RFE: Removal of Conditions, Still Married but separated & Living apart & on good terms

[Family 3,988]

9 minutes ago, Adrii said:

 

Thanks for your input!

To put it blunty, yes the marriage is now dead.

But when I filed 921 days ago it was not.

 

Will I have to withdraw the current case? Or can I reply to the RFE with a divorce decree or is this filing an amendment in response to the RFE?

 

You cannot withdraw the current case and must respond to the RFE or they will deny automatically. 

‘Yes you can request to amend to divorce waiver in your response to RFE. 

 

 

[Boiler 45,467]

I think you are making a big mistake of you try and justify the last 4 ish years.

 

Be grateful they did not approve your case without an interview.

 

[OldUser 6,633]

8 minutes ago, Adrii said:

Thank you I appreciate your help!

With the amendment would you suggest we provide updated signed statements?

Yes the form was signed by us both and he always signed a statement outlining the current situation of us living apart (in 2021)

You'll be filing / amending I-751 to get conditions removed on your own. Your spouse won't be signing it anymore.

 

However, if you're on good terms, you can get a statement from your spouse describing how your relationship started, progressed and ended. In detail. He'd also say he doesn't object you getting conditions removed. You'll write a similar statement.

 

I'd also explain what took you so long to divorce and efforts in the past to save relationship. If you have proof of any marriage counselling sessions etc - that would help.

 

Good luck!

 

 

[Crazy Cat 41,836]

26 minutes ago, Adrii said:

Although we had been living apart we were still travelling back and fourth and seeing each and at the time we weren't certain what the future held. I have until June 14 to respond, I'm not sure how long an uncontested divorce takes to file in VA but lets say I don't have it by June 14, what evidence would you suggest I provide at that point?

You've already sent them everything you had to show this was a bona fide marriage.  They found that evidence to be insufficient.  Therefore, I don't see how you can generate what they want to satisfy the RFE since you probably have nothing else to show marital union since the time you filed.  However, failing to respond to the RFE at all will trigger a denial.  I am not an expert, but I think filing for a divorce and amending your I-751 would be the best response to the RFE.   The goal will be to prove you entered the marriage in good faith.

Edited March 18 by Crazy Cat

[igoyougoduke 1,656]

36 minutes ago, Adrii said:

 

Thanks for your input.

Do you know if I can withdraw this application, file for divorce and then re apply with the divorce waiver?

 

At the time I filed (over 900 days ago) we were still working on the marriage (this has since changed)

File divorce first asap if situation has changed in your life. you simply wont get your current i-751 approved. USCIS does not accept stay married but living apart. you are either married or not. 

 

 

You can file a new i-751 with divorce waiver( this will be a fresh application for i-751)  . you also need divorce approval by court before getting this i-751 approval. 

 

so its going to take time.

 

 

[Family 3,988]

Even with a divorce waiver , you will need to overcome the ‘lack of bonafides’ so a few immigration attorneys consultation and a look over of evidence that was submitted and any that can be developed. 
 

I am not sure if your husband got any extra  spousal benefits and was happy to wait in marriage limbo , while you were hoping the case will be approved….it is commendable that you were truthful about separation at filing.  

[Adrii 208]

23 minutes ago, Family said:

Even with a divorce waiver , you will need to overcome the ‘lack of bonafides’ so a few immigration attorneys consultation and a look over of evidence that was submitted and any that can be developed. 
 

I am not sure if your husband got any extra  spousal benefits and was happy to wait in marriage limbo , while you were hoping the case will be approved….it is commendable that you were truthful about separation at filing.  

Thank you,

I was honest about living apart when I filed because I wanted to tell the truth and I didn't have anything to hide and at the time really felt as though we were going to be able to save our marriage. My husband being discharged from the military really took a toll on his mental health and I did think some time at home with his family would remotivate him to find a new career path.

 

I will definately consult with an attorney for additional insight. 

 

Do you think since they are questioning the legitimacy of our marriage in general I should provide additional evidence leading up to the separation?

- more photos, affidavits from family and friends etc?

- I also realized I never included our health insurance policies and life insurance etc 

[Redro 4,611]

42 minutes ago, Adrii said:

Thank you,

I was honest about living apart when I filed because I wanted to tell the truth and I didn't have anything to hide and at the time really felt as though we were going to be able to save our marriage. My husband being discharged from the military really took a toll on his mental health and I did think some time at home with his family would remotivate him to find a new career path.

 

I will definately consult with an attorney for additional insight. 

