AOS Interview Tip - Certfied Copy Marriage License

[ScottH 0]

To all with AOS appointments scheduled:

This may have been stated somewhere in the very helpful guides here, but make sure you bring a "green" stamped and certified copy of your marriage certificate to AOS interview as it caused a delay in our approval.

At our AOS interview, I brought the original pink copy of the signed certificate from our town clerk's office (we were married by the mayor), and the AOS officer did not accept it. He could not tell from the copy in the I-485 application package that it was not a "certified" original. It caused us another long trip and wait, and more stress.

Scott

Edited February 17, 2006 by ScottH

[john_and_marlene 162]

To all with AOS appointments scheduled:

This may have been stated somewhere in the very helpful guides here, but make sure you bring a "green" stamped and certified copy of your marriage certificate to AOS interview as it caused a delay in our approval.

At our AOS interview, I brought the original pink copy of the signed certificate from our town clerk's office (we were married by the mayor), and the AOS officer did not accept it. He could not tell from the copy in the I-485 application package that it was not a "certified" original. It caused us another long trip and wait, and more stress.

Scott

I'm going to have a difficult time trying to get a county clerk in Oklahoma to copy my marriage certificate onto green paper before certifying it

[ScottH 0]

To all with AOS appointments scheduled:

This may have been stated somewhere in the very helpful guides here, but make sure you bring a "green" stamped and certified copy of your marriage certificate to AOS interview as it caused a delay in our approval.

At our AOS interview, I brought the original pink copy of the signed certificate from our town clerk's office (we were married by the mayor), and the AOS officer did not accept it. He could not tell from the copy in the I-485 application package that it was not a "certified" original. It caused us another long trip and wait, and more stress.

Scott

I'm going to have a difficult time trying to get a county clerk in Oklahoma to copy my marriage certificate onto green paper before certifying it

Hence the quotation marks, as the AOS interviewer asked for the "green copy".

BTW, the certified copy WAS green!

Maybe a NJ thing.....

[Ephesia 0]

lol. Ours are white.

[RichardS 0]

BTW .. you need certified copy of your marriage certificate NOT marriage license!

Good luck!

[motu 6]

Our interviewing officer didn't look at any originals or copies or pictures - just the proof of relationship documents! So Go figure! Good luck

[Ephesia 0]

Our interviewing officer didn't look at any originals or copies or pictures - just the proof of relationship documents! So Go figure! Good luck

LOL, I know exactly what you mean. Our interviewing officer actually said, "Oh yeah, that would be good!" when I asked him if he wanted a certified copy of our marriage certificate. This was right after he asked to see joint documentation of our relationship. We all had a good laugh over that.

[Annman 0]

BTW .. you need certified copy of your marriage certificate NOT marriage license!

What is the difference between them

[pj1959us 0]

BTW .. you need certified copy of your marriage certificate NOT marriage license!

Good luck!

Every area does it differently. Where I live, the marriage license iteself becomes the marriage certificate. It isn't important which it is (or the color) as long as it is certified once the ceremony is done and sent to the recorder's office.

The I-485 AOS instructions specifically request, and I believe the AOS interview letter does as well, that a CERTIFIED copy of the license or certificate is required, which can only be obtained from the government body that records the marriage.

Note: when originally submitting the AOS petition, a xerox copy (front and back, if applicable) of the CERTIFIED copy can be sent in; but it is necessary to take the original certified document obtained from the recorder's office to the AOS interview with you (as you should all originals) in case it is needed.

[kc456 0]

lol. Ours are white.

Ours is blue.

[Mirorgate 0]

BTW .. you need certified copy of your marriage certificate NOT marriage license!

What is the difference between them

Marriage License only states that you are both legally ABLE to be married, has expiration date on it if not used within 30-45 days.

Marriage Certificate is the signed by witnesses and JoP/Priest that you actually did get married, doesn't expire.

[kc456 0]

Marriage License only states that you are both legally ABLE to be married, has expiration date on it if not used within 30-45 days.

Marriage Certificate is the signed by witnesses and JoP/Priest that you actually did get married, doesn't expire.

Not quite right or may depend on the county you married.

Here's an example -- the document I used for my "certified copy" is a marriage abstract:

ARRIAGE ABSTRACT - A marriage abstract is a certified document that is used for most U.S. agencies and some foreign countries.

http://www.co.clark.nv.us/recorder/pdf/Mar...bstract%20W.pdf

From this link: http://www.co.clark.nv.us/recorder/certs.htm

[jaaaaamas 0]

Yeah they basically want the copy that has the actual stamped seal on it, if my memory is correct...

[Annman 0]

Marriage License only states that you are both legally ABLE to be married, has expiration date on it if not used within 30-45 days.

Marriage Certificate is the signed by witnesses and JoP/Priest that you actually did get married, doesn't expire.

Well our marriage license is huge,yellow and has two sides.On one there is the signeture of the priest seal nd so on and on the other the expiration date and so on.

So i wonder now what we have and what's it called

[Mirorgate 0]

Marriage License only states that you are both legally ABLE to be married, has expiration date on it if not used within 30-45 days.

Marriage Certificate is the signed by witnesses and JoP/Priest that you actually did get married, doesn't expire.

Well our marriage license is huge,yellow and has two sides.On one there is the signeture of the priest seal nd so on and on the other the expiration date and so on.

So i wonder now what we have and what's it called

A Marriage Lerticate? Honestly I do not know. I have seen my brothers' who was married in Cali, different than what you speak of (married in N Cali), Iowa, 2 distinct items, license and Cert, here in CO, NY, NH, and VT.... i have always seen them as being 2 distinct documents. So, I really do not know what the dbl-sided one would be, but I beleive that if you take a copy of the witnessed and signed part by Priest (where was that issued by the way? just curious) that should be sufficient.. but I suppose you could always call your local center and ask to be positive.