Maybe this is directed more at Mr. Knowitall, but i have seen the same comments quite a few times recently with regards to marriage. If you want to marry your US Citizen girlfriend, it is not mandatory for you to leave first? Am I correct? If you qualify for marriage you should be able to get married in the US and then have the wife petition to adjust his status? My wife was out of status and she did not have to leave in order for us to get married and petition her. I guess I can see why immigration would tell him that he has to leave and face the 10 year exclusion, that is the letter of the lawy, but he should be able to marry and then start the process of adjusting status.