Can someone help this confused soul?

[slugbug]

Hello everyone.
First of all, thanks to all for the information on this site that helped me in the time of my need. I have been an active reader here and this is my first post. There is something i could not find the answer for in any forum. I come to you to seek guidance and hope you answer my question.

I filed for GC based on spouse of a USC and have my interview coming in Aug. I have read interview experiences of people in this forum who were asked how the husband and wife met, how long they have been seeing each other before the wedding and similar questions. Before i ask more, here is a little about me. I come from a social, religious and a cultural background that permits marriage to a first cousin. I know this would raise some eyebrows, but this is very common among muslims and certain religions. I too have been married to my first cousin (who is a USC) for a while. (I know you must be thinking that this is some sort of an arranged marriage, but its not). We liked each other and i came here on H1B (had to convince my employer to send me here) so we can spend time with each other. I filed for GC because she does not want to move to my country yet and wants me to stay here with her.

Would it make a difference to the USCIS officer during the interview if i tell him/her that i married my first cousin? Would it make a difference if i dont tell? I know there are a lot of people in a similar situation, but i havent seen anyone come forward and talk about it, so should i assume there is no problem ? If there is anyone with a similar situation and have attended the interview, can you please let me know how it went? I am aware that the laws here in US permit marriages to first cousins now, but i still want to be sure if i have to inform the officer about this fact?

Thanks in advance, appreciate all the help and pl keep up the good work

[philaug28]

Usually uscis just ask common question about how long you guy have been married , dating or so . But if you guy dont have the same last name don`t even talk about being married to your cousin . If you guy have the same last name even coincidence factor can doi that .... but if you rush and tell there might be a souspicious fact . It will be better to let him ask and answer the question shortly . the most important thing would be the affidavit of support , bills under your names or your wife names under the same address , marriage picture or pictures tougether and i think you good to go . Nowaday they don`t ask that much questions , the interview last between 10 to 15 minutes because there is a lot of cases . I hope it helps .

[flman95]

Keep the interview simple. Have the Inspector do the talking and you answer. Remember, "Dont tell, dont ask!".
I dont think there is anything wrong with your culture or traditions and this should not raise any eyebrows (except to uneducated people who know little about the diversed world cultures and traditions). You will be fine. I wish you all the best.

(I just received my unconditional Green Card for 10 yrs last Monday!)

[cherr1980]

To whom you are married is not an immigration factor, they just want to be sure that you didn't engage in a marriage with a USC to avoid immigration laws. I mean you are married with her with all the proper papers right? so don't worry, the officers at immigration are looking more other stuff right now plus if the question comes be sincere and that's it, you have your papers to proof your marriage is legal regardless the personal opinion of the interviewer.

Just for your knowledge, not all the States allow marriage between first cousins and is not necessary because they are uneducated, but is a point of view of each people and this is not the forum to discuss about it and I really don't care if you want to marry a person from Mars in this forum.

As far as my concern, great that you got marry because you really care and love her!

Good luck,

[slugbug]

Thank you all for your reply. Really appreciate that.

To philaug28:
Our last names are different. Also can you please explain what you meant by this? but if you rush and tell there might be a souspicious fact. I cant imagine on what grounds they might think this case is suspicious? Can you please explain?

To flman95:
Thank you. I will remember that. "Dont tell, dont ask!" and congratulation on getting your GC.

To cherr1980:
Yes, all my papers are correct (though we did not get married here in the US, we have our marriage certificate issued by the local authorities from my country). I have not been out of status, no criminal record, filed my taxes every year. Thanks for clarifying that not all states allow first cousin marriages, and i confirmed that the state we live in allows it

Once again thank you all for taking time to reply. I understand that you are trying to help based on what you think is correct (and i really appreciate that), but it would be really really nice if anyone in the same situation who has been through the interivew let me know how it went. I can understand that some people dont wish to talk about it in a public forum, but can you pls atleast PM me and let me know?

