Looking For Lawyer In Washington D.C Metro Area Options
Q: My father, a U.S citizen, married a widow (now my step-mom) from Vietnam. She has two kids before she married to my father. My step-mom is a caring and loving person. She works very hard to support her family. Her two kids study in Elementary school and making good progress. My father is a fast-tempered person, beat up my birth-mother, and always cause problem to the family. I would said based on childhood experience-- my dad is a violence person. Anyway, my step-mom and her two kids live in the U.S and this March will be her 2 years in the U.S. My father and step-mom have an argument today and he threaten my step-mom not to renew their Green Card and have them return back to Vietnam. I believe my step-mom need to reapply for a Greencard 3 months before it hit the 2nd year with my dad. Unsure what's my dad plan to do, I need to make sure my step-mom stay in the U.S permanently. Is this an easy case? I need a good immigration laywer to handle this issue for me.
A: I can't help you with a lawyer but I can give you a few pointers. Firstly, you are correct that your step-mother needs to file to remain here if she has a "conditional" greencard - she would have got this if the marriage to your father had been less than two years old by the time she became a permanent resident. This step is called removing the conditions and is done by filing an I-751. You can find the form and what it says here: Note that although the form is filed by your step-mom, your Dad must sign it. Additionally they will need to provide evidence that the marriage is "real" and may have to attend an interview. Now this form can be filed independently by your step-mom should she divorce your Dad. I'm not going to speculate as to the chances of this working but you should be aware