palgia

Hello all,

I have a somewhat simple (but long) question regarding my I-751 that I have to file soon. I would like to know what you guys/gals recommend...

Background: I am the immigrant, my wife is the USC. Met in July 2005, moved in together Jan 2006, married Oct 2006 and in May this year things started going downhill. She filed for divorce in June, the final decree is ready but we have not signed it yet.
My conditional green card expires DEC 2008.

Current situation: We started seeing each other in the last 2 weeks and there is the possibility of reconciliation, but of course nobody knows if things would work out. The decision to divorce was taken somewhat lightly on both our parts... meaning it came up during our last argument before she moved out and because we stopped talking she followed through and actually filed. We did not try any counseling. I personally would prefer to get the divorce done so that I can file alone for the I-751, without having to worry about the possibility of having a joint I-751 pending with an interview coming up and having my wife not show up for the interview if things do not work out in the next 6 months (or however long it takes to get I-751 processed). My wife has behaved in a very unstable/unpredictable manner in the last 7 months (including suicide attempts...but that’s a different story for a different day) so my ability to assess the feasibility of a continued relationship with her is somewhat limited. It's a crapshoot at best. My philosophy is that if we can work things out again, we can always get remarried at a later time. My wife on the other hand has started hinting that she would rather stay married and try it again. She told me her family spoke to an immigration attorney and she has been hinting that if I file the I-751 alone, there would be a higher chance of my case being denied, and she worries that she would get in trouble if I cannot prove the bona fide marriage at the time.
I believe I have a good collection of evidence, as listed below, but I would appreciate your input, since many of you have had the opportunity to see which cases get approved and which get denied....

This is what I have:

*2 years of apartment leases with both our names on the lease
*2 years of jointly filed tax returns (married filing jointly)
*2 years of a jointly held checking account NOTE: our respective earnings would be deposited in separate accounts each month, then we both funded this joint account (I contributed 70% during the 1st year, then it was 50/50 between us). The money in the joint account would be used for rent/food/furniture and other household expenses.
*Two different 401k with 2 different employers listing my wife as the beneficiary
*A $250,000 life insurance policy with my wife as the beneficiary
*My wife on my car insurance policy
*My wife and I on my last employer’s health insurance (when I changed jobs, it was cheaper to keep it separate, so currently we have different plans)
* Variety of utility bills on both our names
* Dozens of cards/love letters/notes ect
*hundreds of pictures from 12 different vacations all over the world (Maui, Dubai, Rome,Paris,Prague, NYC, LA, SFO, Miami, and more) Including pictures with both our families.
* My wife college transcripts showing she has taken 5 semesters of language and culture classes in my native language (despite the fact I speak English, our plan was to move to my home country in a few years)
* Credit card statements in my name showing a plethora or gifts, hotel stays, nights out, ect

In addition to this, I can get an affidavit from a person who witnessed everything that happened during the last 3 years.

Possible "eyebrow-raisers":

• Before we got married I drafted a prenuptial agreement. This agreement limits the financial intermingling between my wife and I. I had very good reasons to have this drafted, since I have large amounts of assets in my name that I inherited, but that actually “belong” to another family member. This person’s livelihood depends on the proceeds of these assets. For this reason, before getting married I had to safeguard these assets. Of course, I will not advertise this prenuptial agreement, nor will I include it in my packet. However the wording on the final divorce decree will probably make reference to this prenuptial agreement. So maybe they will ask to see it??
• We did not go to counseling
• We have no kids, nor do we own any joint property... but we are also very young (low 20’s).


My questions to you:

How strong is my case as a I-751 waiver filed as a divorcee?
How likely are the interviews in my case vs if we filed together and stayed married? (not that an interview is a big deal)
Will I have problems with the prenuptial agreement?
I know my case is bona fide, but I’m wondering how common are I-751 denials and what recourse would I have if they just deny it. What are some key points they need to prove in order to deny it?
If I file as a divorcee, my wife has offered to write a letter in support of my application. Is this a good idea?

If I was reasonably certain my case as a divorced I-751 will get approved, I would just sign the decree and apply on my own, even though I will give our relationship one last attempt at reconciliation. I’m just terrified at filing the joint I-751 as a married couple and then having relationship problems while awaiting adjudication…

Any input is appreciated. Thank you in advance for your time!

palgia

Elvira

Not sure your question is that simple........... perhaps a one-time consultation with a competent immigration attorney might be $$$ well spent...

ian-mstm

In all my years dealing with immigration and with over 10 years following this forum, I have not yet heard of an I-751 waiver being denied.


