Hi,
I'm a Indian citizen currently residing in USA on H1B visa for the last four years. My fiance is a European citizen. We want to get married but are not sure if we can legally marry in USA. The obvious choice would be to marry in either one's homecountry, but it seems almost impossible due to new visa renewal regulations. I am about to change jobs, and so can't get any vacation until after a year and if I travel outside USA then I will have to get visa renewed in the US embassy in India for re-entering and as of now the estimates on how long visa renewal may take vary from several weeks to months and being away for so long would mean loosing job. Therefore the only option we seem to have left is that my fiancee travel to USA and we try to marry here.
We know that entering the country on visa waiver and then marrying a US citizen is not legal and may lead into a host of problems. We haven't been able to find information concerning a person on H1B marrying a foreigner in USA, except for some remarks of H1B holder not being able to sponsor a fiance visa and therefore having to return to his homecountry to marry.
These are our concerns:
1. Can we get a marriage license in USA since we've read that in some states a US social security number is required of both parties, and my fiancee will not have it because she will be coming on a visa waiver?
2. Is it legal to come to marry an H1B holder under the visa waiver program?
3. Even if it is not illegal then can it cause problems or even a rejection when we apply an H4-visa for her later on?
4. Is there any visa she could apply for coming to marry a non-citizen instead of using visa waiver program? I read that one could try applying for a tourist visa and ask for this intention to be written on it but that even if an embassy granted such a visa then an immigration officer may still deny the person from entering the country.
We are anxiously trying to find a way to marry so that we wouldn't have to be separated much longer. We would appreciate any advice you could give us.
Thank you,
Your friendly,
funnyman
I'm a Indian citizen currently residing in USA on H1B visa for the last four years. My fiance is a European citizen. We want to get married but are not sure if we can legally marry in USA. The obvious choice would be to marry in either one's homecountry, but it seems almost impossible due to new visa renewal regulations. I am about to change jobs, and so can't get any vacation until after a year and if I travel outside USA then I will have to get visa renewed in the US embassy in India for re-entering and as of now the estimates on how long visa renewal may take vary from several weeks to months and being away for so long would mean loosing job. Therefore the only option we seem to have left is that my fiancee travel to USA and we try to marry here.
We know that entering the country on visa waiver and then marrying a US citizen is not legal and may lead into a host of problems. We haven't been able to find information concerning a person on H1B marrying a foreigner in USA, except for some remarks of H1B holder not being able to sponsor a fiance visa and therefore having to return to his homecountry to marry.
These are our concerns:
1. Can we get a marriage license in USA since we've read that in some states a US social security number is required of both parties, and my fiancee will not have it because she will be coming on a visa waiver?
2. Is it legal to come to marry an H1B holder under the visa waiver program?
3. Even if it is not illegal then can it cause problems or even a rejection when we apply an H4-visa for her later on?
4. Is there any visa she could apply for coming to marry a non-citizen instead of using visa waiver program? I read that one could try applying for a tourist visa and ask for this intention to be written on it but that even if an embassy granted such a visa then an immigration officer may still deny the person from entering the country.
We are anxiously trying to find a way to marry so that we wouldn't have to be separated much longer. We would appreciate any advice you could give us.
Thank you,
Your friendly,
funnyman