bona fide marriage | Brian D. Lerner Immigration Attorney & Deportation Lawyer Blog

Court Remands to BIA to Apply Correct Standard of Review on Good-Faith Marriage Question

Posted on January 15, 2019 by Brian D. Lerner, Immigration Lawyer & Deportation Attorney

The Second Circuit found the BIA erred in applying the clear-error standard of review, instead of de novo, to the immigration judge’s denial of the petitioner’s application for a good-faith marriage waiver. The court also held the petitioner abandoned his abuse of discretion claim on the Motion to Reopen denial because he failed to adequately argue it in his brief.

Filed under: best deportation attorney | Tagged: BIA, board of immigration appeals, bona fide marriage, good faith marriage | 1 Comment »

Court Upholds BIA’s Determination That Petitioner Entered into Fraudulent Marriage to Procure Adjustment of Status

Posted on October 30, 2017 by Brian D. Lerner, Immigration Lawyer & Deportation Attorney

The Eighth Circuit denied the petition for review, holding that the BIA’s determination that the petitioner attempted to procure an adjustment of status by willfully misrepresenting that his marriage to a U.S. citizen was bona fide was supported by substantial evidence that the marriage was a sham. The court found that the unrefuted testimony and documentary evidence submitted by DHS was sufficient to prove that the marriage was fraudulent under INA §212(a)(6)(C)(i), and therefore that the petitioner was removable pursuant to INA §237(a)(1)(A).

Filed under: best deportation attorney | Tagged: board of immigration appeals, bona fide marriage, marriage fraud | Leave a comment »

Fraudulent Marriage to Procure Adjustment of Status

Posted on October 30, 2017 by Brian D. Lerner, Immigration Lawyer & Deportation Attorney

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AOS

Adjustment granted with marriage fraud allegations

Filed under: Marriage Fraud Scheme | Tagged: board of immigration appeals, bona fide marriage, Immigration, Immigration Attorney, Immigration Lawyer, marriage fraud | Leave a comment »

Court Says Determining Whether Petitioner’s Evidence Meets Good Faith Marriage Standard Is Subject to De Novo Review

Posted on February 28, 2017 by Brian D. Lerner, Immigration Lawyer & Deportation Attorney

The Fourth Circuit granted the petition for review and remanded, holding that while the BIA properly reviewed the IJ’s credibility determination and findings of fact for clear error only, it should have reviewed de novo the IJ’s ultimate legal judgment that the undisputed facts and credited evidence did not meet the good faith marriage standard of INA §216(c)(4)(B).

Filed under: best deportation attorney | Tagged: bona fide marriage, de novo review, good faith marriage, Petition for Review | Leave a comment »

Court Upholds Denial of Adjustment Application Where Marriage Was Not Deemed Bona Fide

Posted on September 22, 2016 by Brian D. Lerner, Immigration Lawyer & Deportation Attorney

The Seventh Circuit denied the petition for review, finding that substantial evidence supported the IJ’s finding that the petitioner committed marriage fraud, and thus, that he was ineligible for adjustment of status under INA §212(a)(6)(C)(i). The court also found that the IJ did not commit any legal or constitutional error in exercising discretion to deny adjustment of status.

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Filed under: Immigration Attorney | Tagged: 212(a)(6), adjustment, AOS, BIA, board of immigration appeals, bona fide marriage, marriage fraud | 2 Comments »

Filing an I-751 Divorce Waiver?

Posted on November 30, 2015 by Brian D. Lerner, Immigration Lawyer & Deportation Attorney

The First Circuit held that the BIA did not err in upholding the denial of the petitioner’s I-751 joint petition and I-751 waiver petition and in finding that the petitioner had not satisfied her burden of proving that she had entered into her marriage in good faith. Accordingly, the court found that the petitioner was categorically ineligible for cancellation of removal.

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Filed under: I-751 | Tagged: 751, bona fide marriage, divorce waiver, I-751, i751 | Leave a comment »

Married for Love? How to prove it.

Posted on July 6, 2015 by Brian D. Lerner, Immigration Lawyer & Deportation Attorney

The Seventh Circuit granted the petition for review and remanded, holding that the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) erred when it demanded that the petitioner provide more proof than necessary to satisfy a preponderance of the evidence standard for a discretionary good faith marriage waiver, available to petitioners who can show they entered a failed marriage in good faith, where the petitioner testified that he had married for love, not immigration benefits, and the government submitted no evidence.

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Filed under: marriage | Tagged: bona fide marriage, bona fide marriage exemption, good faith marriage, immigration marriage | Leave a comment »

Green Card Through Marriage is not as Easy as it sounds sometimes

Posted on March 4, 2010 by Brian D. Lerner, Immigration Lawyer & Deportation Attorney

Question: I want to marry a U.S. Citizen. I have heard it is easy to get the Green Card through Marriage. Is this true?

