REAL problem - no idea what to do now

[venusfire503]

We have a real problem, despite all of our precautions. We went through the whole process - got the K1 visa, got married, filed and received the 'green card'. We were so excited - no more immigration for almost 2 years!

Then I was reading the newspaper. According to the article, marriages performed by certain types of 'ministers' are not valid in my state. Unfortunately, we believe we had that type of 'minister', which makes it sound like maybe we aren't actually married! We're too afraid to check with anyone about it, but can't imagine waiting and wondering to find out if anyone picks up on it. I already had one sleepless night over this (just read about it last night). In a regular, non-K1 situation, we would just quietly get remarried and not worry about it. As all of you know, though, in this case, it's much more complicated than that. So far, it seems nobody has noticed - we were able to file with the courthouse, get copies of our marriage license and everything. It mentioned in the article that in one county, a marriage was invalidated (after many months) because of the type of minister.

So now, if someone in immigration picks up on it (say, when we're filing to remove the conditions), what will happen? Even if we remarry now, I don't know if that will solve the problem since he already got his green card. Of course, if we don't remarry, we have other problems too. If something happened to one of us - especially me - he could be deported, there would be all kinds of problems with legal matters (Wills, life insurance, jointly held property, etc), and probably other issues too.

Has anyone encountered (or even just heard about) a situation like this before?

I'm really worried..........

[indianium]

Entered on K-1 fiance (e) visa and married in US. Right? Which state you are talking about? Do you have marriage certificate issued by county? How you got GC without marriage certificate?
Don’t do stupid things. You and your spouse are already entered in US immigration system. For any immigration question check with the attorney.

*This is not a legal advice. Please consult your immigration attorney for legal advice.

[ngfc]

real problem-no idea what to do now

We have a real problem, despite all of our precautions. We went through the whole process - got the K1 visa, got married, filed and received the 'green card'. We were so excited - no more immigration for almost 2 years!

Then I was reading the newspaper. According to the article, marriages performed by certain types of 'ministers' are not valid in my state. Unfortunately, we believe we had that type of 'minister', which makes it sound like maybe we aren't actually married! We're too afraid to check with anyone about it, but can't imagine waiting and wondering to find out if anyone picks up on it. I already had one sleepless night over this (just read about it last night). In a regular, non-K1 situation, we would just quietly get remarried and not worry about it. As all of you know, though, in this case, it's much more complicated than that. So far, it seems nobody has noticed - we were able to file with the courthouse, get copies of our marriage license and everything. It mentioned in the article that in one county, a marriage was invalidated (after many months) because of the type of minister.

So now, if someone in immigration picks up on it (say, when we're filing to remove the conditions), what will happen? Even if we remarry now, I don't know if that will solve the problem since he already got his green card. Of course, if we don't remarry, we have other problems too. If something happened to one of us - especially me - he could be deported, there would be all kinds of problems with legal matters (Wills, life insurance, jointly held property, etc), and probably other issues too.

Has anyone encountered (or even just heard about) a situation like this before?

I'm really worried..........

It seems to me that this is a job for a competent immigration lawyer.First of all,they must investigate first if this called "Minister" is a licensed minister or not.By having your license marriage,your are proving to immigration that there was no intention whatsoever in your part,in violating immigration laws,and you two were trying to do things the way it should be done.If for any reason they will conclude that your marriage is not a valid marriage,due to the circunstances,I'm sure thy have to give you other options to fix the problem,without going to the extreme of deportation for the simple fact that you and your husband have not broken any immigration laws and whatever happened was out of your control.So don't worry too much.Is not as bad as it looks.Ask questions.Try to find out exactly where you and your husband stand,if you are in doubt.I'm sure you will be ok.

Good luck
God bless.

[venusfire503]

We're in Pennsylvania. http://www.philly.com/philly/news/local/11181097.html is the link for the story. In it, you'll read how the system is really messed up right now. Here's the part that concerns me: "In a York County case, a Common Pleas Court judge invalidated a 10-month marriage, finding that a friend of the bride's who officiated at the wedding didn't have the power to do so under Pennsylvania law even though he had been ordained online by the Universal Life Church. The judge ruled the friend didn't qualify as a minister under state law because he had no regular congregation or place of worship." The really ironic part is that it's possible in PA for people to "self-unite" - basically, marry themselves. We didn't want to do that because we didn't want there to be any questions raised, since it's not the norm everywhere, as far as I know.
Sigh.

Oh, the other thing I was wondering (if I get an answer, I'll post it) is if there's any way a green card can be revoked - such as in a case like this - and/or the petition to have conditions removed can be denied because of something like this?

Thanks for the help and reassurances. I'm going to try to get some sleep now!

[ngfc]

real problem-no idea what to do now

We're in Pennsylvania. http://www.philly.com/philly/news/local/11181097.html is the link for the story. In it, you'll read how the system is really messed up right now. Here's the part that concerns me: "In a York County case, a Common Pleas Court judge invalidated a 10-month marriage, finding that a friend of the bride's who officiated at the wedding didn't have the power to do so under Pennsylvania law even though he had been ordained online by the Universal Life Church. The judge ruled the friend didn't qualify as a minister under state law because he had no regular congregation or place of worship." The really ironic part is that it's possible in PA for people to "self-unite" - basically, marry themselves. We didn't want to do that because we didn't want there to be any questions raised, since it's not the norm everywhere, as far as I know.
Sigh.

Oh, the other thing I was wondering (if I get an answer, I'll post it) is if there's any way a green card can be revoked - such as in a case like this - and/or the petition to have conditions removed can be denied because of something like this?

Thanks for the help and reassurances. I'm going to try to get some sleep now!

Again,I think you are over reacting a little.Immigration is awared of Pa laws.What you have said about marriages in Pa is true,I am from Pa.,but also like I have said before,you need to find out first if the minister that performed your ceremony is a legitime minister or not.I do not think they will revoke a green card for something that was not your fault in the first place.What makes you think they would do such thing? You need to do some digging and try to find out if this person is a licensed minister or not,and then you can start the process of rectifing the situation if this is the case.Another thing,just because you read this article about what happened to the other couple,does not mean right away you are in the same situation.

Good luck
God bless.