I'm lost - Married but don't live together yet & some other questions!

[Ms.Matar]

I'm a US citizen and I met my husband while he's finishing up his PhD. We got married but we live in 2 different states for now until he graduates in few months.
He entered the country on F-1 visa that expired last year, but he had maintained a valid I-20.
We are planning on applying for his green card asap, but I have few questions/ concerns:

1. Is it going to be a problem that we still don't live together yet? keeping in mind that he will be moving to my state as soon as he graduates in July, and:

• we have a joint financial account
• we see each other every month (we have itineraries/ tickets receipts etc.)
• we have photos of us traveling around together
• we have Affidavits from family and friends testifying to the circumstances of the marriage

2. Can we file I-130 and I-485 concurrently although his F1 visa had expired? would I-20 be enough? or should we wait until the I-130 is approved? If we can file concurrently, do we need to submit the forms separately, or can they be submitted together?

3. What are the forms that we need to submit? I got conflicting/confusing instructions on what forms to submit. Here's the long list I got, but not sure if we need to submit all of them, and if yes, do we submit them all at once?

• I-130
• I-130a
• I-131
• I-485
• I-864
• I-765
• G-325a

 

[Pierre82]

I'm a US citizen and I met my husband while he's finishing up his PhD. We got married but we live in 2 different states for now until he graduates in few months.
He entered the country on F-1 visa that expired last year, but he had maintained a valid I-20.
We are planning on applying for his green card asap, but I have few questions/ concerns:

1. Is it going to be a problem that we still don't live together yet? keeping in mind that he will be moving to my state as soon as he graduates in July, and:

• we have a joint financial account
• we see each other every month (we have itineraries/ tickets receipts etc.)
• we have photos of us traveling around together
• we have Affidavits from family and friends testifying to the circumstances of the marriage

2. Can we file I-130 and I-485 concurrently although his F1 visa had expired? would I-20 be enough? or should we wait until the I-130 is approved? If we can file concurrently, do we need to submit the forms separately, or can they be submitted together?

3. What are the forms that we need to submit? I got conflicting/confusing instructions on what forms to submit. Here's the long list I got, but not sure if we need to submit all of them, and if yes, do we submit them all at once?

• I-130
• I-130a
• I-131
• I-485
• I-864
• I-765
• G-325a

Hi Ms Matar,

I recommend you visit this website for more information related to the process https://www.uscis.gov/green-card/gr...een-card-immediate-relative-us-citizen#inside

I'm sure others with more experience will answer your specific questions.

 

[newacct]

1. Not living together may be kind of a problem, though it's understandable for people who are temporarily separated for school purposes. Hopefully by the time of the interview it will be close to when you will move together.

2. First of all, visas are only for entry, so it absolutely does not matter that his visa is expired as he is not seeking to enter the US. He is in status, and remains in status for as long as he has a valid I-20 and is in good standing. But for the purposes of his I-485, even his status doesn't matter. He can have been out of status for years, and it wouldn't matter one bit. I-130 and I-485 should be submitted together; there is no point to submitting I-130 first.

3. Each form has many required supplementary documents and forms. You should group each form's materials with that form, and not just put everything in a big pile. The main forms will be I-130, I-485, I-765, and I-131. I-130 will require things like I-130A as well as documents like your spouse's proof of citizenship, your marriage certificate, evidence of bona fide marriage, two photos for each person, etc. And I-485 for example will require things like G-325A, I-864 Affidavit of Support (which itself requires documents like pay stubs, employer letter, tax return transcripts), I-693 for the medical, your birth certificate, your proof of legal entry, etc. You can find some lists online or you can come ask on here when you think you got everything. Everything should be mailed together but each form's stuff should be organized separately within the package for ease of processing.