CASE 2 - Immigration Marriage Fraud (Definition)

Besides matrimonial website fraud, other types of matrimonial fraud is “immigration marriage fraud”.  It has many different names; marriage gris, marriage of convenience, marriages of deception and others. So, what is immigration marriage fraud? There is no specifically define about immigration marriage fraud. According to Section 204(c) Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) immigration marriage fraud is someone who “enter  into a marriage for the purpose of evading the immigration law”. In other words, it is where one peron has been scammed into marrying a foreign national who they met abroad or in the U.S. to get the immigrant green card. So, it’s afraud. For further explanation, based on articles in https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/top-story-ice-leading-nationwide-campaign-stop-marriage-fraud, , this fraud basically when a foreign national and a U.S. citizen get married, not to establish a life together, but as a means for the foreign national to remain in the United States indefinitely. The goal of a foreign national who commits marriage fraud is to become a lawful permanent resident and ultimately, a U.S. citizen. Foreign nationals who marry U.S. citizens do not have to wait for a visa, and after a 2-year conditional period there are no restrictions on status. Additionally, immigration marriage fraud is one of the shortest pathways to U.S. citizenship, which can be granted after only three years of lawful permanent resident status.

Based on U.S immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations  (HSI) Special Agent, Todd Siegel said, immigration marriage fraud is a federal crime, and can have grave consequences. Refer to Ilona Bray, J.D. , now,  the immigration authorities place immigration marriage fraud high on their list of enforcement priorities.  U.S Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) stated that at various times, between onethird and one fifth of the marriage-based applications that it receives are based on fraud  (http://www.criminaldefenselawyer.com).  USCIS was  suspicious of people who try to obtain permanent residence (green card) through marriage.  This fraud is a threat to U.S. nationality, public safety and the integrity of the immigration system.