Divorce after joint i751 filing

[indianshah 4]

My USC wife and I got married in good faith (arranged marriage) in Jan 2015 and I received my conditional GC in Jan 2016. I moved to the US on a student visa in 2010 and was on a work visa (H1B) when i got married. We jointly filed my i751 petition in nov 2017 to CSC. When i submitted the joint i751 i had included joint mortgage contracts, financial statements (credit and savings account), photos from marriage in US and India, vacations, family visits etc., air tickets, joint phone bills, joint car insurance, affidavits from friends and neighbors, my insurance showing her name as beneficiary, joint tax filing documents. We have been having issues since the last few months and have been going for counseling to see whether we can work it out. However, my wife let me know today  that she'll be moving out next week back home (different state) and filing divorce right after that. Even after the counseling sessions, we couldn't reconcile our issues. The processing times at CSC is taking 18-20 months and my application was filed a little over 8 months ago. The last update I received was in May notifying biometric appointment is not required since they have past records and haven't seen any movement on my case since then. I'm not sure what the next steps are - some forums say no action is required until divorce is finalized, however others say to notify USCIS about the situation. In addition to evidences I had provided already I can also provide report from the counselor, 2017 joint tax, photos and itineraries from trips made in 2018, bank statements until next week etc. Any help will be highly appreciated. 

 

Also, is there a forum for i751 divorce waivers for 2017/2018 I can follow?

[pdx751 12]

I am in the same boat, buddy. Got married to a USC in July 2015 and got approved for a conditional GC in February 2016. I filed for ROC in Nov 2017 but we were also in counseling and trying to sort out issues. At this time we are separated and not sure if we want to get divorced yet. I thought the timeframe for I-751 would be 6-8 months but the current estimated wait of 19-20 months is ridiculous. The only positive is that neither of us are entirely sure we want to file for divorce or rush to do so. I'd tell you that if your spouse HAS filed for divorce then you have no choice but to go through the proceedings and then produce a divorce decree to USCIS soon after you receive it. USCIS understands that marriages entered in good faith can fall apart. They just need to know you were not lying about it on your forms. Once your spouse has filed for divorce, you should know how long that timeframe is going to be. You may even complete divorce proceedings before your I-751 application is picked up for processing, in which case you will have updated information to share.

[indianshah 4]

On 7/10/2018 at 1:22 PM, vikramts said:

I am in the same boat, buddy. Got married to a USC in July 2015 and got approved for a conditional GC in February 2016. I filed for ROC in Nov 2017 but we were also in counseling and trying to sort out issues. At this time we are separated and not sure if we want to get divorced yet. I thought the timeframe for I-751 would be 6-8 months but the current estimated wait of 19-20 months is ridiculous. The only positive is that neither of us are entirely sure we want to file for divorce or rush to do so. I'd tell you that if your spouse HAS filed for divorce then you have no choice but to go through the proceedings and then produce a divorce decree to USCIS soon after you receive it. USCIS understands that marriages entered in good faith can fall apart. They just need to know you were not lying about it on your forms. Once your spouse has filed for divorce, you should know how long that timeframe is going to be. You may even complete divorce proceedings before your I-751 application is picked up for processing, in which case you will have updated information to share.

Hey thanks a lot for replying back to my post. My wife is moving out in a few days and hasn't filed for a divorce yet. Since she's moving to a different state I believe she needs to fulfill the residency requirements to be able to file in that State. I'm not certain on how this whole process is going to work out OR how long it's going to take. Have you notified USCIS that you are not living together anymore? Does it need to be notified?

[AH&JH 10]

Notify them once she files for divorce. Thats what I did (also got divorce in California). by the time they get to your file you will probably have your divorce decree in hand and can amend to divorce waiver.

 

In your notification you just say that your wife filed for divorce in X date and that you two are getting divorce for the following reason and you just want to update them of your situation and that one you get the divorce decree you will send to them.

 

You can look at my timeline and my posts about all my process. Right now im waiting for an interview that I might had been able to avoid if I would have signed amendment to divorce when they send me the RFE.

 

 

Edited July 12, 2018 by AH&JH

[indianshah 4]

21 hours ago, AH&JH said:

Notify them once she files for divorce. Thats what I did (also got divorce in California). by the time they get to your file you will probably have your divorce decree in hand and can amend to divorce waiver.

 

In your notification you just say that your wife filed for divorce in X date and that you two are getting divorce for the following reason and you just want to update them of your situation and that one you get the divorce decree you will send to them.

 

You can look at my timeline and my posts about all my process. Right now im waiting for an interview that I might had been able to avoid if I would have signed amendment to divorce when they send me the RFE.

