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I am a US citizen, my fiance and I plan to get married. The problem is she is of illegal alien status. She came to the United States on the tourist visa and has a passport. Her tourist visa has expired years ago, but she still resides in the States. what legal ramifications due I face if I marry her? Is there a way for her to get ger green card without having to leave the states?
Unfortunately, no.Quote:
Is there a way for her to get ger green card without having to leave the states?
Amnesty provisions expired in 2001. If you intend to marry, you really need to talk to an immigration lawyer.
I've read in other posts that talk about adjusting the status after they get married. Is that an option that I can take? She came to the states when she was 15, I think, with a tourist visa. Now she is 21. She came here legally but now has overstayed and is considered "illegal"
No. Adjusting status is only viable for people who are here legally - for example, came here on a fiancee visa and got married prior to its expiration.
She is not here legally.
You need to speak with an immigration attorney.
Kdragon...the answers you got so far are wrong. You CAN marry her and she CAN adjust status based on the marriage. Below is a link on immigraiton through a family member. The key is that she entered the country legally,via inspection and just overstayed. Hopefully she still has a copy of her expired Visa (i-94) She is allowed to adjust the status if you marry her.
DO NOT LET HER LEAVE THE US BEFORE YOU GET THE GREEN CARD...she will be subject to a 3-10 year ban on re-entry.
The process can take anywhere from 6 months to 3 years, depending on how busy they are...first you get married .Some countys require a SSN, but other do not. The rule as written is that IF you have a SSN you must report it on the marriage application...but some jurisdiction intrepret that as you must HAVE a SSN. So if your county requires, search around for other county or state.
Then you Petition your wife for Citizenship, she applies to adjust her status, and also applies for a work permit, while the Permanant residence is pending.
Also, it is going to cost quite a bit, 3000-6000 and the ICE goes under the assumption that all marriages to foreign nationals are fraudulant, and you have to PROVE that it is a real marriage.
Good luck
http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/usc...0045f3d6a1RCRD
Thanks for the clarification. Are there things that I need to do prior to getting married or should I wait till afterwards? I am an active duty servicemember, does that in anyway affect the process, like time and cost?
No, there are no special breaks on time or cost for servicemen...there are a few specific things likeif you are overseas during the process. How to fill out the forms, where to file..etc
As far as preparation, you will need to start gathering "evidence" of your life together...prior to marriage we are talking about pictures of you together on trips, at family gatherings..etc. Cards, like valentines day cards...letters...Good evidence of a normal courtship.... once you marry, it is important to show that you have expenses/assets/liabilities together.
We do have a lot of pictures showing us being together and I do plan on adding her on to my accounts, etc after we get married. Is it wise that we talk to an immigration lawyer prior to getting married?
Definately you are going to want to talk to an immigration lawyer...make sure it is someone who deals with lots of immigration. A "Family Law" lawyer will know some, but may not be aware of all of the intricacies.
Before the marriage, the lawyer will help with some of the "evidence' you will need with regards to that. Remember that ICE will assume a false marriage.....one thing my lawyer suggested is to get married in the place you live, if at all possible. Going to Vegas will give the appearance of "not family blessed" type wedding. Having a reception is important, even on a small scale.
One thing we did that really impressed the ICE officer at our interview was to put the digital pictures on a power point presentation and add text, explaining what the pictures are and who is in them. Takes time, but well worth it.
The state that we live in (TN) does not offer marriage licenses without both people having SSNs, so we will have to get married in a different state. I assume you have been through this process already seeing that you know a lot of the details. About how much is it to hire an immigration lawyer for a case like this? You mentioned earlier that it costed somewhere between 3-6 grand, is that just for the paperwork? Or more like the whole deal?
3000-6000 is for both the lawyer and the forms for all the 2-3 process of the permanant residency...lawyer should be about 2000, depending on how complicated your case is...You havent mentioned anything unusual that would need more work from a lawyer. You will probably find that if you investigate the forms, you may start feeling like you can do it on your own, without a lawyer. It help just to make sure you dont miss that one little detail...like using a blue pen or black pen...some of the forms actually have that requirement. That is why you want a very experienced lawyer...if you get someone who has done minimal work on immigration, then it would be no different than you trying to do it yourself.
On the www.uscis.gov website, there is also a process where you can go to your local office and talk with someone...INFOPASS...you will make an appointment at your closest office and they can give you some advice as well
Please, if you are doing this process...feel free to update your thread. I am in somewhat of a similar situation and would like to hear about the process from someone actually currently going through it.