K-1 visa applied for-- now Islamically married

[VisaMom 0]

My daughter and son-in-law recently got Islamically married in a Mosque in Egypt. I had previously helped them apply for a fiancee visa. They plan to wait and get legally married when my they get the visa to the US. My son-in-law doesn't want to lie in the interview about the Islamic marriage. Does anyone know if the US Government will consider this a legal marriage in any way? It is not - only religious. Will we have to start all over and do a marriage visa?

Also, she will be staying in Egypt with him until the Visa comes through. Will there be any problem with that?

Thank you for your help.

[Kenza 1]

I would ask in the MENA section but depending if the Islamic marriage is recognized in Egypt. If it is recognized in Egypt then they are married, if it's not then it's not recognized in the US. In Morocco for example, marriages have to be documented for them to be valid.

[No-Where-Man 147]

Morning

Islamic Marriage is not a marriage that the US will take into consideration for the Visa Purpose

only Civil Marriage thats performed by the Autorities is the one

he shouldnt lie at the Interview ..but be aware also they may deny the Visa considering him married (will the ball in their side to consider it a marriage then or no )

the best solution is a civil marriage that take 5-6 hours Max if u know the steps and where to go and whats required , and u get the certificate in a week MAX ...

then u can go and make a spousal Visa ...

please read in the following link for the US embassy in Cairo about Marriage In Egypt : (be aware that not all the correct steps are there ..just the most ) and here is a part of whats said there :

``The only legal marriage for foreigners in Egypt is a civil ceremony performed at the local marriage court, which is in accordance with Islamic practice. Persons wishing a religious ceremony may arrange for one separately, but it is the civil ceremony that establishes the legal marriage.``

http://cairo.usembassy.gov/consular/acs12.htm

[Gary and Alla 3,696]

My daughter and son-in-law recently got Islamically married in a Mosque in Egypt. I had previously helped them apply for a fiancee visa. They plan to wait and get legally married when my they get the visa to the US. My son-in-law doesn't want to lie in the interview about the Islamic marriage. Does anyone know if the US Government will consider this a legal marriage in any way? It is not - only religious. Will we have to start all over and do a marriage visa?

Also, she will be staying in Egypt with him until the Visa comes through. Will there be any problem with that?

Thank you for your help.

The US recognizes religious marriages conducted under the laws of other countries. If it is a legal marriage in Egypt, it is a legal marriage here, and yes, she would need to apply for a spousal visa. If it is not a legal marriage...what's the point? Is Islam satsified with a fake marriage?

Question...if they were to separate, would they need a divorce?

Edited July 2, 2009 by Gary and Alla

[JimVaPhuong 4,864]

My daughter and son-in-law recently got Islamically married in a Mosque in Egypt. I had previously helped them apply for a fiancee visa. They plan to wait and get legally married when my they get the visa to the US. My son-in-law doesn't want to lie in the interview about the Islamic marriage. Does anyone know if the US Government will consider this a legal marriage in any way? It is not - only religious. Will we have to start all over and do a marriage visa?

Also, she will be staying in Egypt with him until the Visa comes through. Will there be any problem with that?

Thank you for your help.

The US recognizes religious marriages conducted under the laws of other countries. If it is a legal marriage in Egypt, it is a legal marriage here, and yes, she would need to apply for a spousal visa. If it is not a legal marriage...what's the point? Is Islam satsified with a fake marriage?

Question...if they were to separate, would they need a divorce?

I don't think it's really fair to characterize Islamic marriage as "fake". Religions and governments are two different things. A Muslim couple may feel that the religious ceremony is necessary in order for the marriage to be recognized by Allah and the community, and a civil marriage is necessary to be recognized by the State.

I do agree, however, that VisaMom's daughter is playing with fire here. The US consulate may very well feel that this couple is bending the rules - they want the benefits of being able to marry at their convenience and live like a married couple, and still take advantage of the faster processing of the K1 visa. The investigations unit at the consulate in Egypt have been known to visit the family of the beneficiary. If they say that the couple are married, the visa could very easily be denied on those grounds.

VisaMom, in order to be eligible to receive the K1 visa, the couple must remain free to marry throughout the visa process. Can your daughter's husband honestly tell the US consulate that he is still free to marry? Would the Egyptian government allow him to marry someone else without first divorcing your daughter under Islamic law?

[Marina-Del 10]

Question...if they were to separate, would they need a divorce?

Would the Egyptian government allow him to marry someone else without first divorcing your daughter under Islamic law?

Golden questions there. Now where the OP to come back and give the answers?

