Getting married on a tourist visa

[Nate'sGirl 0]

Hello

I am a UK citizen and my fiancé is a US citizen. We got engaged in August and would like to get married as soon as we can, possibly at Christmas. Both of us have been married before and we do not want a big wedding. I will be entering the US on a tourist visa. Can I enter on that visa with the intention to marry but WITHOUT the intention to stay or adjust status? I will be returning to the UK (work and property commitments etc) and then my husband would file the I-130 for a CR1 from the US. Is this acceptable? We don’t want to do anything illegal or to be seen to be committing any type of fraud; we want to follow the procedures and do everything properly. We just want to get married! We are aware that we will have to stay apart for awhile until a visa is approved, but would I still be allowed to enter the US on a visitor visa to see him while our application is being processed? Is he allowed to leave the US on a visitor visa to see me? I have no criminal record and have never overstayed as a tourist in the US so as far as I know our case would be a straightforward one.

Your thoughts and advice would be much appreciated!!

Many thanks and good luck on your own visa journeys.

[canadian_wife 1,791]

Yes, you may enter the US on a tourist visa, marry your partner, then leave. Nothing illegal about that. Bring your ties to the UK just in case the CBP ask for them

Congrats on the upcoming wedding

Good luck

[Used to be broken 143]

Yes, you may enter the US on a tourist visa, marry your partner, then leave. Nothing illegal about that. Bring your ties to the UK just in case the CBP ask for them

Congrats on the upcoming wedding

Good luck

That is an interesting answer advising someone to come to the US on a tourist VISA and enter with an immigrant intent.. getting married to a US Citizen.

You didn't answer all the other questions asked... would this person then be allowed to enter the US on future tourist VISA or vice versa for the husband after they are married? Will the UK let the US Citizen spouse enter to visit after marriage and before any paperwork?

Will the US really let the foreign spouse travel on VISA Waiver after the marriage and during the I130 process?

So the the CBP asks at the POI "what is the purpose of your visit?" what is the answer? "I am coming to the US to marry my fiance then return to the UK and settle my affairs." If the answer is "tourism" and the real intent is to marry her fiance..wouldn't that be lying to a immigration official?

If this was the "legal and proper" way of doing it then it would effectively make the fiance VISA obsolete don't you think?

[canadian_wife 1,791]

That is an interesting answer advising someone to come to the US on a tourist VISA and enter with an immigrant intent.. getting married to a US Citizen.

You didn't answer all the other questions asked... would this person then be allowed to enter the US on future tourist VISA or vice versa for the husband after they are married? Will the UK let the US Citizen spouse enter to visit after marriage and before any paperwork?

Will the US really let the foreign spouse travel on VISA Waiver after the marriage and during the I130 process?

So the the CBP asks at the POI "what is the purpose of your visit?" what is the answer? "I am coming to the US to marry my fiance then return to the UK and settle my affairs." If the answer is "tourism" and the real intent is to marry her fiance..wouldn't that be lying to a immigration official?

If this was the "legal and proper" way of doing it then it would effectively make the fiance VISA obsolete don't you think?

I answered the question properly based on the information given. She does NOT have immigrant intent since she intends to return to the UK due to "work and property commitments". Besides, if you reread my post, you'll see I said it was perfectly legal to enter the US, get married, and leave. Please read the entire OP and my response. Further, not once did I say she should lie or misrepresent herself - please do not imply that I did.

Lots of people have entered the US, married and left. I don't know what they all said at the border since I have better things to do with my time than take a poll

OP - my answer stands

Edited September 15, 2010 by canadian_wife

[babybyrd 0]

Nates Girl, Hi

I have been contemplating entering the usa and marrying my other half on my b1/2 tourist/business visa and then returning to the uk afterwards for as long as i have to stay( elderly parent i am a carer for)

but theres something that worries me and could be just a little something for you to bear in mind

you could possibly need your birth certificate in order to get a marriage licence - - depending on which state and county your wedding will be in - something you will have to research before hand, i know i will need mine

its all well and good until the immigration officer asks if youre intending to marry while youre in the US ( i have been asked this twice in the past year ) - if you dont give an honest answer how do you explain having your birth cert in your possession? do you send your birth certificate ahead of time? get someone to post it to you once your there?

these questions are kind of rhetorical rather than aimed directly at you, by the way, its just something that i have been pondering myself lately

[Penguin_ie 5,986]

Yes, as long as you leave, it is perfectly legal to use a tourist visa or the VWP to get married. I wouldn't volunteer the information to immigration, but if they ask, do not lie.

You can visit eachother after marriage; you should bring proof of ties to the UK when you do so, such as a letter from your employer, to show you will return (but on the VWP, you might never even be asked for it); also bring your visa paperwork once you start the CR-1,l to show you intend to do things legally. He can visit you too.

[Canadiandggal 49]

As it was said recently and for some reason I have said this lately to a few people. Going to the united states to marry your love is NOT ILLEGAL! However you must return home (as you said you wanted to). Yes you will most likely be asked at the border as to what your trip is for, Be honest but never give more information than asked for. I am not sure what will happen when you tell them you plan on getting married and then returning home. You may need to bring a TON of evidence in this case. Make sure to have a return ticket as well. In the case of a marriage license I used my passport/drivers license for "id" purposes but check with the court house you intend to marry at. I would suggest if this does not go well to marry in the uk

To other poster, The k-1 visa is so that a person can go to the states and marry then ADJUST STATUS and stay in the states. The visa it self is so that one does not have to leave the states.

