Marriage-based visa in Texas – How to prove your love is real

San Antonio, TX – If you want to marry a foreign national, it’s not your family’s consent you should worry about, but what the US Customs and Immigration Services (USCIS) will think of it. As far as the immigration authorities are concerned, you have to prove it is a bona fide marriage, and you’re not entering this union strictly for immigration purposes. 

You have two possibilities:

• If you want to marry a foreign national living abroad you have the option to get them to San Antonio on a Fiancé) visa (K-1). The marriage will take place in the US within 90 days of your fiancé’s arrival
• If you intend to get married in your fiancé’s country of origin, your spouse will have to apply for a Spousal visa (K-3) at the local US Consulate.

Either way, you or your spouse will have to go through an interview with immigration officials and they will be asking a lot of questions to make sure your marriage is legit. If you cannot bring convincing proof you’re genuinely in love, they might conclude the whole thing is a scam and deny the visa application. To avoid such problems, you should talk to an experienced San Antonio immigration attorney before starting the whole process. 

What happens at a marriage-based immigration interview?

The interview will start on a friendly note, as the USCIS officials want you to be relaxed. It’s a trick to put you off-guard and make you say something you shouldn’t.

The first thing they’ll want to know is how your romance started. Expect questions such as:

• When and how did you meet?
• Where was your first date?
• How long did you date before deciding to get married?
• How did the proposal happen?

.

They’ll expect you to answer such easy questions quickly. Any hesitation may be interpreted as a sign you’re lying. 

To prove your relationship is genuine, your lawyers will help you put together a file with relevant proof, including:

• Photos and videos of you two together
• Things you posted about your relationship on social media
• Plane ticket receipts showing you went to your fiance’s country of origin
• If you two already have children bring the birth certificates to the interview.

During the second part of the interview, the questions will become more intimate. The immigration officials may ask you about your spouse’s cooking skills and their favorite food. They’ll want to know whether there have been any fights between you or completely irrelevant things such as the side of the bed you typically sleep on.

If the questions become too intrusive, you have the right to say so. It is their job to make sure it’s a bona fide marriage, but they have no business asking what birth control methods you use. 

If you are preparing to get married to a foreign national and want to speed up the process, get in touch with an experienced lawyer at the Law Office of J. Joseph Cohen in San Antonio and let them help you deal with the paperwork and prepare for the interview. 

Contact info:

Law Office of J. Joseph Cohen

San Antonio, TX

206 East Locust Street

San Antonio, TX 78212

Phone: (210) 769-3273