I have an unusual case and I was hoping that someone in this forum can give me a definitive answer. I have received three answers... two from lawyers, and one from USCIS customer service. All of them different.
My wife married a friend of mine (who had sponsored her with a fiance visa) in October 2005 and she received Permanent Residence status on December 22, 2005.
My friend passed away in June 2006 and so she returned to her native country.
I was the executor of the estate, and when everything was settled (9 months later), she returned to the United States.
She and I started dating some time after that and we got married in December 2006.
The conditions on her permanent residence were removed in December 2007 based on her being the widow of my friend who had passed away.
My wife would like to apply for U.S. Citizenship. Is she eligible now based on her 3 year marriage to me (3 years in December 2009) ? Or does she have to wait until she has been a permanent resident for 5 years (5 years in December 2010) ?
I have received conflicting information: On one hand, I have been told that she is eligible now, because she has been married to me for 3 years. On the other, I have been told that the 3 year marriage only counts for the original sponsor of her permanent residence (my friend, who is deceased.)
Lastly, how is her long absence after the death of my friend (and another of 7 months, during our marriage) going to affect her residency requirement? In the case of the 3 year requirement, she has spent more than 18 months in the United States, but she did have that one 7 month period where she was out of the country. I have heard that spending more than 6 months in any one calendar year causes everything to reset, and I've also heard that it does not matter, and I've also heard that you basically get no credit during that calendar year.
Anyway, I haven't been able to get any definitive answers, and trying to read the actual law code is impossible for me to decipher. I appreciate any help.
My wife married a friend of mine (who had sponsored her with a fiance visa) in October 2005 and she received Permanent Residence status on December 22, 2005.
My friend passed away in June 2006 and so she returned to her native country.
I was the executor of the estate, and when everything was settled (9 months later), she returned to the United States.
She and I started dating some time after that and we got married in December 2006.
The conditions on her permanent residence were removed in December 2007 based on her being the widow of my friend who had passed away.
My wife would like to apply for U.S. Citizenship. Is she eligible now based on her 3 year marriage to me (3 years in December 2009) ? Or does she have to wait until she has been a permanent resident for 5 years (5 years in December 2010) ?
I have received conflicting information: On one hand, I have been told that she is eligible now, because she has been married to me for 3 years. On the other, I have been told that the 3 year marriage only counts for the original sponsor of her permanent residence (my friend, who is deceased.)
Lastly, how is her long absence after the death of my friend (and another of 7 months, during our marriage) going to affect her residency requirement? In the case of the 3 year requirement, she has spent more than 18 months in the United States, but she did have that one 7 month period where she was out of the country. I have heard that spending more than 6 months in any one calendar year causes everything to reset, and I've also heard that it does not matter, and I've also heard that you basically get no credit during that calendar year.
Anyway, I haven't been able to get any definitive answers, and trying to read the actual law code is impossible for me to decipher. I appreciate any help.
