Hammad

In 1995, Ivad Mohammed Hammad, a Palestinian immigrant to the United States, was granted permanent resident status on a conditional basis, based on a petition filed by his U.S. citizen wife. His permanent resident status lapsed when his wife admitted to Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) officials that she had entered into the marriage for a fee, and withdrew her support of his petition to remove the condition on his residency. Now remarried, Hammad appeals a determination by the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) that he is not entitled to permanent resident status. Because the BIA’s determination was supported by substantial evidence, we deny his petition.

I

Before discussing the facts of this case, we provide a brief overview of the statutory and regulatory framework that allows an alien to obtain legal permanent residency status based on a petition from the alien’s U.S. citizen spouse. See 8 U.S.C. §§ 1154 (a), 1186a.

Under § 1154(a), a U.S. citizen may file a petition with the INS to adjust the status of an alien spouse. An alien with a qualifying marriage to a U.S. citizen is generally granted the status of lawful permanent resident, but maintains this status on…