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New York Criminal lawyer & NY, NJ Family Attorney, Law Office of Bukh & Assoc., PLLC

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Questions and Answers

Green Card

How Do I Bring My Spouse (Husband or Wife) to Live in the United States?

This information is for U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents who wish to bring a spouse to live permanently in the U.S. Only U.S. citizens can bring their siblings to live permanently in the US. Lawful Permanent Residents cannot.

Information For Your Alien Relative

Note: Information concerning the new K (advance admission for the spouse and children of a U.S. citizen) and V (advance admission for the spouse and the minor children of a lawful permanent resident) nonimmigrant visas will be coming soon.

Definition of a Spouse

Before you file any documents, it is helpful to understand that "spouse" means lawful husband or wife. In order to successfully petition for an immigrant visa for your spouse, your relationship with your spouse must be established and your spouse must be admissible to the United States under the immigration law.

Overview of Immigration Process

A legal immigrant (or "lawful permanent resident") is a foreign national who has been granted the privilege of living and working permanently in the United States. There is a three-step process for your spouse to become a legal immigrant:

1. The USCIS must approve an immigrant visa petition that you file for your spouse.

2. The State Department visa bulletin must show that a sibling immigrant visa is available to your sibling, based on the date that you filed the immigrant visa application.

3. If your spouse is outside the United States when your visa petition is approved and when an immigrant visa number (if required) becomes available, your spouse will be notified to go to the local U.S. consulate to complete the processing for an immigrant visa. If your spouse is legally inside the U.S. when your visa petition is approved and when an immigrant visa number (if required) becomes available, he or she may use the Form I-485 to apply to adjust his or her status to that of a lawful permanent resident.

For an excellent overview of immigration, please see the chapter and tables on immigrants in the USCIS Statistical Yearbook.

What Does the Law Say?

The Immigration and Nationality Act is a law that governs the admission of all immigrants to the United States. For the part of the law concerning immigrant visas for spouses, please see INA § 201, INA § 203, and INA § 204. The specific eligibility requirements and procedures for applying for immigrant visas and permanent residence are included in the Code of Federal Regulations [CFR] at 8 CFR § 204.1, 8 CFR § 204.2, and 8 CFR § 245.

Information for Citizens

If you are a U.S. citizen, your spouse is considered an immediate relative and is immediately eligible for an immigrant visa if your petition is approved. Generally, if your spouse is in the U.S. (through a lawful admission or parole) at the time you file the Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, your spouse may file a Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or to Adjust Status at the same time. If he or she is outside the U.S., your spouse will need to go to the nearest U.S. consulate to apply for an immigrant visa.

Information for Lawful Permanent Residents

If you are a lawful permanent resident and your petition for your spouse is approved, your spouse will be notified by the Department of State when a visa number becomes available. If your spouse is outside of the United States at the time of notification, he or she must then go to the local U.S. consulate to complete visa processing. If your spouse is inside the U.S. through a lawful admission or parole and is maintaining that status at the time of notification, he or she may file the Form I-485 when the visa number becomes available. If you do not have the Department of State issued visa number, you must wait for a number to become current. Your spouse may need to depart the United States to avoid accruing unlawful presence.

If you were married to your spouse before you became a permanent resident, your spouse may be eligible to receive following-to-join benefits. This means that you would not have to submit a separate Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, for your spouse, and your spouse would not have to wait any extra time for an immigrant visa to become available.

Conditional Residence

If you have been married less than two years when your spouse is granted lawful permanent resident status, your spouse will receive permanent resident status on a conditional basis. You and your spouse must apply together to remove the conditions on residence. Please note - you must apply to remove conditional status within 90 days before the 2-year anniversary of the award date of your spouse's conditional legal permanent resident status. If you fail to file during this time, your spouse will be considered out of status as of the 2-year anniversary, and may be subject to removal from the U.S.

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