A ticket back and affidavit of support

[Goroshek 0]

My husband and I divorced after my getting a 2year GC. After that we decided to have a 2 months' break and at the airport he told me that he wanted me to come back in a couple of months.

Several months after my coming back there was an argument and my ex told me that he doesn't owe me anything and doesn't have to support me just because he had bought me a ticket back home and I came back on my own will and it's my problem how to survive now. Does he still have to support me in the US till the GC expires and if yes what are the legal things he can do to avoid supportting me?

[ceadsearc 516]

He is still held to the affidavit of support. But the affidavit of support is not a contract with you. It is with the government allowing the government to come after him for repayment if you were somehow approved for means-tested government benefits. You are on your own to financially support yourself in America unless your divorce paperwork says otherwise.

[Zen Den 18]

My husband and I divorced after my getting a 2year GC. After that we decided to have a 2 months' break and at the airport he told me that he wanted me to come back in a couple of months.

Several months after my coming back there was an argument and my ex told me that he doesn't owe me anything and doesn't have to support me just because he had bought me a ticket back home and I came back on my own will and it's my problem how to survive now. Does he still have to support me in the US till the GC expires and if yes what are the legal things he can do to avoid supportting me?

are you legally divorced now? what did you mean by break? why did he want you to come back after you're already divorced? just curious about your situation

but anyway, yes he still has to support your basic needs (within the above-poverty levels required) until you become a citizen or unless you have already worked a certain number of hours and can apply for unemployment assistance.

you might choose to need or not need him for the removal of conditions on your gc after two years so depending on your reasons for divorce, you might want to think about whether to ask for assistance from the govt (afterwhich govt sues him for that) or if you're capable, just and start supporting yourself and be independent or talk civilly with him and ask for assistance =)

[Goroshek 0]

are you legally divorced now? what did you mean by break? why did he want you to come back after you're already divorced? just curious about your situation

but anyway, yes he still has to support your basic needs (within the above-poverty levels required) until you become a citizen or unless you have already worked a certain number of hours and can apply for unemployment assistance.

you might choose to need or not need him for the removal of conditions on your gc after two years so depending on your reasons for divorce, you might want to think about whether to ask for assistance from the govt (afterwhich govt sues him for that) or if you're capable, just and start supporting yourself and be independent or talk civilly with him and ask for assistance =)

Well, my ex is a very hot-tempered guy and gets mad easily, it's impossible to have any serious discussions with him at all as he gets mad and offended and starts to do crazy things, so he filed for a divorce TWICE, after the first time he cancelled it. As the second divorce was going on we decided that I would go to Russia for 2 months' time and we would see how we would feel. But soon I realized that he and his divorce lawyer were doing a lot of things behind my back and after another deep thought he would divorce me without my being in the US, so we decided that it would be better if we finish the divorce but still we were thinking about another start if we felt that way in 2 months' time.

2 months later I came back: before I left he told me that he wanted for me to come back and during those 2 months he was writing nice friendly letters with pictures and he never wrote that he didn't want me to come anymore. He never cancelled the ticket and never asked for me to cancel it. But as soon as I came back I realized that he is a complete stranger, the only person who has been working at our relationship and at another start was me and he was afraid of telling his family that I had come back and they are in the first place in his life. (mommy's boy type). He had 2 cars, one of them was originaly bought for me but went to him after the divorce. He sold it without telling me. We live in the place that is far from anything and I can't find any decent job without having a car.

I had some money after the divorce, but it's gone now, because I have to live on something. We are going to nowhere. Another serious conversation, as I mentioned in the first post he started yelling at me that he doesn't have money and he isn't going to support me anyhow and he wants me to go away. At the same time he has money for facials, professional hair removal, concert tickets with other girls, going to Hawaii by himself, etc.

Going back to Russia I have the same problem-I have to live on something till I find the job.

Before I came to the US I had a pretty good job, here I evaluated my Russian diploma and got an American MA degree. But even this way I still have to get a license and probably go to college. I still need some help no matter where I am and he refuses to give it, moreover this topic makes him totally agressive and loses any control over himself and saying that I am blackmailing him and he is going to call the police and kick me out.

I was trying to have a conversation about how much I had left to be with him: my old parents, my job, my friends, my entire life for him, he promised my parents to take care of me and I have been trying to be a good wife and had taken care of him and I don't deserve being treated that way and he just laughs and insults me.

I know that after that conversation he started contacting an immigration lawyer and I am curious what are the worst things he can legally do in this situation.Thank you

[Goroshek 0]

Right now I am planning on leaving him, I just don't know when exactly and how. I will probably have to contact some of my friends. I just wanted to know the answers to the questions mentioned above and what kind of mean things to expect from him.

Edited November 19, 2011 by Goroshek

[Brother Hesekiel 2,236]

Part of a divorce is the issue of spousal support. You are entitled to whatever the judge or you and your husband agreed on. I hope you have that in writing.

