Two students getting married (merged)

[kepvbr 0]

Hi everyone so im a bit confused and I feel as if thats everyone now who starts this process. So some quick background my gf and I want to get married, im here on scholarship from the school. They pay pretty much everything so ill be staying in school for another two years but shes an overachiever lol and is graduating in two and half years, this dec. Now were sure we want to get married, I have to officially propose and stuff but were also trying to figure out whats legal.

Now we had originally figured we could just get married when im done with school, which is when wed be moving to another state cause ill be attending graduate school(fingers crossed). However with the way things are going we may as well get married now, that way we have a lot more flexibility and it just makes more sense. For instance we got a car and an apartment together already. It would be so much easier to just get married now than later, plus shes catholic so she doesnt like having to explain herself to others about living together with someone outside of marriage.

Our plan we figured could be get married now legally, start the process right away and then have a big wedding next year around may. That all works in theory but we both know its apparently a lot more complicated than that.

Potential problems.

- Financially were okay, we make rent , car payments, eat in on a regular and can still do enough fun stuff. Thing is both of us are only part time workers. I work through the school as a tutor and personal trainer and she works as a tutor and in the costume shop. We get a max of 20 hours each per week. Yes that would change after she graduates as she would then start working for a full 40 but for the most part right now its part time.

- Wed like to visit my country in december as her graduation present plus meeting my family in person. Is it possible to do or is this something we should just forgo ?

Other than those I cant think of anything else but any help would be greatly appreciated.

Ps , sorry if my ideas seems disjointed or somewhat confusing. Also I have no idea where my local office is but I doubt its in tampa florida, I got my visa back home and the school took care of everything past that.

Edited June 29, 2016 by kepvbr

[aaron2020 11,651]

What's her status?

Is she an F-1 student?

[Penguin_ie 5,985]

What's her status?

Is she an F-1 student?

My understanding the Op, the male, is the foreigner.

Op- I agree marrying now is best, if you are absolutely sure about getting married; it means you can take a part time job without the restrictions of the F1. If you marry soon, you should have AP by the time of the foreign travel, that would probably be easiest.

[EM_Vandaveer 2,369]

Assuming your bride is a USC , of course, you left that tidbit out, OP.

[kepvbr 0]

Im sorry guys !! My girlfriend is the natural us citizen/ student as well, and im the foreigner/ F 1 holder. Sorry about not making that clear and thank you all so much for the replies.

So marrying now is a good idea then( shes going to say I should just listen to her) ? Also would having the catholic wedding next year affect our process at all ? I mean we would be getting legally married in a court this year so my thinking is next year we would be getting married in the church so that the marriage would be validated by her church.

And yup, im definitely sure, I mean we bought a vehicle together after I sort of um....flipped my suv(she drives 95% of the time now lol) so were quite certain we want to spend our lives together. And we also got an apartment and its going awesome.

The thing is were just really confused about this whole process. Also not knowing exactly what they require from us in terms of questions and income is a bit nerve wracking honestly.

Another thing is about the questions. So some background my girlfriend has PTSD and she does not do well with certain topics and has certain triggers that can induce a panic attack. That being said how rough are the immigration officers in terms of questioning ? And how detailed do they go, like whats the most invasive thing they could ask ? I think shed be fine if she has someone who isnt all big and intimidating as shes kinda small and not exactly good with big and loud people.

[Ejoriah 4]

Follow the guides here on VJ. You would be adjusting status (AOS) from a student to a permanent resident. The guides go in detail about what is required or not.

Honestly the problem I see with your case is that the two of you probably don't make enough money (over $20,025, see here: https://www.uscis.gov/i-864p).You might need to use a joint sponsor to make up the difference if you don't make enough money.

Be careful of traveling out of the country and then coming back on your F-1. You now have immigrant intent and it is technically fraudulent to enter the US on a nonimmigrant visa when you've already made up your mind that you are going to adjust status. My advice is to get legally married and file for AOS and advance parole/employment authorization.

EDIT: I am still in the process and haven't been interviewed yet, so I don't know how deep immigration officers can dig. Maybe someone else will chime in.

