Your Spouse’s Threats To Deport You If You File For Divorce Probably Aren’t Credible
At almost any social gathering you attend, you will meet married couples where one spouse sponsored the other’s permanent residency. In some cases, this sponsorship took place decades ago, and the immigrant spouse has been a naturalized U.S. citizen for so long that he or she has renewed his or her U.S. passport at least once. You might also meet a couple where the husband got his U.S. citizenship after his first wife sponsored him for a green card, but they divorced years later, and now, in his second marriage, he is the one sponsoring an immigrant spouse. Marriage-based immigration is one of the most common methods by which people become naturalized citizens. This year’s news headlines are enough to strike fear in the hearts of U.S. permanent residents, including those who got their green cards through sponsorship by their American spouses. Immigration laws seem to be changing quickly, but thus far, the rules about how divorce affects your immigration status have not changed. If you are a U.S. permanent resident, and you are getting a divorce from your U.S. citizen spouse, contact a Birmingham divorce lawyer.
The New Federal Rule on Marriage, Divorce, and Immigration Status
From a legal perspective, the first two years of marriage are a probationary period. If the couple gets divorced after less than two years, the court interprets “equitable distribution” to mean typically dividing the couple’s assets as if the marriage had never happened. The stakes are even higher if one spouse sponsored the other for a green card. The immigrant spouse first gets a provisional green card, which is valid for two years; when it is about to expire, you can apply for a permanent green card. Spouses who divorce while living in the United States with a provisional green card usually lose their permanent residency status, unless they can prove that they married with the intention of staying together forever, but the other spouse’s actions, usually domestic violence, made this impossible.
The new federal rule does not change this framework. Instead, it only makes newly married green card applicants even more vulnerable. If you are in the U.S. with a non-immigrant visa, such as a visitor visa or student visa, you can apply for adjustment of status once you get married. From the time USCIS receives your adjustment of status petition until your provisional green card arrives, you are theoretically in immigration limbo, but until recently it was never a problem. If your non-immigrant visa expired, you could remain in the U.S. as an adjustment of status applicant, and you would not be at risk of removal proceedings unless you got convicted of a crime. The federal government just issued a rule that newlyweds whose provisional green cards are still pending after their nonimmigrant visas expire can be subject to removal proceedings.
Contact Peeples Law About Divorce Without Risking Your Immigration Status
A Birmingham family law attorney can help you if you are getting a divorce after your spouse sponsored you for permanent residency. Contact Peeples Law in Birmingham, Alabama today to schedule a consultation.
Source:
nbcnews.com/news/us-news/green-card-applicants-immigrants-removal-proceedings-uscis-rcna223099
