Proxy marriage - but I go to Mexico daily

[emmaface 12]

Before I get into my marriage question, let me give you a little backstory:

I'm a USC, born in Vermont, and living in El Paso, Texas. Axel (my fiance who lives in Juarez) and I met on Myspace through mutual friends in August 2010. We hit it off right away and I got my passport card to go visit him a few weeks later. I started crossing more and more often until in January 2011, I got a SENTRI Card (commuter express lane pass) because I spend every night in Juarez and cross back to El Paso in the morning to go to work. Legally my address is in El Paso though, I get mail and have bank accounts and credit cards with my American address. Now we're ready to get married and start the immigration process. We have all our other documents prepared for the i-130 ....we just have to get married first. Here's the options we have, please advise me if I've made any mistakes in any of my assumptions:

1. Marry in U.S. - Axel doesn't have a tourist visa to come to America at all. He did as a teenager, over 10 years ago. He didn't get deported or overstay, he just stopped visiting and let it expire. This option is out.

2. Marry in Mexico - The actual wedding is cheap, but the permiso from the Mexican government is pricey and takes time.

3. Marry on an international bridge - I hear people talk about this all the time, but I can't find any concrete evidence on it. Not only does it supposedly cost upwards of $200, but I cant figure out the legality of it. Is it a US wedding? Is it a Mexican wedding? Does the Mexican need a tourist visa? In any case, it's costly.

4. Proxy marriage in Texas - Only $70, no waiting. I know people have had issues with proxy marriages but wait, hear me out: It seems to me, the big issue with proxy marriage is proving it's been consummated, which ends up difficult for couples who don't get to see each other often. But I go to Mexico literally every day. I can't remember the last time I spent the night away from my fiance. My SENTRI card and express lane stickers on my car directly attest to the fact that I'm American and visit Mexico daily. Geez, I could probably get an affidavit from a CBP agent, they see me every morning and they all know who I am! Clearly, there's no issue proving our marriage would be real and consummated, and we can come up with all types of indisputable proof to show it.

So in our case, would a proxy marriage be a good option? Or is there something more to it that I'm not aware of?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you!

[Ryan H 3,812]

Clearly, there's no issue proving our marriage would be real and consummated, and we can come up with all types of indisputable proof to show it.

IMO, this is the key right here, plenty of evidence that establishes legitimacy of your relationship. Since you have this evidence, the proxy marriage option is worth considering.

[TimeTravel 78]

Marriage is a very important part of life, and it has special memories for lifetime. Get a real feel marriage, pictures, etc. :-)

He may apply for tourist visa, and can come to USA.

[kzielu 1,149]

If you see each other daily, getting married through proxy just to save a little bit of money but potentially cause a whole bunch of trouble is - sorry - not very smart at all.

[Math Man 6]

Have you considered doing a K-1 visa instead? That would solve the problem.

In my own case, my wife and I got married in Mexico. Her dad had a friend who was a lawyer in the local immigration office, and he was able to speed up the process. But even without this extra help, I was told that getting permission to marry a Mexican national takes only about a month, which isn't bad when you compare it to the length of the entire immigration process.

[skiptex 225]

Before I get into my marriage question, let me give you a little backstory:

I'm a USC, born in Vermont, and living in El Paso, Texas. Axel (my fiance who lives in Juarez) and I met on Myspace through mutual friends in August 2010. We hit it off right away and I got my passport card to go visit him a few weeks later. I started crossing more and more often until in January 2011, I got a SENTRI Card (commuter express lane pass) because I spend every night in Juarez and cross back to El Paso in the morning to go to work. Legally my address is in El Paso though, I get mail and have bank accounts and credit cards with my American address. Now we're ready to get married and start the immigration process. We have all our other documents prepared for the i-130 ....we just have to get married first. Here's the options we have, please advise me if I've made any mistakes in any of my assumptions:

1. Marry in U.S. - Axel doesn't have a tourist visa to come to America at all. He did as a teenager, over 10 years ago. He didn't get deported or overstay, he just stopped visiting and let it expire. This option is out.

2. Marry in Mexico - The actual wedding is cheap, but the permiso from the Mexican government is pricey and takes time.

3. Marry on an international bridge - I hear people talk about this all the time, but I can't find any concrete evidence on it. Not only does it supposedly cost upwards of $200, but I cant figure out the legality of it. Is it a US wedding? Is it a Mexican wedding? Does the Mexican need a tourist visa? In any case, it's costly.

