:quality(70):focal(1096x2601:1106x2611)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tronc/GZBPOC63WNBMNKMBI7R35WPG3U.jpg "A K-1 fiancé(e) visa means you can interview in the U.S. – New York Daily News")
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Q. I came here on a K fiancee visa but did not marry the man I applied for. Instead, I married another American. What are my options? Shortly after I arrived with my K visa, my fiancé found and married another woman. In the end, I fell in love with and married another American citizen. He has applied for a green card for me, but my lawyer says I have to go home for an immigrant visa interview. I am worried that if I apply for a visa at a US consulate, I will be stranded abroad.
K., New York
A. The only way to obtain a green card is to have an interview at a US Consulate General abroad. A person entered as a K-1 fiancée can only be interviewed in the United States if they marry the American citizen who brought them here. This is an exception to the general rule that anyone who has legally entered the country and is married to a U.S. citizen can be interviewed here.
Consular interviews certainly carry risks. He may also need to obtain an “illegal” exemption to permanent residency if his illegal stay exceeds his 180 days. Still, with the right legal help, you have a good chance of getting a green card.
Q. Two days after my mother became a naturalized US citizen, she got into trouble with the law. Is there any problem for her to return to the US from abroad? She was charged with theft. She was found guilty and the judge sentenced her to two years’ probation. She wants to travel to the Dominican Republic.
Manhattan, Arkansas
A. Your mother should have no problem returning to the US after the trip. Criminal acts committed by naturalized immigrants after they become U.S. citizens do not affect their status.
On rare occasions, the arrest of a naturalized individual may reveal criminal activity prior to naturalization. The government then attempts to “denaturalize” the individual, i.e., strip him of his citizenship. The reason denaturalization is rare is that governments often have difficulty proving these cases. As long as your mother doesn’t have a criminal record you didn’t disclose on your green card or citizenship application, you should be fine.
Alan Wernick is an attorney and senior legal counsel for Citizenship Now! at the City University of New York. plan. Email questions and comments to @allanwernick.com. Follow him on Twitter @awernick.
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