Bona Fide Marriage Documents for Marriage Based Green Card Application
My name is Rod Armande and I am an immigration and personal injury attorney based out of Los Angeles, California. In the past few years, I’ve successfully represented hundreds of newlywed couples that are seeking to obtain permanent residency status for the immigrant spouse. This blog will focus on providing more guidance on “bona fide marriage” documents, which need to be submitted with your Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative.
For more general information on Marriage Based Lawful Permanent Residency see my article by clicking on the following link: https://www.rodarmandelaw.com/blog/immigration-lawyers-guide-to-marriage-based-green-cards. Please note there are other forms that need to be submitted to obtain Legal Permanent Residency for your immigrant spouse based on marriage to a United States citizen or Legal Permanent Resident.
This blog focuses on Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, which is filed by the United States citizen or Legal Permanent Resident spouse on behalf of the immigrant spouse. As part of filing a Form I-130, the married couple must show that they entered a “bona fide marriage” – not for the purpose of obtaining an immigration benefit in the form of a green card (Lawful Permanent Residency). To show that you have entered a “bona fide marriage”, officers will expect to see the type of documents that most married couples can produce such as 1) birth certificate of children shared together, 2) joint property ownership, 3) joint bank accounts, 4) joint lease agreements, and 5) joint utility bills matching the address where the couple reside.
However, I’ve found that the majority of newlywed couples do not have these types of documents to provide, which is where I can help them brainstorm and become more creative on providing other types of documents for this requirement – that even though they may not have these more traditional documents due to their specific circumstances, they have entered a “bona fide marriage”.
When I run into this issue, I provide them with a more extensive list of documents to assist them with brainstorming and providing as many documents as possible. I have provided this list below for your benefit.
Most couples are unable to provide every item on the list below, but the more that they can provide to show that the marriage is bona fide, the better their chances are of avoiding further delays in the processing of their petition. This is just a list of suggestions, and it is not exhaustive, so the couple may have other items available that can be used to show that they are publicly holding themselves out as spouse, are living together, and/or are commingling their assets.
1. All birth certificates of children born to the spouses showing both spouses as parents of the child, if applicable.
2. Any final adoption decrees for all children adopted by the spouses or where one spouse adopts the child of the other spouse, if applicable.
3. Jointly filed Federal IRS income tax returns for each year if they filed together.
4. Joint checking or savings accounts. The statements provided should show that the account is used by the couple. Submit a few different pages from different time periods covering the span of the account’s lifetime.
5. Driver’s license, state issued photo ID, or other photo identification cards for both spouse showing they live together at the same address.
6. Joint credit card accounts. The statement provided should show that the account is used by the couple. If the statements do not show the names of both spouses, but the physical credit card includes both of their names then submit copy of the physical credit card.
7. Copies of other accounts listing both spouses, such as utility bills, internet bills, cable bills, gym membership, costco/simon membership etc. Submit a few different pages from different time periods covering the span of the accounts’ lifetime, if applicable.
8. Any real property deeds (titles to the house, apartment, condominium, etc.) showing joint ownership, if applicable.
9. Any lease agreement showing both spouses listed as residents of the apartment and signed by both spouses. If the apartment lease does not include their names or signatures, then try to get a letter from the landlord indicating that both spouses live at the apartment. You may also submit copies of rental receipts showing both spouses’ names.
10. Proof of joint ownership of cars or other vehicles, for example, the title or car loan documentation listing both spouses.
11. Any life insurance policies where the other spouse is named as the beneficiary.
12. Health insurance plans that name the spouse as a member or beneficiary. Submit a few different pages from different time periods covering the span of the health insurance’s lifetime, if applicable.
13. Proof of joint car insurance. Submit a few different pages from different time periods covering the span of the car insurance’s lifetime.
14. Any records from the employer showing the spouse listed and/or designation of the spouse as the person to be notified in event of accident, sickness, or other emergency.
15. Any Correspondences exchanged between the spouses. For example, texts, call logs, electronic messaging (i.e. Facebook Messenger, Instagram Messenger, WhatsApp, etc.), letters, emails, birthday and holiday cards, etc.
16. Religious marriage certificate.
17. Vacations taken together such as airline tickets or itineraries showing the couple travelling together and/or hotel invoices listing both spouses.
18. Photographs from the wedding, vacations taken together, family get togethers, or other special occasions such as birthdays and holidays. Photographs should include both spouses in each of the pictures. It is helpful to include photographs of the couple with other guests who attended the ceremony or reception.
19. A letter from the religious leader or other authorized employee of the religious organization attesting to their joint membership and/or active participation together and their personal knowledge of the spouses together as a couple, if applicable.
20. Affidavits/Declarations from other friends and family members having personal knowledge of the marital relationship. It should include details of the nature of the relationship between the declarant and the spouses (how they met, how often they see each other, etc.) and their general opinion about the married couple. Include a copy of a valid identification document for each person submitting an affidavit.
Please also note that it is helpful to provide documentation that covers the entire period of the relationship, not just recent documents.
I highly recommend that you seek the assistance of an experienced immigration attorney to help you with these applications – do not rely solely on the information provided in this blog or other articles you find on the internet. Though it may cost a few thousand dollars to hire an experienced immigration attorney to assist you with your immigration matter, it is money well spent as it will ensure that your application is properly filed avoiding any rejections or other delays (in the form of a Request for Evidence for failure to provide enough bona fide marriage documents) in what is already a lengthy process. As of the date of this blog, from the time of filing it is taking approximately 14 months to process a I-130 petition based on marriage to a United States citizen or Legal Permanent Resident. Hiring an experienced immigration attorney also provides you with peace of mind that you have been screened to ensure there are not other issues present in your case. There are several other reasons you may be deemed inadmissible despite the fact that you are in a “bona fide marriage” to a United States citizen or Legal Permanent Resident.
For more information on Marriage Based Lawful Permanent Residency see my article by clicking on the following link: https://www.rodarmandelaw.com/blog/immigration-lawyers-guide-to-marriage-based-green-cards.
The content in this blog is for informational purposes only. Nothing stated herein should be construed as legal advice. It is for general purposes only and does not establish an attorney-client relationship. I strongly encourage you to seek legal counsel to assist you with your legal matter.
