Q: Can my partner come to America (he’s British) to marry while on visa waiver program ? He does not intend on staying
He wants to come and us get married here and go back to UK before his visa expires and not commit visa fraud. From what I understand coming to the US with intent to marry and then adjust status can end in lots of problems . So if he comes on visa waiver , goes back to UK after wedding and we wait three months to apply for his greencard is this acceptable ? After all , he isn’t overstaying his visa , looking to adjust status as he returned home and waited a period of time would this be ok?
A:
You can marry in the United States right away, if you don't intend on Adjusting Status, otherwise known as applying for the Green Card. Having him return after waiting 90 days at home, and then adjusting status, won't remove the visa fraud issue.
The proper method would be to apply for a immediate relative petition / marriage visa. This process takes about 10 months right now, and the end result would be a Green Card as well. It will cost you less and it carries less risk than attempting to 'Adjust Status' on the visa waiver program.
A: Although it is permissible to marry one while in the United States in visitor status and to thereafter depart, at that point the U.S. Citizen Spouse would need to file a Petition for Relative case. Following approval thereof, the foreign national spouse would pursue an immigrant visa case through the National Visa Center and U.S. Embassy abroad. The petition and visa process in its entirety could take approximately 10 - 12 months. If your goal is to get the foreign national prospective spouse here legally, as quickly as possible and on a permanent basis, consider pursuing the fiance(e) visa instead. You should likely schedule a consultation with a competent immigration attorney who can flush out all possible issues as well as offer you any/all viable options. Good luck.
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