Fiancés and Foreign Spouses

I want my French fiancé to live and work in America. How can I do this?

You need to file a petition with USCIS on behalf of your fiancé for a "K-1" visa. You will use a USCIS Form I-129, Petition for Alien Fiancé(e), along with numerous other documents. Check the USCIS Web site for the most current list. The documents must be filed with the Regional Service Center nearest to your home. After the petition is approved, your fiancé must obtain a visa issued at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate abroad. The marriage must then take place within 90 days of your fiancé entering the country. If the marriage does not take place within this time frame or your fiancé marries someone other than you, your fiancé will be required to leave the country. A fiancé may not obtain an extension of the 90-day original nonimmigrant admission.

If your fiancé intends to live and work permanently in the United States, he or she should apply to become a permanent resident (green card holder) after your marriage by filing a USCIS Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, and should apply for a work permit at the same time. Your fiancé will then receive conditional permanent residence status for 2 years. Conditional permanent residency is granted when the marriage creating the relationship is less than 2 years old at the time of adjustment to permanent residence status

If he or she does not intend to become a permanent resident after your marriage, your new spouse must leave the country within the 90-day original nonimmigrant admission.

I was married abroad and want to bring my foreign spouse to live in the United States. How do I do this?

If you are a U.S. citizen, your spouse is considered an immediate relative and is immediately eligible for an immigrant visa if your petition is approved. If a U.S. citizen marries an alien abroad, an I-130 petition must be filed after the marriage to begin the immigration process for the alien spouse. Generally, if your spouse is lawfully in the United States at the time you file the Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, your spouse may file Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or to Adjust Status, at the same time. If your spouse is outside the United States, he or she will need to go to the nearest U.S. Consulate to apply for an immigrant visa.

If you are a lawful permanent resident and your petition for your spouse is approved, the Department of State will notify your spouse when a visa number is available. If your spouse is outside of the country at the time of notification, he or she must then go to the local U.S. Consulate to complete the visa paperwork. If your spouse is in the United States through a lawful admission or parole and is maintaining that status at the time of notification, he or she may file Form I-485 when the visa number becomes available.

If you were married before you became a permanent resident, your spouse may be eligible to receive following-to-join benefits. This means that you do not have to submit a separate Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, for your spouse, and your spouse does not have to wait any extra time for an immigrant visa to become available.

If you were married less than 2 years before applying for a green card, you will be given "conditional permanent" status. You must request that the condition be removed after 2 years. But you must file for this removal of conditional status 90 days before its expiration. You do this by filing a USCIS Form I-751, Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence.

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