The popular tv show, House, is in its last few episodes. I would love to tell you what happens in the last few episodes – but I do not know. No spoiler here.
Based upon the recent actions of Dr. House, this is my immigration-biased guess of how the series will end. [I may be a few weeks behind as I am not caught up on my TiVo.]
Background: During the last year, Dr. House has married a foreign national – but not because of love. In exchange for getting married and helping her obtain her immigration benefits, the attractive foreign national helps Dr. House by cleaning and cooking for him. The two are pretty open about the fraudulent marriage and everyone at the hospital appears to know about it. In the most recent episode [that I watched], the foreign national was waiting for final approval from the immigration agency (not knowing that Dr. House had already received the approval notice). Right before the couple share a romantic moment (I don’t watch the show enough to know – but I think it would have been their first), the foreign national gets a call and finds out she had received her “citizenship.” She promptly moves out.
Moving Forward: Dr. House will continue to provide bizarre, unrealistic, yet somehow brilliant medical service to his patients. However, he will do it from a prison cell as he awaits trial for immigration fraud. You see, despite being a U.S. citizen, Dr. House can still be charged (and convicted) of immigration fraud. Such a conviction can result in fine and possible imprisonment.
Has Dr. House committed immigration fraud? Yes – there is no other explanation. He entered into a marriage for the sole purpose of helping the foreign national obtain immigration status in the United States. The foreign national faces an even worse fate. Besides facing imprisonment and a substantial fine, the foreign national faces the possibility (and likelihood) of being deported. Further, it will be virtually impossible for her to gain any type of immigration benefit in the future.
House has been a decent show – but has run its course. It might have been obvious when the writers decided to bring immigration fraud into the storyline. Marriage for immigration is a played out plot – when will writers realize it? An original story line would be a marriage for immigration plot that actually shows the consequences of such fraud.