Marriage Visas And The Law

Love sees no boundaries in nationality or religion. But there are certain norms that we all have to follow because we are living in a society.

So, once a US citizen decides to marry a person who is not a citizen of US, there is inevitably some "legal tangles". To cope with such a situation, the government of the US provides marriage visas which, though somewhat complex, is a real boon for such couples.

When a US citizen decides to marry a foreign national in the US itself, an application for a Fiance Visa must be lodged first. For this, one person should be a legal citizen of the US. The couple must be free to marry each other. This means both are unmarried or their previous marriage ended in annulment, divorce or death. Also, the marriage must be conducted within 90 days from the entry of your spouse to the US.

US marriage visa also allows you to apply for the visas of the unmarried children of your fiancee who are below 21 years of age. The marriage immigration process in the US is a very lengthy process. It is a time consuming procedure so you have to apply for well in advance.

One condition of the fiancee visa is that the relationship between the couple should have existed for the previous two years. However, this clause can be waved in case of certain special conditions.

Now after the marriage, it is followed an application for the immigrant visa number which is granted immediately, even if the person is already present in the US or is a Frequent Flier. After this, the marriage work permit is not required for your spouse. This is because your spouse is legally an immigrant or approved as permanent resident of the country. So, your spouse will get a Permanent Resident Card (Marriage Green Card) which allows your spouse to live and work in the US.

If your spouse is not in the US, then he/she will get a passport stamp on reaching the US. This will act as a work permit until a Green Card is provided. So, this way your spouse will become the permanent citizen of the US. Therefore, your spouse will live in the US with you and is also allowed to work and will enjoy all the facilities that are provided by the government to its citizens.

All these facilities are provided by the government in good faith with the intention of providing for the well being of its citizens. Unfortunately, this facility is widely misused. Some people visit the US and get married to a citizen by paying them a certain amount of money.

Thus, the marriage becomes a transaction just to get marriage visas. This is known as marriage green card or marriage immigration. Sometimes it is done to secure a marriage work permit. All of this is illegal and an unlawful practice. The US government verifies every document and has made this procedure lengthy just to control such illegal immigration.

With these facts on marriage visas, be careful and alert about the legal tangles. Remember, it is best to be on the right side of law.