Tourist Visa and Marrying a US citizen

My finance is from England. He came over for a visit right before the volcanic ash cloud erupted, he is on a visitors visa. His return home wsa delayed and his visa will exp next month. He wants to stay and I want him to stay. I make plenty of money so supporting him is not an issue.

What are our options? Can we marry and apply for status change before his visa expires? We are planning to hire an attorney just wanting to know what the actual options are.

Thanks for any feedback.

Thank you so much for the reply. What do you mean the 90?? I think we have really messed up now. On his passport his visa says it expires Sept which would be 6 months. Have we read something wrong in this??

Yep panic is setting in now.

Ok looked at his passport, he has a stapled card that says Admitted to chicago March 19, 2010 and under the stamp of Sept 18, 2010. Says class B2.

Thanks again for all your feedback

Hello

I am from Venezuela ( female ) my fiance is from US ( male ) we want to marry soon in the US cause he can't  come to Venezuela due to work and his children. I plan to visit him soon and would like to marry while i visit the US and file for residency  so we don't have to be appart anymore ( too painful )

What documents did you need in order to get married in the US with a US citizen and what were the exact steps you took to do so ??

How long did the whole process take and how much did it cost you ???

Thank you so much .

Worried sick from Venezuela

Mo (the wife to be)

I have a couple of comments relating to Rocktosh's answer to Mo's question. First of all, to the best of my knowledge, Venezuela is not a visa waiver country, so a Venezuaelan citizen would need to apply for a US visa in order tro come here as a visitor.This in turn, requires proof of intention to return to Venezuaela after the visit to the US, as Rocktosh correctly states. However, as Rocktosh also correctly mentions, someone entering as a visitor is allowed to change his or her mind and decide to get married and apply for a green card, as long as this is done after a decent interval of time has passed. The minimum is 30 days after arrival in the US.

Second, if one enters the US with a valid visa, as opposed to a visa waiver, there is no bar to applying to adjust status to permanent reaident based on a marriage to a US citizen even after the person's permission to remain in the US has expired. (The length of time one is allowed to stay is not governed by the date on the passport visa stamp, but by the expiration date on the person's I-94 departure card, which is issued at the port of entry in the US). This is different from the rule that applies if the person enters with a visa vaiver. Someone who enters with a visa waiver must, as Rocktosh correctly mentions, file for the green card before the I-94 expiration date.

Finally, Rocktosh states that it normally takes 1-2 years from filing to receive a green card based on marriage to a US citizen. This used to be the case a few years ago. The experience that my clients have been having recently, both in New York, where I am located, and in other areas of the US, is that it now takes only 2-3 months after filing to get the green card interview, and as long as no problem about the marriage relationship or ability to support comes up, the green card is usually issued within two oe three weeks after the interview.

This is general onformation only, not legal advice, and this information does not create an attorney-client relationship.

Roger Algase

Attorney at Law

New York NY

algaselex@gmail.com

Rocktosh, you are correct that someone who overstays permission to stay in the US is at risk of deportation, even if the person has filed for a green card based on marriage to a US citizen. For many years, the INS and later on, USCIS, had a policy that somone who filed for adjustment of status to green card would be safe from deportation while the application was pending, even if the person had overstayed or otherwise lost his or her legal status at the time of applying. But in 2009, USCIS issued a memo saying that this would no longer be the case.

However, to the best of my knowledge, the new policy has not been enforced very strictly, if at all. Recently, a client of mine who entered the US legally and later on married a US citizen, but who had been out of status for more than half a year, applied for a green card. Even though this was fully disclosed in the green card application, no questions were asked and the green card was granted without any problem around 2-3 months after the application was filed.

Even more recently, another client, in a different part of the US, had a similar result after having stayed in the US for more than a year after losing previous legal status. Again, the facts were fully disclosed in the green card application, as of course they must be.

The important point is whether someone who applies for a green card through marriage to a US citizen orginially entered the US with a valid visa. If so, then, as long as the person did not misrepresent his or her intentions in obtaining the visa and entering the US, overstaying or failing to comply with the conditions of the visa will not bar the person from applying for a green card in the US based on marriage to a US citizen.

However, as you have mentioned previously, this generous rule does not apply to someone who entered with a visa waiver. Because of a recent decision, USCIS will not allow someone who overstays a visa waiver (which can be given for up to 90-days at a time only) to apply for a green card without leaving the US, even if married to a US citizen.

You also express surprise that green card marriage case interviews are being scheduled so quickly after filing, namely 2-3 months instead of 1-2 years as used to be the case. I think many of us are surprised. Within the past 3-4 years, these interviews have been greatly speeded up. Also, at least in my experience, the training that interviewing officers receive has greatly improved. I have been very impressed with their professionalism in most of the recent cases I have encountered.

Sometimes, the immigration system has a way of coming up with pleasant surprises. I think all of us wish this would happen more often. However, there can also be a downside. In New York City, for example, it has been announced that the immigration interview office, which is now located in a nearby suburb, is being moved to a more distant location at least 1-2 hours away from the city. While this may (we hope) help in keeping the wait for an interview short, it will be a hardship for many people who need to travel the long distance to get there.

The above is general information only, not legal advice, and does not create an attorney-client relationship.

Roger Algase

Attorney at Law

New York NY

algaselex@gmail.com

First of all thank you for all the information, it is really helpful.

Is it really necessary to consult or use a lawyer in this kind of situation? My bro is a US citizen and planning to marry his gf from Hongkong, she's been here in the US last month ( she has a tourist visa). If they decide to get married, how long should they wait ? And can she leave the US?

Dear Cherryt

It is not absolutely necessary to use a lawyer for this kind of case. However, using a lawyer can avoid mistakes in the application which might delay a case for many months or possibly lead to other complications. It is like having a good insurance policy.

Normally, the couple can marry and start the green card application process any time after the foreign citizen has been in the US for at least 30 days. However, waiting a little longer, say 45-60 days after entry, is often not a bad idea. This would be in order to show that she did not come to the US with the intention to marry a US citizen and apply for a green card, which would be inconsistent with entering as a tourist, but that she changed her mind later on, which is permissible.

The above is general information only, not legal advice, and does not create an attorney-client relationship.

Best wishes and good luck.

Roger Algase

Attorney at Law

New York NY

algaselex@gmail.com

Thanks for the quick reply.....

Can she leave the US while she's waiting for her greencard?