How do I get a divorce on an L2 visa? 6 Answers as of February 06, 2012

You file for divorce the same way that USCs do, no difference there. The only thing is that you will lose your L-2 status and your son will keep his, in which case your husband does not have to file for a green card for you. As to the rest of your question, I think it is best put to a family law attorney either here or in Ireland, which I am not. I hope this little bit helps.

As long as you are legally married you are entitled to a green card if your husband applies for one through his employer. In terms of being able to leave the US with your child, that is a family law issue and depending on how the child custody is worked out, you may or may not take your child with you without the child's father's permission. If you divorce before you get a green card, you are not eligible to remain in the US in depending L-2 status since you would no longer be married. You would need to qualify for an immigration status in your own right to remain in the US.

Without stating the obvious that this is a complicated situation one answer is clear. Should you divorce principal beneficiary of non-immigrant work visa you will lose your dependent nonimmigrant classification and would have to leave the country unless you have some other independent from your husband status in the United States. As an L1 visa holder your husband cannot apply for a permanent residency by himself. His employer must file necessary documentation. In this documentation you will be listed as dependent along with your son so hypothetically it can be done without your knowledge. However, a dissolution cannot be procured in the United States State of Colorado without proper personal service on the respondent (you) unless petitioner (husband) claims that you cannot be found and asks the divorce court to allow service of process by publication. Point is it is very difficult to divorce a person without him not knowing it especially if that person suspects such surreptitious conduct. Once you enter the dissolution process in Colorado that takes at least 3 months from the time of the service of process you will have the chance to negotiate with your husband division of your property and parenting time for your children as well as maintaining or keeping your immigration benefits. Should you file and procure the dissolution in Ireland including provisions for spousal maintenance you are running a risk of entering into a burdensome and very expensive process of registration and enforcement of your foreign dissolution decree in the United States. Colorado legislation provides for a process of such registration and recognition however if the person opposes such registration (in cases of adverse financial judgments against him/her)it will cost you pretty penny to fight for your rights. I see in my practice cases going both ways; registration of foreign domestic relations judgments in Colorado and opposing such registration on behalf of my clients and the costs are always significant in both situations. The best solution is to enter into amicable dissolution of your marriage (if this is a necessity) negotiate immigration benefits as part of division of your property and debts as well as sensible parenting time. This path will ultimately save both of you lots of emotional hardship and financial resources that will better be spend on your children in their best interest.

If you file for divorce in the US, you are subject to the family law within whatever state you reside. You need to hire a competent family law attorney in your area. This will also determine the guidelines for custody. In terms of immigration, once the divorce is finalized, you are in violation of your L status, because you only have it via your marriage. At that point you would need to depart the US or determine a different category that worked for you.

Your specific questions regarding divorce and maintenance are best addressed to an attorney who specializes in matrimonial and family law both in the area you live in the United States and Ireland as you have asked about divorce in both countries. As for the immigration issues, if you divorce your spouse, you will no longer be able to have an L-2 visa. You derive your status from your husband. Since you will be divorced, you are no longer eligible to have an L-2 visa. Your son will be able to continue to have an L-2 visa as he remains his child regardless of divorce. As for the question about the green card, typically a spouse and children of someone with an approved immigrant petition can obtain a green card. This effectively requires you to file an application when a visa is available. The issue is that your husband is in control of the immigrant visa petition as it is his case and may be able to file for himself and your son without your knowledge. As long as the marriage is bona fide and you are not divorced, you could technically derive a green card from his case. However, you will need an attorney to assist you with this matter.

The moment you are divorced, your L-2 ends. I would suggest getting a change of status right now to another type of status such as Student or work.