Extreme hardship is the standard used in a US immigration inadmissibility waiver for intending immigrants (601 waiver). Certain factors may make a foreign national inadmissible to the United States; however, the applicant may be allowed to file a waiver to overcome the inadmissibility. To be successful, the waiver must prove that a US citizen or lawful permanent resident (LPR) parent, spouse or (in certain cases) child would suffer extreme hardship if the applicant were not allowed to immigrate to the United States. Although there is no precise definition of what constitutes extreme hardship, it has been said that the hardship suffered by the qualifying relative must go beyond what would normally be expected when a family is separated. Certain decisions of the BIA (Board of Immigration Appeals) or the AAO are helpful in determining what constitutes extreme hardship.
I-601 Waiver Peru: Case Study 3
An applicant's 601 waiver was denied at Lima, Peru, resulting in his inability to get a green card. Some years before, the man had submitted fraudulent employment references to the US Embassy when applying for an E-3 visa. As a result, the man was inadmissible to the United States for misrepresentation under INA section 212(a)(6)(C)(i). [...]