CR-1 Spouse visa : Evidence of a bonafide marriage

[Arpan 3]

Hello Everyone,

I am planning to get married to my fiancee within next 1 month and will apply for CR-1 visa for her.. And i was just going through the checklist for applying CR-1 visa (http://www.visajourney.com/content/i130guide1) and it seems like I have to show an evidence of a bonafide marriage and below are the list which i can show as an proof.

1. Documentation showing joint ownership or property;

or 2. A lease showing joint tenancy of a common residence;

or 3. Documentation showing co-mingling of financial resources;

or 4. Birth certificate(s) of child(ren) born to you, the petitioner, and your spouse together;

or 5. Affidavits sworn to or affirmed by third parties having personal knowledge of the bona fides of the marital relationship (Each affidavit must contain the full name and address, date and place of birth of the person making the affidavit, his or her relationship to the petitioner of beneficiary, if any, and complete information and details explaining how the person acquired his or her knowledge of your marriage);

or 6. Any other relevant documentation to establish that there is an ongoing marital union.

But I don't have any of the above proofs that I can show as an evidence of a bonafide marriage, as right now I am in USA and my fiancee is in India. Can you please guide/ help me on what i can do for the same .

Thanks in Advance.

Edited August 23, 2016 by Arpan

[Kastrs 723]

Provide documentation from all trips to see each other and evidence of ongoing relationship such as chat logs spanning your relationship

[NewBrunswicker 19]

How about friends that are aware of your relationship? They could write you a letter following the examples shown here in VJ and get them notarize.

[KierenHby 897]

1. Documentation showing joint ownership or property;

or 2. A lease showing joint tenancy of a common residence;

or 3. Documentation showing co-mingling of financial resources;

or 4. Birth certificate(s) of child(ren) born to you, the petitioner, and your spouse together;

USCIS\NVC doesn't expect folks living in separate countries to have joint apt leases or back accounts.. or children. Concentrate on alternative sets of evidence two married people in a genuine relationship tend to accrue.

[Thegirl 224]

Sworn affidavits from family and friends, pictures together and with each others family and friends, chat logs, evidence you've both visited each other (if you have) etc.

[amul 229]

I am in the same boat and used to stress out about every word we read here and on the instructions for our I-130 applications. Not so much anymore! We have decided to use our energy towards being a couple and spending as much face time as we can with each other.

The main evidence they are interested in is the time you spend in person with your special someone -- so we are front loading our I-130 with my passport stamps, boarding passes and all the other pertinent travel info we have gathered (our bus/train tickets, boarding passes, hotel receipts, tickets to any and all places we went together) while we are together in India. Secondary evidence is photos of us taken at the places we have visited together, followed by our chats/skype logs, some receipts (laundry services, purchases etc.) showing the dates, our names on them while in India.

I have spent a total of 5 month with him in a span of 3 trips and am heading his way in a few days and then again in 2 months. My best advice to you is, try to visit her as often as you can and collect all boarding passes etc.

Best wishes...

[Arpan 3]

Hi ,

I am US citizen and I my fiancee is in India, we are engaged from 1 May and I am planning to marry her next month so that i can apply for CR1 visa for her. And as per my knowledge there are 2 option available for me to marry her .

(1). First is a hindu registered marriage, that i can get within 2 days and

(2). Second option is to apply for a court marriage, where i have to send an application to court that i want to get married and then the court put a notification for 30 days that these 2 person are willing to marry and then, if no one raise an objection within that time , I can go for a court marriage.

Both the option are based on my research , i am not 100% sure about it.

So I am thinking to go for Hindu registered marriage as, I am thinking to visit india next week , so that i can expedite our CR-1 visa process ..Also as I thinking to do a Hindu registered marriage, do i have to perform all the hindu ritual to get the photograph (is i necessary to show USCIS hindu ritual photographs, we cannot have our hindu ritual right now due to some auspicious date that my fiancee family follow ..we have our hindu ritual ceremony later this year )

Thanks in Advance.

[Ryan H 3,790]

OP, focus on gathering evidence of time spent together in-person, that is your strongest evidence. You will not be expected or required to have joint accounts, leases, or own property together nor will you be expected or required to have any children. Furthermore, affidavits carry little to zero weight in the overall evaluation of a file so skip them unless you are light on other evidence.

[Cheezees 1,514]

If your question is "Is it mandatory to have photos to show USCIS to prove that a wedding took place?", the answer is no.

[Ryan H 3,790]

***Similar topics merged; do not start multiple threads on the same issue.***

[amul 229]

Hi Arpan,

"So I am thinking to go for Hindu registered marriage as, I am thinking to visit india next week , so that i can expedite our CR-1 visa process ..Also as I thinking to do a Hindu registered marriage, do i have to perform all the hindu ritual to get the photograph (is i necessary to show USCIS hindu ritual photographs, we cannot have our hindu ritual right now due to some auspicious date that my fiancee family follow ..we have our hindu ritual ceremony later this year ) "

In order to get married under the Hindu Marriage Act, both parties have to be Hindus. Two Hindus can get married this way and will get the marriage certificate the same day.

The Special Marriage Act is for a non-Hindu and a Hindu marrying -- this will require a Notice of Intended Marriage to be posted for 30 days. After these 30 days, the couple can get married.

If you are both Hindu, do a civil ceremony under the Hindu Marriage Act and hold on to your marriage certificate. That is all you will need from that day. When you are ready to file your I-130, on your cover letter you can mention that you two will do the traditional Hindu wedding at a later date due to religious believes (due to auspiciousness etc.).

You should not have any problems explaining the reasons why you two are not going ahead with the traditional/religious wedding right away. It is very country specific and fits the traditional norms of India.

Best of luck!

[Beth & Achraf 328]

Having Wills and Life insurance on each other is good evidence to present when you don't have much to present.