Possible red flags in my CR1 case?

[Lazy Monk 1]

Hello there,

 

I'm a naturalized usc from my previous marriage. I got divorced in mid 2018 and remarried in late 2019. It was an arrange marriage thru a matchmaker in my family which is normal in my culture and it took place overseas. I didn't physically meet my spouse before we got married but we talked on a daily basis over calls/texts since early 2019 so it was approximately 10-11 months that we were in contact virtually before getting married. However, I spent over 3 months with my now wife after marriage (had a ceremony, went on a honeymoon etc) because she lives there. I petitioned for her in June this year.

Now, are there any possible red flags in my case and if any how to overcome them? Your expert advice would be appreciated.

[zochu 255]

Did you get US citizenship based on marrying a US citizen? 
 

I may be wrong, but I didn’t think that was possible? 
 

Otherwise, based on what you’ve written I see no major red flags 🚩 

[JFH 12,190]

So your current wife is from the same country as you are originally from? And it’s an arranged marriage? Plenty of evidence of a bona fide relationship would be a good idea. Otherwise they may think this is some kind of “shuffle”. Is it customary in your wife’s country for women to marry divorced men? 

[SusieQQQ 11,586]

Presumably you naturalized on the three year rule. How long after your naturalization did you file for divorce?

[Lazy Monk 1]

4 hours ago, zochu said:

Did you get US citizenship based on marrying a US citizen? 
 

I may be wrong, but I didn’t think that was possible? 
 

Otherwise, based on what you’ve written I see no major red flags 🚩 

I got naturalized based on my residency.

 

[Lazy Monk 1]

3 hours ago, JFH said:

So your current wife is from the same country as you are originally from? And it’s an arranged marriage? Plenty of evidence of a bona fide relationship would be a good idea. Otherwise they may think this is some kind of “shuffle”. Is it customary in your wife’s country for women to marry divorced men? 

Yes she is from the same country as I am. We have plenty of evidence like pictures/ travel itineraries from our honeymoon. It's not customary but it is sometimes acceptable.

[Lazy Monk 1]

3 hours ago, SusieQQQ said:

Presumably you naturalized on the three year rule. How long after your naturalization did you file for divorce?

I naturalized after my divorce, based on my residency.

[SusieQQQ 11,586]

58 minutes ago, Lazy Monk said:

I naturalized after my divorce, based on my residency.

Ok, so when you said 

5 hours ago, Lazy Monk said:

I'm a naturalized usc from my previous marriage

What you actually meant was you got your green card through marriage. Then divorced (presumably sometime before the 3 year mark or you would have naturalized then?), then naturalized based on 5 year rule?  Then sometime like a year and a half after your naturalization you remarried? If that is right or roughly right, doesn’t look like any red flags on that timeline imo. The arranged marriage/meetings etc sound typical for that type of process (more meetings in fact) so I can’t see any red flags there either. As was mentioned above of course collect as much evidence as you can to prove bona fides.

[Lazy Monk 1]

6 hours ago, SusieQQQ said:

Ok, so when you said 

What you actually meant was you got your green card through marriage. Then divorced (presumably sometime before the 3 year mark or you would have naturalized then?), then naturalized based on 5 year rule?  Then sometime like a year and a half after your naturalization you remarried? If that is right or roughly right, doesn’t look like any red flags on that timeline imo. The arranged marriage/meetings etc sound typical for that type of process (more meetings in fact) so I can’t see any red flags there either. As was mentioned above of course collect as much evidence as you can to prove bona fides.

Yes, I got my gc thru marriage(thanks for the correction), was married for 5 and a half years, naturalized a year after the divorce and remarried a few months later. And spent over three months overseas living together with my spouse, have the necessary bona fides(whatever they may be; any/all suggestions welcome), now should I be worried about possible red flags?

[carmel34 3,631]

3 hours ago, Lazy Monk said:

now should I be worried about possible red flags?

Based on everything you have described so far, the only red flag that might get the attention of immigration officers is if you knew your current spouse before you went to the US as an immigrant the first time to be with your American spouse.  Sometimes we see greater scrutiny of a bona fide second marriage if the relationship existed all along, since you're both from the same foreign country, and the first marriage was only entered into for US immigration benefits.  So be ready to answer that question plus have lots of quality evidence that your second marriage is bona fide, like time spent together in person and some financial co-mingling.  Good luck!

[Lazy Monk 1]

1 hour ago, carmel34 said:

Based on everything you have described so far, the only red flag that might get the attention of immigration officers is if you knew your current spouse before you went to the US as an immigrant the first time to be with your American spouse.  Sometimes we see greater scrutiny of a bona fide second marriage if the relationship existed all along, since you're both from the same foreign country, and the first marriage was only entered into for US immigration benefits.  So be ready to answer that question plus have lots of quality evidence that your second marriage is bona fide, like time spent together in person and some financial co-mingling.  Good luck!

My spouse, although originally from my motherland, doesn't live there and I have been in the US for over a decade, so that takes care of that issue.

I only got to know my spouse a little under a year before we got married and it took place in a country(where my spouse has been residing with her family for the past 20 years) other than where we originally belong from, as aforementioned, it's an arrange marriage. 

[Orangesapples 1,954]

Was your first marriage also arranged? A red flag might be if your first marriage wasn't arranged and traditional and then the second one is. 

[Lazy Monk 1]

26 minutes ago, Orangesapples said:

Was your first marriage also arranged? A red flag might be if your first marriage wasn't arranged and traditional and then the second one is. 

First marriage was love but when it ended I felt like I should give my arrange marriage a try. I actually fell in love with my current spouse by the time we got married.

Edited August 5, 2020 by Lazy Monk