Leave Your Marriage, Not Your Country Divorce & Immigrations Issues

By: Janice Dantes

 

“Understanding is much deeper than knowledge. There are many people who know us, but very few who understand us.” This is exactly why I decided to focus my law firm on serving the Filipino community in Chicago. Although family law is my primary area of practice, I have to be cognizant about the impact of a divorce or marriage on a client with immigration concerns…

“I have a conditional green card. Should I get divorced?” The answer to this question depends on the situation. When a U.S. citizen who petitions their foreign national spouse of less than two years for a green card, that foreign national spouse is granted permanent residence on a conditional basis. The conditional basis is two years. This means that the couple is expected to stay married for two years before the foreign national spouse is granted his/her permanent green card. At this point, the couple is required to appear at their immigration interview together.

These conditions are in place to deter immigration marriage fraud. The assumption is that a couple who remains married for at least two years likely did not marry for immigration purposes. However, Hollywood is not the only place where marriages don’t last. Many bona fide marriages do not last two years. This does not necessarily mean that the foreign national spouse should remain married to their U.S. citizen spouse until the conditional green card period expires.