Getting married in the USA
 

Hi

I'm new to this site...so I hope I am in the right place!

I'm British and have been dating a girl from the US for over 2 years. We have been engaged for over a year now... serious health problems on my Fiancee's part have slowed our plans down.

I am currently living with her here in the US whilst I am on a 3 month visitor's visa and we would like to get married before she starts her next round of treatments.

Can anyone please advise the simplest means of us getting married and what documentation I will require.

It broke my heart the last time I had to leave her during her treatment and neither of us want to be apart from each other any longer.

I look forward to your reply.


Best regards



RMC

Re: Getting married in the USA
 

Getting married is the easy part. Depending on where she lives, you can go and get a marriage license and be married tomorrow (although in some states I understand it may take a week or two). As you obviously entered the country without the direct intension of getting married, you wouldn't be doing anything wrong by getting married whilst you're there. If you decide to get married in the US before you leave the UK at any point, you would have to declare your intension at immigration when you entered the US. You may need to prove that you didn't intend to stay in the US after your marriage. That aside, your problems are more about where you want to live after you are married. If you want to live in the UK, you have relatively minor problems. Applying for a visa to bring your wife to the UK after you are married is normally a one day walk-in service. My wife and I did this at the British Embassy in New York. This would give her a visa to enter the UK as a permanent resident. If you want to stay in the US however, the road is much longer. For you to enter the US to live is a long and involved process for which I would direct you to the "Immigration » US Marriage Based Visas" forum.


Mark

Re: Getting married in the USA
 

You'll need a marriage licence from your local court house - and your passport and birth certificate should be sufficent for that.

I'm not sure about the actual getting married bit - the quickest way is likely to be some form of civil ceremony (cf British "registry office") - try asking at the court house when you get your licence for the options in your state.

Re: Getting married in the USA
 

this is what you do.

marry her.

finish your "touring" as you "planned". (now you surely didn't intend on marrying and staying here when u came did you?)

go back home. File for appropriate visas. Wait for approvals (to make sure you're not an axe murderer).

then come back and be with her.

Anything else, or any other advise would be advocate doing it illegally. Which is bad of course.

-= nav =-

In Maryland (at Court House) you don't even need to prove who you are. They only need dates of previous divorces. You can get married two days after you apply for the license. Each Court House has slightly different rules - you can check on line. All I did was a search for "Marriage Maryland" and it showed all the Court Houses, information, etc.