Answer: There are some qualifications as to whether it is easy or not. First and foremost, a green card through marriage must be based upon love and not the desire to get the Green Card. Otherwise, it would be considered to violate the immigration laws and it could be considered to be fraudulent. The next issue is the timing of the marriage. Many times people come into the U.S. on a visitor visa and get married right away hoping for the Green Card. In actuality, this could also be considered to be fraud and the supposedly easy manner to get the Green Card through Marriage turns into a denial and deportation. When you come into the U.S. on a visitor visa, it is to visit. The law specifically states that if you get married prior to 60 days after entering the U.S. and after 30 days, that it is presumed to be fraud. This means that it is presumed that you intended to marry when you entered the U.S., not come and visit as is the purpose of the visitor visa. It is possible to overcome this presumption, but it must be overcome, or the green card through marriage will be denied and life will not be as pleasant in the U.S. as you thought. To make matters worse, if you get married prior to 30 days of entering the U.S., it is fraud and there is not even a rebuttable presumption. In that case you will not get the Green Card through marriage (at least through adjustment in the U.S.).

Question: Assuming that I did marry for love and that there is no issue of fraud, are there still issues in getting the green card through marriage?

Answer: Yes. Assuming you pass the above issues, the Green Card through marriage is actually a ‘conditional’ Green Card through marriage. The law actually wants you to prove at a later point that the marriage was for love and not for the Green Card. Thus, the conditional Green Card through marriage will be issued for two years. Close to the end of those two years, you would be need to file a petition to remove the conditional residency. Only if that condition is actually removed will you obtain the true Green Card through marriage. Thus, as you can see, it is not quite as easy to obtain the Green Card through Marriage as people might think.

Question: What are the consequences if Immigration denies my application for the Green Card through Marriage?

Answer: If they deny your application for the Green Card through Marriage, we would have to see the basis of the denial. If USCIS believes that the application for the Green Card through marriage was based on a fraudulent marriage, then you would be barred for the rest of your life from applying for any immigration benefit whatsoever and would most likely be put into deportation proceedings. Sometimes, it is better to look for other ways to obtain the Green Card through employment or other family petitions. At first, those petitions take longer, but in the long run, if the application for the Green Card through marriage is not legitimate, it would be best not to submit the application for the Green Card through marriage and to take some other route.

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Filed under: green card through marriage | Tagged: bona fide marriage, california immigration attorney, california immigration lawyer, green card through marriage, Immigration Attorney, Immigration Lawyer, marriage based visa petition, marriage fraud, Marriage Petition | 3 Comments »

What is a Marriage Broker?

Posted on February 17, 2010 by Brian D. Lerner, Immigration Lawyer & Deportation Attorney

Question: I filed a Fiancée Petition, but received this very long Request for Evidence requiring all kinds of answers regarding a Marriage Broker and other items about my criminal history? What do I do?

Answer: The law recently promulgated laws regarding Marriage Brokers. On January 5, 2006, the President signed the Violence Against Women and Department of Justice Reauthorization Act of 2005. IMBRA provides that a petitioner for a K nonimmigrant visa for an alien fiancé (e) (K-1) or alien spouse (K-3) must submit with his or her Form I-129F information on any criminal convictions of the petitioner for any of the following “specified crimes”: Domestic violence, sexual assault, child abuse and neglect, dating violence, elder abuse, and stalking. Homicide, murder, manslaughter, rape, abusive sexual contact, sexual exploitation, incest, torture, trafficking, peonage, holding hostage, involuntary servitude, slave trade, kidnapping, abduction, unlawful criminal restraint, false imprisonment, or an attempt to commit any of these crimes. Finally, crimes relating to a controlled substance or alcohol where the petitioner has been convicted on at least three occasions and where such crimes did not arise from a single act.

If the petitioner indicates that he or she has been convicted by a court for one of the specified crimes, the petitioner will be required to submit certified copies of all court and police records showing the charges and dispositions for every such conviction. This is required even if the petitioner’s records were sealed or otherwise cleared.

Question: Are there other limitations?

Answer: Yes. IMBRA imposes limitations on the number of petitions a petitioner for a K nonimmigrant visa for an alien fiancé (e) (K-1) may file or have approved without seeking a waiver of the application of those limitations. If the petitioner has filed two or more K-1 visa petitions at any time in the past, or previously had a K-1 visa petition approved within two years prior to the filing of the current petition, the petitioner must request a waiver. These limitations do not apply to petitioners for a K nonimmigrant visa for an alien spouse (K-3).

The adjudicator may, in his or her discretion, waive the applicable time and/or numerical limitations if justification exists for such a waiver, except where the petitioner has a history of violent criminal offenses against a person or persons. The petitioner may request a waiver by attaching a signed and dated letter, requesting the waiver and explaining why a waiver would be appropriate in his or her circumstances, together with any evidence in support of the waiver request.

Factors the adjudicator should consider include, but are not limited to: Whether unusual circumstances exist (e.g. death or incapacity of prior beneficiary; Whether the petitioner appears to have a history of domestic violence; Whether it appears the petitioner has a pattern of filing multiple petitions for different beneficiaries at the same time, of filing and withdrawing petitions, or obtaining approvals of petitions every few years.

The provisions of IMBRA became effective sixty days after the date of enactment, or March 6, 2006. While USCIS was amending Form I-129F to reflect the new data collection requirements mandated by IMBRA and preparing to issue implementing field guidance, field offices were instructed to hold in abeyance all cases filed on or after that date. The succeeding paragraphs provide guidance on processing the held cases and new filings of Form I-129F.

Question: Why did I receive a Request for Evidence?

Answer: Any K-1 Fiancée Petition filed after March 6, 2006 that does not include the answers and information required under IMBRA will be issued a Request for Evidence to get such information.

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Hire a California Deportation Lawyer if you have been charges with marriage fraud