Marriage Green Card Requirements – Marriage must be genuine
One of the keys element of a successful marriage based green card petition is to show that your marriage is genuine and not for immigration benefits. Below are some of the important marriage green card requirements that you need to satisfy:
- Valid recognized marriage between foreign spouse and U.S. citizen;
- Marriage in existence – i.e. not legally terminated, though in some cases, parties do not have to live together;
- If married before, that previous marriage has been legally terminated;
- Financial Support – The U.S. citizen must provide an affidavit of support, guaranteeing the support for the immigrant spouse for at least 10 years or until the immigrant spouse becomes a U.S. citizen. If the sponsor cannot meet this income requirement, then the sponsor may find other joint sponsors;
- Marriage must not be a sham and just for immigration purposes.
The process for green card through marriage is an extremely complex and detailed area of immigration law. If you are considering marriage or are married and you need permanent residence in the United States, contact us for a consultation.
You may be interested in the following pages:
- Proof of marriage
- Marriage with U.S. citizen
- Marriage with green card residence
- Marriage based adjustment of status
