Visa issues after getting married to a LPR?

[The Big Lake 0]

Hi,

My girlfriend and I want to marry this summer. She is a LPR living in the US and I’m a German citizen, living in Germany. The plan is to visit her, get married and I will leave the US a couple of days later to return to Germany. Do you see any issues with that?

I know that if we get married and apply for family based greencard, it will take approximately 3 years until I can move to the US and live together with her. Is that estimated time for the whole process correct? If we marry in the summer of 2013, will I be able to move in Summer 2016?

Of course I would like to come to the US earlier, if possible. Therefore, I’m looking for a job that is willing to sponsor me a H1B visa, respectively I try get relocated by my current employer on a L-visa. I read that this will become significantly harder after we get married and the F2A petition is pending. Is that correct or would it still be possible to receive such a visa?

How is the situation if I just want to visit here as a tourist (VWP, no longer than 90 days). Would that be possible or is likely to get rejected at the airport?

I’m grateful for every advice; it is a real hard situation to be separated from my fiancée.

[Penguin_ie 5,993]

No issues with getting married and leaving, or visiting during the wait, especially if you have ties to Germany (lease/ ownership of home, good job to go back to). 3 years should get you over, it currently takes 2 years 3.5 months for the priority date to become current (http://travel.state.gov/visa/bulletin/bulletin_5900.html), plus some processing time, but of course the wait time may be more-or less!- by the time your priority date is due.

You should be ok to get a H1b, as it is a dual intent visa (ie it is ok to go over with the intention of staying).

[Athena June 37]

Welcome to VJ!

We are in a similar situation: my husband is a LPR in the US, I am a Finnish citizen líving in Germany. We married in the US in the summer of 2011 while I was visiting on VWP, and then filed our I-130. I had no problems entering the US even though I was upfront about our plans to get married during the visit. It's been almost two years now and we hope we'll be finished with the visa process before the end of this year.

I have visited my husband once after we got married, and although the official at the airport gave me some hard time, he let me through without even asking for my return ticket or any other evidence of my ties back to Europe. I will be flying back to Boston this weekend for two weeks, and I hope going through immigration will go smoothly. I will take with me a return ticket of course, a letter from my employer confirming that I work for them and the date when I am expected to return to work, my last salary slip showing that I have a permanent contract, etc.

Is your fiancée eligible for naturalization any time soon? Her becoming a US citizen would help you get the visa faster.

Best of luck!

[The Big Lake 0]

Thank you both for these great answers. They clarify a lot and give me hope that this process will work out for us.

So far, I tried to understand the F2A process. After we get married (and receive the official documents), we can file the I-130 and then all we do is waiting until my priority date is becoming current. As soon as this happens, I can schedule an interview at the consulate in Germany and will receive the GC a couple of weeks later. Is that correct or did I miss something? Does she also have to go for an interview, at which point of the process?

@Athene June

Did you tell the immigration officer that you want to get married without him asking or did he already suspect it for some reason?

Unfortunately, my girlfriend got her GC just last year, so no chance of becoming a citizen anytime soon.

[Penguin_ie 5,993]

You re missing the visa part

If you pass the interview and get approved, you get a visa in your passport (most likely, they keep the passport after interview and send it to you by post a couple weeks later with the visa in it). Once you immigrate to the USA, the greencard gets sent to your US address a few weeks later.

[The Big Lake 0]

You re missing the visa part

If you pass the interview and get approved, you get a visa in your passport (most likely, they keep the passport after interview and send it to you by post a couple weeks later with the visa in it). Once you immigrate to the USA, the greencard gets sent to your US address a few weeks later.

That process sounds pretty straight forward. One thing I just noticed is that my passport will expire in 2015. Can that be a problem or is not critical to come to interview - let's assume in 2016 - with a new passport/a different passport then when the application was filed?

I once read that there is a difference in the processing time of the I-130 depending on where it is filed. Is this true?

[Athena June 37]

@Athene June

Did you tell the immigration officer that you want to get married without him asking or did he already suspect it for some reason?

Unfortunately, my girlfriend got her GC just last year, so no chance of becoming a citizen anytime soon.

I offered the information straight away. He asked me what the purpose of my visit was and I just replied that I was getting married and having my honeymoon in the US. He asked a few more questions, but didn't ask to see my return ticket or anything. Some of our guests flying in from Europe were apparently questioned at the border, but as soon as they told the officer they were coming to a wedding, they were let through :-).

I know the F2A process is really hard, but it's possible to make it work. Best is to file as soon as possible to get a place in the queue, and then try to see each other regularly.

[Athena June 37]

That process sounds pretty straight forward. One thing I just noticed is that my passport will expire in 2015. Can that be a problem or is not critical to come to interview - let's assume in 2016 - with a new passport/a different passport then when the application was filed?

I once read that there is a difference in the processing time of the I-130 depending on where it is filed. Is this true?

I don't think the passport matters. I changed my last name after we got married, and I got a new passport with the new name a couple of months after we had submitted our I-130. Given the long wait times in F2A, it's normal that people's passports expire.

The processing time at the USCIS stage depends on the service center where your petition ends up. F2A cases are sent either to the Vermont Service Center or to the California Service Center, and you can follow their processing times on the USCIS website (https://egov.uscis.gov/cris/processTimesDisplayInit.do). The cut-off dates in the Visa Bulletin can be different for different countries, but at the moment it's only Mexico that is a couple of weeks behind the rest of us.

[The Big Lake 0]

I don't think the passport matters. I changed my last name after we got married, and I got a new passport with the new name a couple of months after we had submitted our I-130. Given the long wait times in F2A, it's normal that people's passports expire.

The processing time at the USCIS stage depends on the service center where your petition ends up. F2A cases are sent either to the Vermont Service Center or to the California Service Center, and you can follow their processing times on the USCIS website (https://egov.uscis.gov/cris/processTimesDisplayInit.do). The cut-off dates in the Visa Bulletin can be different for different countries, but at the moment it's only Mexico that is a couple of weeks behind the rest of us.

In my case it will be the Texas Service Center. Just to make sure: Will my priority date be when the Service Center receives my I-130 or after they have processed it? What happens in case they find a mistake in the I-130 (which I will make 200% sure that it's not going to happen ).

Edited March 22, 2013 by The Big Lake

[Athena June 37]

In my case it will be the Texas Service Center. Just to make sure: Will my priority date be when the Service Center receives my I-130 or after they have processed it? What happens in case they find a mistake in the I-130 (which I will make 200% sure that it's not going to happen ).

Actually, unless the procedures change, your case will also go to either Vermont or California. I've never come across an F2A case that had been sent to Texas (but with the workload transfers taking place these days you never know, of course). Your priority date will be the date the service center receives the petition.

If they find a mistake in the petition, they would normally send you an RFE (request for evidence), giving you a chance to correct it.

[The Big Lake 0]

Once we are married and received the official documents, can we petition the I-130 immediately or would you recommend a certain waiting time before this is done?

[Athena June 37]

Once we are married and received the official documents, can we petition the I-130 immediately or would you recommend a certain waiting time before this is done?

You can send the petition immediately, in fact the sooner the better!

[HiRnA 0]

I have a question...Can a Green Card holder file petition for spouse and then return to home country by taking re-entry permit for 2 yrs. Stay with spouse and when the PD become current, return back to US and do paperwork at NVC. My point is, can this be an issue for petitioner's spouse during his/her Interview...can they ask why the petitioner did not stay in US...??? As far as financial support is concerned, the petitioner have relatives who can sign I-864A form to support.

I am asking this question coz this thing has been done by many people and their spouses have got Visas...

Comments appreciated.