Q & A June 13, 2004
Q & A 1.
Dear Mr. Lee,
I got married with a U.S. citizen in November 1999, and obtained
a conditional Green Card on Nov. 15, 2000, which was expired on
Nov. 15, 2002. I got the I-751 (petition to remove the conditions
on residence) receipt, showing that I would receive the official
Green Card in 6 to 8 months. In August 2003, however, I received
an I-751 deferral notice, informing that there would be another
330 days before I get the official Green Card. Our marriage is bona
fide, and we have provided such evidences as share house property,
car, bank account, insurance and tax returns.
Questions:
- Can I go back to China for traveling? I have never left the
U.S. during these five years.
- According to my conditional Green Card, my permanent residence
was granted on 11/15/2000. Can I apply for the citizenship now
as a U.S. citizen’s spouse?
- Why should I wait one more year before obtaining my green card?
- I was caught by the police officers before, but was pronounced
not guilty at court. I put down this information on my application
also. I wonder if it would affect my application. Will it also
affect my naturalization application?
- What offices should I contact in order to make an inquiry of
my case?
Tien
Michigan
Dear reader:
1. You can return to China for traveling as long as you have a
current I-551stamp of conditional residence in your passport. Such
stamp is usually given by the local CIS office where adjudication
is delayed in I-751 removal of conditional residence applications.
2. The question of whether individuals can apply for citizenship
after three years of conditional residence in situations where the
I-751 had not yet been adjudicated has been largely resolved in
favor of allowing such individuals to apply. Of course, the applicant
for naturalization on the basis of marriage to a U.S. citizen for
three years must show marriage for three years, permanent residence
status for three years, that the U.S. citizen spouse has been a
U.S. citizen for three years, and the couple have been living together
for three years. If all conditions are met except for having permanent
residence status for three years, the law allows a conditional green
card holder to apply 90 days in advance of the completion of three
years.
3. I-751 adjudications at the service centers are unfortunately
backed up. That is because they are given a low priority by the
CIS. Of the four immigration regional service centers handling these
applications across the nation, The Vermont Service Center is only
adjudicating I-751 cases which it received as of 11/02; the Nebraska
Service Center as of 12/02; the Texas Service Center as of 4/03;
and the California Service Center as of 4/03.
4. You are obligated to put down all arrests in your N-400 naturalization
application. Such arrest may delay processing in both I-751 and
N-400 applications - however, it would not have any effect upon
the ultimate disposition of your immigration cases inasmuch as you
have been found not guilty.
5. You can first look at the processing times of the service centers
to see whether the particular service center to which you sent the
application is even close to adjudicating cases that were sent in
at the same time as yours. In the event that the time has already
been reached for your application and you have no result, you can
try to contact the immigration service through the National Customer
Service Center number at 1-800-375-5283. Hopefully, you will be
able to ultimately reach someone telephonically who will be able
to assist you.
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