Gc through marriage

[harshdesai]

Hi all,
I am currently working in Chandler,AZ through my company which is India based. I am here on L1 visa. I got married to my girlfriend 2 weeks back who is a US citizen. We are in the process for filing for my green card and have following doubts:
1. They say that the marriage photos have to be with your relatives. But we did a private wedding and its just me and her and the priest. We actually plan to do a proper wedding in Pune , India later. Will this mena that INS will think that marriage is fake?
2. We have a marriage license and a certificate signed by the priest. But I also herad that the priest submits the records to marriage burau and then you can get a nother certificvate form the bureau after 60 days. So which vertificate should we use. Also, should we wait for 60 days to get that other certificate from the bureau ?
3. My birth certificate does not have my name on it as , we name the child a few days after birth(at least we Maharashtrains do it) , so the birth certificate has my parents names and my birthdate. Is that ok???
Thanks
Harsh

[JIC]

harshdesai

INS will only accept a marriage certificate issued by a government agency. I do not know what it should be in AZ, but it is a county registration in CA. As to photo, I do not know yet. I only have photos with relatives after the ceremony (same day). I will know next month because my interview is scheduled on Dec. 16. Good luck!

JIC

[VivaLasVegas]

Hi Harsh,

Let me ask you a few questions in my reply to your question.

1. How long have you known your USC girlfriend before you two decided to get married?

The reason I ask you this is if your friends / her friends common friends can certify that you two have a genuine relationship.

Signed affidavits from friends , your in-laws , her in-laws also help. Pictures of any trips taken together / parties etc also help as evidence.

2. I assume that you got your marriage license from a local county courthouse. The county courthouse record keeper should mail you your marriage certificate / or you can go pick it personally. I think the certificate signed by the priest works too.
make sure you attach a copy of the marriage license with your AOS application.

3. INS also accepts your passport as your birth certificate. But I am quite sure that they will request a birth certificate.

You said you were from Pune , which happens to be my hometown too.. Although I haven't lived there in years. When you visit India you can go to the Pune Corporation and request a birth certificate. They should issue you one which has your name on it.

I hope this helps.
Feel free to ask any questions you may have & all the best.

Thanks

Sachin

[harshdesai]

Hi Sachin,
I know my girlfriend for more than 2 years now. We know each other since June 2000.She had even come down to India in March 2001 and stayed with my family for 1 month.
The only reason we did this quick wedding is becuase we can start the GC processing and then we can go to India after that and have a proper Maharashtrian wedding.
Anyways, I have asked my father to send me a copy of the birth certificate so that shouldnt be a problem but we havent told anybody that we are married. Would that be a problem ??? We have tons of correspondece email for last 2 years and have photos taken in India and here , so hope that will be sufficient.
And since I will be applying for advance parole , we will be going to India and get married in between, since I heard that it might take a long time(6-7 months) before they actually call us for an interview.
Thanks
Harsh
p.s Sachin, good to know that you are from Pune too. I hope you still rememeber how to speak Marathi...Pune has changed a lot!

[VivaLasVegas]

Hey Harsh,

Collect as many pictures as you can.
About your question on people not knowing.
When you guys get married take a few friends with you as witnesses to the marriage place in the US. click pictures of the ceremony and click tonnes of em when you go to India.

What INS looks in these cases is that you havent married her for a GC. So the copies of e-mails / pictures taken together is good evidence of your relationship before you got married.

Once you get married have Utility bills in both your names same goes for bank accounts , car insurance , health & life insurance and so on. Gather as much information as you can and send it to the INS as an when needed.

About the AOS adjudication process timeline. It generally depends on the district office. (remeber to send all your papers to the district office and not to the service center and make copies of absolutely every thing you send to INS. )

I am ok with marathi I don't speak it that often though. It's been a while since I visited India. I may go this Jan or Feb.

good luck and keep us posted.
Feel free to ask any questions.

Sachin

[harshdesai]

Hey Sachin,
Man, we are screwed then! We got married at a chapel and it was just her and me and the priest and the photographer.... So the wedding pictures are only of me and her with the priest!
We will be surely going to Pune and getting married and taking lotsa pictures but what if we get a call from INS before that ?? Does that mean that the chances of my getting a GC are very low???
Thanks
Harsh

[VivaLasVegas]

Hey Harsh,

No you arent screwed per say. Your marriage in pune would certainly make the INS understand the situation better. It's not the pictures they want.. they want the genuinity of the marriage and you have to prove that with bills , etc.. pics are secondary but its always nice to have them as an assett.

One thing INS may ask is why werent her parents present for the wedding in the US. but again they want to see if you two have married for the right reasons.

Dont worry the INS dosent call people. If they need evidence they will send you a letter in the mail asking you what they need and you have about 90 days to respond to the letter.

You will be fine.
Let us know if you need any more information.
Good Luck.

Sachin

[harshdesai]

Hi Sachin,
I always thought that INS would want the photographs during the interview or something.
Thanks for your help man. I really appreaciate it!
Harsh

[VivaLasVegas]

Hi Harsh,

the interview is your last step of the AOS. That is the time where you and your spouse will be called into the INS office. (that is the time where you need to submit pics and copies of bills etc)

Were u on an H-1 while you met your wife?

good luck

Sachin

[harshdesai]

Hi Sachin,
I was on L1 when I met her and I have come back on L1 again and we are in Arizona.
Thanks
Harsh

[VivaLasVegas]

Great..

All the best and keep us posted.

Thanks

Sachin.