I 360 Requirements

[Hugh Cole 0]

Hello All

I am new here so please excuse the lack of knowledge.

Question is what kind of "abuse" does a woman need to show? Is a Court issuance of a Protection Order enough?

Brief story: I am a 50 year old American citizen. Never had any sort of criminal record. Not even a speeding ticket in 15 years. I married a younger Russian woman 2 years ago introduced by a Russian guy I knew. My wife came and told me she is pregnant now with this guy's baby. Then she had a Domestic Abuse Order served on me claiming I beat her. I went to court myself to defend myself but didn't have a lawyer and lost-- so a 1 year no contact was issued based on her complete lies. I wasn't even able to show my plane tickets demonstrating that I wasn't in the same state when she claimed I hit her. I even motioned the court for me to take a lie detector test and the judge refused. The Russian guy who is the baby's father recently had his marriage to a US citizen annulled for marriage fraud and is up for deportation.

The sad thing is even though she was pregnant with another guy's baby I didn't necessarily think to divorce her. For appearances sake and for her conservative family I might have been able to go along with this for awhile so she didn't give birth out of wedlock. Until out of the blue she moved out a claimed this "abuse".

Needless to I never touched her. Ladies I am glad that we have these laws to protect you for the occasionally violent male but please realize the heavy hammer. I understand now that I have NO chance to tell my side of the story to the Vermont Center. Is this true?

Is mere issuance of a protection order enough to self sponsor on claims of false abuse?

Thank you all for your past wisdom.

Hugh

[SingleDad2usc 71]

Maybe you could explain a little more: you went to WHAT court, on WHAT charge and lost WHAT exactly?

And what do you anticipate your next troubles to be?

[Moomin 292]

Not unless you have evidence to submit to ICE, no. It's her case which you won't be told anything about unless your wife/ex-wife tells you about it.

[Hugh Cole 0]

Thanks all

Wife claimed domestic abuse and got a ex parte protection order in the local District Court of my State (Kansas).

We then had a hearing in the same District Court 10 days later and she had the protection order upheld for one year. I stupidly went Pro Se while she had a Legal Aid Lawyer.

I am told this is not a criminal charge but rather a civil one and would only become criminal if I violated (contacted) her.

Moomin so I AM allowed to submit evidence to ICE of her getting pregnant from another guy of her country who is being deported? What should I tell/show ICE so that they hear both sides? Can I submit the polygraph that I passed?

THANKS ALL

[Moomin 292]

Thanks all

Wife claimed domestic abuse and got a ex parte protection order in the local District Court of my State (Kansas).

We then had a hearing in the same District Court 10 days later and she had the protection order upheld for one year. I stupidly went Pro Se while she had a Legal Aid Lawyer.

I am told this is not a criminal charge but rather a civil one and would only become criminal if I violated (contacted) her.

Moomin so I AM allowed to submit evidence to ICE of her getting pregnant from another guy of her country who is being deported? What should I tell/show ICE so that they hear both sides? Can I submit the polygraph that I passed?

THANKS ALL

If it's solid evidence, yes. Cheating doesn't constitute fraud however having a relationship alongside yours when entering the US, or having a boyfriend back home is one of those things that they might be interested in because that means that the US citizen might have been used for the visa.

It's not as much as they are interested in hearing your side; it's the facts that your wife might have comitted fraud and evidence thereof. Only because that's what they deal with, and not just marriages ending for this or that reason.

[Hugh Cole 0]

If it's solid evidence, yes. Cheating doesn't constitute fraud however having a relationship alongside yours when entering the US, or having a boyfriend back home is one of those things that they might be interested in because that means that the US citizen might have been used for the visa.

It's not as much as they are interested in hearing your side; it's the facts that your wife might have comitted fraud and evidence thereof. Only because that's what they deal with, and not just marriages ending for this or that reason.

The guy whose baby she is pregnant with from her homeland is actually the guy that introduced me to her. So through him I met my "wife." I think he and she conspired together to marry Americans knowing that they would eventually divorce the Americans and one could sponsor the other.

Is evidence of her working (not authorized on campus) against the rules of her student F-1 visa evidence of fraud in your opinion? Not paying income tax? Is that evidence of fraud do you think? Also she faked at Kinkos a bank statement showing a bank account back home with sufficient funds for her studies. Can I just tell ice that or do I have to produce that fake bank statement?

YOUR COLLECTIVE WISDOM IS MUCH APPRECIATED!

Hugh

[Moomin 292]

The guy whose baby she is pregnant with from her homeland is actually the guy that introduced me to her. So through him I met my "wife." I think he and she conspired together to marry Americans knowing that they would eventually divorce the Americans and one could sponsor the other.

