A United States citizen or a Permanent Resident may sponsor his or her spouse through a petition for a Green Card by marriage. In order to obtain immigration benefits available to a “spouse”, there must be, among other things, a valid, good-faith marriage between the parties.

When the petitioner-spouse is a U.S Citizen

A beneficiary-spouse of a U.S Citizen can be sponsored as an “immediate relative” of the petitioner for a marriage based green card. For “immediate relatives,” as soon as the sponsor’s petition (Form I-130) is approved, a visa number becomes readily available and the beneficiary can apply for what is called “Adjustment of Status”, in order to receive their marriage based green card in New York or another state.

If the beneficiary-spouse is located in the United States and entered the United States on a valid visa, the U.S. citizen-spouse may file his immigrant visa petition at the same time as applying for Adjustment of Status of the beneficiary, since visa numbers are immediately available after the I-130 petition is approved.

If the applicant is located outside the United States, he or she must apply for an immigrant visa through the U.S. Consulate in their home country. Once the applicant is approved for an immigrant visa, he or she will be able to travel on the visa and will become a permanent resident upon entering the United States.

When the petitioner-spouse is a Permanent Resident

Permanent Residents of the U.S. may sponsor their spouses seeking to obtain a marriage based green card. If the petitioner- spouse is a permanent resident, the process might take longer, as a visa number will not be immediately available. Once the sponsor’s petition (I-130) is approved, beneficiary- spouses will be required to wait for their priority date (the date on which the sponsor filed the petition) to become current. Once the date is current, a visa number becomes available and a beneficiary-spouse may apply for a visa. The availability status may be checked by visiting the Visa Bulletin.

Employment and Travel Authorization for beneficiary-spouses waiting on a marriage based green card

Unless visa holders petitioning for green cards have the right to be employed in the United States, they may not work or travel outside the United States once the Green Card petition has been submitted to the USCIS. All beneficiary-spouses applying for a New York marriage based green card while located in the United States may obtain the right to be temporarily employed while he or she is awaiting their permanent resident status. Additionally, a beneficiary-spouse may apply for a right to travel outside the United States while their green card application is pending.

If you properly submit requests for permission to travel and work along with your adjustment of status petition, you will receive temporary authorization to do several months after your fingerprints have been taken by the USCIS. You will receive travel and employment authorizations in the form of a card. This card will allow you to obtain a social security number, which will further allow you to temporarily work in the United States while your status is pending. This card will also serve as a I-512 advance parole document. Advance parole will allow you to return to the United States after you travel abroad.

New York Marriage Based Green Card Process and Timelines

Several weeks after you petition for adjustment of status through a U.S Citizen spouse, you will receive what’s called a “biometrics notice.” A biometrics notice is a notice requesting you to appear at your local USCIS office in order for them to take your fingerprints.

Several months after your fingerprints are taken, you will receive your employment and travel authorization, allowing you to temporarily work in the United States and travel abroad. The wait time for interviews is currently anywhere from twelve to twenty-four months, but we are seeing clients get interview notifications approximately one year or less after submitting the petition. Our New York green card lawyers are highly experienced in completing the appropriate documents and preparing clients for the marriage based green card interview process.

It is highly advisable to retain an immigration lawyer who is particularly a marriage based green card expert, as the 2018 immigration policy allows for discretion of the immigration officers to reject your case due to an error or a missing document. At Law Offices of Inna Vernikov, PLLC, family and marriage based green cards is one of our major focus areas, and we have successfully petitioned for hundreds of marriage-based green cards in New York and other states. For legal advice and expert assistance with filing New York Marriage Based Green Card petitions, contact the Law Offices of Inna Vernikov at (212) 729-3497.