marriage based permanent resident undergoing gender transition
Mar 4th 2007, 3:55 pm
#1
Guest
Posts: n/a
marriage based permanent resident undergoing gender transition
Hi. I need some help, as we're completely lost on this one. Trying to
see if anyone else has done this.
I married my husband 6 years ago. We filed and were approved for AoS
based on marriage. Conditions were removed and my spouse has a 10 year
green card. My spouse suffers from gender identity disorder and is
beginning transition from male to female. We have so many questions
about if/when to get citizenship and if my spouse will have permanent
residency cancelled.
My spouse is a British citizen, permanent resident. He can change his
name here, or in England. We don't know which one to do, but we're
thinking it should be in England. But doing so invalidates his
passport requiring him to get a new one in his new name. I'm assuming
he needs to get a new green card at that point.
Now, when and if he goes through gender reassignment surgery and
officially changes his gender marker on documents to female, our
marriage in the US is still recognized. But is my spouse's permanent
residency still valid as well?
I understand that if my spouse plays it safe and becomes a citizen
before transitioning, that my spouse will be stuck forever with a
naturalization certificate in his old name. So that's not good. But we
also don't want to walk in and ask for a name change on a green card
to the female name if someone will look at the file and say "hang on,
you can't stay here if you'll be female".
Can anyone help please? Thank you.
see if anyone else has done this.
I married my husband 6 years ago. We filed and were approved for AoS
based on marriage. Conditions were removed and my spouse has a 10 year
green card. My spouse suffers from gender identity disorder and is
beginning transition from male to female. We have so many questions
about if/when to get citizenship and if my spouse will have permanent
residency cancelled.
My spouse is a British citizen, permanent resident. He can change his
name here, or in England. We don't know which one to do, but we're
thinking it should be in England. But doing so invalidates his
passport requiring him to get a new one in his new name. I'm assuming
he needs to get a new green card at that point.
Now, when and if he goes through gender reassignment surgery and
officially changes his gender marker on documents to female, our
marriage in the US is still recognized. But is my spouse's permanent
residency still valid as well?
I understand that if my spouse plays it safe and becomes a citizen
before transitioning, that my spouse will be stuck forever with a
naturalization certificate in his old name. So that's not good. But we
also don't want to walk in and ask for a name change on a green card
to the female name if someone will look at the file and say "hang on,
you can't stay here if you'll be female".
Can anyone help please? Thank you.
Mar 4th 2007, 6:28 pm
#2
I'm back!
Joined: Jul 2002
Location: Richmond, VA, USA
Posts: 4,316
Re: marriage based permanent resident undergoing gender transition
Hi. I need some help, as we're completely lost on this one. Trying to
see if anyone else has done this.
I married my husband 6 years ago. We filed and were approved for AoS
based on marriage. Conditions were removed and my spouse has a 10 year
green card. My spouse suffers from gender identity disorder and is
beginning transition from male to female. We have so many questions
about if/when to get citizenship and if my spouse will have permanent
residency cancelled.
My spouse is a British citizen, permanent resident. He can change his
name here, or in England. We don't know which one to do, but we're
thinking it should be in England. But doing so invalidates his
passport requiring him to get a new one in his new name. I'm assuming
he needs to get a new green card at that point.
Now, when and if he goes through gender reassignment surgery and
officially changes his gender marker on documents to female, our
marriage in the US is still recognized. But is my spouse's permanent
residency still valid as well?
I understand that if my spouse plays it safe and becomes a citizen
before transitioning, that my spouse will be stuck forever with a
naturalization certificate in his old name. So that's not good. But we
also don't want to walk in and ask for a name change on a green card
to the female name if someone will look at the file and say "hang on,
you can't stay here if you'll be female".
Can anyone help please? Thank you.
see if anyone else has done this.
I married my husband 6 years ago. We filed and were approved for AoS
based on marriage. Conditions were removed and my spouse has a 10 year
green card. My spouse suffers from gender identity disorder and is
beginning transition from male to female. We have so many questions
about if/when to get citizenship and if my spouse will have permanent
residency cancelled.
My spouse is a British citizen, permanent resident. He can change his
name here, or in England. We don't know which one to do, but we're
thinking it should be in England. But doing so invalidates his
passport requiring him to get a new one in his new name. I'm assuming
he needs to get a new green card at that point.
Now, when and if he goes through gender reassignment surgery and
officially changes his gender marker on documents to female, our
marriage in the US is still recognized. But is my spouse's permanent
residency still valid as well?
I understand that if my spouse plays it safe and becomes a citizen
before transitioning, that my spouse will be stuck forever with a
naturalization certificate in his old name. So that's not good. But we
also don't want to walk in and ask for a name change on a green card
to the female name if someone will look at the file and say "hang on,
you can't stay here if you'll be female".
Can anyone help please? Thank you.
This is a very interesting set of questions you're asking. You're best bet is to consult with an immigration attorney and/or an attorney familiar with gender identity issues such as your husband's.
That said, here is my amateur, layperson's take on it:
Given how misunderstood gender identity disorders are, not to mention the repercussions such a disorder can have, I personally think he would be better off waiting until he's become a US citizen before transitioning. I honestly don't believe he would be stripped of his PR status due to his gender identity.
However, if he transitions prior to becoming a citizen, it could really raise doubts as to whether your marriage -- and his subsequent immigration effort -- was genuine to begin with. It could be interpreted as your having married him (as a male) just so he could get a foothold in the US, which would have been impossible if he had been a woman.
Are you going to remain married after he transitions? Or are you planning to divorce once he naturalizes? I ask because you didn't mention it at all and the answer could have a major impact your husband's options and how to handle them.
As for being stuck with his old (male) name on his naturalization certificate, that's not necessarily so. He has the opportunity to request a legal name change on the N-400 application. Even if he wasn't transitioning, he can request a name change. Naturalized citizens do this all the time.
However, I don't know at that point how he would go about having that name change recognized by the UK government. But it would be the same process as it would be if he changed his name from John Wjionadnfaongkj to John Smith, if you see what I mean.
All that said, though, I would focus more on the immigration/naturalization aspect of it BEFORE the legal name change part of it. I realize a huge part of one's identity is one's name, but given the complexity of the circumstances here, he can always unofficially go by his male name until he is in a better position to change his name legally and officially to his female name of choice.
Again, this is just my opinion. You should really refer to an immigration attorney to find out for sure, as this is an unknown grey area for most people.
~ Jenney
Mar 29th 2007, 2:24 am
#3
Just Joined
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 1
Re: marriage based permanent resident undergoing gender transition
Stacey
I am going through exactly what you husband is right now. I face the same issues with regards to a) British passport holder, b) permanent resident in the USA (for 17 years) and c) waiting for citizenship to clear. I believe that I have many of the answers for you, from talking with people at Identity and Passport Service (IPS) in the UK, the UK Embassy in DC and the British Consulate here in Texas, additionally I have talked with USCIS.
If you are still seeking information please let me know by email at [email protected]
Meghan
I am going through exactly what you husband is right now. I face the same issues with regards to a) British passport holder, b) permanent resident in the USA (for 17 years) and c) waiting for citizenship to clear. I believe that I have many of the answers for you, from talking with people at Identity and Passport Service (IPS) in the UK, the UK Embassy in DC and the British Consulate here in Texas, additionally I have talked with USCIS.
If you are still seeking information please let me know by email at [email protected]
Meghan
