Under immigration law, a U.S. citizen may file a
petition to have his or her fiancee enter the U.S. to be
married. After
the immigration petition is approved, the fiancee obtains
a visa from the U.S. Embassy or consulate. The marriage
must take place within 90 days of the fiancee’s entry
into the U.S. or the fiancee will be required to leave. This 90-day
admission may not be extended.
As immigration attorneys, we
advise against having the fiancee enter
the U.S. on a tourist or other type of visa and then marry
because the immigration service may consider the visa to
have been fraudulently obtained if the fiancee's real purpose for
coming to the U.S. was to be married. Under
immigration law, this situation
could result in a subsequent marriage
immigration
petition being denied by the immigration service even
though the marriage is a true marriage (not just for
immigration green card purposes.)
To be eligible for a fiancee
visa, the U.S. citizen and the fiancee must have met in
person during the 2 years before the petition is approved
unless doing so would violate established religious or
cultural customs or would create extreme hardship for the
U.S. citizen. A fiancee’s unmarried children
under age 21 may accompany him or her to the U.S. on the
fiancee visa.
After the marriage, the
finacee (and his or her children) may remain in the U.S.
and apply to the immigration service for permanent
residency (a green card).
When You Need a Connecticut Immigration Lawyer,
Rely on Us for Skill, Determination
and Experience.