Is evidence of her working (not authorized on campus) against the rules of her student F-1 visa evidence of fraud in your opinion? Not paying income tax? Is that evidence of fraud do you think? Also she faked at Kinkos a bank statement showing a bank account back home with sufficient funds for her studies. Can I just tell ice that or do I have to produce that fake bank statement?

YOUR COLLECTIVE WISDOM IS MUCH APPRECIATED!

Hugh

Working illegally was forgiven as the apouse of a US citizen, and it was forgiven at the time of AOS.

What you're describing is something for IRS. Avoiding to pay taxes is not immigration fraud. You have to prove that she used you to gain immigration benefits - that she married you for the greencard. However, ICE needs proof, not just your thoughts or claims or your words.

Now, if she used fake documents to get to the US/get a visa, that's falsifying documents but ICE will only look at this IF it is relevant to her immigration status.

[Hugh Cole 0]

Working illegally was forgiven as the apouse of a US citizen, and it was forgiven at the time of AOS.

What you're describing is something for IRS. Avoiding to pay taxes is not immigration fraud. You have to prove that she used you to gain immigration benefits - that she married you for the greencard. However, ICE needs proof, not just your thoughts or claims or your words.

Now, if she used fake documents to get to the US/get a visa, that's falsifying documents but ICE will only look at this IF it is relevant to her immigration status.

Moonim

Thank you for your time and assistance. Although we were married in a civil ceremony at court, some trust issues came up so I never sponsored her. So I believe no AOS. She is still on a F-1 visa. I went to some law school but didnt finish and I thought that evidence of character (the basis for our annulment is fraud) could be shown by concurrent fraud such as violating visa terms. Thoughts anyone?

Hugh

[Hugh Cole 0]

Moonim

Thank you for your time and assistance. Although we were married in a civil ceremony at court, some trust issues came up so I never sponsored her. So I believe no AOS. She is still on a F-1 visa. I went to some law school but didnt finish and I thought that evidence of character (the basis for our annulment is fraud) could be shown by concurrent fraud such as violating visa terms. Thoughts anyone?

Hugh

And also-- isn't filing a 1-360 based on false charges of me hitting her..Isn't that fraud in an attempt for her to secure LPR without my sponsorship?

Thank you

Hugh

[Moomin 292]

And also-- isn't filing a 1-360 based on false charges of me hitting her..Isn't that fraud in an attempt for her to secure LPR without my sponsorship?

Thank you

Hugh

Yes but your prior examples of not paying taxes aren't issues for ICE.

Again, you'll still have to prove yourself, not just talk. Moreover, it's about proving false claim to VAWA/in violation of visa terms/entered marriage for the sake of greencard.

If you can't prove that the charges were false, then there's no case, at least not for ICE.

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

USCIS and ICE do not prosecute for immigration fraud. If they find someone is guilty of misrepresentation then they deport them - end of story. Many VAWA filers are lying about being abused. If USCIS determines they are lying then they simply deny the I-360 and start removal proceedings. They don't need to accuse them of misrepresentation in order to deny the I-360 (approval of an I-360 is discretionary, and the IO who denies it isn't obligated to prove anything), and they don't need to follow up with an accusation of misrepresentation after the I-360 is denied.

A "no contact" order is usually not sufficient, by itself, for a VAWA filing. Those orders can usually be obtained without any proof whatever that the claimed abuse actually occurred. Now, if she had her boyfriend beat her up and then got a medical report to corroborate this then that would make a difference. If that were the case then you'd almost undoubtedly have been charged with domestic violence.

Another fundamental requirement of a VAWA filing is that the immigrant must provide evidence to prove that they entered the marriage in good faith. The first thing USCIS wants to see here is comingling of finances and debts or other responsibilities. They want joint bank accounts, insurance policies, both names on deeds/leases or other household bills, joint credit accounts, etc. Next they want secondary evidence to support the claim, such as photos at family events, sworn statements from mutual friends, etc. If she doesn't have sufficient evidence for this then her I-360 will be denied, even if she has overwhelming evidence of abuse.

Finally, an I-360 based on VAWA can be approved if the marriage has been terminated, but only if the termination of the marriage occurred within two years prior to filing, and only if the claimed abuse was the primary reason for terminating the marriage. If you filed for the annulment BEFORE she filed the VAWA self-petition, and if the annulment is granted based on your accusation of fraud, then that could be the nail in her coffin. Make sure you send a copy of that annulment to USCIS and ICE.

[SingleDad2usc 71]

Excellent hints from Jim; just not sure on this small point:

"they simply deny the I-360 and start removal proceedings."

