How Immigration Status Can Affect Divorce in Maryland

Introduction: Immigration Status Can Add Complexity

No two marriages occur under the exact same circumstances. Every situation is unique, which means that every case has the potential to present a new legal issue. But, although no two cases are ever exactly identical, similar cases often present familiar issues, which is partly where the benefit of our blog comes from. One type of case with which we are familiar is marriage involving one spouse who isn’t a native-born U.S. citizen. Whenever this scenario comes about, parties need to know that a divorce will always be more complicated as compared to a scenario which involves two native-born citizens, all other factors being equal. Of course, this doesn’t say anything about precisely how complex a given case (involving a foreign born person) can be, just that, of itself, this factor tends to add more complexity.

What issues tend to come up when a Maryland divorce involves a foreign born person? Why do these divorces tend to complicate things? In this post, we will identify and discuss some of the things which litigants can expect when they’re involved with this type of case.

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Divorce Can Lead to Inquiries on Marital Authenticity

If a divorce involves one person who isn’t a native-born citizen, and the marriage doesn’t last at least 2 years, then there may be an inquiry regarding the supposed “authenticity” of the marriage itself. The reason for such an inquiry is to ensure that the marriage didn’t occur solely for the purpose of assisting the foreign-born person in attaining full U.S. citizenship. If a foreign-born individual marries a U.S. citizen, the foreign-born person may attain full citizenship, but the marriage must be “authentic,” otherwise citizenship may be denied. To gauge authenticity, investigators look for various factors, including: (1) whether the marriage lasted for at least 2 years, (2) whether the parties genuinely intended for the relationship to last indefinitely, (3) indicators of romantic genuineness, such as joint bank accounts, family vacations, shared children, interpersonal communications, wider family networks, and so forth.

Basically, divorce in this situation can be greatly complicated by the fact that the government might “challenge” the authenticity of the marriage, and such a challenge can be invasive and difficult. If the marriage at least lasted 2 years, this is a significant factor, because this 2 year mark more or less produces a legal presumption that the marriage was valid. Marriages involving a foreign-born person which don’t last at least 2 years may still be classified as authentic, but the parties have a greater burden to prove the authenticity.

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Immigration Status Can Create Custody / Parenting Time Related Issues

Another set of issues which often arises in divorces involving foreign-born persons pertains to custody arrangements. Divorces involving foreign-born individuals can become quite tricky whenever they also involve children too. The reason for this is because parents frequently end up relocating away from each other post-divorce – this is especially true when divorces involve one parent from another country. In many instances, the foreign-born parent ends up relocating outside of the country post-divorce, something which imposes a great deal of additional difficulty to an already complex situation. If one parent relocates outside the country, this will easily lead to burdens associated with parenting time – travel time, travel costs, modifying custody post-divorce, etc.

Readers should note that these complexities associated with foreign-born individuals are likely to be considerably more difficult in our current cultural environment. Now, with all the issues related to ICE, and immigration enforcement generally, these divorces are likely to incur a heightened level of scrutiny from the state. This is a reality which Marylanders need to understand as they go through this process.

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Contact the Murphy Law Firm for Additional Resources

Readers who want to learn more about how immigration status can affect custody disputes, investigations into the “authenticity” of the marriage, immigration related marriage fees, or any other pertinent family law matter, contact one of the family law attorneys at the Murphy Law Firm today by calling 240-219-1187.

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