Advice on Asylum for spouse

[AmericanCBB 0]

I'm an American citizen by birth, my wife Armenian. We are apart until we save enough money for her immigration. A few months ago while in her home country my wife became pregnant. But I eventually had to return to the US. Her ex husband had been badgering her since our marriage and local police wouldn't do anything to stop it. They basically told us she brought it on herself for marrying a non-Armenian. The violence has escalated and the last time her ex attacked her while on her way home she miscarried our child. While researching asylum it seems to qualify it must be for political reasons. Is there anyone who knows more than I do that might help bring her here? Thank you in advance for your suggestions.

[Done--Really 331]

Getting approved for asylum is tough--the USCIS reports that over 80% of all petitions were disapproved in the last two years, although some jurisdictions are easier than others, with NYC the easiest of all. And to make it even tougher, your wife pretty much has to be in the US to go through the process. Here are the explicit rules that must be met--

To win legal protection from being deported asylum seekers must:

1. Be outside their country of nationality. Asylees are by definition in the United States and thus necessarily outside their country of nationality.

2. Be afraid of persecution. Torture and imprisonment are persecution - recognized under the law, but harassment or discrimination usually are not. Where these lines are drawn is different in each case.

3. Be harmed or fear harm by the government or others. Harm by the police or the army counts. Harm by right-wing or left-wing political groups or religious zealots that the government is "unable or unwilling to control" also counts.

4. Be affected by at least one of several defined conditions. As suggested above, these conditions are: political opinion, race, religion, nationality, and social group. The last category, social group, usually refers to people with certain characteristics that a particular society might lump together and have generally unfavorable attitudes about, such as homosexuals. The law generally does not include people who fled their homes due to civil wars, generalized violence, and criminal prosecution. However, even these reasons may suffice if they can be connected to one of the five listed reasons.

5. Not be a dangerous person. Finally,international law recognizes that countries have the right to exclude asylum seekers who may be a danger to society. These include those who have committed serious crimes, pose threats to national security, or who have committed war crimes or "crimes against humanity".

Edited August 2, 2011 by magical

[Penguin_ie 5,993]

***** Moving from CR-1 to General Immigration *****

She is not going to get asylum. Can she move to another city for now? Can ypu borrow the money to start the spousal visa petition, or maybe move together to a third country?

[AmericanCBB 0]

I've been trying to borrow the funds with no luck. If we were talking a few hundred that'd be one thing, but a few thousand plus cost of airline ticket...the USA makes it so expensive to immigrate. Moving to another city would be impossible because there's no place to rent. She has tried moving but without a husband being on a lease she is unable to find a place. I have to be living in the USA to bring a spouse to the USA and she has to be in her country of origin for her immigration.

***** Moving from CR-1 to General Immigration *****

She is not going to get asylum. Can she move to another city for now? Can ypu borrow the money to start the spousal visa petition, or maybe move together to a third country?

[Penguin_ie 5,993]

" I have to be living in the USA to bring a spouse to the USA and she has to be in her country of origin for her immigration."

I know moving can be expensive too, but the above statement is not true. She can apply for her visa and go to interview in any country she can legally reside in, and you can petition for her from abroad, either via DCF (filing directly with the consulate after living somewhere 6 months) or via mail to the USA. The only problem if you move abroad is the affidavit of support.

[milimelo 4,477]

" I have to be living in the USA to bring a spouse to the USA and she has to be in her country of origin for her immigration."

I know moving can be expensive too, but the above statement is not true. She can apply for her visa and go to interview in any country she can legally reside in, and you can petition for her from abroad, either via DCF (filing directly with the consulate after living somewhere 6 months) or via mail to the USA. The only problem if you move abroad is the affidavit of support.

In 13 days, the only option for DCF will be to file with USCIS office in that country. Since not every country has USCIS office, this takes away DCF for many people and they'll have to go through US processing -- filing with Chciago Lockbox.