Q: Is my marriage legal in USCIS VIEWPOINT ? I asked Clerk of Oakland County MI. He said no.
Filipina citizen I brought to USA on K1. We were in MI in motel, used zoom for meeting for an online ceremony with officiant in Utah and two witnesses somewhere in utah also. Is our marriage legal for USCIS when it is not in the state we live in (MI) and were residence in, when we had online ceremony with officiant in Utah. MI says all participants must be in the same actual location during ceremony. Thank you very much for your assistance.
A: For USCIS, the legal validity of a marriage is determined by the law of the place where the marriage was celebrated. Under this rule, a marriage is valid for immigration purposes in cases where the marriage is valid under the law of the jurisdiction in which it is performed. If the marriage was performed in Utah, since that is where the officiant was, you would need to confirm with Utah state officials that your marriage is legally valid in that jurisdiction under the circumstances you described.
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