church wedding

[Laura&Ciprian 5]

I did got married in a church . There is no problem with it as long as you don t get a certificate . It s only a matter of you and your man in front of God , nobody can 't deny you for that:)) Or just do an engagment with your loved one in church with your family if you want . From my point of view and my religion , im ortodox , there is nothing wrong . You can t be married legally for sure but in church is a diffrent thing . I really wanted to have a ceremony in the church with my family and friends and the priest did it for us without causing problems for the visa. But maybe we have other laws , who knows? you should ask uscis . after all is just a party with him and your family , nothing that needs papers

Anything which results in a 'marriage' certificate is a no-no. Play it safe with the USCIS. If you wish to have a faith ceremony before you leave, can you get a priest to do a simple private blessing for the soon-to-be-married couple, for a send off? Nothing official in the laws of men but very kosher with the one up above? Just an idea...

this

[afoyoswa 178]

I would stay far, far away from anything that even remotely looks like a wedding. A very private meeting with a priest/clergyman and few friends & family? Fine. A large ceremony with a big crowd, special clothes, a reception, etc.? May raise suspicion, because for all intents and purposes it looks just like a wedding. Even if *you* know it's not a wedding, are you going to lecture all of your guests to be sure NEVER to refer to it as a wedding, either? What happens if some distant relative posts an album of photos on Facebook labeled "___ & ___'s wedding!!!"

I plan on getting married first in a civil process here in the USA, and then two years later (she cannot leave US soil for that long unless you have an emergency visa), we will head to Bohol and get married by Church. Two years would be enough time for us to save for a very big beautiful wedding.

Just a quick note: if she is entering the U.S. on a K-1 visa, this is not true. She can leave the U.S. freely as soon as she gets her green card, which will be within some months of applying for adjustment of status, which you will do after you marry within 90 days of her arrival. She can leave even sooner with an Advanced Parole card, but from what I've read that seems to a little riskier and is best reserved for an emergency.

[Dave&Roza 748]

My fiancé and I also had planned to do a private blessing with a priest before she comes to the US. However after talking to two lawyers and much research, the USCIS condisers any blessing of sorts with a ordained priest or minister present a valid marriage regardless if you sign any legal papers or not.

Obvs the lawyers and research could be wrong but we decided not risk it.

Having the blessing in the PI and have the priest sign a sworn affidavitt that states it is a blessing and is no way a wedding. That way you are covered should the USCIS discover this and claim you were married before she entered the US on the K-1 which nullifies her legal entry and her naturalization is denied and the INS begins deportation proceedings.

Please realize that your life is not the normal guy meets girl, guy marries girl, they live happily after. Yours is guy meets girl, proves to some government employee that he loves girl, government employee says okay, girl proves to another government employee that she is not in it for a free ride to the US, guy and girl gets married in US, they prove again that they are in love and she did not marry the guy for a visa to the US, girl gets 2 year GC, they again prove to some government employee that the marriage was for real, girl gets 10 GC. If girl wants to become a USC then you go thru it all over again. At any stage if they discover anything that was not true and correct based on your visa type, they can deny the current stage and deport your wife.

It all depends on what is most important to you and the risk you are willig to take. Just remember that if the USCIS accusses you of anything during this process YOU MUST PROVE TO THEM that they accusation is false. So if they see a ceremony in the PI, how do you prove that it was not a wedding? By having the priest sign a sworn statement stating to the fact that is was in no way a wedding of any kind, but a blessing for the happy couple.

Good luck,

Dave

Edited July 26, 2012 by Dave&Roza