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Good news from the 9th Circuit Court expanding U visa eligibility for spouses of the primary U visa applicant

On Behalf of | Dec 11, 2020 | Firm News

On December 3, 2020, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals issued an excellent decision that will increase access to U visas for spouses of applicant’s with pending applications.  Previously, a crime victim had to include their spouse at the time of applying for the U visa, but yesterday’s decision holds that an applicant can file a petition to include their spouse as a derivative in their case even after their application has been filed as long as the principal applicant marries their spouse before receiving approval of their U visa.

If you got married after filing your application for U nonimmigrant status, please contact us to find out if you can add your spouse as a derivative in your case based on this new decision.

https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/opinions/2020/12/03/18-35072.pdf