Hi guys my first post please bear with me
please let me know if I’m in the wrong section.

I am a USA citizen, was living in UK FOR a few years . Met my fiancé in UK.
we were planning on getting his paperwork/ visas etc done in UK before moving permanently to cali.
but things have kinda changed.
We have come to California to visit my mother and father and my father is not well. I don’t want to leave him like this .
my fiancé is with me here also on a esta visa .
my questions are :
can I get married at courthouse get my certificate of marriage and apply form i130 for my fiancé and also form I485?
he doesn’t want to go back either and leave me like this.
is there any other forms I need to submit?
thanks for your help

Yes you can do what you propose, but your application will depend on whether the case worker believes that your marriage is spontaneous and not just a way to get around the usual procedure of applying in another country and waiting until visa is issued to travel to the US. To enter the US on an ESTA and intending to remain is a big no-no.
If refused then fiance will be shipped back to the UK and will not be able to use the ESTA facility for several years.(if at all)
Also the process will take months during which fiance cannot work in the US.
How lucky do you feel?

Yes, possible, but as SDG says you may have to prove this was a genuine change of plan and not the intention all along (which would be immigration fraud). So have a think about what you’d have that can evidence that i.e. presumably you have a home to go back to that you’ll have to sell or give notice on, he has an employer that is expecting him to return soon and that he’ll also have to give notice to, etc?

If you have plenty of proof of his intended return then go for it, but if you don’t then I wouldn’t risk it personally, particularly with the current administration.

I too wondered how one can decide to remain in the US to do AOS (adjustment of status) and prove that your decision was spontaneous.
As you say if the OP has a home still in the UK, a job etc then that would go some ways to proving spontaneity.
During the AOS period the applicant cannot leave the US without travel approval.
So, if they do have commitments back in the UK then that is going to add to the things to think about.

he was working at his family restaurant in UK . So leaving the job isn’t really a big deal. Also was living at home with his family.
we are young, we are both only 20 years old .

Ah. That’s trickier then. I wouldn’t risk it at the moment, but obviously it’s your call.

I would say your chances are less than 50/50 as, from what you say, you CANNOT prove that you did not intend to remain when entering on the ESTA.

..... . how were you, a US citizen living in the UK for a few years, when you are only 20?

It may be a good idea for you and your fiancé to have an in person consultation with local experienced immigration counsel to figure out what to do.

there were a few 18-20 year old foreign students in when I was doing my undergrad in the the UK and the UK Equivilent of a WHV lets people form 18-30 come live for a couple of years, no idea if USC’s are eligible..

biggest issue the OP has now is that of intent, especially after asking the question here online in a public forum..

In the current political climate there is no way, at all, I would attempt this.

I have dual nationality, I was born in California, but my father had Im citizenship and while I was there in UK he got my passport for me also . I was younger at the time so don’t really remember, but I do have both passports

Thanks for all the replies guys , I appreciate it.
so basically it is doable, just the risk/ proving the fact it was not intent for us to get married here and going this route.
I don’t understand why it seems so less than 50/50 chances.
we have evidence showing truthfull relationship ,

It has nothing to do with veracity of your relationship. It has everything to do with immigrant intent.

It is very difficult to prove a negative, and it is entirely on you to prove that you did not intend for him to adjust status when he entered the US. Might you be ok? Yes, you might, but if it goes the wrong way you're looking at a bar to entry for multiple years.

You want to roll that dice? Go ahead.

As said above, it’s not the relationship that’s the issue. If the immigration officer suspects that he intended to stay in the US when he entered and therefore wasn’t a genuine visitor, it could have huge repercussions. Not just his application being denied, but potentially a ban from the US too, and as he entered on the VWP, no right of appeal either. Now if he had tons of proof that he didn’t intend to stay i.e. a home with a mortgage that he was returning to, a job that he was expected back at, a dog he’d left behind, and other commitments, then it would be less risky. But he doesn’t have any of that. And ask yourself honestly, is there anything that can be found that might say he was contemplating staying in the US i.e. text messages etc? Bear in mind his phone and social media can be examined.

He may be absolutely fine. But I’m with civilservant , I wouldn’t even contemplate it given the immigration crackdowns under Trump. Far too risky IMO. It’s worth reading the sticky thread above about adjusting status on the VWP.

And is he really fine with not being able to leave the US or work for quite some time if you do go down the AOS route? I know that you’re young and probably want it to happen right now, but being patient and doing an application via consular processing may be far better in the long run. It will end up being a short blip in the grand scheme of your lives together, and you can visit each other in the meantime too so it’s not as though you have to be separated.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

The area of Form I-864 [Affidavit of Support] has not been touched throughout this discussion. As his spouse and sponsor you will have to provide a completed I-864 showing that you either earn enough income (125% of the poverty guideline for a family of 2 -- you and him or at less the required amount of assets times X You have to complete this even if you do not qualify. Someone else who is a USC can also do one for your husband if they consent to the restrictions of the form.