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Immigration through Marriage FAQs
Thursday, April 6, 2023 - 05:11
Marriage and relocation to the U.S.: Quickest path for the prospective fiancé of a U.S Citizen living in India
Question
My sister is in India and the prospective groom is a US citizen. They have concerns about how to proceed with marriage and relocation of the girl to US in a timely manner (prefer not to wait more than a year for marriage/ living together post-marriage for personal reasons) Current fiancé visa processing time seems to be 15 months. It was not this long pre-covid, realistically can this processing time reduce this year? If they do marriage in India first, what’s the quickest way for her to come to US and how long would it take She has a valid B1. Can she travel on that to US post-marriage for 5-6 months only without any risk to her green card application? She is trying to get an L1-B visa through her current company. Will that visa approval be affected if they get married in the meanwhile? In short, what is the quickest path for her marriage & relocation to the US right now?
Thursday, August 31, 2017 - 05:55
Fastest Method of Getting Spouse of a Green Card into the USA and Reducing Wait
Question
I am a US permanent residence (Green card holder) working in the US. I have received my Re-entry permit which will expire in Feb 2019. I have plans to get married to a bride from India and I will be visiting India shortly. I know that to process Family based second category GC (F2A) for my wife in India can take a minimum of 2 years and I will be separated from my wife during this time. Here is my plan to live together (with my wife from Day 1 in the USA) after getting married in India. After my marriage, ask my wife to apply for a tourist visa and I will send the sponsorship letter required by US consulate. Do you see any challenges in my wife's tourist visa application getting approved if my wife states that she is visiting the USA to see her husband if the Visa officer asks any question?
Answer
Video Transcript
Normally if your husband is living in the United States, the consulate is not very easy going about giving visas because they suspect that once you enter your husband will apply for your green card. Hence getting a tourist visa itself is definitely questionable. Second is when you apply for a tourist visa any representations you make must be absolutely and meticulously truthful. You cannot make things up. Hence tourist visa is by no means guaranteed but certain visas like H-1, L-1, O-1 don't really care whether you have family living in the USA. So if she qualifies you could look at something like that. More...
Note: This is a verbatim transcript of the referenced audio/video media delivered as oral communication, and, therefore, may not conform to written grammatical or syntactical form.
Wednesday, July 12, 2017 - 05:38
Best Methods for Spouse of a Green Card Holder to Enter the USA
Question
I am a US GC holder and planning to get married to a bride in India. If I get married to a bride in India, can she get a tourist visa.? (Bride is a Software engineer working in India.)My idea is that after marriage, my wife enters the US under Tourist and stay for 6 months and then go to Canada and renter the US and stay in the US with me for next 6 months for a total of a 1 year.
Answer
Watch Video on this FAQ: The best methods for spouse of a green card holder to enter the USA
Video Transcript
As there is a gap between when you apply and when they can actually get some kind of a legal status it can be several years, so it becomes problematic for spouses of green card holders to stay outside the USA for that long. One option would be, if you in the interim become eligible for citizenship you can then upgrade the pending case of the spouse of a US citizen from the spouse of a green card holder. The other option is to get into a situation like H-1 or L-1 where a pending green card application doesn't matter. Even O-1 or E-1, E-2, E-3 visas. A tourist visa, student visa or a J visa would be a difficult option while a green card is going on, but not impossible. It is quite difficult to get those visas because they require nonimmigrant intent. More...
Note: This is a verbatim transcript of the referenced audio/video media delivered as oral communication, and, therefore, may not conform to written grammatical or syntactical form.
Wednesday, June 1, 2016 - 08:35
Effect of Divorce on an Employment-Based Case and Cross-Chargeability
Question
I got married in May last year and my wife was born in Malaysia . I was on H-1B with I-140 approved then and learnt about cross chargeability and filed for green card in June, we both got our green card in October. Things are not going well with marriage and my wife moved to NY and she is thinking of getting divorce. If divorce does happen does this affect mine or her green card?
Answer
Wednesday, November 25, 2015 - 07:27
Applying for green card while visiting the USA
Question
I am contemplating marriage to a GC holder and I have a question regarding I-130 and AOS. My prospective spouse got GC in Jan 2015. I currently hold a valid visitors visa to USA and I have visited USA many times on this visa.Is it possible to get married, enter USA on the existing visitors visa and then immediately apply for I-130 and Adjustment of Status. What are the risks/implications with this approach. What is the best procedure in these circumstances?
