The International Marriage Broker Regulation Act of 2005 (IMBRA) mandates criminal background checks before a United States citizen can communicate with a foreign national through a “for profit” international dating site. The legislative intent of the act is to protect immigrant women who could become victims of domestic abuse, be it physical, mental or sexual after arrival in America by way of a K-1 Fiancee Visa or F-3 Spousal Visa. Its requirements look toward “for profit” matchmaking or online dating dating sites wherever they are located and United States citizens.
Prior to even communicating with a woman through a “for profit” international matchmaking or online dating service (IMB), the person seeking the communication must complete a biographical criminal and marital history provided by the service. That form is then required to be provided to anybody that the person is interested in and should the other party consent, communication is permitted to follow. Upon receipt of the form from the person wishing to initiate contact, the IMB is required to search state and federal sex offender databases, obtain the family and any criminal history of the person and provide this information to the foreign national in her native language. The foreign national is then required to sign a written consent for the release of her personal information to the United States citizen. At that time, communication is legally permitted. Any violation of the act is a felony punishable by a fine up to $25,000.00 and a prison term not to exceed 3 years.
Department of Homeland Security Form I-129F specifically asks whether you met your fiancee or spouse through the services of an international marriage broker. If the petitioner answers yes, they must provide the internet or street address of the IMB and where the IMB is licensed. Should inquiry be made and appropriate histories are not available or found to be false, the I-129F petition can be denied. It can also be denied if the petitioner has been convicted of sexual assault, domestic violence, child abuse and/or neglect, violence during dating, elder abuse or stalking. Being convicted of even an attempt at more serious offense can result in denial as can three or more convictions for offenses relating to a controlled substance or alcohol not arising from a single act. Consular offices are required to provide the foreign national fiancee with a copy of the Petition for Fiancee Visa along with any other information on the petitioner that is required by the Fiancee Visa Petition.
There are exceptions for which a waiver for the above offenses can be obtained. If the Petitioner was being battered or subject to extreme cruelty by a spouse, parent or adult child at the time of the conviction, waiver can be granted if petitioner was acting in self defense, or violated a protection order issued for their own protection or was arrested for or convicted of a crime that did not result in serious bodily harm and there was a connection between the crime committed and the petitioner having been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty.
A petitioner is limited to the number of Fiancee Visa Petitions that can be filed. If the petitioner has filed two or more petitions and at least one of them has been approved, that petitioner must wait 2 years from the date of filing of the latest approved petition to submit another fiancee petition. Again, there are exceptions to this rule such as the death of the fiancee. If a third Fiancee Petition is filed, the petitioner will be notified. A multiple visa database is in existence that tracks petitioners that have had two or more petitions approved. All subsequent petitions filed by that petitioner will be entered into that database. Both petitioner and fiancee will be notified if the number of permitted petitions is exceeded.
As IMBRA compliance is critical in both the pre-communication and petitioning stages, the petitioner should proceed with care and caution. A seemingly innocent ovversigned or misinterpretation of the law can result in denial. A K-3 Spousal Visa Petition will probably not be denied for conviction of any crime however, any conviction for any crime contemplated by the act must still be disclosed. It is prudent to retain the services of an experienced immigration attorney when initiating the K-1 or K-3 Visa process.
The contents of this article are for informational purposes only and shall not be construed to create an attorney/client relationship.
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IMBRA – A Tough Way to Get a Date