[OBX 51]

I answered the question properly based on the information given. She does NOT have immigrant intent since she intends to return to the UK due to "work and property commitments". Besides, if you reread my post, you'll see I said it was perfectly legal to enter the US, get married, and leave. Please read the entire OP and my response. Further, not once did I say she should lie or misrepresent herself - please do not imply that I did.

Lots of people have entered the US, married and left. I don't know what they all said at the border since I have better things to do with my time than take a poll

OP - my answer stands

Yes, as long as you leave, it is perfectly legal to use a tourist visa or the VWP to get married. I wouldn't volunteer the information to immigration, but if they ask, do not lie.

You can visit eachother after marriage; you should bring proof of ties to the UK when you do so, such as a letter from your employer, to show you will return (but on the VWP, you might never even be asked for it); also bring your visa paperwork once you start the CR-1,l to show you intend to do things legally. He can visit you too.

&

[LotofPatience 65]

&

:thumbs:

Loto

[Harsh_77 716]

My thought is nothing illegal about getting married on tourist visa - as long as you leave back and go home.

The other question can you visit your husband while the process for you to immigrate has started? Answer is yes and no, you can attempt to travel on tourist visa but that does not gurantee that officer on POE would let you in, he might not grant an entry as it can be a dual intent and so you would have to be ready to be turned around and sent back home.

Can your husband travel to you back in UK absouletly - there is nothing that stops him from traveling to UK and that is the best and safest bet.

[Ryan H 3,791]

Can I enter on that visa with the intention to marry but WITHOUT the intention to stay or adjust status?

To put it simply, yes you can.

Like others have said, as long as you return to the UK, which you will do, you will be fine. Also, it's unlikely you will be asked many questions by CBP, however, in the event that you are, answer all questions truthfully to avoid problems later.

We are aware that we will have to stay apart for awhile until a visa is approved, but would I still be allowed to enter the US on a visitor visa to see him while our application is being processed? Is he allowed to leave the US on a visitor visa to see me?

Harsh_77 said it best in regards to you coming to the US while the application is being processed. As for him coming to the UK, the US and UK have reciprocal visa waiver agreements for 90 day stays so he can visit you without a visa (so long as he departs after 90 days).

Many thanks and good luck on your own visa journeys.

Good luck on your visa journey also!

[lyndsaycribbs 17]

I visited the USA on VWP and got married while I was out there, they didnt ask me what I was planning to do while there. I came home when I was meant to and am now in the process of gathering everything for the cr1.

USA citizens dont need a visa to come to the uk and can stay for up to 6 months as long as they have the funds and a return ticket, I was advised that they would most probably contact myself to confirm his travel plans in the UK.

[Chamie 2]

Interesting thread...I was asking a similar question today and I stumbled on this...

http://www.dc-immigration-blog.com/marriage-based/can-i-get-married-on-a-tourist-visa/

Point 2 at the top of the page says that you can "(2) Enter the United States on a tourist visa or the visa waiver program, get married and then remain in the United States and attempt to adjust status to that of a lawful permanent resident (LPR)."

I haven't ever heard of this and it strikes me as something that has slim chances of success...interested to hear peoples thoughts.

[JoannaV 173]

As far as visiting after you are married: yes you can. There are no guarantees on whether the US will let you in. Personally I spent a lot of time visiting the US whilst my CR1 application was being processed, no problem. As you say you have work commitments you should be fine as you would have evidence of that plus as you have to work you will probably be spending less time visiting the US than you will be working. BUT there are no guarantees. Once you are married having the CR1 application will be a positive because it shows you have plans to move there legally. After all, if you were gonna overstay and try to file AOS then you would've done it the first time you visited.

It is perfectly legal to enter on VWP/visa and marry. How easy it is, I don't know. Bring as much evidence of your ties to home as possible. On the visit which I married my husband, I just said I was visiting my fiance. Perfectly true and I wasn't asked any more questions. I was very OCD about the whole thing and made the wedding as spontaneous as possible, I didn't even tell my parents the date until I had gotten to America!

[marlea 84]

Interesting thread...I was asking a similar question today and I stumbled on this...

http://www.dc-immigration-blog.com/marriage-based/can-i-get-married-on-a-tourist-visa/

Point 2 at the top of the page says that you can "(2) Enter the United States on a tourist visa or the visa waiver program, get married and then remain in the United States and attempt to adjust status to that of a lawful permanent resident (LPR)."

I haven't ever heard of this and it strikes me as something that has slim chances of success...interested to hear peoples thoughts.

The problem with this is that lately, people who are trying to adjust status from the VWP have had a lot of trouble. Lots of cases aren't being adjudicated but rather are still pending while USCIS decides if they want to change policy on this issue. A few years ago, this wouldn't have been an issue at all, but now, it's a lot more risky to try to adjust from the VWP.