I am a

U.S. citizen A2

How do I help my 

fiancé(e) become a 

U.S. permanent resident?

A U.S. citizen who wishes to marry a non-U.S. citizen or 

permanent resident can help their fiancé(e) obtain permanent 

residence in different ways. 

One way is to apply for a fiancé(e) visa if your fiancé(e) is 

overseas and you want to marry in the United States. This visa 

lets your fiancé(e) enter the United States for 90 days so that your 

marriage ceremony can take place in the United States. Once you 

marry, your spouse can apply for permanent residence and remain 

in the United States while we process the application. If you choose 

this method, file a Form I-129F, Petition for Alien Fiancé(e). Filing 

instructions and forms are available on our Web site at www.uscis.

gov. If we approve the I-129F, we will send it to the National Visa 

Center, which will process and forward it to the U.S. Embassy or 

consulate nearest your fiancé(e)’s foreign place of residence. The 

embassy or consulate will then invite him or her to apply for the 

actual fiancé(e) visa. 

Another way is to marry your fiancé(e) overseas. If you marry 

overseas, you can then file a Form I-130, Petition for Alien 

Relative, for your new spouse. For more information about the I-130 

relative petition for a spouse, please see Customer Guide A1, I Am 

a U.S. Citizen...How Do I...Help My Relative Become a Permanent 

Resident of the United States?

If your fiancé(e) is already in the United States in another legal 

immigration status and you want to marry in the United States, 

please see Customer Guide A1 about filing an I-130 relative petition 

after you marry.

What are the basic eligibility requirements for a fiancé(e) 

petition? 

You must be a U.S. citizen to file a fiancé(e) petition. In your 

petition, you must show that: 

•	You are a U.S. citizen;

•	You and your fiancé(e) intend to marry within 90 days of your

fiancé(e) entering the United States;

•	You are both free to marry; and

•	You have met each other in person within 2 years before you file

this petition. However, there are two exceptions that require a 

waiver: 

– If the requirement to meet your fiancé(e) in person would 

violate strict and long-established customs of your or your 

fiancé(e)’s foreign culture or social practice; or

– If you prove that the requirement to personally meet your 

fiancé(e) would result in extreme hardship to you. 

If I choose the fiancé(e) visa option, how does my 

fiancé(e) obtain permanent resident status? 

Your fiancé(e) will need to enter the United States with a fiancé(e) 

visa. Once admitted to the United States with a K-1 visa, your 

fiancé(e) will be authorized to stay for 90 days during which you 

are permitted to marry. As soon as you marry, your spouse may 

apply for permanent residence by filing a Form I-485, Application 

to Register Permanent Residence or to Adjust Status, and mailing 

it to:

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

P.O. Box 805887

Chicago, IL 60680-4120

My fiancé(e) has a child. May the child come to the 

United States with my fiancé(e)? 

If the child is under 21 years old and is not married, a K-2 visa 

may be available to him or her. Be sure to include the name(s) of 

your fiancé(e)’s child(ren) on your I-129F fiancé(e) petition. 

Can my fiancé(e) work in the United States while 

on a fiancé(e) visa? 

After admission, your fiancé(e) may immediately apply for 

permission to work by filing Form I-765, Application for 

Employment Authorization, with a USCIS Lockbox based on 

your place of residence. Any work authorization based on a 

nonimmigrant fiancé(e) visa would be valid for only 90 days after 

entry. However, your fiancé(e) would also be eligible to apply for 

an extended work authorization at the same time as he or she 

A2—I am a U.S. citizen...How do I help my fiancé(e) become a U.S. permanent resident?

M-564B (October 2013) N 1
2 A2—I am a U.S. citizen...How do I help my fiancé(e) become a U.S. permanent resident?

M-564B (October 2013) N

files for permanent residence. In this case, your fiancé(e) would file 

Form I-765 together with Form I-485 as soon as you marry. 

What if my fiancé(e) uses a different kind of visa, 

or enters as a visitor without visa, to come here so we can 

marry? 

There could be serious problems for your fiancé(e) if he or she 

enters the United States on another visa with the intention of 

marrying and residing here. Attempting to obtain a visa or entering 

the United States by saying one thing when you intend another 

may be considered immigration fraud, for which there are serious 

penalties. Those penalties include restricting a person’s ability to 

obtain immigration benefits, including permanent residence, as well 

as a possible fine of up to $10,000 and imprisonment of up to 5 

years. 

What if my fiancé(e) is already in the United States in 

another status and we decide to marry now?

If your fiancé(e) is in the United States and entered using a visa 

other than a fiancé(e) visa, and you marry, then you may file an 

I-130 relative petition for him or her as your spouse. He or she 

may be able to file Form I-485 along with your petition. For more 

information about the I-130 relative petition, please see Customer 

Guide A1. 

If your fiancé(e) is in the United States and entered unlawfully, 

in most cases he or she will not be able to adjust status to that of 

a permanent resident while in the United States. In this situation, 

once you marry, you may file an I-130 relative petition for him or 

her as your spouse. If approved, he or she will have to pursue an 

immigrant visa at a U.S. Embassy or consulate overseas. 

What if we are engaged but have not yet decided 

to marry? 

The fiancé(e) visa is a temporary visa that simply permits your 

fiancé(e) to enter the United States so that the two of you can 

marry in the United States within the 90 days permitted from the 

date of entry. It is not a way for you to bring a person here so you 

can get to know one another, or spend more time together to decide 

whether or not you want to marry. 

What happens if we do not marry within 90 days? 

Fiancé(e) status automatically expires after 90 days. It cannot be 

extended. Your fiancé(e) should leave the United States at the 

end of the 90 days if you do not marry. If your fiancé(e) does not 

depart, he or she would violate U.S. immigration law. This could 

affect future eligibility for U.S. immigration benefits. 

We want to make plans for our wedding. How long will 

this process take? 

Each case is different. Please check our Web site for our current 

processing times for the I-129F petition. We process fiancé(e) 

petitions in the order we receive them. Once we complete our 

processing, your approved petition is then forwarded to the National 

Visa Center (NVC). The NVC will then send the petition to the 

U.S. Embassy or consulate, which will need time to process your 

fiancé(e) for a visa.

Key Information

Key USCIS forms referenced 

sin this guide

Form #

Petition for Alien Relative I-130

Petition for Alien Fiancé(e) I-129F 

Application to Register Permanent Residence 

or to Adjust Status 

I-485 

Application for Employment Authorization I-765

Other U.S. Government Services–Click or Call

General 

Information

www.usa.gov 1-800-333-4636

New 

Immigrants

www.welcometoUSA.gov

U.S. Dept. 

of State

www.state.gov 1-202-647-6575

For more copies of this guide, or information 

about other customer guides, please visit 

www.uscis.gov/howdoi. 

You can also visit www.uscis.gov to download 

forms, e-file some applications, check the 

status of an application, and more. It’s a great 

place to start!

If you don’t have Internet access at home or 

work, try your local library. 

If you cannot find what you need, please call 

Customer Service at: 1-800-375-5283

Hearing Impaired TDD Customer Service: 

1-800-767-1833

Disclaimer: This guide provides basic 

information to help you become generally 

familiar with our rules and procedures. For 

more information, or the law and regulations, 

please visit our Web site. Immigration law 

can be complex, and it is impossible to 

describe every aspect of every process. You 

may wish to be represented by a licensed 

attorney or by a nonprofit agency accredited 

by the Board of Immigration Appeals.