Who Can Get a Conditional Green Card?
By Julie Sparks in Visas and Green Cards | on 2024-04-27 06:09:42
If you enter the U.S. as a spouse of a U.S. citizen but your marriage is less than two years old, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services(USCIS) grants you a conditional green card valid for two years.
You can receive the conditional grant when you enter the U.S. or after adjusting your status to a permanent resident upon marriage. The USCIS can remove your conditions and make your green card permanent after two years.
Your chance for a change of status is enhanced if you can prove you entered the marriage in good faith but not to beat the U.S. immigration system.
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) may also grant you a conditional green card if you enter the U.S. as an entrepreneur or an investor. The conditions may be removed if you demonstrate having maintained the obligations set in the card, such as creating at least ten local jobs.
An Austin green card lawyer can help you convert your 2-year conditional green card into permanent residency.
How to Remove Conditions on Your Permanent Residency
You must fill out Form I-751 ninety days before your conditional green card expires to remove conditions on your permanent residency.
The process requires a filing fee along with supporting documentation, which may include:
- Joint bank statements
- Leases
- Joint tax returns
- Evidence that supports your marriage and an intertwined life with your spouse
Before USCIS approves your application, you must undergo an immigration interview where an officer probes you and your spouse about your marriage life. If you pass the interview, you will become a green card holder without conditions and receive a ten-year green card.
If not approved, a denial of the I-751 application could result in you being charged in an immigration court and ultimately deported from the United States. Considering the risks in the immigration process, working with an experienced green card attorney in Austin can enhance your chances of success by avoiding common mistakes.
Can You Lose Your Green Card If You Divorce?
The USCIS evaluates whether you entered the marriage in good faith but not to circumvent the immigration services when determining whether or not to remove conditions on your green card. The process is the same whether you’re divorced or separated.
You can petition to remove conditions from the Green card alone by requesting a waiver. If you’re divorced, you must demonstrate that the marriage ended legally and did not enter the union to circumvent the immigration system.
Contact an Experienced Austin Green Card Lawyer to Discover Your Options
While this may be your first time pursuing a conditional green card, you’re one of the many clients an attorney has helped obtain an immigration benefit. Therefore, a green card attorney has suitable skills and knowledge to help you adjust your immigration status.
J.Sparks Law, PLLC is a team of highly experienced attorneys with a proven track record solving immigration challenges.
Contact us online to schedule a free consultation.
Julie Sparks is Board-certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization in Immigration and Nationality Law, one of a few such attorneys in Texas. After 15 years of practice in this field, she has represented immigrants from more than 70 countries.
Ms. Sparks is a member of the Texas Bar Association and the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA). Julie has also been a featured speaker at Southwestern Law School and at the national 2015 AILA Fundamentals Conference.
- 15 years of practice in this field.
- She also founded and managed a non-profit organization representing indigent immigrants seeking asylum.
- Julie is a former immigration law instructor at the Pepperdine School of Law in Malibu, California, and California State University – Los Angeles.
