In this post, attorney Jacob Sapochnick discusses filing the I-751 removal of conditions application where the foreign national’s marriage to the US Citizen has ended in divorce.
Who must file?
If you have received a two-year conditional permanent resident card, based on your marriage to a United States citizen, you are required to remove the conditions on your green card before the expiration date, by filing the Form I-751 Application for Removal of Conditions. This petition is typically filed jointly with your spouse, but you may seek a “waiver” of the joint filing requirement if you are no longer married to the US Citizen spouse through which you obtained conditional permanent residence.
Waiver of the Joint Filing Requirement
If you are no longer married to the US Citizen spouse through which you gained conditional permanent resident status, the burden of proving that you entered the marriage in good faith is much higher. These types of applications are called ‘I-751 Waivers’ because you must request a waiver of the joint-filing requirement in your application. Immigration officers scrutinize I-751 waiver applications much more than applications that are filed jointly with your spouse.