It will be tough to get a green card when hubby won’t petition for you

My husband — a U.S. permanent resident — won’t petition for a green card for me. He married me in Ecuador and then he left for the United States. Can I still get my green card based on our marriage?

Raquel, Ecuador I’m sorry your husband misled you, but I doubt you can get a green card based on your marriage. Usually, to get a green card, the U.S. relative must petition for you. The law does allow for an abused spouse to self-petition, but your right to self-petition from abroad is limited.

To self-petition from abroad, you will need to prove your husband is an employee of the U.S. government or a U.S. military service member and you (or your child) were abused abroad, or that the abuse took place in the United States.

I came here on a B-1/B-2 visitor’s visa. When I landed a Customs and Border Protection officer took me out of the line for questioning. Afterward, I was admitted to the U.S. for one month instead of the typical six. Can I apply for an extension of stay? If so, when should I apply?

Lorena The procedure you went through is known as “secondary inspection.”

Customs and Border Protection uses secondary inspection when it wants to ask more detailed questions about your visit to the United States. It is not uncommon. You can apply for an extension of stay, but you must submit it before your current stay expires. You apply using U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services form I-539, Application To Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status.

You can file online or by mail. Learn more here: uscis.gov/i-539.

Allan Wernick is an attorney and director of the City University of New York’s Citizenship Now! project. Send questions and comments to questions@allanwernick. com. Follow him on Twitter @ awernick.