| Mar 5, 2023 | Firm News
Love is grand – until it isn’t. Even though you pulled up stakes in your native land and made the leap to the United States to be with your spouse, perhaps it just isn’t working out.
You’ve been here long enough to make the United States your home, however, and you don’t want to leave and lose the life you’ve built along with your marriage. Will your marriage-based green card get revoked if you get a divorce?
What happens next may depend a lot on the specifics of your situation
Let’s be clear about this: Divorce does not automatically lead to deportation. What you need to do to remain legally in the United States, however, depends on your actual green card status.
If your green car was granted less than two years ago, you’re still within the conditional period. That means that your renewal application will likely provoke additional scrutiny, but that isn’t usually an insurmountable problem. You will have to provide documentation that convinces the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) that you entered the marriage in good faith and explain what led to the divorce.
If your green card was issued more than two years ago but your spouse still hasn’t filed the joint I-751 petition to remove the card’s conditional status, don’t let that stop you, either. You can file a petition with a waiver request. (You can also convert a joint petition to a petition with a waiver request if the divorce is initiated after the petition is filed but before it is approved.)
If you’ve already taken care of removing your conditional status long ago, then you don’t have to worry about the effect the divorce will have on your right to remain in this country. It pays to have help with you’re trying to navigate the U.S. immigration system. Since every situation can be unique, legal guidance that’s specific to your needs will be useful.
