Q: My girlfriend wants to get her green card to move to the US. Should we get married before or after she applies?
My girlfriend lives in Mexico and I live in Texas. We are an LGBTQ couple. My girlfriend is moving from Mexico to Texas in January to start working as a resident fellow. We both want to get married, but she has stated that she would not be able to work if we get married and she moves to America. Is it possible for us to get married, and for her to work when she comes here in January? She is getting a B1/B2 visa to come and work starting next year. Would it be easier if she came over on an immigrant visa, and then apply for US citizenship 3 years later? Or should we just postpone the wedding until she is able to get her citizenship? She is thinking of getting the TN (nafta) visa.
A:
If she comes to the US and you marry, that you can file a visa petition on her behalf, and she can file a green card application at the same time. Once she has a green card, she will be able to work. There might be some conditions of her fellowship that would prevent her from working, but there is no immigration reason.
She can go the immigrant visa route, but it is highly unlikely that she would be here by January. You could also file a fiancée visa petition, and while that would likely be slightly quicker than the immigrant visa route, she is still unlikely to be here by January
We recommend you consult with an immigration attorney. While it is possible to study in a limited manner on a B1/B2, it is not possible to work, so there are some concerns with the scenario that you’ve described.
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