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need help marrying a man from a foreign country.

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Stuck_in_Kansas

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? Kansas

I am a United States resident, and I would like to marry my finacee from Sri Lanka. I am not sure who to contact on what needs to be done to be able to marry him. He is here on a student visa, and has one year left of college. He does not have a permit to work, however, he has been working and paying tax as if he was allowed to do so. I don't know how much trouble that is going to cause us either. I just found out he doesn't have a work permit.

Basically, I am just trying to determine what must be done to allow us to marry, and attempt to retain citizenship for him. I would rather stay in the US, if possible.

I am sure there is a ton a paperwork and hoops to jump through, but I have no clue what they are and what needs to be done to complete this mess. We were hoping to marry soon, but now after reading a few postings I am worried as to what needs to be done first for this to be legal.

Help is greatly appreciated.
Thank you
 


evcalyptos

Senior Member
Stuck_in_Kansas said:
What is the name of your state? Kansas

I am a United States resident, and I would like to marry my finacee from Sri Lanka. I am not sure who to contact on what needs to be done to be able to marry him. He is here on a student visa, and has one year left of college. He does not have a permit to work, however, he has been working and paying tax as if he was allowed to do so. I don't know how much trouble that is going to cause us either. I just found out he doesn't have a work permit.

Basically, I am just trying to determine what must be done to allow us to marry, and attempt to retain citizenship for him. I would rather stay in the US, if possible.

I am sure there is a ton a paperwork and hoops to jump through, but I have no clue what they are and what needs to be done to complete this mess. We were hoping to marry soon, but now after reading a few postings I am worried as to what needs to be done first for this to be legal.

Help is greatly appreciated.
Thank you
To be able to marry, look up the County or State rules for where you live. His immigration status has nothing to do with your legal marriage and you do not need to contact anyone other than the department that issues marriage licenses.
After you marry and get the official version of your marriage certificate, you file a packet of papers together: http://uscis.gov/graphics/howdoi/legpermres.htm

His illegal work will be forgiven based on his marriage to a US citizen. He may even be able to transfer his Social Security and tax information to his own name and Social Security account, when he gets one. His packet of papers will include work and travel permissions.

Citizenship is different from Permanent Resident status. He will have to have at least 3 years of PR before he can apply for US citizenship. He will need to file a further form after 2 years as a PR, to prove his continued marriage with you.

You should find out exactly which kind of visa he has (J-1, F-1 etc), if there are any conditions attached to it (2 year HRR etc), and how long his period of admission is for (stamped in his passport, may say D/S instead of a date). This information will help you get better information down the line.
 

Stuck_in_Kansas

Junior Member
Thank you, I will look into that. I can't remember what kind of visa he was issued, other than he is here on a student visa.

So basically, we are ok. We can get married, and then we need deal the rest of the paperwork for residency, and so forth.

Thank you very much for your time. I really appreciate it.
 

hbeh

Junior Member
I have some questions along the lines of marring a US citizen. I have gone through a few of the forms on the INS website and they ask for all kinds of information.

One of the lines that we have to fill out is annual income and a statement saying that the USC spouse will have to financially vouche for the green card (PR) applicant.

However, my fiance (Citizen) is currently still in graduate school and has no real source of income. Can she not sponser my green card application then even if we are married? Does she need to get her parents to sponser it?

thanks!
 

evcalyptos

Senior Member
hbeh said:
I have some questions along the lines of marring a US citizen. I have gone through a few of the forms on the INS website and they ask for all kinds of information.

One of the lines that we have to fill out is annual income and a statement saying that the USC spouse will have to financially vouche for the green card (PR) applicant.

However, my fiance (Citizen) is currently still in graduate school and has no real source of income. Can she not sponser my green card application then even if we are married? Does she need to get her parents to sponser it?

thanks!
http://uscis.gov/graphics/howdoi/affsupp.htm#sponsor
Read carefully. There is an important FAQ on the state.gov site as well.

It's a fairly serious contract, not just a statement. The I-864 can outlive the USC and divorce does not cancel the obligation.
 

evcalyptos

Senior Member
Stuck_in_Kansas said:
Thank you, I will look into that. I can't remember what kind of visa he was issued, other than he is here on a student visa.

So basically, we are ok. We can get married, and then we need deal the rest of the paperwork for residency, and so forth.

Thank you very much for your time. I really appreciate it.
Kansas, I will clarify something that I missed in your first post. My information ONLY applies if you (the US spouse) is a US citizen. I "think" you are, but you do say 'resident' in your first post.
Good luck with your case.
 

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