If I letmy conditional green card expire, will I be able to apply for a tourist visa later on?
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If I letmy conditional green card expire, will I be able to apply for a tourist visa later on?
In other words, does me getting the 2-year green card mean that the 10 year bar doesn’t apply to me anymore? I was out of status for more than a year, my understanding is this automatically meant that if I had left the country, I would’ve been barred from re-entering for 10 years. I then met someone, we got married, and I got my conditional green card. However things didn’t work out and we got a divorce, before the 2-year period.
Asked on November 28, 2011 under Immigration Law, California
Answers:
SB, Member, California / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 13 years ago | Contributor
You can still try to remove the conditional status even if you are now divorced, as long as you can prove that the marriage was bona fide and was not entered into just for immigration purposes. If you can prove it, you will get the unconditional green card. If you do not apply or if you are denied in that process, you will again fall out of status and will be unlawfully present in the US and subject to removal. If the unlawful presence time reaches 365 days, you will again be subject to a 10 year bar to reentry. If you leave right after the green card expiration or denial of the I-751, you will most likely not be able to get a tourist visa since you had previously apply for permanent residence, indicating that your intention is not to visit the US but to live there on a permanent basis.
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