Conditional Resident Status and Why It Is Important to Remove It

Conditional resident status can be available to a spouse or child of a lawful permanent resident of the United States. For two years, conditional permanent resident status will grant a person a Green Card that will come with the same rights held by a permanent resident. All the end of the two year time period, the conditional resident can petition to remove the conditional status and become a full permanent resident. If you have been granted conditional resident status, it is critical for you to file the petition to remove this status.

Conditional Resident Status and Why It Is Important to Remove It

Those who have been granted conditional permanent resident status due to marriage to a U.S. Citizen must petition for removal of the conditional status within 90 days prior to the two year anniversary of being granted that status. Failure to petition for the removal of the conditional status can come with severe consequences. For instance, it will result in the automatic loss of legal status in the U.S. and that, in turn, means that the person is removable from the U.S. Furthermore, in same case once the two full years have passed, the Green Card of the conditional resident cannot be renewed.

Petitioning for the removable of conditional resident status begins by filing Form I-751, Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence. This is filed with USCIS. For those who were granted conditional status based on marriage, this document must be filed jointly with the spouse unless the marriage was in good faith, but:

  • The spouse died
  • The marriage ended by divorce or annulment
  • The petitioner was subject to extreme cruelty or battery perpetrated by the spouse
  • Ending the status and removal from the U.S. would result in extreme hardship

Every petition must be signed by the petitioner and the requisite filing fees must be paid. There will be supporting documentation and evidence that will also need to be submitted along with the petition itself. Furthermore, a biometrics appointment will need to be scheduled as well.

Documentation in support of the Form I-751 petition will often include evidence as to the legitimacy of the marriage and the fact that it was entered into in good faith. Such documentation will likely include things that support the assertion that you formed or planned to form a life together as a married couple. Birth certificates of children resulting from the marriage, titles of property held jointly, or financial records showing merged finances may all suffice to support the legitimacy of a marriage for purposes of the Form I-751 petition.

If your marriage was not in good faith or you or your spouse was convicted of certain crimes, it could make petitioning for removal of conditional resident status difficult if not impossible. At best you may have to jump through additional hoops to succeed in your petition. At worst, your petition would fail and you would be subject to removal proceedings.

Immigration Law Attorneys

If you have any questions about how the immigration and nationality laws in the United States may impact you or your family members or if you want to access additional information about the United States or Canadian immigration and nationality laws, please feel free to get in touch with the immigration and nationality lawyers at NPZ Law Group. You can send us an email at info@visaserve.com, or you can call us at 201-670-0006 extension 104. In addition, we invite you to find more information on our website at www.visaserve.com.