And remember: NEVER LIE TO THE CO!

[UmmSqueakster 54]

Waaaaaaaay back in the day, we had an unregistered islamic marriage in Egypt and were sucessful in getting a K-1 visa. We did not mention the marriage in the paperwork or at the interview. This was based on the advice we read in an earlier edition of this book.

However, hindsight is 20/20, and having followed the visa game for a number of years now, the risk just isn't worth it. There was a case a few years ago here where a couple were islamically married and the husband was arriving on a K-1, since the marriage wasn't legally registered. He refered to his wife as his wife at the POE (point of entry) and was summerly deported and banned from the US. I can't remember the resolution of the case, but I don't think the end was happy.

At this point, they might as well make their marriage legal and file for a CR-1. That would be better in the long run anyways - coming on a fiance visa, you have to adjust status, and can be without authorization to work in the US for quite some time. That can be very difficult on egyptian men. With a CR-1, he would get his green card very soon after entering and begin to look for work.

Question...if they were to separate, would they need a divorce?

Would the Egyptian government allow him to marry someone else without first divorcing your daughter under Islamic law?

Golden questions there. Now where the OP to come back and give the answers?

Seeing as how egypt allows men to practice polygamy with up to 4 wives, the answer is yes

[Nicoxcx 1]

I have a friend who had an Islamic ceremony, and he had to change his visa to a Spousal Visa, he said they signed a contract and one of the conditions on it is if the other person breaches the contract , they can file for divorce.

I would say you both refer to each other as Huband/Wife now? and the USCIS will probably feel the same way.

[JimVaPhuong 4,864]

Waaaaaaaay back in the day, we had an unregistered islamic marriage in Egypt and were sucessful in getting a K-1 visa. We did not mention the marriage in the paperwork or at the interview. This was based on the advice we read in an earlier edition of this book.

However, hindsight is 20/20, and having followed the visa game for a number of years now, the risk just isn't worth it. There was a case a few years ago here where a couple were islamically married and the husband was arriving on a K-1, since the marriage wasn't legally registered. He refered to his wife as his wife at the POE (point of entry) and was summerly deported and banned from the US. I can't remember the resolution of the case, but I don't think the end was happy.

At this point, they might as well make their marriage legal and file for a CR-1. That would be better in the long run anyways - coming on a fiance visa, you have to adjust status, and can be without authorization to work in the US for quite some time. That can be very difficult on egyptian men. With a CR-1, he would get his green card very soon after entering and begin to look for work.

Question...if they were to separate, would they need a divorce?

Would the Egyptian government allow him to marry someone else without first divorcing your daughter under Islamic law?

Golden questions there. Now where the OP to come back and give the answers?

Seeing as how egypt allows men to practice polygamy with up to 4 wives, the answer is yes

Dang, I forgot about that one!

Ok, the Egyptian government would say he was free to marry, but the US consulate still might not!

Well, 50% right is better than 100% wrong!

[VisaMom 0]

Ok, Sounds like we better not risk going through with the fiancee visa. The reason they are not legally married yet is that she is still 17 and you have to be 18 in Egypt even with parental permission. So they will have to wait until she is 18 in a few months, get married legally in Egypt and after that file for the marriage visa.

It sounds like he will be able to work sooner on a marriage visa? How much sooner? It looked like he would have to wait 3 months or so with the fiancee visa.

Also, she is now living in Egypt with him. Will she have to file in Egypt instead of the US? Or can I do the papers here for them?

[JimVaPhuong 4,864]

Ok, Sounds like we better not risk going through with the fiancee visa. The reason they are not legally married yet is that she is still 17 and you have to be 18 in Egypt even with parental permission. So they will have to wait until she is 18 in a few months, get married legally in Egypt and after that file for the marriage visa.

It sounds like he will be able to work sooner on a marriage visa? How much sooner? It looked like he would have to wait 3 months or so with the fiancee visa.

Also, she is now living in Egypt with him. Will she have to file in Egypt instead of the US? Or can I do the papers here for them?

With a CR1 visa he'll get his green card soon after arriving in the US, and be able to work pretty much right away.

She can file at the consulate in Egypt. It's called Direct Consular Filing, or DCF.

If by "do the papers for them" you mean mail them to USCIS, the answer is yes. You can't sign the papers on her behalf, though. You also can't submit scanned copies of documents that require original signatures, so she can't email you scanned copies. If she's been living in Egypt long enough to satisfy the consulate's residency requirements (I think it's six months) then DCF is probably faster.