WHAT IS CONDITIONAL
RESIDENCY?
In June of
2005, James, a hard working Jamaican, entered the States with a
tourist visa (B-2) into Miami, Florida. James had a big dream
of coming to America to visit his long distance relatives living
in New York and visiting his old friends in Miami. James stayed
a couple of weeks with his friend Parker in Miami. On his last
day before leaving for New York, Parker introduced James to his
female cousin, Sarah.
During his
month long visit to New York, James and Sarah kept in touch
through chat lines and phone calls. James and Sarah decided to
meet in Virginia Beach for few days to spend time together. On
one evening, during their long romantic walk on the beach, James
got down to his knees and proposed marriage to Sarah. Although
their courtship was short and they really did not know each
other well, Sarah was excited about the proposal and exclaimed
“YES!”
The very
next day, the two people visited the courthouse and applied for
a marriage license and had a marriage commissioner marry the
happy couple. Several days after the marriage, Sarah told James
that she had two minor children, who are being cared for her
mother in Miami. James, taken aback with this surprise, told
Sarah that he would welcome her children and he will try to be a
good father to the children. Several days after this
discussion, Sarah surprised James with another bit of
information, that she had been suffering from bipolar disorder
for years and that she’s been on medication. Although it was a
shock to James that Sarah suffered from mental illness, James
decided to make the best of the situation.
Shortly
thereafter, James and Sarah applied for James’ green card with
the Department of Homeland Security. About three months from
the time of application, James received his one year work card
from DHS, this allowed James to apply for a social security
number and a Virginia Driver’s License.
About eight
months after his application was filed with DHS, both Sarah and
James appeared before an immigration officer for an interview
for James’ green card. After a successful interview, James was
given a two year conditional residency card, with expiration
date of May 2008.
Soon
thereafter, James began to see symptoms of Sarah’s mental
disorder. In one moment, Sarah is ecstatic about her marriage
with James, then at other times, Sarah began to distrust James
and question his every move with questions:
“Where have
you been?!”
“Who were
you talking to ?!”
Sarah would
confiscate James’ cell phone and checked to see who’s been
calling James. At other times, Sarah would call James employer
and demand to know if James is at work. James began to question
his feelings for Sarah and was confused about his marriage.
Sarah then
wanted to bring her children to live with them, which James
reluctantly agreed. Since the children’s arrival, Sarah would
leave the children with James and said she took a job at a
nightclub. Despite James objections, Sarah took her job and
would leave for her job in the evenings and not return until
early morning hours.
In September
of 2006, feeling frustrated and aggravated, James left a note to
Sarah, “I’m sorry, but this is not working out. I’m leaving
you.”
On or about
March of 2008, James completed and filed an immigration form to
remove the conditions of his two year conditional residency
card. Although the form requested both spouses to sign, James
signed only his name and attached a letter stating that the
parties had been separated since September of 2006.
The
Department of Homeland Security sent a notice of receipt to
Sarah’s address. Sarah took the opportunity to send a letter to
DHS. Sarah’s wrote, “James only married me for the green card.
His marriage to me was fraud. Please do not give him the green
card. HE IS FRAUD.”
1.
What will happen to James?
2.
Will James obtain a ten year green card?
3.
Will James have to return to Jamaica?
Usually, the
DHS will investigate this case to determine whether there was a
marriage fraud committed.
James must
prove to DHS that he entered the marriage in good faith; that at
the time of the marriage it was a bona fide marriage. There are
many cases that involve this type of scenario and if there are
insufficient evidence of the marriage, DHS can deny the
application to remove the conditions.
Aliens must
be proactive about reserving evidence of marriage (i.e.
photographs, leases, e-mails to each other, cards, insurance
cards, credit card bills, loans to both parties, tax returns in
both names, bank accounts, etc.)
If the
application is denied, then James could face deportation before
an immigration judge.
