What you Need to Know About Marriage Based Immigration

From a beautiful horticulturist marrying an oafish French waiter in “Green Card” to an awkward Aussie marrying an athlete in “Muriel's Wedding,” Hollywood has given us the impression that when you marry an immigrant, it must be for citizenship purposes. They also have made the process of getting a marriage-based visa look considerably easier than it is.

In real life, marrying an immigrant for legitimate reasons can be an arduous and time-consuming process. The obfuscation of the process can frustrate even the most committed of couples. Fortunately a good immigration lawyer in Scottsdale, AZ can help minimize the confusion and let you get on with your wedding plans. Much of how the process will work depends upon what type of visa you seek.

Marrying into citizenship?

If you are already married to someone from another country, you can apply for a Marriage-based Immigration Visa. You will need to complete several steps in order to get this visa. The U.S. Citizen in the relationship will apply for the visa on behalf of their spouse. They will need to fill out an I-130 form. When you turn in the form, you will also have to prove that you are married and that one of you is a U.S. Citizen.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will then approve or disapprove of your application. If you are approved you will be asked to gather documents, pay fees and fill out more forms by the National Visa Center. The NVC will then send the paperwork to the United States consulate in the foreign person’s country of origin. They will perform a medical exam and an interview at the consulate. They will then issue the immigration visa.

The visa will be examined at the U.S. border and they will mark the passport with a resident stamp.

What they will ask you at the Marriage Interview

When you apply for a marriage-based green card, an immigration officer will interview you. They will ask you a series of questions about your relationship. Typical questions include, “where did you meet?” “Where did you go on your first date?” and “who introduced you?” They will also ask you for details about your wedding.

They will ask you questions about your daily life, such as who gets up first and who does most of the cooking. They will ask for many details about the set-up of your home. If the immigration officer suspects you of fraud, you will have a fraud interview where they question each of you separately.

What Evidence You Will Need

Obviously, you will need your marriage license as proof that you are married. You may also provide things like hotel receipts from trips you have taken together, records of joint bank accounts and insurance forms from work.

Finding the Right Lawyer

You want to find an immigration lawyer that has years of experience with visa law in your state. You also want to make sure that any lawyer you hire is in good standing with the bar association.

You and your partner are looking forward to a long and happy life together. A good lawyer can help you enjoy that life on American soil.

*Authoritative Sources:

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/19/us/immigration-marriage-green-card.html

https://www.abcactionnews.com/news/national/96-people-federally-charged-in-u-s-marriage-fraud-scheme-that-circumvented-immigration-laws

This article does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors or management of EconoTimes.