Can you become a U.S. citizen by marriage?

When you have a U.S. spouse, you can apply for U.S. citizenship in three years instead of the normal five years. This shorter timeline can be incredibly helpful but also requires careful planning to get all the necessary documents and fill out the necessary forms. So the best approach is to start planning right away!

How do you become a U.S. citizen through marriage?

To qualify, you must have lived in the U.S. continuously for the three years immediately preceding the date you file Form N-400, Application for Naturalization. You must be married to a citizen the entire time; and your spouse must have been a U.S. citizen for the entire time.

What happens when you marry an American citizen?

After marrying a US citizen you will not immediately become eligible to apply for US citizenship. However, as the spouse of a US citizen, you will be classed as an “immediate relative” and, accordingly, you will be eligible to apply for permanent residence, or what is commonly known as a green card.

Do you automatically become a U.S. citizen through marriage?

If you remain married to and living with your U.S. husband for three years from the date of your approval for conditional residence, you can finally apply for U.S. citizenship (naturalization).

How long does it take to become a U.S. citizen after marriage?

Who Qualifies For Citizenship? All green card holders, as long as they meet key conditions, can apply for U.S. citizenship after five years (known as the “five-year rule”) — but those with a U.S. spouse and a green card through marriage can apply after only three years (known as the “three-year rule”).

Green Card through Marriage to US Citizen Process Explained (2020-2021)

What happens if you overstay your visa and get married?

If you overstay your visa for less than 180 days, you may leave the U.S. and apply for a Green Card through consular processing. If your overstay has been more than 180 days, the only option is to wait for your spouse to become a U.S. citizen and then apply for I-485 Adjustment of Status inside the U.S.

How long do I have to be married to get a green card?

USCIS will issue you a conditional Marriage Green Card if you have been married for less than 2 years at the time of your interview. You can apply for a permanent Marriage Green Card after two years of marriage. Check out this article for more information on how to apply for a Marriage Green Card.

What is the benefit of marrying a U.S. citizen?

Ability to Apply for U.S. Citizenship Earlier Than Most

There's yet another benefit to being married to a U.S. citizen: Three years from the date you become a permanent resident, you can apply for U.S. citizenship, so long as you remain married to and living with the citizen all the way up to the swearing-in ceremony.

How long after marrying a U.S. citizen can I get a green card?

The current total wait time for a marriage-based green card ranges between 11 to 56 months, depending on whether you are married to a U.S. citizen or green card holder and where you currently live (not including possible delays).

What is the penalty for marrying for citizenship?

The text of the law is very clear. Any person, whether a citizen or a non-citizen, who intentionally commits marriage fraud for immigration purposes faces up to five years in prison as well as a $250,000 fine.

What happens when a U.S. citizen marries a non U.S. citizen?

If you are a green card holder and not a U.S. citizen, your spouse must maintain valid immigration status in the United States while waiting for lawful permanent resident status. To maintain proper immigration status, your spouse must have a valid visa until filing their green card application through Form I-485.

Can I marry a U.S. citizen on a tourist visa?

Can I Marry A US Citizen on A Tourist Visa? The short answer is: yes, you can get married in the US while on a B-1/B-2 tourist visa or on a visa waiver program. There is nothing in the regulations that say individuals who are in the US as visitors cannot get married.

Can you lose your green card if you get divorced?

The vast majority of green card holders are mostly unaffected by a divorce. If you are already a lawful permanent resident with a 10-year green card, renewing a green card after divorce is uneventful. You file Form I-90, Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card, to renew or replace the green card.

Can I stay in U.S. while waiting for marriage green card?

In most cases, spouses who are eligible to adjust status prefer to do so. It allows the foreign spouse to stay in the United States while waiting for the marriage green card.

Who gets a 10-year green card?

If you got your residency through your employer or your parent or adult child or brother or sister you will be issued the regular 10-year card. Also if you get residency through marriage and have been married more than two years at the time you are granted then you also will get the regular 10-year card.

Can I stay in America if I marry an American?

A marriage green card allows the spouse of a U.S. citizen or green card holder to live and work anywhere in the United States. A green card holder will then have “permanent resident” status until they apply for U.S. citizenship, if they choose to do so.

Can a deported person come back legally by marrying a citizen?

Can a deported person come back legally by marrying a citizen? Often yes (unless prior marriage fraud) after an immigrant petition approved and waiver(s) granted.

What happens if you marry a U.S. citizen and then divorce?

An immigrant who has been married to and living with a U.S. citizen has to wait only three years after getting a green card to become a naturalized citizen. After your divorce, however, you will no longer qualify for this exception, and will have to wait the usual five years before becoming a U.S. citizen.

Can I apply for U.S. citizenship after 3 years of marriage?

Living in marital union with the citizen spouse for at least 3 years preceding the time of filing the naturalization application (the citizen spouse must have been a U.S. citizen for those 3 years).

What happens if you get a divorce after green card?

If you already have a green card and are a permanent resident at the time of the divorce, the divorce should not change your status. However, the divorce may force you to wait longer to apply for naturalization. In this case, you would need to wait five years, rather than three.

Can I apply for green card immediately after marriage?

When can I apply for a green card? You can start the process to obtain a green card immediately after you have evidence of a bona fide marriage. Yes, you will definitely need a photocopy of your marriage certificate. But you'll also need to prove that you have a genuine marriage.

Can you go to jail for overstaying your visa?

“[U]under current law, illegal entry into the United States makes an alien subject to a Federal criminal misdemeanor with a maximum penalty of 6 months in prison. However, unlawful presence itself, such as by overstaying a visa, is not a criminal offense, but only a civil ground of inadmissibility…

How can I stay in the US legally?

The largest group to enter the U.S. by far comes by way of family-based immigration. U.S. citizens and legal residents can bring foreign spouses or fiances, as well as unmarried children. They may also sponsor siblings 21 or older and parents. Another way is through a work visa.

Can my wife cancel my spouse visa?

The quick answer is that your husband can't cancel your spouse visa. That is because your spouse visa was issued by the Home Office and not by your husband or spouse.