Divorce before being a citizen

[Fatim04 0]

Hello everyone, 

 

I have been in the us for 2 and half years now, I have a 10 years green card, but I just got officially divorced last week. I came here to be with my ex but we separated only after 3 months. He was abusing and I had to call the cops before leaving him. can this be a problem if I apply for a citizenship? And when can I apply for it? 

Thank you very much for your help! 

[CJKylie 161]

4 minutes ago, Fatim04 said:

Hello everyone, 

 

I have been in the us for 2 and half years now, I have a 10 years green card, but I just got officially divorced last week. I came here to be with my ex but we separated only after 3 months. He was abusing and I had to call the cops before leaving him. can this be a problem if I apply for a citizenship? And when can I apply for it? 

Thank you very much for your help! 

No it won’t be a problem, but you’ll need to wait till (90 days prior to) the 5 year anniversary of the ‘Resident Since’ date on your green card.

[Fatim04 0]

3 minutes ago, CJKylie said:

No it won’t be a problem, but you’ll need to wait till (90 days prior to) the 5 year anniversary of the ‘Resident Since’ date on your green card.

Thank you so much 

[TNJ17 1,329]

No issue but you no longer qualify for early application at the 3 yr marriage to US citizen mark. You’ll have to wait until the 5 yr resident mark. 

[Fatim04 0]

12 minutes ago, TNJ17 said:

No issue but you no longer qualify for early application at the 3 yr marriage to US citizen mark. You’ll have to wait until the 5 yr resident mark. 

Thank you very much 

[Villanelle 4,122]

22 hours ago, Fatim04 said:

Thank you very much 

Did you file removal of conditions? Did you check the "abuse waiver", divorce waiver, or both?

 

If you checked "abuse" or "abuse and divorce"[ and were approved ROC you can file at 3 years. Please see the VAWA thread (starting at about 10 pages ago, we have a few there applying right now)

Edited September 15, 2018 by Damara

[Fatim04 0]

4 hours ago, Damara said:

Did you file removal of conditions? Did you check the "abuse waiver", divorce waiver, or both?

 

If you checked "abuse" or "abuse and divorce"[ and were approved ROC you can file at 3 years. Please see the VAWA thread (starting at about 10 pages ago, we have a few there applying right now)

I didn't file anything. The divorce was amicable. I just wanted to get divorced and didn't know about that. I assume it's too late now that the divorce is official. Also, I divorced in my country were we got married. Do I have to get divorced in the us as well? Thank you so much for your time

[Villanelle 4,122]

 

5 minutes ago, Fatim04 said:

I didn't file anything. The divorce was amicable. I just wanted to get divorced and didn't know about that. I assume it's too late now that the divorce is official. Also, I divorced in my country were we got married. Do I have to get divorced in the us as well? Thank you so much for your time

You do not have a timeline so I asked if you filed for removal of conditions and you do not seem to know what 'removal of conditions' is (its a USCIS process for people who got a 2yr conditional greencard; they file ROC and get a 10yr greencard) so I am going to assume you got the 10yr greencard when you entered the US or adjusted status in the US correct? If so unfortunately you have to wait until 5yrs. Keep in mind if you got the GC through marriage you may have to show you did not enter in the marriage for immigration benefits. Have copies of anything relevant (divorce decree, previous immigration petitions etc) just in case you need it. 

[Fatim04 0]

1 hour ago, Damara said:

 

You do not have a timeline so I asked if you filed for removal of conditions and you do not seem to know what 'removal of conditions' is (its a USCIS process for people who got a 2yr conditional greencard; they file ROC and get a 10yr greencard) so I am going to assume you got the 10yr greencard when you entered the US or adjusted status in the US correct? If so unfortunately you have to wait until 5yrs. Keep in mind if you got the GC through marriage you may have to show you did not enter in the marriage for immigration benefits. Have copies of anything relevant (divorce decree, previous immigration petitions etc) just in case you need it. 

Correct, I got a 10 years green card when I moved here because we were married for 4 years before I moved here. I have the police report from when he was abusif. And I only have a divorce certificate from my country. I don't even know where to get an American one. I really appreciate your help. I really don't have any idea what to do. Thank you. 

[Villanelle 4,122]

20 hours ago, Fatim04 said:

Correct, I got a 10 years green card when I moved here because we were married for 4 years before I moved here. I have the police report from when he was abusif. And I only have a divorce certificate from my country. I don't even know where to get an American one. I really appreciate your help. I really don't have any idea what to do. Thank you. 

Im sorry if I was not clear.

 

Your foreign divorce is valid here in the US. You do not get an "American divorce". The paperwork you have for the divorce just needs a translation attached.

 

So if you want to apply for citizenship you can at 5yr mark. Make sure you hold on to any papers related to your marriage in case they ask for anything. 

[Fatim04 0]

3 hours ago, Damara said:

Im sorry if I was not clear.

 

Your foreign divorce is valid here in the US. You do not get an "American divorce". The paperwork you have for the divorce just needs a translation attached.

 

So if you want to apply for citizenship you can at 5yr mark. Make sure you hold on to any papers related to your marriage in case they ask for anything. 

Thank you. I appreciate your help! 

[pushbrk 12,910]

On 9/16/2018 at 3:51 PM, Damara said:

Im sorry if I was not clear.

 

Your foreign divorce is valid here in the US. You do not get an "American divorce". The paperwork you have for the divorce just needs a translation attached.

 

So if you want to apply for citizenship you can at 5yr mark. Make sure you hold on to any papers related to your marriage in case they ask for anything. 

No divorce records are required when filing to Naturalize.

[CantWaitNoMore 6]

On 9/14/2018 at 12:15 PM, Fatim04 said:

Hello everyone, 

 

I have been in the us for 2 and half years now, I have a 10 years green card, but I just got officially divorced last week. I came here to be with my ex but we separated only after 3 months. He was abusing and I had to call the cops before leaving him. can this be a problem if I apply for a citizenship? And when can I apply for it? 

Thank you very much for your help! 

Hey there!

I see everyone has been telling you 5 years but it’s not. If you remarry you’ll have to wait 5 years, if you’re not remarried you’ll still be able to apply for citizenship 6 months before the 3 years deadline since the “resident since” date on your green card. 

[geowrian 22,337]

53 minutes ago, CantWaitNoMore said:

Hey there!

I see everyone has been telling you 5 years but it’s not. If you remarry you’ll have to wait 5 years, if you’re not remarried you’ll still be able to apply for citizenship 6 months before the 3 years deadline since the “resident since” date on your green card. 

Incorrect. You must be legally married and in a marital union to qualify under the 3 year rule.

Also, there is nothing that lets you file in a 6 month early filing period. The early filing period is 90 days.

[CantWaitNoMore 6]

1 minute ago, geowrian said:

Incorrect. You must be legally married and in a marital union to qualify under the 3 year rule.

Also, there is nothing that lets you file in a 6 month early filing period. The early filing period is 90 days.

This law does not apply for VAWA. You can get a divorce and apply for USC in the 3 years deadline if you don’t get remarried