Marriage + AOS

[thelaguy]

Hi there,

Been recommended this forum by a friend that used it once and was told to plight my journey and ask the questions

So my background -

I am 32 and a English Citizen born in the UK.

In May last year (2018) i decided to leave my job and life behind in the UK for a good round the world tour, i went to Europe and then a road trip to the States which would have taken me all over, so i started in New Orleans where the majority of friends are from, this will until a month later as i lost my passport so had to leave for the UK and get a new one on a emergency passport and then wait for a new one, so eventually end of July 2018 i then reentered back via Atlanta and resumed my travels, i then met a rather amazing woman which changed all my plans and we have been rather inseparable ever since, i was obviously meant to leave the States (to go Costa Rica) on my 3 month ESTA but i failed to do so which takes us to the present day...

So since July till now we have been dating snd her being the rather impulsive quirky character that she is... proposed to me rather romantically, which i obviously said yes to

Now this leads to all the questions...

Can a i guess Undocumentated Alien which i think im now classed as (or visa overstay) get a marriage licence? I mean without a SSN?

How easy/hard will all this be? I.e do i need to employ the assistance of a lawyer? If not id be ever grateful for some next steps of this whole process

[Wishingonastar]

Hi there,

Been recommended this forum by a friend that used it once and was told to plight my journey and ask the questions

So my background -

I am 32 and a English Citizen born in the UK.

In May last year (2018) i decided to leave my job and life behind in the UK for a good round the world tour, i went to Europe and then a road trip to the States which would have taken me all over, so i started in New Orleans where the majority of friends are from, this will until a month later as i lost my passport so had to leave for the UK and get a new one on a emergency passport and then wait for a new one, so eventually end of July 2018 i then reentered back via Atlanta and resumed my travels, i then met a rather amazing woman which changed all my plans and we have been rather inseparable ever since, i was obviously meant to leave the States (to go Costa Rica) on my 3 month ESTA but i failed to do so which takes us to the present day...

So since July till now we have been dating snd her being the rather impulsive quirky character that she is... proposed to me rather romantically, which i obviously said yes to

Now this leads to all the questions...

Can a i guess Undocumentated Alien which i think im now classed as (or visa overstay) get a marriage licence? I mean without a SSN?

How easy/hard will all this be? I.e do i need to employ the assistance of a lawyer? If not id be ever grateful for some next steps of this whole process

Hi! Congratulations on your engagement! I am also a UK citizen too doing AOS so would be happy to help you with anything. We got married in the US too and I think I just had my birth certificate, passport, driving license, etc. to get the marriage license. There were no problems at all with getting one or getting married without an SSN. I still don't have one. Each state may vary, but that was my experience. I was also on my ESTA, but nobody even asked my immigration status. Hope that helps!
By the way, we haven't had a lawyer this whole process. If your case is straightforward I think you can quite easily do it without one!

[newacct]

Hi there,

Been recommended this forum by a friend that used it once and was told to plight my journey and ask the questions

So my background -

I am 32 and a English Citizen born in the UK.

In May last year (2018) i decided to leave my job and life behind in the UK for a good round the world tour, i went to Europe and then a road trip to the States which would have taken me all over, so i started in New Orleans where the majority of friends are from, this will until a month later as i lost my passport so had to leave for the UK and get a new one on a emergency passport and then wait for a new one, so eventually end of July 2018 i then reentered back via Atlanta and resumed my travels, i then met a rather amazing woman which changed all my plans and we have been rather inseparable ever since, i was obviously meant to leave the States (to go Costa Rica) on my 3 month ESTA but i failed to do so which takes us to the present day...

So since July till now we have been dating snd her being the rather impulsive quirky character that she is... proposed to me rather romantically, which i obviously said yes to

Now this leads to all the questions...

Can a i guess Undocumentated Alien which i think im now classed as (or visa overstay) get a marriage licence? I mean without a SSN?

How easy/hard will all this be? I.e do i need to employ the assistance of a lawyer? If not id be ever grateful for some next steps of this whole process

You should be able to get married with some form of ID like your passport. You don't need an SSN to get married; foreigners hold weddings in the US all the time, just like Americans hold weddings in other exotic places. Your immigration status shouldn't matter.

You fiance is a US citizen, right? If so, after marriage, you can do Adjustment of Status to get permanent residency in the US. You would be in the Immediate Relative category (spouse, parent, or unmarried under-21 child of US citizen), which allows AOS even if you entered on VWP, and allows you to AOS if you entered legally no matter how long you've been out of status. Do not leave the US until you have your green card.

