Can I Get I-360 VAWA If My USC Husband Cheats on Me?
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The marital home is the ultimate safe haven, a place where one supports the other, where shared life goals become the future. That is the dream anyway. Sometimes the US citizen spouse, the petitioner on the I-130, has goals of their own, including affairs with people outside the marriage. Blandon Law clients find themselves desperately wanting to divorce, but wondering if they must stay with cheating spouses to get their I-485 green cards. The answer from the experience of past Blandon Law clients: yes, you can divorce a US citizen spouse, file I-360 VAWA and get a green card. There are exceptions and hiring an experienced I-360 VAWA lawyer will increase your chance of winning the case, so read more below.
Can Husband Withdraw I-130 Petition?
First, it’s important to recognize that I-360 VAWA is a petition filed by persons who have survived significant emotional harm. Being married to a cheating jerk is not enough to get a green card with VAWA. However, if the cheating spouse uses power and control over the foreign survivor, the survivor of the emotional harm can get a green card. So, if the US citizen or legal permanent resident spouse threatens that the foreign spouse must agree to the cheating or the other spouse will call immigration authorities or withdraw the I-130 petition, then yes, that has been enough harm for Blandon Law clients to win an I-360 VAWA case. NOTE: in those successful cases, there was ZERO physical harm of the foreign spouse.
In fact, for some married foreign spouses, I-360 VAWA may be the only option. The US citizen or legal permanent resident who files the I-130 petition, as part of the abuse, often withdraws the petition. That results in a denial of the marriage-based green card, leaving the foreign spouse in the United States without a work permit and without legal status.
Don’t Argue with a Notary on Reddit or X
As explained above, to win an I-360 VAWA, a survivor must show that they suffered significant emotional harm. Our experienced immigration lawyers, with over 20 years helping I-360 VAWA survivors, know how to prepare statements and organize evidence to highly increase the chance of getting the green card. Our attorneys have studied about how to win VAWA cases for over 20 years. Ms. Blandon has spoken at seminars to explain VAWA to family law attorneys. The truth is that experience matters, every time.
On Reddit, a non-lawyer wrote that a survivor who was considering attempted suicide was not harmed “enough” for a VAWA case. What is sad is that survivor vulnerably explained her trauma and now has been told a lie by a non-lawyer. Don’t be like her. Don’t waste valuable time talking about your marriage on Reddit, or on X, or on any social media platform. VAWA is a law. Your attorney will explain your marriage to the government officers reviewing your I-360 VAWA application and evidence. Click the “for future clients” button on our website, or call the office, to request a VAWA consult today. Future you will thank you.
Disclaimer – These entries are based on real life events. Family member names, when used, are real. Client names are changed for privacy.