Edited July 1, 2016 by Ejoriah

[kepvbr 0]

Im a bit confused about the income requirements though. I mean we make enough to be pretty comfy, we have a really nice apartment, and we have a relatively new vehicle together. She also has great credit(<700). What exactly would they need, also could that sponsor be a foreigner ? Like my sister makes around 10k a month and shed have no problem sponsoring me, but will that be okay, shes not american ?

Also what sort of stipulations does it have for being a sponsor ? Is it like being a cosigner to a loan or a lot less risky cause if its just a formality my host dad is a partner at a law firm and im sure hed sponsor me if I asked really nicely lol.

[Penguin_ie 5,985]

For the affadavit of support, you need tax filings for the last three years and proof of current and ongoing income; this is usually done with a few paystubs and a letter from the employer stating the salary and that it is a long term, stable job. For two people (assuming you have no kids or other dependents), you would need to make just over $20'000.

The co-sponsor needs to be a US citizen or a greencard holder, and must live in the USA. The details of what the co-sponsor is liable for is in the I-864 form; essentially, if the foreign fiance falls on hard times and takes means tested benefit from the government, they would need to pay it back. This obligation lasts until the beneficiary becomes a US citizen, has worked for 10 years full time and paid taxes, leaves the US and gives back the greencard, or dies.

Edited July 1, 2016 by Penguin_ie

[kepvbr 0]

Dear god, thats a lot , okay so she hasnt filled her taxes yet because her parents list her as a dependent still. Problem is she pays for school on her own because although her parents makes a lot they got themselves in a lot of debt. Which is another reason were getting married, she pretty much pays for her own schooling plus we pay rent together and our car payments. We dont depend on her parents or mines really so we just dont see the point in not getting married now vs waiting for some weird date.

So just curious this is all so id have a green card, but what if I just want us to be okay until she starts working in January. Im pretty sure that shed make above the 20k per year as shed be a secretary to a law firm or a teacher, plus id be working part time as a personal trainer so would that help ?

Im trying to figure out the logistics of this because my f1 visa doesnt expire till may 2018 so we have time but at the same time I dont want to commit visa fraud and visit home with the intention of getting married after. I mean I dont mind waiting and its really so we dont do the wrong thing.

[newacct 688]

Dear god, thats a lot , okay so she hasnt filled her taxes yet because her parents list her as a dependent still.

Whether you are claimed as a dependent and whether you are required to file tax returns are two independent things. Some children can be claimed as dependent and at the same time are required to file tax returns. Whether one is required to file tax returns for a particular tax year is determined by the rules detailed in the "Do I Have To File" section near the beginning of that year's Form 1040 instructions. If she was not required to file tax returns for those years, then not having filed is not a problem.

[kepvbr 0]

Hey Guys so my girlfriend is the USC and im from the Caribbean, im a student on scholarship from the university and my f1 visa doesnt expire till may 2018. My question is how hard is it to get advanced parole and what sort of problems do you experience if any when you come on back to the us from a trip.

So for simplicity sake weve decided to get married this year, like soon in a civil ceremony and plan like a big Catholic wedding for next June. Thing is we also want to go home to visit my place this year around december.

My question is would we have any problems doing so, is it not advised etc ? Should we get married next year around Feb after we come back from the trip. Id imagine its around a month from re- entering the us so would that even be okay. Ive not been home since January and I actually skipped out on a ticket to visit back home as well so I could stay in the us and get an apartment with my girlfriend/ help her out with summer session. Another thing is she has ptsd and really doesnt do well with the sort of overly obnoxious authority figures, do they give the spouse any trouble in the airport ?

[Ejoriah 4]

It's not hard to get advanced parole. Apply for it at the same time as filing the I-485/I-130 and you should receive it within 90 days. I haven't personally traveled on AP yet but search around this forum, many people have used AP without issue.

Also as I've already stated earlier you really shouldn't enter on a nonimmigrant visa (which the student visa is) with intent to immigrate by adjusting status.

[kepvbr 0]

Mmm thats what I thought, I mean its a lot of things that changed my mind and they all happened this semester/summer. I can honestly write a book about what happened lol, near death experiences etc , you know the normal stuff haha. So right now I can still say with a clear conscious that I had no plan to move here but if I do that trip and then come back well...that may be a bit of a lie .