The basic forms are I-130 and I-485. It is recommended to also file I-765 for EAD and I-131 for Advance Parole, these two for free. All forms should be filed together. Each form requires a lot of supporting documents and other forms; read each form's instructions to see what is needed.

[thelaguy]

Thanks for the replies !

Yup my soon to be wife is a US Citizen, i havent got my current birth certificate as i left that in the UK, i have my passport + driving licence which i hope would be enough?

she does have a kid but she gave him up for adoption which inn not sure makes much of a difference?

Not entirely sure our process is straight forward, for instance...ive read up about proof of a bona fida marriage etc, she's had a problem with identity fraud in the past i.e her identity was stolen and passport stolen, this ruined her credit rating substantially, will this be much of a problem at all?

I know this means getting things in our name will be a problem as i cant get anything in my name with my current status (that I'm aware?) We have pictures from friends over the months + text messages since being together and she's currently living with me at my friends house, i guess i could ask for the bills to be changed into our name once we are married?

Another thing, she doesnt meet the income level that is required, what can i do there?

[azblk]

Yup my soon to be wife is a US Citizen, i havent got my current birth certificate as i left that in the UK, i have my passport + driving licence which i hope would be enough?

Yes to get married. you will need your birth certificate for AOS though.

she does have a kid but she gave him up for adoption which inn not sure makes much of a difference?

No

Not entirely sure our process is straight forward, for instance...ive read up about proof of a bona fida marriage etc, she's had a problem with identity fraud in the past i.e her identity was stolen and passport stolen, this ruined her credit rating substantially, will this be much of a problem at all?

No

I know this means getting things in our name will be a problem as i cant get anything in my name with my current status (that I'm aware?) We have pictures from friends over the months + text messages since being together and she's currently living with me at my friends house, i guess i could ask for the bills to be changed into our name once we are married?

Yes you can do that.

Another thing, she doesnt meet the income level that is required, what can i do there?

You will need to find a joint sponsor or have assets thaat are 3X the poverty level.

[Wishingonastar]

Thanks for the replies !

Yup my soon to be wife is a US Citizen, i havent got my current birth certificate as i left that in the UK, i have my passport + driving licence which i hope would be enough?

she does have a kid but she gave him up for adoption which inn not sure makes much of a difference?

Not entirely sure our process is straight forward, for instance...ive read up about proof of a bona fida marriage etc, she's had a problem with identity fraud in the past i.e her identity was stolen and passport stolen, this ruined her credit rating substantially, will this be much of a problem at all?

I know this means getting things in our name will be a problem as i cant get anything in my name with my current status (that I'm aware?) We have pictures from friends over the months + text messages since being together and she's currently living with me at my friends house, i guess i could ask for the bills to be changed into our name once we are married?

Another thing, she doesnt meet the income level that is required, what can i do there?

Could you get someone to send you your birth certificate as you will need that to file the forms. I think I sent a photocopy, but I'll need the original for the interview.
Having a child that she gave up for adoption won't make a difference.
I think if you compose a letter and any proof you have of this identity fraud to send with your packet that will be beneficial just to avoid any problems that might happen, but I don't think it will be a problem. All me and my husband have jointly is the car ownership and car insurance. We did provide receipts of joint purchases. That was when we filed the i-130 and it got approved, and since then we have a child so are obviously both on the child's birth certificate, etc. Do you own a car? Perhaps you can get put on that insurance policy or something. I never needed an SSN for that, just my UK driving license number.
You will need to get a joint sponsor if she doesn't meet the income requirement. Is there anyone that could help with that?

Also I don't know if this still applies, but I read that when you do AOS straight away (I started with consular processing and switched to AOS so don't know) but I read you have to wait a certain amount of time before filing after the marriage, I think it's 60 days? Someone correct me if I'm wrong!

[thelaguy]

Could you get someone to send you your birth certificate as you will need that to file the forms. I think I sent a photocopy, but I'll need the original for the interview.
Having a child that she gave up for adoption won't make a difference.
I think if you compose a letter and any proof you have of this identity fraud to send with your packet that will be beneficial just to avoid any problems that might happen, but I don't think it will be a problem. All me and my husband have jointly is the car ownership and car insurance. We did provide receipts of joint purchases. That was when we filed the i-130 and it got approved, and since then we have a child so are obviously both on the child's birth certificate, etc. Do you own a car? Perhaps you can get put on that insurance policy or something. I never needed an SSN for that, just my UK driving license number.
You will need to get a joint sponsor if she doesn't meet the income requirement. Is there anyone that could help with that?

