US Resident by Joining Navy wants to marry an Illegal Alien

The woman considered an illegal alien came here in 2001 with her mother and wants to marry a young man who became a US citizen through joining the navy. The couple wants to marry without having her return to her country.

My advice to this young man seeking legal advice was:
Once you are married, you can file for your spouse. The process begins with the filing of an I-130 immigrant visa petition in which you must establish the bona fides of the relationship. Once the I-130 is approved, however, there will be a wait of several years because there is a backlog in the category for spouses of a permanent resident. As a member of the military, however, you qualify for expedited citizenship.

If you obtain citizenship, there is no limit to the number of visas available to spouses of U.S. citizens so your wife would not be subject to a backlog and could immigrate immediately.

The next issue is whether she entered legally or illegally. If she entered legally, and you get married and you obtain citizenship, she can remain in the United States and apply for permanent residence on the basis of the marriage. She must demonstrate that she entered the U.S. legally and that the marriage is a real marriage not solely for the purpose of immigration benefits. She files a packet of forms with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service through a process called adjustment of status. While the application is pending, she is entitled to work authorization and travel permission. If the case is approved, she will be issued a permanent resident card. Then, as the spouse of someone in the military, she can immediately file for permanent residence.

If she entered illlegally, then there is a process by which spouses of military members can apply for "parole in place" This process takes the individual from being undocumented to documented in the United States. If approved, she would be issued an I-94 card that is evidence of lawful status in the U.S. With that status, she would then be able to file for adjustment as explained above. Parole in place is discretionary, so she would need to review her immigration and criminal history with a colorado immigration attorney to assess her chances of obtaining parole in place. We have been successful in getting parole in place in many similar military cases.

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