my name from all bills,accounts, as he was primary. All pictures and evidences were left at home.

I recently filed for a divorce from my first marriage. I really love my fiance and we want to get married and adjust my status.

The problem is that my VAWA denial,divorce and marriage are all in about same time.

I know it looks very suspicious but what are my chances to get denial from AOS through second marriage?

We can provide all evidence that USCIS needs and all relatives and friends can testify that it is real marriage.

Should I hire an attorney?

Please help me with advise ! Thank you!

The only implication that is evident is that once VAWA is denied, USCIS can start removal processings against the alien (I assume that VAWA was the basis of AOS application in this case). If one gets married while they are in removal proceedings, they will need to show substantial proof of bona fide marriage (marriage in good faith). That is because USCIS considers a priori that marriage is not bona fide if it occurs during alien's removal proceedings. All you will have to do is convince them otherwise.

Proof of bona fide marriage includes: (1) utility bills issued in both your names (2)residential lease, insurance paperwork bearing both names (3) pictures of the wedding (4) affidavits from friends and neighbors (5) commingling of financial resources -joint checking account, photocopies of cashed checks, bank statements etc (6) birth certificate of a child (children) born in the marriage. The more documents you present, the more convinced the Service will be.

You do NOT need an attorney unless you want to waste your money

Whoever on this site needs tips on how to file VAWA self-petition, contact me. I've gone through a long battle with USCIS regarding my case, and have a load of experience to share with people who cannot afford to pay the attorney fees.

My piece of advice to everyone who is researching VAWA petition is - you CAN do it yourself.