One of the most common ways to legally immigrate to the U.S. is through marriage to a U.S. citizen. Immigration through marriage is generally simpler compared to employment-based immigration, but it is still relatively complex, as the immigration process can take many months.

There are basically three ways for someone to legally immigrate to the U.S. through marriage and obtain permanent resident status (green card). The methods are generally as follows:

• Method 1: The U.S. citizen marries the foreign citizen in Greece (or any other country). Then, the U.S. citizen files an immigrant petition with USCIS to sponsor the foreign spouse to come to the U.S. In about 3-5 months, the petition is approved, and shortly after it is forwarded to the National Visa Center (NVC) in New Hampshire. The NVC processes the information and several months later sends it to the U.S. embassy in Athens, where an interview appointment is scheduled for the foreign spouse. If the interview is successful, the foreign spouse will receive an immigrant visa stamped in their passport allowing them to travel to the U.S. and stay permanently, with the right to work from the first day of arrival.
• Method 2: The foreign citizen travels to the U.S. using the visa waiver or tourist visa with the intention to marry their U.S. partner there. The marriage takes place, and the U.S. citizen files an immigrant petition with USCIS just like in the first method. The foreign citizen leaves the U.S. before exceeding the allowed stay limit under the visa waiver or tourist visa and waits several months until the interview appointment at the U.S. embassy, exactly as in the first method. Essentially, the second method is identical to the first, with the only difference being that the marriage happens in the U.S.
• Method 3: The third method uses the fiancé(e) visa (known as K-1). The U.S. citizen files a petition for a fiancé visa before marrying the foreign partner. This petition is forwarded to the U.S. embassy in Athens 4-8 months later, and the foreign fiancé, equipped with the fiancé visa, travels to the U.S. Upon arrival, the foreign fiancé must marry the U.S. citizen who petitioned for them within 90 days. Unlike the second method, after the marriage, the foreign spouse can apply to adjust status to permanent resident (green card) without having to leave the U.S. This process takes about 4-8 months. The advantage of the fiancé visa is that the couple can live together immediately after the marriage. The disadvantages are higher costs (due to bureaucracy before and after the marriage) and a long wait time of several months before the fiancé visa is issued.

From the above, it is clear that the immigration process through marriage to a U.S. citizen is anything but quick, and in many cases the married couple must remain apart for an extended period. Additionally, there are several other potential hurdles to overcome for the foreign spouse to successfully immigrate, such as any criminal record, the U.S. spouse’s inability to prove sufficient income to sponsor the foreign spouse, lack of evidence that the marriage was made in good faith, and so on.

One of the most common ways to immigrate to the United States is through marriage to a US citizen. While immigrating to the United States based on a marriage is one of the most straightforward ways to immigrate, the procedure is still complicated and confusing in many ways.

There are essentially three ways to go about immigrating to the United States based on marriage and obtaining permanent resident status (green card), for a person who is presently outside the United States. Those ways are as follows:

• Method 1: The US citizen gets married to the prospective immigrant in the immigrant’s own country (or in a third country). Following the marriage, the US citizen files an immigrant petition inviting the prospective immigrant to immigrate to the United States. The immigrant petition is normally filed with a USCIS office in the United States. In about 3-5 months, the immigrant petition is approved and a few weeks later, the petition is forwarded to the National Visa Center in New Hampshire, known as NVC. NVC gets in touch with the prospective immigrant, more documents are collected and a few months later an interview is scheduled with the US embassy/consulate where the prospective immigrant is from. Upon a successful interview, an immigrant visa is issued on the prospective immigrant’s passport that permits the new immigrant to move and establish him/herself in the United States, with the right to work in the US from day one with permanent resident status (green card).
• Method 2: The prospective immigrant travels to the US on a tourist visa or using the visa waiver program for the purpose of getting married to his/her US partner. After the marriage, the US citizen spouse files an immigrant petition with USCIS, just like in method 1. The prospective immigrant departs the US before the period of stay permitted under the tourist visa/visa waiver expires and waits for a few months in his/her country until the appointment with the US embassy, just like in (1). Essentially, what is described here is the same with what we described in method 1, the only difference being that the marriage ceremony takes place in the United States.
• The final way to immigrate based on a marriage to a US citizen is by making use of a fiancé visa, known as a K-1 visa. For a fiancé visa, the US spouse submits a petition inviting the foreign fiancé to come to the US for the purpose of getting married and staying there. Once the petition is approved, it is forwarded to the US embassy/consulate where the prospective immigrant is from and 4-8 months later the foreign spouse arrives in the United States with the K-1 visa in hand. After entering the US, the foreign spouse must marry the US citizen who filed the K-1 visa petition within 90 days after arrival. Contrary to method 2, after the marriage, the foreign spouse can remain in the US and apply for adjustment of status to become a lawful permanent resident (green card holder), a process that takes 4-8 months, without the need to leave the United States. The advantage of a fiancé visa is that the newlywed couple can live together after the wedding from the very first day. On the other hand, the immigration process with the K-1 visa is lengthier and more expensive, since documents need to be filed both before and after the marriage, and getting a fiancé visa takes several months to begin with.

From the above, it is clear that immigrating to the US based on a marriage to a US citizen is not always a quick process and in many cases the married couple may have to live separately for extended periods of time. In addition, there are a number of potential obstacles that will need to be overcome in order for the foreign spouse to be able to successfully immigrate, such as a prior criminal record, inability of the US spouse to show sufficient income as required for the affidavit of support, lack of evidence showing that the marriage happened in good faith e.t.c.