Whether you wish to extend your stay, seek permanent residency or U.S. citizenship, or need the proper visa to conduct your work on your company startup, our naturalization lawyers can advise you on the best path to achieve your goals.
Zenith Law Firm has helped many families migrate to the United States.
Whether you need assistance adjusting your status to lawful permanent residence through family-based green cards, asylum, T visas, U visas, or cancellation of removal, our naturalization attorneys can help.
Contact us today to discuss your naturalization goals with a Maryland citizenship attorney.
A conditional green card is a physical identification document that proves you have been granted the right to live and work in the United States permanently, but with a major caveat: your status is temporary and subject to a second review by the government.
While it grants you almost all the same rights as a standard green card, it comes with an expiration date.
It requires you to “prove” your ongoing eligibility before it expires.
To understand why you received a conditional card, we have to look at how marriage-based green cards work.
When USCIS approves a green card for a spouse, they consider the length of the marriage as of the exact day the residency is granted.
If your green card is approved and you have been married for less than two years, USCIS will give you conditional permanent residency.
This temporary status helps prevent marriage fraud. It allows the government to check whether couples are really building a life together, rather than just getting married for immigration benefits.
If you have been married for more than two years at the time your green card is approved, you will receive a standard 10-year green card without conditions.
The most critical thing to understand about a conditional green card is its two-year validity period.
Look at the “Resident Since” date printed on your card. Exactly 24 months from that date, your conditional status will expire.
Unlike a standard 10-year green card, you cannot simply renew a conditional card. If you don’t fix the conditions before the two-year period ends, you will lose your lawful permanent resident status and work authorization, which may lead to deportation.
Here is what USCIS requires of you:
If you are still happily married to a U.S. citizen or permanent resident who sponsored you, you and your spouse must take action together. The U.S. government issued the conditional card specifically to ensure that the marriage was entered into in “good faith” and not solely for immigration benefits.
The two-year conditional period is essentially a probationary period. As a married couple, your goal is to prove to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) that your relationship is ongoing, genuine, and built on a shared life.
In a standard, intact marriage, the law requires joint filing. This means both you and your sponsoring spouse must sign Form I-751.
As your lawyer, I recommend that you gather a large collection of evidence, including:
If you cannot file jointly with your spouse, you may apply for a waiver of the joint filing requirement.
You can file the I-751 on your own if you fall into one of the following categories:
If you don’t remove the conditions on your green card correctly, you could lose your resident status. This may lead to deportation proceedings.
To get your petition approved, we must clearly address three critical pillars of your case.
Here is how we approach each one:
Marriage Evidence: As your attorney, the first step is to confirm that your marriage is legally valid.
The key document is your certified marriage certificate, which proves your legal marriage in the relevant jurisdiction.
We should also gather supporting documents, such as updated government IDs reflecting your name change and court papers ending any previous marriages.
Without this proof, USCIS will not process your immigration petition.
USCIS Review Process: After you submit your petition, USCIS will review it. You will first receive a receipt notice confirming your file has been received.
They will conduct background checks, and a reviewing officer will evaluate your evidence.
If anything is missing, you’ll get a Request for Evidence (RFE) with a deadline to respond.
If complete, you’ll be scheduled for an in-person interview, during which an officer will ask questions about your life together before making a final decision.
USCIS Review Process: After you submit your petition, USCIS will review it. You will first receive a receipt notice confirming your file has been received.
They will conduct background checks, and a reviewing officer will evaluate your evidence. If anything is missing, you’ll get a Request for Evidence (RFE) with a deadline to respond.
If complete, you’ll be scheduled for an in-person interview, during which an officer will ask questions about your life together before making a final decision.
Relationship Documentation: A marriage certificate confirms you’re married, but more proof is needed to show your marriage is genuine.
This can include shared bank accounts, joint bills, a couple of photos, travel plans, and letters from friends and family attesting to your relationship.
Providing detailed evidence of your life together strengthens your case.
When we prepare a marriage-based immigration petition for USCIS, our primary goal is to prove that your marriage is “bona fide”.
To do this, we must show the government how your lives, finances, and living situations are truly intertwined.
Here is a breakdown of the key evidence we will need to gather:
A Maryland citizenship attorney can answer your most pressing questions about the immigration process and help you get started on your path to U.S. citizenship.
If you have a conditional green card, you need to fill out Form I-751 to keep your status. You must do this within 90 days of your green card’s expiration.
If you file it even one day too early, USCIS will reject your application and keep your money.
The last day you can file is the date on your green card when it runs out. It’s best to file early in those 90 days to avoid problems.
Once you file on time, USCIS will send you a notice that keeps your green card valid while they look at your case.
If you miss this deadline, you could face serious consequences. Your conditional resident status will be terminated immediately, and you may be required to leave the United States.
If you have already missed the deadline, act quickly. You can still submit a late petition, but you’ll need to provide a valid explanation for your delay, such as a medical emergency.
Missing the deadline makes the process much harder, so it’s a good idea to remember to file ahead of time.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has very strict deadlines for applications and requests.
If you miss an important due date—like for an asylum application, changing your status, or replying to a Request for Evidence—it usually doesn’t just result in a late fee.
In removal proceedings, the stakes are high.
If you miss the deadline to extend your non-immigrant status or fail to file for asylum within one year without a valid reason, you become “out of status” and start accumulating unlawful presence.
This makes you a priority for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and you may receive a Notice to Appear (NTA) that sends you to immigration court.
In removal proceedings, you are fighting before a judge to avoid deportation from the United States.
Meeting immigration application deadlines is very important.
If you miss a deadline, USCIS will likely reject or deny your application. This means you might need to start the process over or file complicated motions to reopen your case.
Starting over can cause delays.
It may take longer to get important benefits such as work authorization, travel permits, or your green card.
During this waiting period, you may be unable to work legally or travel without risking your case.
Missing a deadline can lead to significant legal challenges, such as accruing “unlawful presence,” which may trigger three- or ten-year reentry bans if you leave the U.S. You might also lose eligibility for certain benefits that require continuous lawful status.
Overcoming these issues often requires filing new petitions, paying additional fees, and applying for complex waivers to address violations resulting from the missed deadline.
If you realize you’ve missed a filing deadline, don’t ignore it or try to handle it yourself. Immigration law can be strict about mistakes.
However, there might be options available, such as extraordinary-circumstances exceptions, nunc pro tunc approvals, or specific waivers, that an experienced lawyer can help you with.
Contact our immigration lawyer right away to discuss your options and reduce any negative impact on your case.
Understanding all that’s required of you throughout the Green card process can be challenging. Read on for more information about citizenship requirements and how an MD immigration attorney can assist.
