United States immigration legislation provides for two types of immigrant visas allowing immigration for foreign spouses of U.S. citizens and permanent residents.
IR1 visa is an immigrant visa for a spouse of a U.S. citizen or permanent resident issued if the couple married more than 2 years ago. The foreign spouse gets a green card right after entering the United States – no additional steps needed.
CR1 visa is also an immigrant visa for a spouse of a U.S. citizen or permanent resident. However, unlike IR1 visa, CR1 visa is issued if the couple married less than 2 years ago. In this case, the foreign spouse becomes a conditional permanent resident and receives a 2-year green card. Within last 90 days of the green card validity, the foreign spouse must apply for removal of conditions to maintain his permanent residency.
IR1 / CR1 visa eligibility:
Petitioner must be a U.S. citizen or a U.S. permanent resident
The couple must have officially married, cohabitation is not enough
The couple has a bona fidae marriage, namely, immigration fraud and immigration benefits for the foreign spouse were not the purpose of the marriage. To have the visa issued, the couple must submit evidence of a bona fidae relationship like joint property certificates, birth certificates of children born to the marriage, etc.)
Foreign spouse must complete medical examination and comply with vaccination requirements of the U.S. law.
U.S. citizen / U.S. permanent resident may also apply for permanent residence for children of the foreign spouse, if he/she married the foreign spouse before the children turned 18.
However, if stepchildren are older than 21 and/or married at the time of application for permanent residency, the process of bringing them in the USA elongates significantly, as adult / married stepchildren are not considered immediate relatives of the U.S. petitioner. Thus, they must wait several years until immigrant visas for them become available.
Disclaimer: The information provided in this article does not and is not intended to constitute legal advice. Furthermore, this article is not guaranteed to be complete or remain up-to-date with the passage of time, nor intended to create – and receipt of it does not constitute – a lawyer-client relationship. Anyone viewing this information should not act upon it without consulting a licensed attorney.
Comments