CASE: I-751 / Waiver of the Joint Filing Requirement
APPLICANT: Indian
LOCATION: State College, PA
Our client contacted our office in late January 2021 regarding his potential I-751 filing. He is from India and married a U.S. citizen in June 2018. He obtained a 2-year conditional green card in April 2019 through his marriage. Therefore, his conditional residency was terminated in April 2021.
Unfortunately, during their marriage, our client and his ex-spouse went through struggles. They lived separately for a while and their divorce was finalized. Thus, our client could not file an I-751 application jointly with his ex-spouse. After consultation, we advised that we could help him file the I-751 application with a waiver of the joint filing requirement. We requested a waiver because our client entered the marriage in good faith, but the marriage was terminated through divorce or annulment before they could file a joint petition.
On June 14, 2021, our office filed the I-751 application with supporting documents to demonstrate our client’s bona fide marriage with his ex-spouse. In July 2023, the USCIS scheduled an I-751 interview for our client. Before the interview, our office prepared our client via conference call with potential issues at the interview. On August 3, 2023, our client was interviewed for his I-751 application at the USCIS Philadelphia, PA Field Office. The interview was extensive and the officer had a lot of questions about their marriage. Nevertheless, the USCIS approved his I-751 application on August 4, 2023. Now, he has his ten-year green card.