4. Proxy marriage in Texas - Only $70, no waiting. I know people have had issues with proxy marriages but wait, hear me out: It seems to me, the big issue with proxy marriage is proving it's been consummated, which ends up difficult for couples who don't get to see each other often. But I go to Mexico literally every day. I can't remember the last time I spent the night away from my fiance. My SENTRI card and express lane stickers on my car directly attest to the fact that I'm American and visit Mexico daily. Geez, I could probably get an affidavit from a CBP agent, they see me every morning and they all know who I am! Clearly, there's no issue proving our marriage would be real and consummated, and we can come up with all types of indisputable proof to show it.

So in our case, would a proxy marriage be a good option? Or is there something more to it that I'm not aware of?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you!

maybe you should understand the Immigration process alittle better BEFORE you run off and get married..

read these if you have already done so..

http://www.visajourney.com/content/compare

here are several threads on proxy marriage.. educate yourself..

http://www.visajourney.com/search/index.php?cx=007424365766759747816%3Auy9flr-th5y&cof=FORID%3A10&q=proxy+marriage&sa=Search&siteurl=www.visajourney.com%2Fforums%2Findex.php%3Fapp%3Dcore%26module%3Dsearch%26do%3Dnew_posts%26search_app%3Dforums%26sid%3D%252099076ade1a1a3ded7ade2bc5bcf19f92%26st%3D75

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/323317-recently-married-by-proxy/

ps.. why not K1.. its a little quicker..

have you looked at this.>?

getting Married is one thing... Getting your spouse into USA is another..

a marriage does not guaranty the other.. no will it speed it up.. good luck

[emmaface 12]

Good points all, thank you!

iwaiting: We aren't intending for the proxy or any marriage to be our "wedding" - we want to plan a real wedding ceremony in the States sometime within a year of his entry. We don't want a traditional ceremony in Mexico, because my family and much of his would not be able to attend. (most of his family is in the US already, and nobody wants to go to Juarez). So in any case, however we get legally married, our wedding will be later, after we have ample time to plan and prepare. We both consider "marriage" and "wedding" to be very different things. Marriage is the legal document. The wedding is the celebration for our families to share with us. I've seen it mentioned here that a religious ceremony in Mexico has no legal value, which is true, it's not a new concept to be married separately from the wedding, it's commonplace.

Also I didn't mention - we're both divorced, and our previous marriages weren't ideal nor traditional. We absolutely want to have the "real feel" marriage, it's very important to both of us to share that tradition with our families and friends. But the wedding will be separate from the marriage - and we're ok with that.

I did look over this page: http://www.visajourney.com/content/compare

And it's just steered us away from the K1 more. The only con for the IR1/CR1 is the applicant can't enter the US while it's being processed - but he can't enter anyway so it's a moot point. And this is the most important plus:

"IR1/CR1 Visas often do not take much longer than the K-3 Visa option. The benefit of entering the US and immediately becoming a US Legal Permanent Resident (Green Card Holder) to many people is worth the additional small wait in time."

That is absolutely worth the additional small wait in time for us, an added bonus is the significantly lower price. And it won't hurt to go ask at the consulate about DCF - yes it's "typically" only for USCs who legally reside in the other country, but it can't hurt to tell them our situation and see what they say. I drive by the consulate all the time, it'd be nice if I could just give them my documents in person instead of mailing them away, only to be sent there later. Save on postage haha!

I think I'll just do more research on getting married in Mexico. Math Man, I didn't realize it was only a month, I was under the impression that it was much more complicated! We already have our original birth certificates and divorce decrees - mine translated into Spanish with apostilles - so hopefully we don't need much else.

Thanks again for the advice, everyone!

[Matt & Rocio 28]

"IR1/CR1 Visas often do not take much longer than the K-3 Visa option. The benefit of entering the US and immediately becoming a US Legal Permanent Resident (Green Card Holder) to many people is worth the additional small wait in time."

Your two main choices are the K1 visa route or the CR-1 visa route. K3 visas are mostly irrelevant these days due to the processing time of the I-130 petition for an IR-1/CR-1 visa taking the same amount of time as the I-129f for a K-3 visa.