Doesn't vsc NOT start removal, just because they denied I-360?

[Sandra G. 5,048]

SingleDad2usc Who had form I-360 denied is not being subjected to removal,but if the the individual has form I-485 pending and the Vawa case is denied then they will initiate removal proceedings.

[Hugh Cole 0]

USCIS and ICE do not prosecute for immigration fraud. If they find someone is guilty of misrepresentation then they deport them - end of story. Many VAWA filers are lying about being abused. If USCIS determines they are lying then they simply deny the I-360 and start removal proceedings. They don't need to accuse them of misrepresentation in order to deny the I-360 (approval of an I-360 is discretionary, and the IO who denies it isn't obligated to prove anything), and they don't need to follow up with an accusation of misrepresentation after the I-360 is denied.

A "no contact" order is usually not sufficient, by itself, for a VAWA filing. Those orders can usually be obtained without any proof whatever that the claimed abuse actually occurred. Now, if she had her boyfriend beat her up and then got a medical report to corroborate this then that would make a difference. If that were the case then you'd almost undoubtedly have been charged with domestic violence.

Another fundamental requirement of a VAWA filing is that the immigrant must provide evidence to prove that they entered the marriage in good faith. The first thing USCIS wants to see here is comingling of finances and debts or other responsibilities. They want joint bank accounts, insurance policies, both names on deeds/leases or other household bills, joint credit accounts, etc. Next they want secondary evidence to support the claim, such as photos at family events, sworn statements from mutual friends, etc. If she doesn't have sufficient evidence for this then her I-360 will be denied, even if she has overwhelming evidence of abuse.

Finally, an I-360 based on VAWA can be approved if the marriage has been terminated, but only if the termination of the marriage occurred within two years prior to filing, and only if the claimed abuse was the primary reason for terminating the marriage. If you filed for the annulment BEFORE she filed the VAWA self-petition, and if the annulment is granted based on your accusation of fraud, then that could be the nail in her coffin. Make sure you send a copy of that annulment to USCIS and ICE.

JimVA No the "áo dài" doesn't make you look fat. Rather more international and buff

Thank you for your input and assistance. I am glad to hear that news about the protection order not being enough. Perhaps some have misunderstood my questioning of the process of VAWA as being against it. I actually think it is a humane concept that demonstrates American values or equality towards women. My question was simply for the process for the small number of claims that might be fraudulent. And I am glad to see that the Vermont center does not rubber stamp all applications as approved but goes through a vetting process.

Thank you again for your past experience and wisdom in highlighting this area of the law.

Cám ơn

Hugh

[duped 0]

USCIS and ICE do not prosecute for immigration fraud. If they find someone is guilty of misrepresentation then they deport them - end of story. Many VAWA filers are lying about being abused. If USCIS determines they are lying then they simply deny the I-360 and start removal proceedings. They don't need to accuse them of misrepresentation in order to deny the I-360 (approval of an I-360 is discretionary, and the IO who denies it isn't obligated to prove anything), and they don't need to follow up with an accusation of misrepresentation after the I-360 is denied.

A "no contact" order is usually not sufficient, by itself, for a VAWA filing. Those orders can usually be obtained without any proof whatever that the claimed abuse actually occurred. Now, if she had her boyfriend beat her up and then got a medical report to corroborate this then that would make a difference. If that were the case then you'd almost undoubtedly have been charged with domestic violence.

Another fundamental requirement of a VAWA filing is that the immigrant must provide evidence to prove that they entered the marriage in good faith. The first thing USCIS wants to see here is comingling of finances and debts or other responsibilities. They want joint bank accounts, insurance policies, both names on deeds/leases or other household bills, joint credit accounts, etc. Next they want secondary evidence to support the claim, such as photos at family events, sworn statements from mutual friends, etc. If she doesn't have sufficient evidence for this then her I-360 will be denied, even if she has overwhelming evidence of abuse.

Finally, an I-360 based on VAWA can be approved if the marriage has been terminated, but only if the termination of the marriage occurred within two years prior to filing, and only if the claimed abuse was the primary reason for terminating the marriage. If you filed for the annulment BEFORE she filed the VAWA self-petition, and if the annulment is granted based on your accusation of fraud, then that could be the nail in her coffin. Make sure you send a copy of that annulment to USCIS and ICE.

Your response is thought provoking. Where and when would the OP send the notice of pending annulment action? In my dealings with local USCIS and ICE, they showed no interest in any amount of tangible fraud evidence, saying that VAWA relief was granted 70% of the time, with just any allegation of abuse. What are your thoughts?