Wait time to get married after entering the US on an F-1

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chakravo

New Member
Hello,

First, thank you for any responses to our question. This forum has been an invaluable resource to us in our search for answers. I have tried to find a case with circumstances like ours but I haven't found an exact match. So here are the details.

I am a graduate student on an F-1 visa that I applied for and got in June 2008. I have been in graduate school - and in status - since then and have left and returned to the US four times over that period (same visa, valid till June 2013). My most recent trip outside the US was in October of this year (I re-entered on the 16th). I have been in a relationship with an US citizen for a couple of years and now we would like to get married. We want to have a wedding in India in late 2013 but then I wouldn't be able to return on my F-1 (that, I realize, would be visa fraud). We would like to get married in the US and apply for AoS before going to India and having a traditional ceremony there. So I have a couple of questions

1. If we got married now (within the next couple of months) will I be suspected of visa fraud for marrying an US citizen within 2-3 months of entering on an F-1 visa?
2. My girlfriend had been married in the past (to an US citizen) and is now divorced. Does that matter when we apply for the AOS?
3. Can my graduate school fellowship be counted as part of our income when we apply for AOS?

Once again, thank you for your responses and help!

P.S. Maybe I should also mention that I have been in the US on an F-1 visa since August 2003 (Undergraduate - OPT - Graduate school), if that makes a difference.
 
Answers below in blue.

chakravo said:
Hello, ....

1. If we got married now (within the next couple of months) will I be suspected of visa fraud for marrying an US citizen within 2-3 months of entering on an F-1 visa? No. You have been living here for years so it is entirely within the realm of reasonable possibility that you guys had been dating for a while and then just decided to get married after your last entry
2. My girlfriend had been married in the past (to an US citizen) and is now divorced. Does that matter when we apply for the AOS? Of course it matters. The question is how much. Did she obtain her citizenship through marriage? If yes expect to be scrutinized significantly more plus her previous marriage could be scrutinized for fraud. But no need to get all bent out of shape if both that marriage and this one are bonafide.
3. Can my graduate school fellowship be counted as part of our income when we apply for AOS? Typically not because some officers regard it to be of a non-permanent nature

Once again, thank you for your responses and help!

P.S. Maybe I should also mention that I have been in the US on an F-1 visa since August 2003 (Undergraduate - OPT - Graduate school), if that makes a difference.
Click to expand...
 
chakravo said:
We would like to get married in the US and apply for AoS before going to India and having a traditional ceremony there.
Click to expand...

If you leave the US while the AOS is pending, you'll need Advance Parole to return to the US, and the AP takes about 2-3 months to be approved. So make sure the ceremony in India is more than 3 months after you apply for AOS and AP.

You also have to be careful of the interview date. If the interview date ends up clashing with your planned ceremony, you'll be in a major dilemma. Requests for reschedules of green card interviews are often ignored, resulting in denial for failing to show up at the interview. So to be safe, you shouldn't have the ceremony in India before you know when the interview will be.

Edited to Add: If you marry and file for AOS early next year, the green card will probably be approved before your late-2013 ceremony, which would remove these concerns.
 
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