 

 

Thanks a lot for replying back to this thread. How can I find your previous posts? I don't see a search functionality in this website.

[indianshah 4]

23 minutes ago, indianshah said:

Thanks a lot for replying back to this thread. How can I find your previous posts? I don't see a search functionality in this website.

I was able to find your timeline. Wish you good luck with the process. 

[pdx751 12]

I called USCIS a couple of days ago to ask about my situation. They clarified that my USC spouse does not need to file a change of address form for one thing (they are only concerned about the applicant - me). I told the agent that we are currently separated but not divorced nor are we sure we want to file for divorce yet. The agent replied that I can inform USCIS AFTER we decide to file for divorce, no need to do anything right now but wait for my case to get picked up. If , by the time an interview is requested, we have updated information about our situation (either we have decided to file for divorce or we have already done so and are in the middle of proceedings) then we can inform the USCIS officer in person when called for an interview. 

 

The agent also confirmed that not everyone is called for an interview at this time. 

 

Finally, I asked for an update on my case after seeing online that it has been transferred to the local office on March 8. The agent tracked it down and said there must be a mistake and that she's still seeing my case sitting at the California service center. Apparently this is good news because the field offices are currently experiencing a wait time of >30 months while the CSC is dealing with 20-22 month wait periods.

 

So bloody frustrating....!!!!!

[indianshah 4]

On 7/13/2018 at 6:23 PM, vikramts said:

I called USCIS a couple of days ago to ask about my situation. They clarified that my USC spouse does not need to file a change of address form for one thing (they are only concerned about the applicant - me). I told the agent that we are currently separated but not divorced nor are we sure we want to file for divorce yet. The agent replied that I can inform USCIS AFTER we decide to file for divorce, no need to do anything right now but wait for my case to get picked up. If , by the time an interview is requested, we have updated information about our situation (either we have decided to file for divorce or we have already done so and are in the middle of proceedings) then we can inform the USCIS officer in person when called for an interview. 

 

The agent also confirmed that not everyone is called for an interview at this time. 

 

Finally, I asked for an update on my case after seeing online that it has been transferred to the local office on March 8. The agent tracked it down and said there must be a mistake and that she's still seeing my case sitting at the California service center. Apparently this is good news because the field offices are currently experiencing a wait time of >30 months while the CSC is dealing with 20-22 month wait periods.

 

So bloody frustrating....!!!!!

This is super helpful! I'm in the same situation as my wife is moving out as well. It sucks that I'll have to wait for another year and have no clue about when my wife will be filing for divorce. My case was also transferred around the same time, and looks like the status is incorrect and my file might be in CSC too. 

Edited July 16, 2018 by indianshah

[indianshah 4]

Also, below is a good group to follow 

 

 

[indianshah 4]

@vikramtsMy wife moved out of the house that we were living at to a different state and I moved into a new apartment as well. I called up USCIS to inform about the separation and let them know that we are not divorced yet. The agent said that in this case I will definitely be called for an interview. Do you know the inquiries made by calling up customer support go into the file? If that's the case, the officer would know about it when they get to my file. I don't know if my wife will be willing to attend the interview/neither if we will be filing for divorce by then. Any thoughts?

[pdx751 12]

 

@indianshah....Technically, your USC spouse is NOT required to attend the interview, if you end up getting called to one.  You are the applicant, not your wife. Of course, it only strengthens your case when your spouse attends with you so that you guys appear as a couple and can answer questions convincingly (as long as there is nothing to hide). Divorce is not likely to make the processing smoother but I do not believe it will be a deterrent either. This is what my own lawyer has advised me. 

 

I have no idea if inquiries made over phone go on record and cause an application to require an interview. That actually seems silly because they'd have to go by whatever they hear over phone without any way to verify that it was indeed the applicant they were speaking with. Yes, they ask screening questions at the start of the conversation but we all know that is not sufficient to ensure the identity of a person over the phone. 

 

If you do get called for an interview and your wife refuses to appear for it (double IFs), well, you really can't do anything about that so I don't think you should be worrying about how to enable the situation. You cannot force her to appear for the interview. At best you can get a letter from her clarifying where things stand in the relationship so that there is proof that you guys really tried to make the marriage work (and that she hasn't disappeared altogether!). Even if you get divorced by the time your interview happens, I do not think you should worry about that change affecting the outcome of your I-751. What counts is that you entered the marriage 'in good faith'. No one can predict or rule that a marriage has to work out. 

 

[indianshah 4]

@vikramtsThanks for replying back to my message and clarifying a bunch of things!

Edited August 8, 2018 by indianshah