Also I don't know if this still applies, but I read that when you do AOS straight away (I started with consular processing and switched to AOS so don't know) but I read you have to wait a certain amount of time before filing after the marriage, I think it's 60 days? Someone correct me if I'm wrong!

For ?35 or so the Uk Gov birth certificate thing csn send my official replacement, there are "scan & send" options from various other places but it would only be the photocopy or not the original version i guess.

I never got myself a car or insurance, mainly because if i got caught driving id would of ended up in alot of trouble plus i didnt really want anything in my name, didnt think i could even do that whilst overstaying my visa?

I do have a framily member if you will that easily meets the income level, isit pretty much anyone that can sponsor you then that's okay?

In regards to proof aswell, we're having a ceremony for our wedding with all friends being there, luckily i have my friend who is a professional videographer who has kindly said he'll record it and take pictures, do i include this in our packet? I'm not sure how "large" our proof is considering we talk in person alot, so text messages we've had until now i guess no matter how boring they are? Lol, pictures in general and our wedding? Do we need affidavit from friends swearing upon our marriage? My sponsor is also very senior in the coast guard, would that help?

Sorry for all the questions!

[xeradion00]

Hi there,

Been recommended this forum by a friend that used it once and was told to plight my journey and ask the questions

So my background -

I am 32 and a English Citizen born in the UK.

In May last year (2018) i decided to leave my job and life behind in the UK for a good round the world tour, i went to Europe and then a road trip to the States which would have taken me all over, so i started in New Orleans where the majority of friends are from, this will until a month later as i lost my passport so had to leave for the UK and get a new one on a emergency passport and then wait for a new one, so eventually end of July 2018 i then reentered back via Atlanta and resumed my travels, i then met a rather amazing woman which changed all my plans and we have been rather inseparable ever since, i was obviously meant to leave the States (to go Costa Rica) on my 3 month ESTA but i failed to do so which takes us to the present day...

So since July till now we have been dating snd her being the rather impulsive quirky character that she is... proposed to me rather romantically, which i obviously said yes to

Now this leads to all the questions...

Can a i guess Undocumentated Alien which i think im now classed as (or visa overstay) get a marriage licence? I mean without a SSN?

How easy/hard will all this be? I.e do i need to employ the assistance of a lawyer? If not id be ever grateful for some next steps of this whole process

I dont know if law is different for different states, but when I got married, all they asked for is my driver license. And they said I could also use my passport.
So i dont think you will have any problem getting a marriage license here.

[Wishingonastar]

For ?35 or so the Uk Gov birth certificate thing csn send my official replacement, there are "scan & send" options from various other places but it would only be the photocopy or not the original version i guess.

I never got myself a car or insurance, mainly because if i got caught driving id would of ended up in alot of trouble plus i didnt really want anything in my name, didnt think i could even do that whilst overstaying my visa?

I do have a framily member if you will that easily meets the income level, isit pretty much anyone that can sponsor you then that's okay?

In regards to proof aswell, we're having a ceremony for our wedding with all friends being there, luckily i have my friend who is a professional videographer who has kindly said he'll record it and take pictures, do i include this in our packet? I'm not sure how "large" our proof is considering we talk in person alot, so text messages we've had until now i guess no matter how boring they are? Lol, pictures in general and our wedding? Do we need affidavit from friends swearing upon our marriage? My sponsor is also very senior in the coast guard, would that help?

Sorry for all the questions!

Sorry, I'm not sure what you mean by the ?35, or the first paragraph haha.
Why would you have ended up in trouble for driving? It's perfectly legal. I always had an international driving license, but I looked up on our state's website and it says you can drive for up to 1 year on a foreign driving license. You could just add your name to your fiance's car. You don't need to actually even drive it, just so it's proof of a joint asset for your green card purposes.
Yes, as long as they're residing in the US. A senior coast guard certainly won't go against you!
Photos will be enough for the packet. Pretty much mine and my husband's whole relationship was documented so we screen shot a lot of emails and things. We didn't have anything written from friends like that. Don't forget you'll need witnesses at your wedding anyway so them signing the marriage certificate would be enough on that part!

That's okay