Prepare for Marriage Green Card Interview and Common Questions

I. Who conducts the marriage Green Card interview?

• When the marriage Green Card applicant resides within the United States
  • Interview completed by USCIS
  • Both main sponsor spouse and marriage Green Card applicant will attend
• When the marriage Green Card applicant resides outside of the United States
  • Interview completed by U.S. State Department / Consulate Office
  • The marriage Green Card applicant will attend.
  • The main sponsor spouse does not attend the marriage Green Card interview

II. What steps should be taken to prepare for the marriage Green Card interview?

As the marriage Green Card interview is the last step in terms of obtaining the marriage Green Card, it is crucial that the interview is performed without problems. The following are several things that the marriage Green Card applicant can do to get ready for the interview:

1. Rehearse common marriage Green Card interview questions with the main sponsor spouse
   • Review questions with the main sponsor spouse to recall specific details about the other spouse, the marital relationship, and specific dates of significant events in the marital relationship
2. Review documents
   • Review all copies of documentation that were submitted during the marriage Green Card application process
   • Documents may include birth certificates, marriage certificates, certified copies of court documents, photographs of significant events in the marital relationship
3. Preparation of supplemental documents
   • Additional documentation that will further evidence that the marital relationship is a bona fide marriage
   • Documents may include additional photos of the marital couple, birth certificates of any children, recent tax returns, recent bank accounts, recent joint property acquisitions, and many others
4. Review final documents
   • When providing additional documents at the marriage Green Card interview, the marriage Green Card applicant should organize the documents in chronological order and be prepared to answer specific questions regarding them

III. What can I expect at the marriage Green Card interview?

At the marriage Green Card interview, the interviewing officer will ask questions that will assess the eligibility of the marriage Green Card applicant, and further assess whether the marriage is bona fide. The questions that will be asked will surround the history of relationship of the couple, the individual spouses, details about the current marital relationship, and even future plans of the marital couples. These questions can be quite intrusive and the interviewing officers will be very well trained to identify any discrepancies from previously provided statements, submitted and unsubmitted government immigration documents. Although applicants may have prepared and rehearsed their answers previously, if they do not recall any questions during the interview, it is always better to indicate that you do not recall the answer rather than guessing and providing an incorrect answer.

IV. Will the marriage Green Card applicant be interviewed with the main sponsor?

In general, when a marriage Green Card applicant resides within the United States, they will be interviewed with the main sponsor spouse together. However, if the situation calls for it, the marriage Green Card applicant may be interviewed separately with the main sponsor spouse. Sometimes, the marriage Green Card applicant will be interviewed by the same interview officer as the main sponsor spouse, or at times, two separate interview officers may interview each applicant and main sponsor spouse individually and separately. However, the marriage Green Card applicant nor the main sponsor spouse should panic. This separate interview is just another tool the USCIS will use to assess whether or not the marriage is bona fide.

When a marriage Green Card applicant resides outside of the United States, the marriage Green Card applicant will interview alone without the main sponsor spouse.

V. What occurs after the marriage Green Card interview?

After completion of the marriage Green Card interview, there are several outcomes depending on the assessment by the interview officer. Typically the following are common results:

1. The interview officer will inform you that the marriage Green Card applicant is approved
2. The interview officer will indicate that additional documentation or evidence is necessary and the case will be issued a Request for Evidence (RFE). The marriage Green Card applicant will be required to provide additional evidence to clarify any issues found by the interview officer before further review and examination
3. The interview officer will indicate that further time is needed for determination. The final decision or the next required steps will be mailed to the marriage Green Card applicant
4. The interview officer will request that a follow up second interview is necessary to further review the marriage Green Card application. The second interview notice will be mailed to the marriage Green Card applicant
5. The interview officer will deem that the marriage Green Card application is denied due to insufficient evidence, supporting documentation, or other concerns regarding the applicant. Generally, there will be actions that can be taken to re-evaluate the case

Get related information right away!

• Adjustment of Status (I-485) or Consular Processing, What Should I Choose?