Green Card Through Marriage: I-130 Application Guide (2026)

A marriage-based green card starts with the US citizen or permanent resident filing Form I-130 for their foreign spouse. If the spouse is in the US in valid status, file I-485 concurrently for adjustment of status. If outside, the case moves through the National Visa Center to the consulate for DS-260 immigrant visa processing. Bona fide marriage evidence carries the case at every stage: petition, AOS or consular interview, and (if the marriage is under two years old) the I-751 filing to remove conditions on the two-year conditional green card.

This guide is informational and not legal advice. Verify the current rules on the official USCIS or travel.state.gov page linked at the end.

The eligibility test for a marriage-based green card is simple to state and demanding to prove: the marriage must be legally valid and bona fide. Bona fide means the couple married for love and shared life, not for immigration benefit alone.

Legally valid means:

• The marriage was performed in a jurisdiction that recognizes it.
• Both spouses were legally free to marry (any prior marriages terminated by divorce, death, or annulment with proper documentation).
• Both spouses were of legal marriage age and consented freely.
• The marriage is not categorically barred (incestuous, polygamous, or arranged solely for immigration purposes).

The sponsor must be:

• A US citizen: spouse is in IR1 (marriage 2 years or older) or CR1 (marriage less than 2 years). Both immediately current with no visa bulletin wait.
• A lawful permanent resident: spouse is in F2A category, subject to the visa bulletin. F2A had no wait for many years but does retrogress periodically.

Bona fide marriage is evidenced by shared life. USCIS officers look for:

• Shared finances: joint bank accounts, joint credit cards, joint tax returns, joint retirement accounts.
• Shared housing: joint lease or mortgage, utilities in both names, mail addressed to both at the same address.
• Shared insurance: health insurance, auto insurance, life insurance with each other as beneficiaries.
• Shared family life: birth certificates of joint children, joint travel, joint social media presence, photos of family events.
• Shared time: timeline of the relationship, evidence of meeting, dating, engagement, and continued cohabitation.
• Affidavits: signed statements from friends and family attesting to the relationship.

Single pieces of evidence are weak; clusters of evidence covering different aspects of life are strong. A couple with shared accounts, shared lease, joint travel, joint photos, and family affidavits is far stronger than a couple with only a marriage certificate and a few photos.

The US citizen or permanent resident files Form I-130 (Petition for Alien Relative) with USCIS. The I-130 establishes the qualifying relationship and opens the case.

The I-130 packet typically includes:

• Form I-130: the main petition form with biographic information for both spouses.
• Form I-130A: biographic information supplement for the beneficiary spouse.
• Proof of sponsor status: copy of US passport biographic page, naturalization certificate, or birth certificate (for citizens), or copy of green card (for permanent residents).
• Marriage certificate: certified copy issued by the registrar of the jurisdiction where the marriage took place.
• Prior marriage terminations: divorce decrees, death certificates, or annulment orders for both spouses, with certified translations if needed.
• Photo evidence: passport-style photos of both spouses.
• Bona fide marriage evidence: joint bank statements, joint lease or mortgage, joint utility bills, joint insurance policies, joint travel records, photos together, communication records, affidavits from friends and family.
• Filing fee: the USCIS I-130 filing fee.

I-130 processing time at USCIS averages 12 to 24 months for spouse petitions filed by US citizens, sometimes faster for cases filed concurrently with I-485 at the same service center. Petitions filed by permanent residents take longer because of the F2A category processing.

USCIS either approves I-130 outright, issues an RFE for additional evidence, or denies. RFEs typically ask for more bona fide marriage evidence. The most common deficiency is sparse joint financial evidence, especially for recently married couples who have not yet combined accounts.

If you file I-130 concurrently with I-485 (only possible when the spouse is in the US in valid status and the visa bulletin is current), USCIS adjudicates both together, often interviewing the couple to decide both at the AOS stage.

After (or alongside) I-130, the spouse must decide between two paths to the green card.

Adjustment of Status (AOS) works only if:

• The spouse is physically present in the United States.
• The spouse entered with inspection (with a visa or under VWP) and is in valid status, or qualifies under a narrow exception (immediate relative of a US citizen with overstay, INA 245(i) grandfathered, or similar).
• An immigrant visa is immediately available (IR/CR is always current; F2A depends on the visa bulletin).

AOS is filed through Form I-485 (with photo, I-864 affidavit of support, medical exam, and supporting evidence). The spouse can file concurrently with I-485 a Form I-765 for work authorization (EAD) and Form I-131 for advance parole (travel document). The AOS process takes 12 to 24 months in 2026 and ends with an interview at a USCIS field office.

Consular Processing (CP) works for spouses outside the United States or those who do not qualify for AOS:

• I-130 approval routes the case to the National Visa Center.
• NVC collects fees, civil documents, and Form DS-260 (online immigrant visa application).
• NVC schedules an interview at the US consulate in the spouse's country.
• The spouse attends a medical exam with a panel physician.
• The spouse attends the consular interview with the petitioner where possible.
• If approved, the spouse receives an immigrant visa stamp valid for 6 months and enters the US as a permanent resident.

