| GREEN CARD THROUGH YOUR
FIANCÉ When a U.S. citizen, residing
in the United States, marries an alien, the alien is eligible to receive a
green card based on that marriage. If you are a U.S. citizen, your spouse
is considered an "immediate relative" and he or she may apply for
permanent residency.
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In order to be granted permanent residency, your spouse's
relationship with you must be established and your spouse must be
admissible to the United States under the immigration laws. The marriage
must be bona fide, not merely an attempt to get the alien a green card.
The Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) takes fraudulent
marriage very seriously and you will be asked to provide supporting
documents to show that the marriage is legal and valid.
Marriage Abroad: Alien-Spouse Visa
If a U.S. citizen marries an alien abroad, an I-130 petition must be
filed after the marriage to begin the immigration process for the alien
spouse. This can be filed either with the Immigration and Naturalization
Service (INS) in the United States, or, under certain circumstances, at
U.S. Embassies or Consulates abroad.
U.S. Embassies and Consulates have differing policies on approving
I-130s and should be individually contacted about the availability of
this service. Many posts have their own web pages which include this
information and which can be accessed through the U.S. Embassy and
Consulate links page. Prior to departure from this country, the U.S.
citizen should contact the INS or appropriate Foreign Service post to
ascertain exactly what documents will be necessary to file the immigrant
petition for a new spouse.
Marriage In the United States: Fiancé Visa
U.S. citizens may file an I-129F petition with the Immigration and
Naturalization Service (INS) for the issuance of a K-1 fiancé visa to an
alien fiancé.
An U.S. citizen exercising this option must remain unmarried until
the arrival of the fiancé in the U.S.
You and your fiancé must be free to marry. This means that both of you
are unmarried, and that any previous marriages have ended through
divorce, annulment or death.
The wedding must take place within 90 days of the fiancé’s arrival if
he/she is to remain in K-1 fiancé status.
The alien and U.S. citizen must have met personally at least once in
the two years before the petition was filed. This requirement can only
be waived if meeting your fiancé in person would violate
long-established customs, or if meeting your fiancé would create extreme
hardship for you.
Please note that legal permanent residents may NOT file petitions for a
fiancé visas. They must marry abroad and then file an I-130 petition for
the immigration of a new spouse.
After your marriage, if the 90-day validity period of the K-1 visa has
not yet expired, you may file for a green car without leaving the U.S.
or filing a petition for alien relative.
For more information about K-1 visas see the Bureau of Consular Affairs'
brochure Tips For U.S. Visas: Fiance(e)s.
Your fiancé will initially receive conditional permanent residence
status for two years. Conditional permanent residency is granted when
the marriage creating the relationship is less than two years old at the
time of adjustment to permanent residence status.
You may also apply to bring your fiancé's unmarried children, who are
under age 21, to the United States.
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