US green card holder, Fiancè doesn’t have US visa

[ShaniaB 0]

Hello,

 

I just want to start off by saying thank you for the willingness to read my post. 
 

My fiancé and I have been together for 6 years and we are getting married in September 2022. I have been a green-card holder since 2017 and have proof of residency within the US with my bank statements, job, I pay taxes, etc. I have traveled back and forth within those years to my country of citizenship to visit my fiancé and have stayed out of the US the longest being 1 year since becoming a US resident. 
 

I would like to become a citizen of America, but I would also like to know if my fiancé can get his marriage green-card with me being a US resident only? Should I apply for citizenship first? What steps should we take for this?

 

We can more than prove our relationship is sincere at this point so that is the least of my worries. I’d just like guidance on where to start.

 

Thank you for reading 🥰

[ShaniaB 0]

Hello,

 

I just want to start off by saying thank you for the willingness to read my post. 
 

My fiancé (no visa, citizen of Trinidad and Tobago) and I have been together for 6 years and we are getting married in September 2022. I have been a green-card holder since 2017 and have proof of residency within the US with my bank statements, job, I pay taxes, etc. I have traveled back and forth within those years to my country of citizenship to visit my fiancé and have stayed out of the US the longest being 1 year since becoming a US resident. 
 

I would like to become a citizen of America, but I would also like to know if my fiancé can get his marriage green-card with me being a US resident only? Should I apply for citizenship first? What steps should we take for this?

 

We can more than prove our relationship is sincere at this point so that is the least of my worries. I’d just like guidance on where to start.

 

Thank you for reading 🥰

[canadian_wife 1,785]

Please post only once - that will help aggregate your answers.

 

Yes, you can petition your spouse as a green card holder and then update once you become a US citizen. 

 

Please start with the guides.  There are guides for petitioning a spouse and for applying for citizenship.

 

Good luck 

 

[Boiler 43,391]

Unclear if you can file for citizenship but you can file for a spouse.

 

Nothing you can do until you marry

[Ban Hammer 12,829]

related topics merged and placed in the correct forum.

[SusieQQQ 11,584]

You can sponsor a spouse as a green card holder, it falls under F2A. It is faster to file as a citizen but it can take some time between filing for citizenship and becoming a citizen. There is no reason to delay, you can file F2A now and if you become a citizen before the process is completed you can upgrade the spouse petition to IR1.

[Dashinka 23,198]

1 hour ago, ShaniaB said:

Hello,

 

I just want to start off by saying thank you for the willingness to read my post. 
 

My fiancé (no visa, citizen of Trinidad and Tobago) and I have been together for 6 years and we are getting married in September 2022. I have been a green-card holder since 2017 and have proof of residency within the US with my bank statements, job, I pay taxes, etc. I have traveled back and forth within those years to my country of citizenship to visit my fiancé and have stayed out of the US the longest being 1 year since becoming a US resident. 
 

I would like to become a citizen of America, but I would also like to know if my fiancé can get his marriage green-card with me being a US resident only? Should I apply for citizenship first? What steps should we take for this?

 

We can more than prove our relationship is sincere at this point so that is the least of my worries. I’d just like guidance on where to start.

 

Thank you for reading 🥰

The first step would be to get married, then file the I130 which you can do as a US LPR.  If you qualify to file for USC, you can do that as well.

 

Good Luck!

[ShaniaB 0]

18 minutes ago, Dashinka said:

The first step would be to get married, then file the I130 which you can do as a US LPR.  If you qualify to file for USC, you can do that as well.

 

Good Luck!

Thank you so much. Do you know how long this usually takes and if applying for citizenship before marriage will disrupt the application for the I130?

[ShaniaB 0]

31 minutes ago, SusieQQQ said:

You can sponsor a spouse as a green card holder, it falls under F2A. It is faster to file as a citizen but it can take some time between filing for citizenship and becoming a citizen. There is no reason to delay, you can file F2A now and if you become a citizen before the process is completed you can upgrade the spouse petition to IR1.

Thank you Susie. Someone said I can apply for I130 after getting married. What’s the difference between the I130 and F2A? 
 

Which one is better to apply for?

[aaron2020 11,651]

4 minutes ago, ShaniaB said:

Thank you Susie. Someone said I can apply for I130 after getting married. What’s the difference between the I130 and F2A? 
 

Which one is better to apply for?

A green card holder can file an I-130 for a spouse in the F2a family preference category.

The I-130 puts your spouse in the F2a category.  

There is only one way for you to bring your spouse to the US.  This is it.  

[aaron2020 11,651]

15 minutes ago, ShaniaB said:

Thank you so much. Do you know how long this usually takes and if applying for citizenship before marriage will disrupt the application for the I130?

If it's only your spouse and no derivative kids, then your naturalization will not affect anything.

If there are derivative kids, then US citizenship would cause them to become ineligible.  

Are there kids involved?

[ShaniaB 0]

3 minutes ago, aaron2020 said:

If it's only your spouse and no derivative kids, then your naturalization will not affect anything.

If there are derivative kids, then US citizenship would cause them to become ineligible.  

Are there kids involved?

No kids involved. Thank you very much for the clear explanation.

 

On an average how long does it take to approve? 

[aaron2020 11,651]

4 minutes ago, ShaniaB said:

No kids involved. Thank you very much for the clear explanation.

 

On an average how long does it take to approve? 

Average.  Your case may differ.

About a year for USCIS to approve the I-130.  Two months to transfer to the NVC.  About another year at the NVC waiting for an interview slot at the US consulate/embassy.  Total 2 years or so if everything is done correctly.