The main advantage to the K1 visa route is the visa will most likely be issued sooner than the CR-1 route based on current trends.

The main advantages of the CR-1 visa route is lower overall cost and your spouse can work legally in the US much sooner.

If you do qualify for DCF and it is offered at the local consulate that would be the way to go, because it is much faster than going through USCIS.

[Laure&Colin 558]

If you go to Mexico daily I'm not sure a proxy marriage would be a very good idea... The CO at your spouse's interview is bound to ask why you made that choice and might question the validity of the marriage.

You know, the whole process is a fight against a moutain of paperwork and procedures to follow. If you back up when the 1st hill comes, getting the wedding permission in Mexico, you're not done yet.

To get married in France, we had to have an apostille added to Colin's birth certificate by the state of California, and have everything translated by a sworn translator, but they only told us after we brought in all our documents and set our wedding date... It took weeks, it cost us an arm and a leg (fee for the apostille, cost of express UPS shipment to Europe, fee from the sworn translator...), not to mention the fact that we sent my mother in law from the Bay Area to Sacramento to have it done faster. But you know what? That was the EASIEST (and cheapest) part in the process so far.

[paojack 41]

I honestly would Not like to have my own wedding WITHOUT my loved one just to save some bucks. At the end of the day you still have to go thru all the immigration process so whats the point??

[JlovesL 0]

i say you go with the K1 visa since your not married yet. less paper work to begin.

or the CR1 visa. but you would have to marry in Mexico to start the I-130 process

and to get permission from the Mexican government takes about 2-3 weeks.

this is the route i took for me, but it all depends on you. CR1 might take a bit

longer but at the end so much better as you enter the USA as a resident plus cheaper

then the K1 visa.

[Orando 57]

That is cool you can go and see your man every day....very blessed with that, I can fly to Colombia easy enough from South Florida, but it is just not the same as driving across a border, jejejejeje. I got married in Colombia and we preferred the Spousal visa as well, I rather my wife wait in her home country the extra time, and arrive in the US ready to hit the ground running, plus her family attended the civil service in Colombia, my mom came as well, we will have a wedding ceremony in the US when she gets here. The K-1 visas have to spend all this time and extra money adjusting status, applying for work authorization, stuck in the house, etc, from what I read, it is agonizing for the immigrant.

With the fact set you gave, I would go spousal route as well. Do what you have to do and have a civil marriage in Mexico and get the legal document you need, file the I-130, continue to go and see your man everyday, when the visa finally comes through, bring him with you one of those trips, plan your wedding, and do it up big...

Peace...

[Mrs. Mason :-) 0]

If you see each other daily, getting married through proxy just to save a little bit of money but potentially cause a whole bunch of trouble is - sorry - not very smart at all.

May I interrupt pls. wanna ask so even seeing often like their situation... is it still a trouble once they start applying the visa? I have a friend just got married this month through proxy and we're worried how would things go smoothly since they have not meet face to face yet.

[emmaface 12]

Hi again, probably nobody's been watching this thread but just incase anyone else on the border has the same situation, I've gotten it cleared up and just wanted to share this info since I couldn't find it anywhere else. It's NOT a proxy marriage, it's a bonafide 100% authentic in-person wedding recognized by the State of Texas and the US Government. I don't know if other border cities have a similar process, but in El Paso County, it's quite commonplace for couples planning on immigration, and according to lawyers I've asked and anecdotal evidence, this United States marriage is a bit BETTER for immigration proceedings than a Mexican marriage. No need to translate or notarize or apostille any marriage documents, no medical exams, no prenuptual family talks, no special government permission.

First, a marriage license in Texas is $72. To file for it, if the MX citizen can't cross, they fill out an Affidavit of Absent Applicant for Marriage License. This is NOT the same as proxy marriage! Absent for the marriage license application, NOT absent for the marriage. In the space for the reason for absence, the county clerk instructed me to write "No visa to cross to United States." (anything feasible is valid: hospital stay, army deployment, unexpected out of town trip right before a planned wedding, it's not scrutinized much) Any mobile notary can walk to the center of an international bridge to notarize it with the MX citizen's signature. There are tons of notaries public in El Paso who do this. (it must be a United States notary. I'm shopping around for prices, first notary I asked charges $125, second charges $75.. waiting on more answers, but notaries are pretty much free to charge whatever they want, so I could find a cheaper one). The US Citizen brings the notarized affidavit, original birth certificates, original divorce papers, and original IDs to the county clerk and files for the marriage license (must be an original ID even for the absent person - but a passport is valid, I specifically asked since I don't want to take my fiance's ID card with me to El Paso for a day. I do still need to ask if his birth certificate and divorce papers need to be translated to English).