To file the waiver, you *must* be divorced, and you need to demonstrate that the marriage was entered into "in good faith" which your evidence certainly seems to validate.


Irrelevant for immigration purposes.


Immigration doesn't care about this.


And they certainly don't care if you have kids or not.


Given what you've written here, somewhere between very good and excellent.


You might not be interviewed either way. However, if you are called for an interview you must both go, and you must demonstrate an ongoing *viable* relationship. If you are separated at the time of the interview and your wife does not attend, your I-751 will be denied.


No... many of us, me included, had prenup agreements.


Almost never!


They need to prove that you either did not marry in good faith, or that you married in an attempt to circumvent immigration rules.


It will neither hurt nor help you.


IMHO, you'll be fine... go ahead and sign.

Ian

fatbrit

I don't understand why divorce should mean the end of the relationship. I'd get divorced, file to remove conditions on my own....and then see where the relationship goes. You won't be the first to get back together again, nor would you be the first never to set eyes on their ex again.

But getting this complication (which really has nothing to do with the relationship per se) out of the way and outside the other party's control would seem to be a sensible step.

Noorah101

I agree with fatbrit.

Rene

Poppy girl

I filed a self petition and was approved.

After I filed we reconciled for a while but it did not work out I was adviced to continue the self petition, on the basis that it was already filed as a self petition and regardless if we were together or not to see it through, bascially if we had of been together when I was interviewed it would of been a even stronger case.

I went alone, now happily divorced and moved on with my life.

Ian is spot on with his answers

palgia

I apologize for my poor wording of the last paragraph. I actually agree 100% with you. What I meant to say was that I was going to give our relationship one more chance reagardless of whether or not we divorce.
I completely concur with you...I would like to get this headache out of the way (by getting divorced and filing on my own) so I can focus on trying to work things out without having my immigration status be contingent on our continued relationship.

I just got worried that a I-751 filed as a divorcee would be much harder to get approved...

fatbrit

Go with your instinct. Divorce can be pretty fast in AZ if both sides agree and there are no kids.

You seem to have a good grasp of the immigration issues, and I,, as a layman, would say your worries are unfounded. Certainly if there are many rejections for this petition, they don't post about here. Conversely, you will see many successful ones on a quick search through.

palgia

Maybe I'll do that just to put my worries at ease. Can anyone recommend a good immigration attorney, preferably with extensive experience in these types of cases?

I know of the AILA website, but my past experience with immigration attorneys (5 years ago...when I had an I-130) has been horrible to put it mildly. If anyone has personal experience with someone they would recommend, I would be extremely grateful. PM me if you prefer. Thanks.

PS. Has anyone ever heard of the USCIS asking to see a copy of the prenup, whether as a RFE or in an interview?

PPS. Ian, fatbrit and poppy girl... thank you very much for your replies!

Poppy girl

You have no reason to even mention the pre-nup unless asked, and why would they do that, never voluntarily give information.

ian-mstm

You are under *no* obligation whatsoever to mention the prenup... so USCIS will have no reason to ever ask for it. Don't mention it... let it go... it's totally irrelevant for immigration purposes.

Ian

Noorah101

Didn't someone mention recently that a pre-nup is actually good proof that a bona-fide marriage was in place?

Rene

ian-mstm

I believe someone did say that. Personally, I don't believe it.

Ian

Poppy girl

Neither do I

And it could go against you, ie knowing that the marriage was not going to last so you decided to CYA...(example only)

SC2

Hi everyone, I have a similar situation! I am just about to get the divorce proceeding started, and it will be finalized around Christmas. :-( Could any of you, or anyone at all who is reading this post, tell me what are the "very approximate" timelines I am looking at? Also, my lawyer had informed me that even though my Conditional Permanent Residency is valid till February 2010, I immediately go out of status once the divorce is finalized. Does that mean that I will be an illegal immigrant between December 2008 and the time they decide on my case? Also, in case they decline it, in spite of strong evidence, including my wife's and her parents' personal affidavits on this issue, can I challenge it? Thanks a lot for any response!