Choose AOS if the spouse is already in the US and wants to work or travel during processing. Choose CP if the spouse is abroad, prefers to handle the case in their home country, or wants to avoid AOS field office backlogs. Some couples choose CP even when AOS is available because their local consulate processes faster than the AOS field office.

The substantive green card application is either Form I-485 (for AOS) or Form DS-260 (for CP). The two forms collect similar information but route through different agencies.

I-485 (Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status):

• Filed with USCIS at the lockbox or service center.
• Filing fee plus biometric services fee (I-765 and I-131 may be bundled into the fee under current rules).
• Two passport-style photos meeting USCIS specifications (taken within 30 days of filing).
• Form I-864 affidavit of support from the petitioner spouse, with tax transcripts, employment letter, and pay stubs.
• Form I-693 medical exam in a sealed envelope from a USCIS-designated civil surgeon.
• Evidence of valid status (visa stamps, I-94, I-797 approval notices).
• Marriage certificate, prior marriage termination documents, birth certificate, and other civil documents.
• USCIS schedules biometrics 4 to 8 weeks after filing, then schedules the AOS interview 4 to 18 months later depending on the field office.

DS-260 (Online Immigrant Visa Application):

• Filed online through the Consular Electronic Application Center (CEAC).
• NVC fee paid separately from USCIS.
• Digital photo upload meeting State Department specifications (typically a 600x600 JPEG).
• Form I-864 affidavit of support from the petitioner.
• Civil documents (marriage certificate, prior marriage terminations, birth certificate, police clearance certificates) uploaded to NVC.
• Medical exam with the consulate's panel physician.
• Consular interview attended by the beneficiary (and the petitioner where possible).

Photo specifications differ: USCIS wants two identical 2x2 inch prints for I-485; State Department wants a digital 600x600 JPEG for DS-260 plus a 2x2 inch print for the interview. The same fresh photo can usually serve both, but check our photo validator against the specific category before printing.

Most marriage-based green card cases end with an interview. For AOS, the interview happens at a USCIS field office. For CP, the interview happens at the US consulate. Both interviews verify the marriage is bona fide and that no inadmissibility issues exist.

Typical interview questions cover:

• How you met: where, when, who introduced you, what your first impression was.
• The relationship timeline: when you started dating, when you first traveled together, when you got engaged, when you decided to marry.
• The wedding: where, when, who attended, what the ceremony was like, who paid for it.
• Daily life: who cooks, who drives, how you spend weekends, who does laundry, what you watch on TV.
• Knowledge of each other: spouse's birthday, parents' names, siblings' names, employer, work hours, hobbies, allergies, daily schedule.
• Family integration: when you met your spouse's parents, siblings, children from prior marriages, how holidays are spent.
• Living arrangements: address, who pays which bills, joint accounts, who handles taxes.
• Future plans: where you plan to live, plans for children, career plans, holiday plans.

Bring an updated evidence binder organized by category. Include items dated after the original I-130 filing: recent photos, recent joint bills, recent travel records, evidence of any major life events (new home, new child, new job).

Stokes interview: when the officer suspects the marriage is not bona fide, USCIS separates the spouses and asks each the same questions, then compares answers. Inconsistencies (different recollection of how you met, different recollection of dates, conflicting account of recent events) raise the risk of denial. Stokes is rare but not exotic; couples should prepare for the possibility by reviewing their timeline together before the interview.

When the marriage is less than 2 years old at the time of green card approval, USCIS issues a conditional green card valid for 2 years (CR1 category). When the marriage is 2 years or older at approval, USCIS issues a 10-year unconditional green card (IR1 category).

Conditional residency is not lesser status. It is the same green card with the same work and travel rights, but with an expiration date 2 years after approval. The 2-year conditional period exists to allow USCIS a second check on the marriage's bona fide nature before granting permanent status.

To remove conditions, the couple jointly files Form I-751 (Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence) during the 90 days before the conditional green card expires. The I-751 packet includes:

• Form I-751: jointly signed by both spouses.
• Conditional green card copy: front and back of both spouses' cards if both are CR1 (rare; usually only one spouse is the beneficiary).
• Updated bona fide marriage evidence: joint financial accounts, joint tax returns from the conditional period, joint property, joint insurance, joint travel, photos, evidence of children, family event records.
• Filing fee: the I-751 filing fee.

If the marriage ends in divorce, dies, or becomes abusive during the conditional period, the conditional resident can file I-751 individually with a waiver request supported by appropriate evidence (final divorce decree, death certificate, evidence of abuse).

USCIS extends the conditional green card automatically by sending a one-year receipt notice (and additional extensions if processing exceeds one year) until the I-751 is adjudicated. This receipt notice plus the expired green card serves as evidence of permanent resident status during processing.

I-751 processing time in 2026 is typically 18 to 36 months. USCIS may schedule an interview, but many I-751 cases are approved without one.

A marriage-based green card path requires multiple photos. The I-130 needs passport-style photos of both spouses. The I-485 needs two identical 2x2 inch USCIS-style photos taken within 30 days of filing. The DS-260 needs a 600x600 JPEG digital photo plus a 2x2 inch print for the consular interview. The I-751 (to remove conditions) needs two more identical photos. Validate every photo before printing with our photo validator, and review the full green card photo rules so the photo never becomes the reason your filing or interview is delayed.