What are the requirements for a UK citizen to marry a us citizen in the United States the UK citizen here on visa.?

Answer 1

i am a UK citizen and have married a us citizen, the US citizen (fianc(e)) has to send of a I-129F petition basically asking for permission to marry a non citizen, it includes forms about each other (biographical information) proof you are together (pics, tickets etc) statements saying you are together, so long as there are no problems (criminal record, previous marriage not yet annulled or divorced etc etc) it should come back approved (it costs about $500, rounding up)

theres also an affidavit of support thing to do aswell basically saying you wont become a public charge and that you and your fiance(e) have means of supporting you financially in America, this is important, i was told i didnt need to do this and it resulted in my application at the embassy being temporarily denied until i sent the necessary forms

then if/when that gets approved the UK citizen will be required to have a medical exam in London, and also an interview at the us embassy of London, UK.

medical exam costs (170 pounds)

(make sure your passport is not damaged and has plenty of time left on it, i had to buy a new one because of a tiny bit of water damage to a corner)

if all this goes well you will be granted a visa to marry which will be valid for i think 6 months.

you then go back to America and marry your fiance(e).

when you are married you need to apply to adjust you status (form I-485) more forms, proof of marriage, etc etc)

theres also a form for employment authorisation (if you are not already authorised to work in the us) send this off with your adjustment of status forms

theres a fingerprint exam to go to

sometimes an interview (i didnt have one)

then if all goes well you should receive your employment card in the mail first, then if no need for an interview you should receive a letter saying you are now a legal resident and a card will follow within 3 weeks.

that will be valid for 2 years at the end of which you can either renew it (i think for 10 years) or take the citizenship test and apply to be a citizen

IT IS A LONG WINDED PROCESS TO MARRY AN AMERICAN AND SHOULD ONLY BE UNDERTOOK IF YOU ARE REALLY SERIOUS ABOUT THEM

it took me just over a year and cost (with air fares, forms, fingerprints etc etc) about $2500, maybe more

some people choose to pay companies or lawyers to do the process for them, i did it myself to save money and i went through http://www.uscis.gov which is a very useful site where you can print all the forms you need and get answers about the process.

for more information about it all there are peoples experiences and timelines all over the internet but remember everyones experience is different depending on the persons and their circumstances.

hope this helps (theres probably stuff i have missed but it outlines the general idea)

there will also be stuff to apply for over here like social security card etc

http://www.ssa.gov