Can a Green Card Holder bring a fiancee?

[Charles C 0]

My step-daughter holds a green card and is 18 years old. Her boyfriend is 21 and in Honduras. If they want to have him come to the US, can she apply for a K-1 visa for him? Or can they get married in Honduras and then petition to come to the US?

They are not in a rush but they want to know what options exist for them. She will be attending college this fall and they hope to be together when she finishes. The young man is a good kid - no problems or reasons he would be banned from immigration. Just trying to determine options for them. Thanks in advance for any thoughts.

Charles

[Penguin_ie 5,993]

NO K1 fiance visas for greencard holders. If she wants to finish college first though, she'd likely be close to naturalising by the time she is finished anyways.

She can get married and petition him for a spousal visa; takes about 2.5-3 years for the spouse of a greencard holder.

[Charles C 0]

Thank you for the reply - that clarifies the situation. I know her mother will not be excited about her getting married, so this will help put the brakes on things! (Good kids - just too much of a rush!) Since she remains committed to finishing college, I will try to map out that path for them. Nothing like having a lot of goals to work toward!

Can you point to a typical timeline for a GC holder to removed conditions, then naturalize? It seems you have made that journey yourself, Queen Penguin!

It appears the ability for GC holders to petition for any relative is rather restricted.

Charles

[Penguin_ie 5,993]

Yes, greencard holders can only petition for spouses and kids.

She will remove conditions, if necessary, 2 years after she got her greencard. She can apply for naturalisation 5 years minus 90 days after she gets her greencard (look on the greencard for the "resident since..." date, dd 5 years, subtract 90 days). The naturalisation process can take anything from 2 months to 6 or more, depending on the local USCIS office.