My ex has a 2yr temporary residency. its expired this august. divorce in process. Can he be deported?

The answer to your question is yes, but it takes a lot of getting there for the result to be the removal of the beneficiary of conditional residency based on marriage to a US citizen. Let's talk about the status which was given to your spouse upon approval of the applications which you filed on his behalf and then work our way forward. As a general rule, any foreign national who is accorded residency in the US based on a marriage to a US citizen is provided that status on a conditional basis IF the foreign national is approved for residency before the couple has celebrated their second wedding anniversary. So if the foreign national's case is approved during the first two years of the marriage, conditional residency is given. A conditional resident is treated just like a non-conditional resident - they can work and travel, etc. - BUT the deal is that the conditional resident has to file additional paperwork upon the nearing of the expiration of their conditional status. This additional paperwork is commonly filed on a Form I-751, Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence, and is often accompanied by paperwork supporting the basis upon which the Form I-751 is filed. There are four categories of I-751 filings. The most commonly used is the joint filing provision. This is an application which is filed to remove the condition attached to the foreign national's residency and is filed by both spouses. If a jointly filed petition is not submitted, then we are talking about a "waiver." The use of the term "waiver" often causes a lot of confusion because the word waiver has lots of meanings in the immigration law and the term is often associated with problems that a foreign national has with criminal activity or serious immigration violations. The waiver that we are talking about here is not that kind of waiver. Instead, the term waiver is used to distinguish a filing which is not jointly submitted from those which are. There are three types of waivers : (1) good faith - this is filed where the qualifying marriage has terminated by death, divorce or annulment and the foreign national can nonetheless establish that the relationship was entered in good faith and not solely to attain an immigationbenefit ; (2) extreme hardship - this is filed where the foreign national can establish that he/she would suffer a significant and difficult situation if not permitted to remove the condition attached to residenct status ; and (3) battered spouse - this is similar to a petiiton filed under the Violence Against Women Act (commonly on a Form I-360) and attempts to establish that the conditions applicable to the foreign national's residency should be removed as a result of physical abuse or extreme mental cruelty suffered by the foreign national as the victim of the US citizen spouse's abusive treatment. So the answer to your question is that getting divorced does not necessarily result in your spouse being deported. If you decide not to assist your spouse in submitting the Form I-751, that does not prevent your spouse from filing it. The waiver provisions discussed above provide ample opportunity for your spouse to file the Form i-751 without your assistance. At the end of the day, the main focus on these cases is whether the marriage was one entered for the right reasons. Although some of the waiver filings require some additional information to be provided (i.e. evidence of hardship, evidence of abuse), CIS is most concerned about questions as to whether the marriage was a bona fide relationship. In your posiiton as the spouse through whom the filing process began, you can take steps to inform CIS of your belief that the marriage was not valid. If you do decide to make such a report, take that seriously as providing false information to a government official is itself a criminal act. I would highly recommend that you consult with an attorney and become informed about what steps, if any, to take.

The conditional permanent residency ("CR") belongs to your soon-to-be ex-spouse and you cannot "deport" him . Prior to the CR status expiring an I-751 must be filed eithr jointly with your cooperation and a showing that the marriage was entered into in good faith OR he may self-petition without your help and show a good faith marriage + either divorce or abuse or hardship. If you have accepted money to marry him or have other reasons to believe he married you just for his papers and not for love, then you may communicate this to the government. Keep in mind though that if you participated in a fraud against the government you may be charged criminally as well as him. Lynne R. Feldman, Attorney at Law Concentrating in Immigration and Nationality Law 2221 Camino Del Rio South, Suite 201 San Diego, CA 92108 phone: (619) 299-9600, facsimile: (619) 923-3277 email: [email protected] website: www.immigrateme.com Formerly Adjunct Professor -- Immigration law University of Illinois College of Law