Marriage Visas

Are you currently a permanent resident or citizen of the United States who is looking into options for your foreign fiancée to join you for marriage? During this happy time in your life, we would be honored to provide legal guidance.

Request an appointment by contacting us online or calling 1 (732) 387-3668.

Unlike the K-1 fiancée visa reserved for only United States citizen filing for their fiancées, marriage visas (also known as spouse visas) can be filed by both United States citizens and Unites States legal permanent residents for their spouses. Before filing the spouse visa petition, the couple must first get married and the marriage can occur in any country, as long as the marriage is considered as a legal marriage in that country.

The procedures for a spouse visa are similar to a fiancée visa, such that the petition will also be processed by the same three U.S. government agencies: USCIS, National Visa Center and U.S. Embassy/Consulate. Although both visa types are processed by the same agencies, the specifics procedures are slight different for the two visa types. A couple of notable differences between the spouse visa and fiancée visa include the following:

• The spouse visa is a one-step process such that after spouses enter the United States on a spouse visa, they automatically gain legal permanent resident status the moment their passports are stamped and then they automatically wait for their green cards in the mail. The fiancée visa is a two-step process such that after fiancées enter the United States on a fiancée visa, they must get legally married within 90 days and then apply for adjustment of status to obtain their legal permanent resident status.
• The processing time for a fiancée visa is generally quicker than a spouse visa. Fiancée visas usually take about 6 to 8 months, which is from the time of USCIS filing to the final consular interview. Spouse visas filed by United States citizens usually take about 10 to 12 months, which is from the time of USCIS filing to the final consular interview. Spouse visas filed by legal permanent residents usually take about 2 years.

At the Law Office of Laurie Y. Wu, LLC, we can address the legal questions that you may have bringing your future fiancée and spouse to the United States. We can guide you through the process of establishing the validity of your marriage and gathering the appropriate paperwork and documentation. It may seem simple to obtain a marriage and fiancée visa but the reality is more difficult.