 

Do you think since they are questioning the legitimacy of our marriage in general I should provide additional evidence leading up to the separation?

- more photos, affidavits from family and friends etc?

- I also realized I never included our health insurance policies and life insurance etc 

Give them all evidence of you working on your marriage.

They are thinking you and your husband only stayed married so you could obtain an immigration benefit (10 year GC and eventually citizenship).

If health insurance and life insurance were in your name- and your husband was not working at the time- it could be viewed as part of the agreement- you pay for his health insurance in exchange for the 10 year GC. 

Do you have additional proof from the previous 921 days of your continuing relationship?

e.g scheduled visits, vacations together, therapy sessions, communications about where you will live together once he figured out his mental health, communication about long term plans to reunite?

 

I would include all communication and proof of your marriage- right now you write about your husband like he is just a friend- someone you married to give health insurance while they gave you a GC. You need to show proof the marriage was real and not that you married him just for a ticket to the US. 

 

ETA: Affidavits from friends are not the strongest evidence. You need solid documentation and third party letters from people who are not friends and family- as @Timona mentioned before- affidavits are weak evidence. 

Edited March 18 by Redro

[Adrii 208]

1 minute ago, Redro said:

Give them all evidence of you working on your marriage.

They are thinking you and your husband only stayed married so you could obtain an immigration benefit (10 year GC and eventually citizenship).

If health insurance and life insurance were in your name- and your husband was not working at the time- it could be viewed as part of the agreement- you pay for his health insurance in exchange for the 10 year GC. 

Do you have additional proof from the previous 921 days of your continuing relationship?

e.g scheduled visits, vacations together, therapy sessions, communications about where you will live together once he figured out his mental health, communication about long term plans to reunite?

 

I would include all communication and proof of your marriage- right now you write about your husband like he is just a friend- someone you married to give health insurance while they gave you a GC. You need to show proof the marriage was real and not that you married him just for a ticket to the US. 

I don't have communications from 2 years ago as all my texts auto delete after a certain period of time to save on storage.

We did do several trips to celebrate birthdays holidays etc and I have photos from these times.

I did also move to SC to try and make it work (and while I wasn't on the lease agreement) I did work while I was there and have paystubs with his address on them to support this. 

 

Do you have any other suggestions for evidence?

 

[Redro 4,611]

8 minutes ago, Adrii said:

I don't have communications from 2 years ago as all my texts auto delete after a certain period of time to save on storage.

We did do several trips to celebrate birthdays holidays etc and I have photos from these times.

I did also move to SC to try and make it work (and while I wasn't on the lease agreement) I did work while I was there and have paystubs with his address on them to support this. 

 

Do you have any other suggestions for evidence?

 

That is excellent proof! 

Moving to SC and the trips with photos can work as evidence.

Do you have receipts of booking hotels or restaurants or events you went to together?

e.g My husband and I go to concerts together so we have receipts of those events with corresponding photos. 

Does your husband by any chance have saved text messages from 2 years ago or saved communication outlining your plans?

But, I agree with others that you should file for divorce ASAP and amend the filing to a waiver. 

I know this must seem overwhelming, you were doing what you believed was best for yourself and your marriage but USCIS has a very black and white/traditional view of marriage so you have to show good reason why you were not living together and all attempts made to reconcile. Otherwise USCIS will assume you only stayed with your husband for the green card. 

[Adrii 208]

1 hour ago, Redro said:

That is excellent proof! 

Moving to SC and the trips with photos can work as evidence.

Do you have receipts of booking hotels or restaurants or events you went to together?

e.g My husband and I go to concerts together so we have receipts of those events with corresponding photos. 

Does your husband by any chance have saved text messages from 2 years ago or saved communication outlining your plans?

But, I agree with others that you should file for divorce ASAP and amend the filing to a waiver. 

I know this must seem overwhelming, you were doing what you believed was best for yourself and your marriage but USCIS has a very black and white/traditional view of marriage so you have to show good reason why you were not living together and all attempts made to reconcile. Otherwise USCIS will assume you only stayed with your husband for the green card. 

I don't have any hotel reservations as I was staying with him and I didn't think to keep any paper receipts of things we did (this was now over 2 years ago)

I'm going to search the SC address in my emails to see if that can provide any electronic receipts etc.

This is incredibly overwhelming and I truly would've filed for divorce earlier if I thought I had been doing anything that seemed suspious in the eyes of USCIS.

