Common Law Marriage

[The Garcia's 0]

Hello all 

When my fiancé  applied for his tourist visa, the agency put down he was COMMON LAW MARRIED to the mother of their child.  Due to this we got and RFE.  How or what do I need to do to clear this up.  With common law we know that there is no record so no record of divorce.  I am at a loss any advice PLEASE!!!!!!!!

[JFH 12,190]

*~*~*procedural question moved from “progress reports” to “process and procedures”*~*~*

[JFH 12,190]

Did he lie on the application for the tourist visa? He may have a lifetime ban for misrepresentation. 

[The Garcia's 0]

I can't say he lied cause he had an agency do it .  did not go over it.  if that is a lie then yeah

 

[Boiler 45,441]

He would have had to sign it, swearing it was the truth the whole truth etc etc.

[The Garcia's 0]

ok but that is not what I asked.  I asked for assistance on how to prove he has never been married.

[Boiler 45,441]

Not sure how your prove a negative.

[SalishSea 17,801]

42 minutes ago, The Garcia's said:

I can't say he lied cause he had an agency do it .  did not go over it.  if that is a lie then yeah

 

Does not matter if an agency did it.  He signed it, and is responsible for the contents.

[Danny10 14]

1 hour ago, The Garcia's said:

Hello all 

When my fiancé  applied for his tourist visa, the agency put down he was COMMON LAW MARRIED to the mother of their child.  Due to this we got and RFE.  How or what do I need to do to clear this up.  With common law we know that there is no record so no record of divorce.  I am at a loss any advice PLEASE!!!!!!!!

In the US if you're common-law-married, you'll need to obtain a traditional divorce before you can remarry. 

 

 

[Just Paul 4,595]

38 minutes ago, The Garcia's said:

I asked for assistance on how to prove he has never been married.

How do you end a common law marriage in Jamaica?  Does Jamaica have some sort of singleness certificate?

 

When he did his interview for the tourist visa he swore an oath to tell the truth.  He swore that the visa application was correct.  So twice he lied, in one interview. He signed the visa application under perjury.

[SalishSea 17,801]

1 hour ago, The Garcia's said:

Hello all 

When my fiancé  applied for his tourist visa, the agency put down he was COMMON LAW MARRIED to the mother of their child.  Due to this we got and RFE.  How or what do I need to do to clear this up.  With common law we know that there is no record so no record of divorce.  I am at a loss any advice PLEASE!!!!!!!!

Did he receive that tourist visa?

[geowrian 22,337]

Lots of cases this month of people lying on a tourist visa about their marital status...

 

On the plus side, he claimed to be common law married, not necessarily legally married. Depending on local law, this may or may not be an issue IMO.

The obvious item is how does one show that the common law marriage was dissolved? If there is no formal process, he may have a chance - the USG can't require documentation that cannot exist. They might still want other evidence, which would obviously be a problem, though.

If there is a formal process for dissolving a common law marriage, then they will require documentation of that process. "I lied" or "somebody else put that" will not cut it.

 

Either way, a K-1 is not suggested here. You have the burden to show that you are both free to marry. It may be impossible to show that here.

With a CR-1 at least, you have to show a legal marriage. You do not have to show being free to marry, obviously.

They may still require evidence or documentation of the dissolution of the common law marriage, but at least you could challenge their decision. With a K-1, you are pretty much stuck once they make their decision and have to start all over.

 

There may or may not be a misrepresentation bar as well, depending on if the misrepresentation is deemed material.

I suggest not focusing on pointing fingers at the agent - they will not care one bit as he signed it and showed up for the interview. How it happened doesn't matter.

 

[Julesnbloom 2]

2 hours ago, The Garcia's said:

Hello all 

When my fiancé  applied for his tourist visa, the agency put down he was COMMON LAW MARRIED to the mother of their child.  Due to this we got and RFE.  How or what do I need to do to clear this up.  With common law we know that there is no record so no record of divorce.  I am at a loss any advice PLEASE!!!!!!!!

I had this happen to me also. Me and my fiance worked together and he got statement of Singleness from an attorney.He got certified and he signed. He also got a letter from all friends and family that we are single and we both have a loving relationship. Signed and dated by all family and friends.

[The Garcia's 0]

To the individuals that answered my question with out trying to be extra nosey thank you.  I have him now going to get a certificate of non marriage.  Calling USCIS today to see what else is needed.  Never was placing blame on agency was just information.  Like many stated at the end it is his fault. Life lesson learned....JulesNBloom thank you for insight will be getting family letters as we wait for certificate.  

[Boiler 45,441]

To my knowledge nobody in this situation has ever come back and told us what happened and how they resolved this. I can not help but think CR1 would be the way to go, normally I would anyway but especially with this sort of issue to deal with.