holyheathen

Greetings,

I'm writing on behalf of my fiance. He is a United Kingdom national working as a
researcher at a national laboratory here in the U.S. and currently holding a J1 Visa;
his J1 Visa does not have the home residency requirement. His Visa, which was extended
last year (because his work contract was extended) expires in August 2001. Because of
his next contract at another national laboratory, we will remain in the U.S so he would
need to extend his Visa or because of our upcoming marriage, apply for a new Visa. We
plan to marry in the late-Summer/early-Fall of this year (I am a U.S. Citizen). Also, we
plan to either marry in the U.S. or visit his family in the U.K. and have the ceremony
performed there.

We are concerned about what our marriage would do to his Visa status. Should he apply to
get his J1 extended before the end of August? Or, after our marriage, should he apply for
another type of Visa? (His next contract starts in September.)

We are also concerned about having our marriage recognized in both countries. Is there any
agency/website we should contact for information? Any advice/information/recommendations
on the above matters is greatly appreciated.

Thank you in advance,

Ingo

You mentioned all the key points. To shorten it, let me reiterate them:

he is UK citizen on J-1 without Home Residency Requirement

you are US citizen.

You ask about the effects a wedding in the US or in the UK would have.

Answer:

a wedding in the US:

- after you get your marriage certificate, file form I-130 and I-485 with the local INS
offices. In some offices, it can take several years to process. During that time, he can
work if he applies for work authorization (file form I-765, must be renewed every year).

He cannot leave the US during that time, unless he applies for Advance Parole (file form
I-131). Advance Parole is also good for one year.

a wedding in the UK:

- you must file form I-130 with either the INS service center where you live, or possibly
the US consulate in London accepts it. Your husband must remain in the UK until the
consulate calls him for an interview and issues him an immigrant visa; he should not
enter the US during that time.

Once you are married, an extension of his J-1 will most likely be denied because of
immigration intent. Even if you apply for the extension before the wedding, it may later
cause the suspicion of immigration fraud, so I would not advise it.

Now after all that dry theory, here is what I would do if you want to get married
in the UK:

- fly to Las Vegas right now, or anywhere else in the US where you can get married
informally but legally. Then file the forms I mentioned for a US wedding right away, and
also be sure to apply for Advance Parole.

- once you have Advance Parole, fly to the UK for the big formal wedding ceremony. Just
don't tell anybody that you have really already been married for a couple months.

Ingo

On Thu, 25 Jan 2001 20:50:54 GMT, [email protected] wrote:

>Greetings,
>
>I'm writing on behalf of my fiance. He is a United Kingdom national working as a
>researcher at a national laboratory here in the U.S. and currently holding a J1 Visa;
>his J1 Visa does not have the home residency requirement. His Visa, which was extended
>last year (because his work contract was extended) expires in August 2001. Because of
>his next contract at another national laboratory, we will remain in the U.S so he would
>need to extend his Visa or because of our upcoming marriage, apply for a new Visa. We
>plan to marry in the late-Summer/early-Fall of this year (I am a U.S. Citizen). Also, we
>plan to either marry in the U.S. or visit his family in the U.K. and have the ceremony
>performed there.
>
>We are concerned about what our marriage would do to his Visa status. Should he apply to
>get his J1 extended before the end of August? Or, after our marriage, should he apply for
>another type of Visa? (His next contract starts in September.)
>
>We are also concerned about having our marriage recognized in both countries. Is there
>any agency/website we should contact for information? Any
>advice/information/recommendations on the above matters is greatly appreciated.
>
>Thank you in advance,
>
>

I am not a lawyer and this is not legal advice. For reliable advice, please consult with a
professional immigration attorney.

For further information, check the following frequently-requested links.

For many questions, you may find answers at http://travel.state.gov/visa_services.html
(Department of State)

or http://ins.usdoj.gov (INS).

For consular policies and visa reciprocity fees, find your consulate in
http://travel.state.gov/links.html

For DOL Faxback status information: http://workforcesecurity.doleta.gov/

For information on affidavit of support for marriage to US citizens (I-864), go to
http://travel.state.gov/i864gen.html and http://travel.state.gov/checklist.html

For information on entering the US as a K-1: http://www.k1poelist.com/

For poverty levels, see http://aspe.os.dhhs.gov/poverty/00poverty.htm

For information on H/L/O/P visa extensions at Dept. of State in St. Louis, MO, see
http://travel.state.gov/revals.html

For non-official information, check:

(When using these sites, and any Web sites, please watch out for privacy, as I do not know
all site operators.)

http://www.visalaw.com http://www.shusterman.com http://www.immigration.com
http://members.aol.com/MDUdall http://www.murthy.com/ http://www.getusavisa.com
http://greencard-lottery.virtualave.net/ http://www.jcvisa.com (H-1B)
http://www.h1bresources.com (marriage and fiancee) http://www.kamya.com/misc/ (marriage
and fiancee) http://www2.apex.net/users/thehydes http://www.formshome.com
http://www.workpermit.com

This is not an endorsement of any of these Web sites. I am not affiliated with any of the
Web site owners and do not receive nor accept payment in return for listing them, and
typically don't even know them.

(if believe you have a good immigration-related Web site and want your Web site listed
here, please e-mail me).

lairdside

Be sure to take evidence of the fact that you intend to return to the US when going to the UK. As the spouse of a UKC the IND may ask you to show that you do not intend to settle in the UK and will return to the US

lairdside

A US marriage is valid in the UK.

Regarding registration :-

Foreign Marriage Order 1970

A marriage solemnised in accordance with the local law of a foreign country cannot be registered in this country.

The original marriage documents (together with a translation if necessary) can be deposited with the General Register Office. This facility is only a means of readily obtaining further copies of the documents in this country rather than the authorities overseas. Only the party to the marriage who is a British citizen may apply to deposit the documents and only the Consul for the district where the marriage took place may send the documents to the General Register Office.

If you wish to apply for the deposit you should contact the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Consular Division, 1 Palace Street, London SW1E 5HE. Tel: +44 (20) 7238 4567 (am only; 09:30- 12:30). You may send the documents to the Consul (or Foreign and Commonwealth Office) anytime after the marriage, there is no time limit, but you must send original documents or photocopies which are certified by the issuing authorities. Once you have deposited the original documents, they cannot be released from the Registrar General's custody.

When an application for copies is made you will receive certified black and white photocopies of the documents. You will not receive a British style certificate. The photocopies are issued under the seal of the General Register Office and are usually acceptable as evidence as if they were certificates issued by the authorities of the country where the marriage took place.

A note would be made in the indexes to the records held at the General Register Office for research and certificate application purposes.

See http://www.statistics.gov.uk/registration/default.asp for info about this