 

[GEOntificator 281]

4 hours ago, Adrii said:

Looking for some advice / hoping to find people that have been in a similar situation & my apologies this is a long one.

 

Backstory: I immigrated from Australia on a K1 Visa at the end of 2018. 

Married in 2018, recieved my Greencard in 2019.

 

In August of 2020, my husband and I decided to take some time apart.

Incase people want the nitty gritty details / incase it matters - he was getting out of the Military and was wanting to go home to Green Bay, WI to spend some time with his family while he planned his next career move.

At the time we were living together in Arlington, VA (this was where he was stationed) I had built a great support network of friends and had a stable job with great income and it didn't make sense for me to quit my job and move to Green Bay and have no combined income.

 

So in summary he went to Green Bay, WI & I stayed in VA working and I signed a lease on an aparment on my own and he was staying with his family in Green Bay, (no lease) and he was not working.

 

In September 2021 it was time for me to file for the removal of conditions. At this time I was still living solo in Arlington and working and he was still at home in Green Bay staying with family and not working.

 

In this packet I included:

- a personal statement signed by both myself and my husband outlining our current situation - (the fact that he was now living in Green Bay and I was in Arlington and that although we were living apart we were still in regular contact and had planned to reunite once he decided on his next career path, ((at the time he was considering joining a different branch of the military))

- Jointly filed tax returns for 2019 & 2020

- Our original lease agreement from Arlington from 2018 - 2020

- Joint Car insurance

- Joint cell phone bill

- A travel itinerary for my spouse to visit me in Arlington

- Vet records for our two dogs showing joint ownership

- 2 affidavits from friends

- Photographs

 

Fast forward to present day. March 18 2024 - I got an RFE asking for additional evidence to show my spouse and I entered into our marriage in good faith and continue to share a life together.

 

Now here is where I need the adivce.

While my husband and I entered into this marriage in good faith with all intentions of this being forever we are no longer together.

We are however still legally married.

We are on good terms but are completely individually self sufficient.

 

Is USCIS wanting an update on where this situatuon is at?

I guess I'm confused on what documentation to provide as all of the suggested documentation on the RFE is to support - as quoted on the notice "establish shared family planning, share responsibility for a common residence, hold ourselves to the public as a married couple or continue to share a life together"

 

And again while we are still very much in each others lives it's in a different capacity and there are no suggestions of what evidence to provide if you are no longer together.

 

There are a couple of suggested documents that I could provide but I'm not trying to prove we are still in a comitted marriage but I can prove we are still legally married (there has been no divorce filed) and we are on good terms.

We still speak almost daily, have joint health insurance, life insurance, we've visited each other over the years, have photos - but again we're not romantically together anymore.

 

Has anyone been in this situation?

If so what should I send in?

 

My husband now resides in Charleston, SC and has a new career

I still reside in VA and have a successful business.

In case it matters we do not have shared financials and do file our taxes together however married filing separately.

 

Any advice or input is grealty appreciated

 

I know people have many different circumstance but for the USCIS there is only two 1) married 2) divorced

 

Your best bet is is likely:

 

1) File divorce asap

2) Amend your I-751 to a waiver case once you have the final divorce decree and respond to your RFE at the same time

 

If you cannot finalize your divorce before the RFE deadline you would have to respond and ask for more time and explain what happened. 

[Redro 4,611]

1 hour ago, Adrii said:

I don't have any hotel reservations as I was staying with him and I didn't think to keep any paper receipts of things we did (this was now over 2 years ago)

I'm going to search the SC address in my emails to see if that can provide any electronic receipts etc.

This is incredibly overwhelming and I truly would've filed for divorce earlier if I thought I had been doing anything that seemed suspious in the eyes of USCIS.

 

Am I understanding correctly that you haven’t seen your husband/considered yourself married for the  last 2 years? Or you don’t have proof from 2 years ago but you have documentation for 2022/2023? 

[Thunderbolt 172]

After reading the OP to me it looks like poster child of immigration fraud. 

Marriage with US citizen.

Citizen gets paid for the deed. 

Citizen spends little time together with 'new' spouse.

Citizen goes with his life, doesn't work for what? 2 years? 

How many people can afford not to work for few years? Let me quit Burger King as I've worked for them for 3 years, I have so much savings that now I don't have to do anything for very loooong time. 

 

To me it is an example of the fraud case. 

[Thunderbolt 172]

Please don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that the OP married for GC. 

I'm just saying that from the eyes of the immigration officer it looks like a case of fraud. 

I think getting a divorce and doing it fast would help the OP.