[Zen Den 18]

Right now I am planning on leaving him, I just don't know when exactly and how. I will probably have to contact some of my friends. I just wanted to know the answers to the questions mentioned above and what kind of mean things to expect from him.

technically you have left him already since you are officially divorced, but looks like you need him financially so you can't completely stay away even though he's the way he is.

anyway, to answer your other question, the worst thing i imagine he could do is make up stories about you to make it look, for instance, like you married him for the greencard and block your removal of conditions if he's that spiteful. otherwise you can later remove conditions on your gc on your own through a waiver based on being divorced.

just make sure you don't bug him too much about money or anything else (even be at his house) in such a way that he'll have a valid excuse to really call the police on you and make good on his other threats because then that would change things for the worse for you.

[trillium13 84]

I'm confused. If the OP is already divorced, doesn't she need to remove conditions now, otherwise the GC is invalid so to speak?

[ceadsearc 516]

I'm confused. If the OP is already divorced, doesn't she need to remove conditions now, otherwise the GC is invalid so to speak?

Yes, once it's finalized (as it sounds like it already is) she should immediately file for ROC with a waiver. Good catch ...

[VanessaTony 3,567]

but anyway, yes he still has to support your basic needs (within the above-poverty levels required) until you become a citizen or unless you have already worked a certain number of hours and can apply for unemployment assistance.

you might choose to need or not need him for the removal of conditions on your gc after two years so depending on your reasons for divorce, you might want to think about whether to ask for assistance from the govt (afterwhich govt sues him for that) or if you're capable, just and start supporting yourself and be independent or talk civilly with him and ask for assistance =)

1. NO he does NOT have to financially support her at all

2. She isn't eligible for most benefits that he would have to pay back until she's been an LPR for 5 years.

I'm confused. If the OP is already divorced, doesn't she need to remove conditions now, otherwise the GC is invalid so to speak?

Yes she does. She is currently in breach of her conditional GC and should ROC immediately.

[VanessaTony 3,567]

You said the car went to him in the divorce. It's his to sell if he wants. He doesn't have to ask or tell you anything.

You were given money after the divorce, you are divorced, there's nothing else to get from him.

Doesn't matter what money he has or how he spends it, you are divorced, you've received your settlement, it's not your business.

You need financial help, I understand that but he is under no obligation to give it. You said you have parents and friends back home. You should ask them for assistance (either from here or if you return home).

I'm surprised you're living together if you're divorced. He is under no obligation to let you live with him.

Doesn't matter what you gave up to come here. Again, you are divorced, he doesn't owe you anything any more. I can't say he was being a d*ck because you yourself said he bought you a ticket home. You yourself said you got money from the divorce. He didn't leave you destitute.

I'm not trying to be mean, I'm trying to get you to understand that he doesn't owe you anything.

As for immigration, you are now divorced so you must ROC with a waiver. You are currently in breach of your conditional GC and can get into a spot of bother if you run into ICE.

Part of a divorce is the issue of spousal support. You are entitled to whatever the judge or you and your husband agreed on. I hope you have that in writing.

She is already divorced and she said she's burned through the money she got from the divorce.

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

She can try suing for support based on the affidavit of support. It works occasionally. Depends on the state and the willingness of the judge to consider the affidavit of support as a binding contract. Most courts will just tell her that she doesn't have standing to bring a case because, although she's a beneficiary of the contract, she's not a party to it. They'll tell her to get the US government to sue on her behalf. The US government won't do that. They'll only sue if she collects means-tested benefits.

The bottom line is she can't force him to pay her a nickel without a court order, and she'll have to sue him in order to get it. I'm guessing that's not the route she was thinking of, and was hoping she could just file a complaint with someone and start getting regular checks from him. Nope - she won't get anything unless she hires a lawyer and takes him to court.

[bigdog 376]

The divorce trumps everything, if he satisfied that you're done, if not get a court order to have him pay according to the settlement. Straighten out your green card.

[Goroshek 0]

I'm surprised you're living together if you're divorced. He is under no obligation to let you live with him.

The important part is that I didn't come back on my OWN, just because I wanted to, he ASKED me to come back in 2 months' time to try to live together and to give it another start.

Except for his being cold we still went to amusement parks, caving, played games and watched movies, etc together. I thought we were going to work at our relationship.

Now I realize that I am the one who was trying to work at it, he hasn't. I have no idea what he has been doing since I came last time and what has been going in his mind. Maybe it was convenient to him that he had a free housekeeper/cooker, a game partner, etc, maybe he was a coward to say he didn't want another start and was hoping it would just go somwhere by itself, but was afraid of spoiling any relationship with me and never see me again, all I can say is that right now it's over because as soon as his siters knew I am here they obviously had a talk with him and he started dating other women with me being here.

I knew that I could file another petition by myself after divorce, the point was not to start a life here by myself, I was hoping we would get married again within 2 years'GC time.

I understand that it's time to move on now. I just wanted to figure out which way to go.

Thank you for your responses , guys.

[ceadsearc 516]

The thing is that now that you are divorced, you need to file for ROC immediately. You only wait 2 years if you are still married. Otherwise you need to file right away.