Things to Consider When Marrying Someone from Another Country

Citizenship and immigration services, a K-1 visa, and a marriage green card—the direct ways to promote international marriages. If you’re a current U.S. citizen aiming to get married to an overseas partner, there are essential procedures that help you reach your marriage goal.

Luckily, the immigration process is not as intimidating and challenging as before. These days, the special immigration attorney will help you out from the beginning till the end. But it’s always beneficial to be aware of everything before committing to a foreign citizen. Aside from legal procedures, you’ll unlock the benefits and disadvantages of marrying a foreigner.

Can You Marry Someone From Another Country?

The short answer is yes. You can find a wife in another country and marry her. An average foreign woman will endorse marriage with a U.S. citizen spouse for various reasons aside from committing to a loving and caring husband: immigration purposes, receiving a permanent resident status in the future, and other government benefits.

Marrying a non US citizen may require the following procedures depending on the situation:

1. If You Live in the States and Your Foreign Partner Is Abroad

A Fiancé Visa Status for Your Foreign Citizen Spouse

A K-1 visa is a legal document that lets your overseas fiancé enter the United States for 90 days to legalize your marriage. The marriage ceremony should take place in the USA. After marrying each other, your future overseas partner can apply for permanent resident status.

With permanent residency, the government can provide financial support for education, which aids in finding a better job in the future. If you choose this method, you need to file a Form I-129F, Petition for Alien Fiancé(e).

After the approval of the I-129F, it will be sent to the National Visa Center, which will process and move it to the U.S. Embassy. The embassy will then invite him or her to apply for the actual fiancé(e) visa.

Please note that before filing for the K-1 visa, you and your spouse must see each other in person at least once within the previous two-year conditional period. Additionally, your spouse needs to marry you and apply to adjust status within 90 days of entering the United States. Otherwise, they may face deportation and will need to leave the USA.

Consular Processing

If you get married abroad, your spouse can apply for a Green card at the U.S. embassy in their home country. For Green card approval, you and your spouse must file Form I-130 and Form DS-160: Online Nonimmigrant Visa Application. Then your spouse will have to undergo a medical examination and a green card interview at a U.S. embassy.

The average processing time of this procedure may take a while, but when they arrive in the States they will become a green card holder.

However, there are cases where marrying someone from another country is possible in the States as both partners are present here.

2. If You Both Live in the United States

In this case, if you, a U.S. citizen, can help your noncitizen spouse to become a lawful permanent resident through the process called adjustment of status. Your noncitizen spouse will change their temporary visitor or work visa to a physical green card.

To get a Green card, you and your immigrant spouse will need to get married and register your marriage. Then you will file Form I-130: a special Petition for Alien Relative to start the process of a Green card.

During the permanent green card application process, you become the partner’s sponsor. As a U.S. citizen, you can use the concurrent filing method. Concurrent filing means you will file Form I-485 alongside your Form I-130 application.

USCIS will process your application and request filling necessary forms, a biometrics appointment, and an in-person interview before giving your spouse a green card.

If you’ve been married for less than 2 years at the time you are approved for a green card, you will later receive a conditional green card. This type of green card is valid for 2 years. As your conditional Green card expires, you and your spouse must apply to remove the conditional nature of your green card.

Note that there are severe consequences for marriage fraud. USCIS may require marriage bona fide during the interview of your spouse for a visa or green card. Bona fides prove your marriage is not a pretense but a genuine relationship and not marrying someone for a green card purpose.

What Are the Pros and Cons of Marrying Someone from Another Country?

Benefits of marrying a foreigner:

• Marrying a foreign national spouse allows you to explore another culture from the first source. It’s a great way to understand another culture from the first-face perspective without any sugarcoating or stereotypes.
• Becoming married to an international spouse opens up the traveling horizons for you. Despite the immigration status of your future spouse, you are welcome to their country at any time and day. After getting married, you’ll be traveling to her homeland as an official couple: you’ll get closer to her family and friends, investigate the secret getaways, and enrich your life with shared memories.
• Marrying a foreigner gives you the right to learn their language. Honing new language skills will not only enhance your communication capabilities with locals but also boost your cognitive functioning.
• Raising children in multicultural, bilingual families will positively impact their understanding of the world, which may be advantageous in both professional and personal life.
• Connecting to a foreigner leads to breaking cultural stereotypes. It manifests tolerance and acceptance of another human being with their beliefs and ideas due to learning their true colors.
• Getting married to an international spouse allows you to register permanent residence and reap other immigration benefits. After some time and all the legal procedures, a foreign spouse receives essential rights—living abroad no longer seems strange and intimidating. You can work legally here, build future plans, joint bank account statements, get financial support from the government, and use medical insurance.

Pitfalls and dangers of marrying a foreigner:

• Creating a family with an overseas partner may push you out of your comfort zone, especially if you’re more of an aloof-introvertive type of person. Additionally, language barriers can lead to miscommunications and misunderstandings, hindering the expression of your thoughts and feelings.
• Navigating relationships with someone from a different country may be excruciating for the legal processes: finding the liable immigration attorney, dealing with immigration appeals, working on permanent residency, preparing for the immigration interview, collecting all the supporting documents, etc.
• Adjusting to other customs and traditions may be exasperating and hard. This adaptability can lead to cultural shock and disagreement.
• Marrying a person from another country and moving in with them means living far away from your friends and family. Homesickness can come into play and affect your relationships.
• Living with a foreign spouse may be uneasy about the probable discrimination from society. Without even realizing it, you can become stressed out and unwilling to come to terms with this. This might even negatively impact your relationships with the loving spouse. Especially if your foreign national spouse has become a permanent resident of your country and aims to live here for the rest of their life.

What Is a K1 Visa Divorce 10-Year Rule?

Unfortunately, international marriage, like any other marriage, ends in divorce for some couples. Here’s what happens when the married couple divorces—the K-1 visa divorce 10-year rule enters the stage.

The K1 visa divorce 10-year rule is the winning strategy for the foreign spouse. It allows them to obtain a Green card and apply for adjustment of status despite being divorced from their U.S. citizen partners, as long as they can prove that the marriage began in good faith.

This means that if the foreign spouse can provide evidence of not entering marriage solely to obtain a green card, they may still have the chance of becoming a green card holder even if they’re no longer married to their U.S. citizen.

How Can I Meet a Foreign Partner for Marriage?

You are aware of all the legal technicalities that aid in international marriages. Yet, many still believe that connecting to a foreigner is possible only by traveling to their homeland. Fortunately, nowadays, dating sites are the saving grace for frustrated daters.

You need to focus on a reliable platform that offers identity verification, a large number of reviews, and trustworthy customer support. Why are dating sites so effective?

1. They perpetuate connections between compatible matches.
2. They maintain privacy and safety.
3. They offer potent talking tools for engaging and deep conversations.
4. They propose real-time services where you can meet suitable members face-to-face.

Meeting your foreign national spouse through the platform is the fastest and safest way to delve into a new romantic story that can turn into a profound relationship.

The Final Word

You can marry a person from another country. Yet, if you aim to marry a foreign national spouse, you need to prepare for versatile legal procedures. Overall, if your potential overseas wife lives in another country and you desire to get married in the States, you need to apply for a K-1 visa.

There are many benefits and a few pitfalls to marrying a foreign national partner. Some of them may resonate with you, while some won’t. Consider your reasons for entering a mixed marriage and use reliable dating services to enhance your chances of matching with a compatible person.