US citizen marrying Irish citizen. What is the best lawful manner to navigate this?

[Feez 4]

Hi folks, apologies for bumping this thread but I have a further question. Our plan now is to get legally married in the US, since the process is so much easier than getting legally married in Ireland. This is what her friends are recommending to her as well. After the marriage, she would then return to Ireland/UK to continue her postdoc and we'll visit each other back-and-forth while the I-130 is being processed. 

 

My question is - can I file for her immediately after she goes back home? Or should I visit her again post-marriage before I file?

[Boiler 47,453]

File asap 

[Dashinka 25,843]

Agreed, file as soon as you have the required documents.  You can add more proof of relationship evidence at the NVC stage.

 

Good Luck!

[S2N 302]

We filed the second CBP had updated the I-94 website to show he had left the country.

[Crazy Cat 44,416]

9 hours ago, Feez said:

Hi folks, apologies for bumping this thread but I have a further question. Our plan now is to get legally married in the US, since the process is so much easier than getting legally married in Ireland. This is what her friends are recommending to her as well. After the marriage, she would then return to Ireland/UK to continue her postdoc and we'll visit each other back-and-forth while the I-130 is being processed. 

 

My question is - can I file for her immediately after she goes back home? Or should I visit her again post-marriage before I file?

Another vote to file asap after getting a marriage certificate.

[S2N 302]

Expanding more on my comment: the advice I was given here was that since we were planning on going back to Chile within days of the wedding, to wait until we’d left so not to confuse USCIS why someone inside the U.S. wanted an interview in Santiago.

 

You can check CBP’s I-94 website by looking at the travel history (Search->See travel history) and it will tell you if they’ve processed a departure: I-94 website

 

Reason I suggest waiting until that is updated is that if you file online they do some automated checks and you don’t want to flag anything if CBP’s records at the time show her in the US and you filed the form saying she wasn’t.

 

Website can take 12-48 hours to update. Plenty of time for you to draft the petition and then click submit once it shows her leaving the country.

[Lil bear 4,520]

9 hours ago, Feez said:

Hi folks, apologies for bumping this thread but I have a further question. Our plan now is to get legally married in the US, since the process is so much easier than getting legally married in Ireland. This is what her friends are recommending to her as well. After the marriage, she would then return to Ireland/UK to continue her postdoc and we'll visit each other back-and-forth while the I-130 is being processed. 

 

My question is - can I file for her immediately after she goes back home? Or should I visit her again post-marriage before I file?

File immediately. Then keep building documentation that demonstrates the relationship. 

[Feez 4]

Thank you very much for all the advice. I'll plan to file ASAP then.

[pushbrk 13,611]

2 hours ago, Feez said:

Thank you very much for all the advice. I'll plan to file ASAP then.

ASAP is ok, but if she will be leaving shortly, I do advise to wait until she leaves, so you complete the petition indication she is not currently in the USA, instead of that she is.  Either way, is certainly fine though, but be sure you indicate she will apply for the visa in London.  Enter Not Applicable for where she will adjust status.  This is the area where confusion creeps in.

[Feez 4]

I have a few follow-up questions if you folks don't mind. Everyone here has been extremely helpful, so I really appreciate it.

 

One of the reasons we are doing the consular process CR-1 for I-130 spousal visa is because my fiancée wants to complete her current postdoc in the UK, which should be about 1-1.5 years. This lines up with the standard processing time for the I-130 in the first place. After which she can then come here and immediately work/apply for jobs.

 

There is a scenario where she finishes her postdoc early while the visa is still pending.

• At that point, would it be advisable to apply for jobs in the US and look to get sponsored? If so, would getting an employment-based visa affect her pending I-130 application? She is a highly educated professional (Phd), so this is a possible path we are considering.
• Alternatively, what if at that point she came here and filed to adjust her status (I-485), and then applied for a work permit? Would that affect the pending application too?

What would you folks recommend? Would it be best to just wait out the consular processing I-130? 

[pushbrk 13,611]

11 minutes ago, Feez said:

I have a few follow-up questions if you folks don't mind. Everyone here has been extremely helpful, so I really appreciate it.

 

One of the reasons we are doing the consular process CR-1 for I-130 spousal visa is because my fiancée wants to complete her current postdoc in the UK, which should be about 1-1.5 years. This lines up with the standard processing time for the I-130 in the first place. After which she can then come here and immediately work/apply for jobs.

 

There is a scenario where she finishes her postdoc early while the visa is still pending.

• At that point, would it be advisable to apply for jobs in the US and look to get sponsored? If so, would getting an employment-based visa affect her pending I-130 application? She is a highly educated professional (Phd), so this is a possible path we are considering.
• Alternatively, what if at that point she came here and filed to adjust her status (I-485), and then applied for a work permit? Would that affect the pending application too?

What would you folks recommend? Would it be best to just wait out the consular processing I-130? 

My recommendation is that you go with the original plan.  She is better off waiting out the immigrant visa process, as she will enter as a Lawful Permanent Resident to begin with.

[S2N 302]

Spousal visa is the best visa there is. Apply for jobs without sponsorship once your spouse is within the window.

[Boiler 47,453]

Her chances of a work visa are minimal, lots of PHDs who do not need sponsorship looking for work.

[Feez 4]

Thank you for the advice everyone. For now we will continue with the original plan then. 

[appleblossom 4,391]

1 hour ago, Feez said:

This lines up with the standard processing time for the I-130 in the first place. After which she can then come here and immediately work/apply for jobs.

 

Just to be clear, the I-130 is only the first part of the two stage process. That's the petition, and once the I-130 is approved, she'll then have to apply for the visa. Only once she has that will she be able to move and start work.