Legally married but not living together because of religious ceremony not done yet

[jatt1188 0]

Hi, my wife came to US on k1 fiance visa and we got our court marriage done and applied for Adjustment of status. Our religious marriage is not done yet so we don't live together yet as its not permitted by religion (Sikhism). Other than that we meet almost every other week.

Will this cause any issue during interview.

[TBoneTX 46,443]

*** Thread moved from "AOS from WS&T Visas" main forum to the AOS/Family-Based main forum -- adjustment is from a K-1. ***

[Boiler 46,412]

Yes

[G Walters 136]

Yes married is married. You need to provide bonfied proof of a marriage and co mingling of assets for the interview. You need to provide a lot of info and need to know a lot of info on each other . You may have a lot of problems proving your selves for the aos interview

[A'n'L 735]

Hi, my wife came to US on k1 fiance visa and we got our court marriage done and applied for Adjustment of status. Our religious marriage is not done yet so we don't live together yet as its not permitted by religion (Sikhism). Other than that we meet almost every other week.

Will this cause any issue during interview.

So my immediate questions (as I believe anyone, and especially the interviewer will share) are:

- Why haven't you done the religious ceremony yet? Can't this be expedited?

- Why do you only see each other every other week? Do you live far apart?

- WHEN will you get married and start your true marital union with living together and sharing every day together? What are your plans?

- Where and with whom does you wife live now? Why? Who pays/arranges for her accommodation?

Prepare good answers/solutions for these questions along with A LOT of other evidence of co-mingling and bona fide relationship/marriage.

I have no idea how problematic it will be for you to be approved, but I'm sure it will be far from easy.

[mallafri76 1,012]

It's too late now but if a religious wedding ceremony is that important, you really should have spent the six month K-1 process on planning a religious wedding ceremony for when your foreign spouse entered the US. You need to do that asap now.

You came to the US on a K-1 visa, with the obligation to get married within 90 days or your foreign spouse had to go back home. In the eyes of US immigrations and the state you live in, you're married, and you need to show proof of that bona fida relationship during your AOS. How are you gonna do that when you just meet "almost every other week"? I can buy that you don't live together yet, maybe that can be explained to US immigrations at your AOS, but to only see each other two days a month?!?! I live in Sweden, my husband lives in Texas. It takes me 22 hours to get to him, which includes a train ride, three flights and a car drive, and we still see each other more than you do, if you combine all the face to face time... There is no way you can justify having gotten married on the K-1 visa and then only seeing each other two days a month. US immigrations will not buy it.

You need to start seeing each other much more often and you need to get that religious wedding ceremony done, like yesterday.

Edited October 25, 2015 by mallafri76

[Penguin_ie 5,997]

Yes this will be an issue. If it was just a couple of weeks, no issue but it sounds like this is long term. As a previous reply said, please give us a timeline so we can advice better; when did she arrive, when did you get married, when will the religious wedding be and why the delay?

Questions that will certainly come up: why do you only see eachother "almost every second week"? Why not daily after work? Do you have other proof of a bonafide marriage (joint finances, lots of time spent together- it is ok if a chaperone is present?

[Sukie 1,479]

I am hoping that you are able to explain the circumstances of your religious rules, and that you will have a sympathetic clerk who goes through your AOS packet. You will fare much better if you can outline, in a cover letter, the facts that 1) you have had a civil ceremony, 2) your religion states that you do not live together as spouses until you have had a proper religious ceremony, and 3) your religious ceremony is planned on xx/xx/xxxx (with lots of data to prove that it is already planned).

Otherwise, in the eyes of a normal clerk, you really have a marriage designed to get someone to the US, but you have no plans to be a couple, which will guarantee a very rigorous interview, if you get that far.

You may really have to educate USCIS this time around - Sikhism is not that well known in the US.

I believe the key to any kind of success lies in the fact that your religious ceremony MUST BE PLANNED (with proof) before you submit your AOS.

Best of luck to you and your spouse!!!

Sukie in NY

[Boiler 46,412]

There was a Sikh wedding in Bend it Like Beckham.

Pretty common in the UK, no idea why there has been a delay, OP never mentioned, could have been done a loooong time ago.

[Dave&Roza 748]

For the AOS all you really need to do is show that you got married within the 90 days. It does help if you show a common address too. However, you WILL have issues with the ROC in two years. They look at your lives from the time of marriage--the court house marriage--to the date of filing the ROC. You will need to explain why you are not living together and are delaying the religious marriage. You had almost 9 months--the 6 months for entering the US on the K-1 after it was issued to the 90 days to get married after entering the US--to plan the religious marriage.

Be prepared to explain this at either the AOS stage or the ROC stage.

Dave

Edited October 26, 2015 by Dave&Roza