Ms. Wu, a single mother in Jiangsu province, lived a very hard life after divorcing her ex-husband. Wu decided to move abroad in order to change her situation, so she got to know an American man through social networking. However, after marrying the man, she quickly discovered that her new husband was not what he originally seemed, and that he could not help her obtain a visa. Most upsetting to Wu, the transnational marriage took 12 years to end.

In order to improve the living situation of herself and her daughter after divorcing her first husband, Wu decided she wanted to migrate to the United States. In September 2003, Wu got to know an American man named Kevin, even specially hiring a translator to help the pair communicate. In 2004, Kevin came to China two times, and he and Wu were married. After that, the two were a couple, but living in separate countries. They kept in touch online, and Kevin sent Wu $400 each month.

Everything went smoothly until late 2015, when Wu’s visa was denied by the American consulate. Wu then discovered that her husband was living on government subsidies, which caused her to fail the visa requirements. The two began to quarrel frequently, and they eventually stopped communicating altogether.

Last July, Wu applied to a local court to officially end her 12-year marriage. Now the court has approved her request.