Legal Question in Immigration Law in New York

Re: marriage to an immigrant

To add to the comprehensive reply given above, if you choose to get married in the U.S., count on an extra 60-day period from the date of entry into the U.S. before your spouse will be able to file for adjustment of status in order to avoid the presumption of immigration fraud. Even then, the adjustment route can often be the best choice because even though the processing might take longer than consular processing abroad, your spouse will be in the U.S. with you, will be eligible to apply for work authorization and otherwise get settled here rather than having to wait abroad for a fiancee or immigrant spouse visa. Your I-130 petition and his adjustment of status petition and application for work authorization can all be filed together in the district USCIS office where you reside (there might be some additional planning opportunities in that as well). The downside is that sometimes visitor and other non-immigrant visas are refused and then you have no choice but to have most of the process handled in Tel Aviv.

This reply is in the nature of general information, is not legal advice and should not be relied on as such.

Re: marriage to an immigrant

If you marry your fiance outside the U.S., you will generally have to file a Form I-130 to classify your spouse as an eligible immigrant. You could file the petition with the Vermont Service Center (assuming you live in NY) or possibly with the U.S. consulate in Israel. The latest information from Vermont is that they are processing I-130's for spouses filed as of October 12, 2004. You would need to contact the US consulate in Israel to check on their current policy on directly accepting I-130s and their timing - to see if that would be an option.

While the I-130 is being processed, your fiance can generally only come to the U.S. on what is called a K-3 visa (not a visitor visa). Unfortunately, the K-3 visa process also takes time - you would need to file a Form I-129F. If the I-129F approval arrives before the I-130 is approved, your fiance would then need to complete processing at the U.S. consulate in Israel to obtain the K-3 visa (but this route requires further paper work when he arrives in the U.S.). If your fiance is still in Israel at the time the I-130 is approved, he can complete his immigrant visa processing at the U.S. consulate. The timing for the consulate processing varies and you should check with the U.S. consulate in Israel for their current schedule.

Another option that some couples take is to marry first in the U.S. This would involve first filing a Form I-129F in Vermont to obtain a fiance visa for your fiance. Once approved, your fiance would finish processing at the U.S. consulate in Israel for a K-1 visa and come to the U.S. to be married. After the marriage, your fiance would need to apply for adjustment of status (Form I-485) and can concurrently apply for advance parole (in order to travel) and for employment authorization.

As you may surmise, the procedures are not entirely straightforward and there is more than one possible avenue to pursue. You should both do some research on your own and consult with an immigration attorney if you feel uncertain about how to proceed. An immigration attorney can also give you a better sense of the timing and practicality of the various options in your particular circumstances. Sometimes an error made in the beginning of the immigration process can result in significant delays or affect a person's eligibility for benefits.

You may wish to start by taking a look at the information on the USCIS government website relating to family immigration:

http://uscis.gov/graphics/services/residency/family.htm

Disclaimer: Please note that the above is only for informational purposes. It does not create an attorney-client relationship. Proper legal advice can only be given after we have a signed engagement letter and we have discussed fully the facts in your particular case.