Texas has a 3 day waiting period before the license is issued, then the wedding must be performed within 30 days. Unlike Mexico, it doesn't matter one bit if one person isn't American. No special permission is needed, no nada. Texas doesn't care. I assume the US Citizen has to be a Texas resident, but I didn't ask about that since I hold TX residency.

Once you have the marriage license, one El Paso County judge, Judge Guadalupe Aponte, performs marriages on the Cordova International Bridge (the free bridge, the only one without a toll, at the end of US highway 54). The ceremony costs $155. Just like the notary, she walks halfway across the bridge to the international line, and performs the marriage ceremony exactly the same she would in a Texas courtroom, church, or backyard.

And there you have it. How to have a bonafide United States wedding without technically being on United States soil, with no proxy business. This happens ALL the time in El Paso, and the vast majority of the couples I know personally who have gone the marriage route for immigration have done it this way, including multiple members of my fiance's family.

I hope this can help someone!

[Iyawo Ijebu 157]

Hi again, probably nobody's been watching this thread but just incase anyone else on the border has the same situation, I've gotten it cleared up and just wanted to share this info since I couldn't find it anywhere else. It's NOT a proxy marriage, it's a bonafide 100% authentic in-person wedding recognized by the State of Texas and the US Government. I don't know if other border cities have a similar process, but in El Paso County, it's quite commonplace for couples planning on immigration, and according to lawyers I've asked and anecdotal evidence, this United States marriage is a bit BETTER for immigration proceedings than a Mexican marriage. No need to translate or notarize or apostille any marriage documents, no medical exams, no prenuptual family talks, no special government permission.

First, a marriage license in Texas is $72. To file for it, if the MX citizen can't cross, they fill out an Affidavit of Absent Applicant for Marriage License. This is NOT the same as proxy marriage! Absent for the marriage license application, NOT absent for the marriage. In the space for the reason for absence, the county clerk instructed me to write "No visa to cross to United States." (anything feasible is valid: hospital stay, army deployment, unexpected out of town trip right before a planned wedding, it's not scrutinized much) Any mobile notary can walk to the center of an international bridge to notarize it with the MX citizen's signature. There are tons of notaries public in El Paso who do this. (it must be a United States notary. I'm shopping around for prices, first notary I asked charges $125, second charges $75.. waiting on more answers, but notaries are pretty much free to charge whatever they want, so I could find a cheaper one). The US Citizen brings the notarized affidavit, original birth certificates, original divorce papers, and original IDs to the county clerk and files for the marriage license (must be an original ID even for the absent person - but a passport is valid, I specifically asked since I don't want to take my fiance's ID card with me to El Paso for a day. I do still need to ask if his birth certificate and divorce papers need to be translated to English).

Texas has a 3 day waiting period before the license is issued, then the wedding must be performed within 30 days. Unlike Mexico, it doesn't matter one bit if one person isn't American. No special permission is needed, no nada. Texas doesn't care. I assume the US Citizen has to be a Texas resident, but I didn't ask about that since I hold TX residency.

Once you have the marriage license, one El Paso County judge, Judge Guadalupe Aponte, performs marriages on the Cordova International Bridge (the free bridge, the only one without a toll, at the end of US highway 54). The ceremony costs $155. Just like the notary, she walks halfway across the bridge to the international line, and performs the marriage ceremony exactly the same she would in a Texas courtroom, church, or backyard.

And there you have it. How to have a bonafide United States wedding without technically being on United States soil, with no proxy business. This happens ALL the time in El Paso, and the vast majority of the couples I know personally who have gone the marriage route for immigration have done it this way, including multiple members of my fiance's family.

I hope this can help someone!

Wow..this is so very interesting..I never thought as such exists.

Thanks for sharing and in so vivid details too.