From fiancée to lawful permanent resident in 6 easy steps

by Atty. Emmanuel Samonte Tipon

There are six easy steps for an alien fiancée to become a lawful permanent resident (green card holder):

First, the non-citizen and the U.S. citizen must meet in person and then become engaged to marry (fiancée and fiancé), after courtship and dating.

Second, the U.S. citizen fiancé must file a petition for a fiancée visa (K visa) with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) within two years after the meeting.

Third, after the petition is approved and the documents are sent by the State Department to the U.S. Embassy in the country where the fiancée resides, the fiancée must apply for and obtain a fiancée visa.

Fourth, the fiancée and the petitioning U.S. citizen must get married within 90 days after the fiancée arrives in the United States.

Fifth, the former fiancée who is now the spouse of a U.S. citizen must apply for adjustment of her status to that of lawful permanent resident with the USCIS, and after an interview during which the couple must establish that their marriage is in good faith and that it was not entered into for the purpose of avoiding the immigration laws, the application is approved and a conditional resident card is issued.

Sixth, within 90 days before the second anniversary of the issuance of the conditional resident card, the couple must file a joint petition to have the non-citizen spouse’s conditional resident status removed, by affirming that they are still married and that they did not enter into the marriage for immigration purposes. The couple will be interviewed by USCIS, except in rare instances. If USCIS is satisfied that the marriage was in good faith and that the couple is still lawfully married, a permanent resident card will be issued that is valid for 10 years. If the U.S. citizen dies or the parties are divorced within two years after the issuance of the conditional resident card, the non-citizen spouse may ask for a waiver of the requirement that the petition be filed jointly.

See Choin v. Mukasey, No. 06-75823, 07-70941, CA9, 08/12/13, and statutes cited therein.


(Atty. Tipon has a Master of Laws degree from Yale Law School and a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of the Philippines. He specializes in immigration law and criminal defense. Office: 800 Bethel St., Suite 402, Honolulu, HI 96813. Tel. (808) 225-2645. E-Mail: filamlaw@yahoo.com. Websites:  www.MilitaryandCriminalLaw.com; www.ImmigrationServicesUSA.com. He is from Laoag City and Magsingal, Ilocos Sur. He served as an Immigration Officer. He is co-author of “Immigration Law Service, 1st ed.,” an 8-volume practice guide for immigration officers and lawyers. Listen to the most funny, interesting, and useful radio program in Hawaii on KNDI at 1270, AM dial every Thursday at 7:30 a.m. This article is a general overview of the subject matter discussed and is not intended as legal advice. No warranty is made by the writer or publisher as to its completeness or correctness at the time of publication. No attorney-client relationship is established between the writer and readers relying upon and/or acting pursuant to the contents of this article.)