Answer
See clip from Attorney Rajiv S. Khanna's conference call video that addresses this question.
https://youtu.be/H_VV9kV_lOg?t=2303
FAQ Transcript:
It will be wrong if you entered USA for a visit visa and had a preconceived intention of getting married. I think that would be considered as a fraud by the government. On the other hand, you entered USA wanting to visit and fell head over heels in love with somebody, I think in a case like this we can definitely go and do a green card if you can demonstrate that you had no preconceived intention then I think you are ok.
My advice to people is don’t get married till you apply for a K-1 (fiancé visa) which would be a smart thing to do in a situation like this. It takes a few months or maybe more than a year.
Wednesday, January 14, 2015 - 01:29
Green Card Process for Spouse of US Permanent Resident
Question
I am a US Permanent Resident from Nepal. My girlfriend (soon to be wife) is a student doing her MBA and is in F-1 visa (student). She is graduating in May 2015 and will start her OPT soon after that.
We are planning to get court married real soon (within a month) and file for her green card soon after that. Once she gets her green card, we'll go home and get married with all the religious ceremonies. <p>
I had few questions about the green card process for my wife. I looked through various threads of various forums and I am more confused than before on how exactly this process works. I got conflicting answers for these questions. So, I am posting these questions so that I could get the correct answers from the expect himself.
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I understand that for my wife's GC, first I need to petition I-130 and she needs to wait until her priority date becomes current (which the people say can take several years to be current), then she needs to apply for Adjustment of Status. <p>
1. Could you go briefly on the whole process from start to finish? <br>
2. Some of the threads on the other forums said that the Congress changed the law so that there is no wait time for Spouse of Permanent Resident to apply for her green card. How much truth is in this statement? <br>
3. Some people who applied about a year or two ago said that they got their GC on hand within 6 months. How is that even possible when the wait time to just apply for GC under this category is several years? <br>
4. What happens if she applies before her priority date becomes current? Will her application be denied or will it just sit in a queue (first come first serve) until the priority date becomes current and then it will get processed? <br>
5. If she starts her OPT in May 2015 and the OPT lasts for 1 year (till May 2016), would that be enough time for her to apply for GC through my petition?
Answer
See clip from Attorney Rajiv S. Khanna's conference call video that addresses this question.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QvnIAm0nQJ8#t=99
FAQ Transcript
One of the problem with a student applying for a green card is that traveling could become an issue because if CBP stops you at the border they could say that her student status is questionable because she has immigrant intent. She could have the same problem if she is married and has applied for a green card when she tries to go for her OPT. So keep these two things in mind. You may want to time the filing of marriage and the filing of I-130 after the OPT starts and not travel until the green card is actually in hand.
Looking at the Visa Bulletin which is a monthly estimation from the State Department of the dates that will be available in the following month, the latest one which is January 2015 (http://www.immigration.com/visa-bulletin/visa-bulletin-january-2015), and if we look at this in F2A category for Nepal which is “All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed” right now they are backed up to 15 April 2013. At least they are backed out for less than two years. It is reasonable to expect that the green card within a couple of years maybe two/two and half years. But these dates can go up and down quite rapidly. Keep that in mind.
Typically Form I-130 is filed. Once that is filed you have to wait till the priority date becomes current. When the priority date becomes current you file I- 485 and with the I-485 typically you file an application for employment authorization for advance parole to travel. Once you get the advance parole you can travel. At that point student status is no longer an issue.
So in a nutshell that is the process. When the time comes, the I-485 gets approved and she gets her green card.
Answer to question 2: That is incorrect there is a wait time.
Answer to question 3: That can happen only if the priority dates are current.
Answer to question 4: I-130 has to be applied before I-485 or will simply be returned and you will lose your fees and will have to file again.
Answer to question 5: It does not look like it, but you can apply for H-1 because H-1 is immune from the problem of having a green card pending. F-1 has a problem and shhe can’t travel. But H-1 will not have that problem. I would suggest in this April apply for her H-1. That way you are good for three years and you can apply for her I-130 right away. She can travel freely once she gets her visa stamping. So it is a really good way to go.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010 - 06:41
Getting married to a green card holder
Question
I might be getting married to a green card holder who has it since 5 years and is eligible to apply for a citizenship next june. If I get married to him now when will I be eligible to get a visa to join him in America? What sort of visa will help me be with him and when?
Answer
Once he is a Citizen, he can apply for a K-3 and/or green card for you. Each one of them takes different times, usually less than a year.