If a U.S. citizen marries an alien abroad, an I-130 petition must be filed after the marriage to begin the immigration process for the alien spouse (husband or wife). This can be filed either with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services - USCIS (formerly known as the Immigration and Naturalization Service – INS or DHS/BCIS) in the United States, or, under certain circumstances, at U.S. Embassies or Consulates abroad. U.S. Embassies and Consulates have differing policies on approving I-130s and should be individually contacted about the availability of this service.
Forms and instructions are available from USCIS in the U.S. Once USCIS approves the petition, they will send the petitioner a notice of approval, Form I-797. USCIS will also forward the approved petition to the National Visa Center (NVC), which will contact the intending immigrant with further information.
The total processing time for the alien spouse visa can take up to 36 months if the petition is filed with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) in the U.S. and subsequently forwarded via the National Visa Center to an Embassy overseas.
Recent legislation has led to changes in the procedures American citizens resident abroad will follow if they wish to sponsor an immediate relative (spouse, parent or minor child) for an immigrant visa. Effective immediately, the immediate relative petition (I-130) must be filed with the USCIS office responsible for the petitioner's place of residence (that is, the place of residence of the American citizen who is filing the petition). Consular offices at U.S. embassies and consulates are no longer authorized to accept I-130s, although they will continue to provide guidance to American citizen petitioners and their family members.
Responsibility for acceptance and approval of immigrant visa petitions rests solely with USCIS. American citizens should submit their I-130 at the CIS office responsible for their place of residence.
This procedural change may result in a processing delay for some applicants. The Department of State recognizes and sincerely regrets the inconvenience this may cause.
USCIS contact information may be found on their webpage at www.uscis.gov. USCIS can be reached through their National Customer Service Center (NCSC) at 1-800-375-5283 (TTY 1-800-767-1833). The USCIS Ombudsman may be contacted at cisombudsman@dhs.gov.
March 30, 2007:
As of January 22, 2007, consular offices abroad were instructed to cease accepting certain immigrant visa petitions because consular officers lacked the means to perform the required criminal background checks on American citizen petitioners, as required by the Adam Walsh Act.
Subsequently, the Department of State and USCIS worked to develop a mechanism whereby USCIS will perform these required "Adam Walsh Act" checks for any petitions accepted abroad by consular officers.
Effective immediately, consular posts abroad will accept petitions for immediate relative immigrant classification from American citizens who are resident in their consular districts, including members of the armed forces, as well as true emergency cases, such as life and death or health and safety, and others determined to be in the national interest.
Examples of family emergency include minor children who would be unexpectedly left without a caretaker. Examples of national interest include facilitating the travel of United States military and other USG direct hire employees assigned overseas who are pending transfer on orders and need to petition for immigrant classification of their spouse and minor children at posts overseas.
To demonstrate residency in a consular district, the American Citizen petitioners must be able to show that they have permission to reside in the consular district and that they have been doing so continuously for at least six months before filing the petition. Individuals who are in the country on a temporary status, such as student or tourist, would not be considered to meet the residency standard.
All lawful permanent residents, and American Citizens resident in the United States or with a permanent address in the United States, will file I-130 petitions at the USCIS Service Center having jurisdiction over their place of residence (as indicated on the USCIS website: http://www.uscis.gov/files/form/i-130.pdf).
If the alien is already in the United States and wishes to adjust to permanent resident status in the U.S., please contact U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
Processing Time:
Alien Spouse, Immigrant Visa
Total processing time for the alien spouse visa can take up to 36 months if the petition is filed with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) in the U.S. and subsequently forwarded via the National Visa Center to an Embassy overseas.
