Conditional status expired today, don't know how to proceed

[Upsidedown 1]

I'm not sure if this is posted in the right section, but here goes (I'll try to be brief):

I came to the US from Canada on a K1, everything all nice and legit up to this point. Marriage with my wife turned sour, and I moved out. I saved up some money, got some divorce paperwork filled out and sent it to her to sign and return. She said that the terms of the divorce were unacceptable and she will have HER attorney make some new ones with terms that SHE is willing to accept. (It was uncontested divorce) She states that these papers will not be ready until late December. Seeing as my conditional status expires TODAY, I have no idea what is about to happen to me. She is completely unmoved by my plight, and is unwilling/unable to co-operate. She states that her biggest concern is the fact that she is financially responsible for me, even if we DO get divorced. My biggest concern right now is to stay in the United States. Since moving out of her house, I've gotten my own apartment, my own vehicle, a good job, and all the furniture and accessories to turn my house into a home that I REALLY do not want to leave. Unfortunately as far as I can tell, it seems as though I will be deported... My understanding is that I will be recieving a letter from the uscis with a court date where I will appear in front of an Immigration Judge to determine if I should be deported or not. I was hoping that if I can convince him that I could not file my I-751 in time due to divorce proceedings, that I could be granted an extension... But I have no idea how to go about this. Any and all help/opinions are welcome. (Links to official sites are especially welcome)

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

I'm not sure if this is posted in the right section, but here goes (I'll try to be brief):

I came to the US from Canada on a K1, everything all nice and legit up to this point. Marriage with my wife turned sour, and I moved out. I saved up some money, got some divorce paperwork filled out and sent it to her to sign and return. She said that the terms of the divorce were unacceptable and she will have HER attorney make some new ones with terms that SHE is willing to accept. (It was uncontested divorce) She states that these papers will not be ready until late December. Seeing as my conditional status expires TODAY, I have no idea what is about to happen to me. She is completely unmoved by my plight, and is unwilling/unable to co-operate. She states that her biggest concern is the fact that she is financially responsible for me, even if we DO get divorced. My biggest concern right now is to stay in the United States. Since moving out of her house, I've gotten my own apartment, my own vehicle, a good job, and all the furniture and accessories to turn my house into a home that I REALLY do not want to leave. Unfortunately as far as I can tell, it seems as though I will be deported... My understanding is that I will be recieving a letter from the uscis with a court date where I will appear in front of an Immigration Judge to determine if I should be deported or not. I was hoping that if I can convince him that I could not file my I-751 in time due to divorce proceedings, that I could be granted an extension... But I have no idea how to go about this. Any and all help/opinions are welcome. (Links to official sites are especially welcome)

This thread will probably get moved, but here goes...

Yes, you can ask the judge to continue the case pending the outcome of your divorce. However, he/she is going to want to see evidence that you ARE actually getting divorced. I honestly don't know if communications with your wife or her attorney would be enough to satisfy the judge. If your wife has an attorney then the divorce will not really be uncontested, but will be according to the terms her attorney dictates. You might want to consider hiring your own attorney, and filing unilaterally. Otherwise, you can expect her attorney to try to screw you. The point is that you really want to have the divorce petition filed with the court at the time you appear in front of the immigration judge.

You should have filed the I-751 before the expiration date anyway. When USCIS gets around to adjudicating it, you'd get an RFE for the divorce decree. In the meantime, your legal status would have been extended. You can probably still do this. Talk with an immigration attorney.

[Upsidedown 1]

Thank you for the prompt reply. I had been told a few times that i should have filed the I-751 before the expiration, but I was of the opinion that submitting a false document to the government (saying I'm already divorced when I'm actually not) would be grounds for severe punishment. Although it was probably the best way to increase my chances of staying here, I just couldn't morally lie like that. Hopefully that decision doesn't bite me later

I would still like to hear from others who are knowledgable in the area. I need all the help I can get!

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

Thank you for the prompt reply. I had been told a few times that i should have filed the I-751 before the expiration, but I was of the opinion that submitting a false document to the government (saying I'm already divorced when I'm actually not) would be grounds for severe punishment. Although it was probably the best way to increase my chances of staying here, I just couldn't morally lie like that. Hopefully that decision doesn't bite me later

I would still like to hear from others who are knowledgable in the area. I need all the help I can get!

Ok, read the USCIS site here:

http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/men...000082ca60aRCRD

Pay specific attention to the sections If You Are Late In Applying To Remove The Conditions On Residence, and If You Are In Divorce Proceedings But Are Not Yet Divorced.

[Upsidedown 1]

Thank you so much for the link. If anything it has added a small glimmer of hope to my seemingly hopeless situation. Please keep the advice and suggestions coming!

[sachinky 465]

How long were you married to your wife?

[Upsidedown 1]

We were married July 13th of 07 so that would make 2 years and 4 months

[rika60607 215]

You should read this thread

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=228322

you are not alone, there is a number of people in similar situation. Bottom line - it is advisable to file I-751 (with supporting evidence) ASAP, because technically you are out of status tomorrow and thus perhaps should not work. You file with a waiver, although you are not divorced yet (unless your spouse is willing to sign?). Eventually your case will be looked at and RFE will be issued. You will be given 90 days to send your divorce decree in. With current processing times it gives you about 4 months at CSC and 8 months at VSC before you are required to produce the divorce decree. Likely more, because divorce waivers usually take longer, much longer than regular cases.

Alternatively, you could file late, I believe the "soft" deadline is 30 or 60 days past conditional GC expiration date. Filing for divorce is a valid excuse for late I-751 filing, but it is still at USCIS's discretion to accept your late petition or not.

Also you can look into divorce proceedings in your state. Sometimes you do not have to have a ready marital settlement agreement (what your wife's lawyer is to prepare) to start the divorce. Just a petition for dissolution of marriage (basically stating you are initiating a divorce and establishing simple facts such as your names, addresses and marriage date and place) may be enough.

Good luck,

[Scott and Mhay 57]

So you did not file for divorce yet? You are waiting for her to file? You dont have to do that in most cases, just file the paperwork with the court and then have her served with the papers. If you aren't asking for anything, she should be fairly easy on it. I made this mistake with my ex...i found out after the fact i could have just filed so we could at least got a court date and then the fine details could have been ironed out there. If you havent talked to a lawyer about divorce, you probably should since your wife is going with a lawyer..at least you will know your legal rights.

[Krikit 1,164]

Moving from K-1 Process to Effects of Major Changes forum.