How Can I As a Green Card Holder Help My Fiancée Obtain Green Card?
Question:
I married a U.S. citizen and got my green card. I was very unhappy in the marriage and we divorced after the condition was lifted. I am now in love with somebody else and we want to get married.
- I spoke with a lawyer who told me that it is quicker for my new fiancée to get a green card if I am a citizen. Since I was in the first marriage for more than three years before the divorce, can I just file for citizenship based on that marriage?
- If I marry my fiancée immediately, will she get her green card right away?
Answer:
- A person may only file for citizenship based on a marriage, if the citizen spouse has been a citizen for at least three years; they have been married for at least three years; the non-citizen has had the green card for at least three years, and they are still happily married. Otherwise, if you are not in the Military, you will have to wait the normal five years to apply for citizenship.
- If you are still a green card holder, your new spouse would fall under the second preference category and will have to wait for a visa number, based on her priority date, to become available. If called to an interview, you will be questioned carefully to determine whether there is any marriage fraud relative to the prior marriage.