Disclaimer: We are not a law firm or affiliated with any government agency. We’re a privately owned business that provides Immigration, Tax, Court and Notary services. We are not a licensed attorney and by law cannot provide legal advice. We can listen to your concerns and refer you to a list of attorneys who may be able to assist you. All our prices doesn’t include government filing fees. Most matters concerning immigration have specific processing times based on the type of petition filed. Unfortunately, those times are procedural in nature, therefore processing times cannot be changed
Removing Conditions on Permanent Residence Based on Marriage
Your permanent resident status is conditional if it is based on a marriage that was less than two years old on the day you became a permanent resident. We give you conditional permanent resident status when you are either admitted to the United States on an immigrant visa or adjust your status to that of a permanent resident.
Your status is conditional until you prove, after a specified period of time, that you did not enter the marriage to circumvent the immigration laws of the United States. To remove conditions, you must file Form I-751, Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence.
You cannot file Form I-90 to renew your Permanent Resident Card (Green Card) if you are a conditional permanent resident.
Generally, you must apply to remove the conditions on permanent residence with your U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident spouse or stepparent (called “filing jointly”) if:
- You are still married to the same U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident after two years;* or
- Your parent is still married to the same U.S. citizen spouse or lawful permanent resident after two years and you are not included in your parent’s Form I-751.
You may file Form I-751 without your U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident spouse or stepparent if:
- The U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident spouse or stepparent is deceased and you entered the marriage in good faith;*
- You married in good faith, but the marriage ended through divorce or annulment;*
- You married in good faith, but you or your child were battered or subjected to extreme cruelty by your U.S. citizen or permanent resident spouse ;*
- Your parent married in good faith, but you were battered or subjected to extreme cruelty by your U.S. citizen or permanent resident stepparent or parent; or
- The termination of your status and removal from the United States would result in extreme hardship.*
*If you are a conditional permanent resident spouse, you may include your conditional permanent resident children in your petition if they received their status either at the same time as, or within 90 days, of you.
Refer to the Form I-751 Instructions (PDF, 445.89 KB) for more specific eligibility requirements.
You must file your Form I-751 during the 90-day period immediately before your conditional residence expires if you are filing Form I-751 jointly with your U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident spouse. The expiration date on your Green Card is also the date of your second anniversary as a conditional permanent resident. If you do not apply to remove the conditions in time, you could lose your conditional permanent resident status and potentially be removed from the country.
Use our Filing Calculator to determine your 90-day filing date.
If You File Outside of the 90-Day Period
If you fail to properly file Form I-751 within the 90-day period before your second anniversary as a conditional permanent resident, we will:
- Automatically terminate your conditional permanent resident status and will begin removal proceedings against you;
- Send you a notice telling you that you have failed to remove the conditions; and
- Send you a Notice to Appear at a hearing. At the hearing, you may review and rebut the evidence against you. You are responsible for proving that you complied with the requirements (we are not responsible for proving that you did not comply with the requirements).
If you file your Form I-751 after the 90-day period, you must include a written explanation as to why you are filing late. We will determine whether there was good cause for the failure to file your Form I-751 within the required time period.
If your child received conditional permanent resident status at the same time you did, or within 90 days of when you did, then you may include your child in your Form I-751. Your child must file a separate Form I-751 if they received conditional permanent resident status more than 90 days after you did.
If you are still married, but legally separated and/or in pending divorce or annulment proceedings and you filed a waiver request, we will issue a Request for Evidence (RFE) specifically asking for a copy of the final divorce decree or annulment, if applicable.
If you are still married, but legally separated and/or in pending divorce or annulment proceedings, and you filed a Form I-751 jointly, we will issue an RFE specifically asking for a copy of the final divorce decree or annulment and a statement that you would like to have your joint filing Form I-751 treated as a waiver.
After we receive the final divorce decree or annulment within the specified time period, we will amend the petition to indicate you have established you are eligible to apply for a waiver of the joint filing requirement based on the termination of the marriage.
As a conditional permanent resident, you receive a Green Card valid for two years. This card proves that you have the right to live and work in the United States during the initial two-year period.
If you file Form I-751 on time, your receipt notice will extend the validity of your conditional permanent resident status for 24 months. If your Form I-751 is still pending and you need evidence of your status after the initial 24-month extension, you must call the USCIS Contact Center at 800-375-5283.
For more information about the types of documentation that you can use to show your identity and authorization to work, visit our Acceptable Documents page.
We may require you to attend an interview to demonstrate eligibility to remove the conditions on your residence. If we require an interview, we will mail you an appointment notice telling you when and where to appear.
What We Will Do For You
Our highly professional staff will work closely with you to obtain the information needed to accurately complete your immigration documents. Our immigration service simplifies the process of filing out U.S. immigration application helping to reduce errors that can cause rejection. You can file USCIS forms yourself but failure rate is extremely high. The USCIS rejects millions of forms yearly and can even create long-term immigration problems.
