gnat551 said:
Hi All,
I am a GC holder, and have a common law wife. I have registered the marriage, and my state recognizes common law marriage. The common law or Informal marriage certificate states 2 dates; the date that we registered the marriage and the date that we declared ourselves married. My question is which date will CIS look at? Since my application was approved before we registered and hence follow to join will not work or will CIS honour the date that we declared as married (before my approval)....
Please help
Gnat551
The question has often been raised whether these benefits also extend to common law spouses. Black's Law Dictionary (7th ed. 1999), defines a common law marriage as follows:
Common-law marriage: A marriage that takes legal effect, without license or ceremony, when a couple live together as husband and wife, intend to be married, and hold themselves out to others as a married couple.
Once a common law marriage has been established, the spouses have the same legal status as a formally married couple, and must go through a legal divorce in order to end the marriage.
The Board of Immigration Appeals has determined that whether or not immigration benefits extend to common law spouses depends on the laws governing common law marriages in the U.S. state or foreign country in which marital status was acquired.
Common Law Marital Status Acquired In the U.S.
Currently only the following 14 U.S. states, plus the District of Columbia, recognize common law marriages:
Alabama
Colorado
Kansas
Ohio
Rhode Island
South Carolina
Georgia
Idaho
Iowa
Montana
Oklahoma
Pennsylvania
Texas
Utah
In order for immigration benefits to be conferred on a common law spouse acquired in the U.S., the following conditions must have been met:
Marital status must have been lawfully acquired under the common law marriage statute of one of the above-noted states; and
The marriage must be valid under U.S. federal law.
Even if a marriage is valid under state law, it is not valid for immigration purposes if it violates federal law. For example, the federal Defense of Marriage Act defines a marriage as existing only between a man and a woman. By defining marriage this way, federal law bans same sex marriages. Therefore no immigration benefits can be conferred through a same sex marriage.
Consult ur lawyer before relying on this information.