Thank you so much and God bless you all

[enjoylife]

What philaug means dont volunteer and offer the info. If the adjudicating officer asks tell the truth. To have more solid proof that it is a valid marriage you can get a marriage license from the local county. That will be addtional evidence to substantiate your claim. It does not cost much and a simple process where a judge in a local US court will marry you.

[sap12452003]

Hello everyone.
First of all, thanks to all for the information on this site that helped me in the time of my need. I have been an active reader here and this is my first post. There is something i could not find the answer for in any forum. I come to you to seek guidance and hope you answer my question.

I filed for GC based on spouse of a USC and have my interview coming in Aug. I have read interview experiences of people in this forum who were asked how the husband and wife met, how long they have been seeing each other before the wedding and similar questions. Before i ask more, here is a little about me. I come from a social, religious and a cultural background that permits marriage to a first cousin. I know this would raise some eyebrows, but this is very common among muslims and certain religions. I too have been married to my first cousin (who is a USC) for a while. (I know you must be thinking that this is some sort of an arranged marriage, but its not). We liked each other and i came here on H1B (had to convince my employer to send me here) so we can spend time with each other. I filed for GC because she does not want to move to my country yet and wants me to stay here with her.

Would it make a difference to the USCIS officer during the interview if i tell him/her that i married my first cousin? Would it make a difference if i dont tell? I know there are a lot of people in a similar situation, but i havent seen anyone come forward and talk about it, so should i assume there is no problem ? If there is anyone with a similar situation and have attended the interview, can you please let me know how it went? I am aware that the laws here in US permit marriages to first cousins now, but i still want to be sure if i have to inform the officer about this fact?

Thanks in advance, appreciate all the help and pl keep up the good work

Hey I am not married to my 1st cousin, and its not love marraige either. And as a matter of fact we do have same last name...common P****. I have interview next week, and I am going to say that its arranged marriage. Yes, we did meet before marriage 2-3 times , but that meetings were arranged too.

I don't think there is anything wrong with arranged marriage,as long as its real.

Be happy...I will post my exp once its over...wish me luck

[sap12452003]

Thank you all for your reply. Really appreciate that.

To philaug28:
Our last names are different. Also can you please explain what you meant by this? but if you rush and tell there might be a souspicious fact. I cant imagine on what grounds they might think this case is suspicious? Can you please explain?

To flman95:
Thank you. I will remember that. "Dont tell, dont ask!" and congratulation on getting your GC.

To cherr1980:
Yes, all my papers are correct (though we did not get married here in the US, we have our marriage certificate issued by the local authorities from my country). I have not been out of status, no criminal record, filed my taxes every year. Thanks for clarifying that not all states allow first cousin marriages, and i confirmed that the state we live in allows it

Once again thank you all for taking time to reply. I understand that you are trying to help based on what you think is correct (and i really appreciate that), but it would be really really nice if anyone in the same situation who has been through the interivew let me know how it went. I can understand that some people dont wish to talk about it in a public forum, but can you pls atleast PM me and let me know?

Thank you so much and God bless you all

BTW when is your interview?

[nielsen]

I had my interview three weeks ago. My wife had the same last name as me (prior to wedding). The officer asked us if we were related, we told him that we were not. He seemed to be convinced by the other documents and pictures we carried that it was a bonafide marriage.

[slugbug]

I was initially scheduled to appear for my interview in september but had to request USCIS to postpone my interview due to personal reasons. My interview was held last month (early feb) and it went very smooth as compared to the paranoia and sleepless night prior to it (I was really worried about the whole thing). The officer did not ask anything on how we met or how we know each other. He only asked for tax returns and some pretty photos from our wedding. The end result = I got approved for a conditional GC

Thanks so much for this wonderful forum and the wealth of information here. Though i was not a regular here, i was able to find infomation whenever i came here looking for answers. Today, i logged in specifically to thank the wonderful people here who selflessly help others in need. God bless you all and thank you very very much.

[zzerous]

Pls find the info here...


http://boards.immigrationportal.com/...d.php?t=210034

and here...

http://immigration-information.com/f...ead.php?t=1146