Applying For A Permanent Green Card

In marriage and fiancée cases, the alien spouse receives a Conditional Green Card. Two years later, the spouse must apply for a Permanent Green Card. The application for the Permanent Green Card must be accompanied by evidence of the relationship from the date of the marriage up to the present date. In other words, the couple should keep all of the evidence of relationship that they showed to the Consulate in Saigon, and continue keeping evidence of the marriage after the spouse enters the US .

CIS wants at least the following:

 Birth certificates of children born to the marriage
 Lease or mortgage contracts showing joint occupancy or joint ownership
 Joint savings or checking accounts, joint tax returns
 Insurance policies, utility bills
 Affidavits by at least two people who have known the couple since the beginning of the marriage
 Copies of any evidence of the relationship after the marriage registration, while the spouse was waiting for the visa interview in Vietnam
 Any other evidence that will show that the marriage is genuine

In marriage cases, this means the couple should keep evidence for the year or two while the spouse was still in Vietnam , and also the two years while the spouse was a Conditional Permanent Resident.

If CIS denies the application because there is not enough evidence, they will issue a Notice to Appear. If the couple cannot satisfy CIS, the alien spouse may be facing Removal or Deportation proceedings. And that means spending a lot of money to hire a lawyer.

It is possible for the alien spouse to apply for a Permanent Green Card without the sponsor if the sponsor has died, or if they were divorced, or if the alien spouse was abused by the sponsor.

If the alien spouse is filing the application jointly with the US spouse, the form must be sent to CIS during the 90 days before the second anniversary of the Conditional Green Card. If the alien spouse needs to file alone, because of the death of the sponsor, or divorce, or extreme cruelty by the sponsor, then the application can be filed at any time after receiving the Conditional Green Card.

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Q.1. What happens if the couple just forget to apply for the Permanent Green Card?
A.1. If the petition is not filed on time, the alien spouse will automatically lose permanent resident status when the conditional green card expires and will risk facing deportation. If you file late, you have to show that the late filing was due to extraordinary circumstances beyond your control. Just forgetting to file is not an acceptable reason.

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Q.2. What evidence is needed to show CIS that there was physical abuse or extreme cruelty?
A.2. CIS wants to see copies of reports or records issued by police, judges, medical personnel and social service agencies.