How to Prepare for a Marriage-based Green Card Interview
Note: this article will discuss how to prepare for a marriage-based adjustment interview (green card interview with USCIS).
You’ve just been scheduled for a marriage-based green card interview. In theory, it sounds like a straightforward process - just show up with your spouse, answer the officer’s questions, and you’ll get your green card in no time, right?
Well, sort of if you show up well prepared. In reality, the process can be far more complex. To do well in the interview, you will need to prepare not only the right documentation but know how to answer the potential questions that may come up. This article will cover how to prepare the right documents for the interview and how to best answer interview questions.
Preparing Documents:
USCIS expects that married couples should have certain standard documents to show that they are in a genuine marriage. Some routine documents that USCIS expects to see at an interview are joint tax returns, joint bank statements, joint health insurance, a joint lease agreement, joint utility bills, and so forth.
However, for many immigrants, such standard documents can be difficult to obtain, especially when the immigrant spouse does not have valid immigration status and therefore does not have a social security number. USCIS’ expectation of what documents a married couple should have is also antiquated - for example, not all married couples these days have joint bank accounts or joint utility bills.
If you don’t think there’s enough documentary evidence to show that your marriage is real, don’t panic. If you lack the documents traditionally required, try to think creatively about other forms of proof. For example, I have submitted printouts of my clients’ Venmo records showing the spouses’ payment of joint household expenses as proof of cohabitation. Similarly, if my clients have traveled together on vacations, printouts of their email itineraries, boarding passes, hotel / Airbnb receipts, have also been accepted by USCIS officers. If you do not have an attorney handling your green card application and are unsure how to prepare for your upcoming interview, it would be well worth your time to consult with an attorney, or to possibly hire an attorney to represent you at your interview.
Also, don’t just bring a handful of documents and expect to have met your burden. Bring in as many relevant documents as possible, ideally documents that confirm how long you and your spouse have been living together. For example, if you have been residing together for two years, don’t just bring one month’s bank statement; the USCIS officer will ask why you did not bring several months’ bank statements to confirm how long you have been living together.
What Questions Will the USCIS Officer Ask at My Interview?
The whole point of the adjustment interview is for a USCIS officer to determine whether or not they are satisfied that you and your spouse are in a genuine marriage. In other words, did you get married for the sole purpose of obtaining an immigration benefit?
In my experience accompanying clients to hundreds of adjustment interviews, the typical questions that USCIS officers ask a married couple will revolve around the following themes:
Your spouse’s family members - have you met them? Do you know their names? What they do? Where do they work and live?
Your spouse’s livelihood - what does your spouse do for a living? Where do they work? How much do they earn?
Your household finances - how much is your monthly rent or mortgage? What other bills do you and your spouse pay? Who pays these bills? Do you split the financial responsibilities?
The story of your relationship - how and when did you meet? How long did you date each other before you got married? Did your spouse propose to you, and if so, how? Why did you decide to get married to each other?
Keep in mind that part of the adjustment interview will be focused on your eligibility to adjust status in the U.S. Therefore, the USCIS officer will go over the I-485 form - usually towards the end of the interview - and ask the I-485 applicant most if not all of the questions on that form again. This is done so that 1- the client can reaffirm that all the answers they provided on that form are accurate and truthful and 2- if any answers to the questions need to be updated, revised or corrected, the applicant can do so at the interview.
It is crucial that clients completely understand all questions that the USCIS officer asks of them. For example, there are certain legal terms that appear on the I-485 form that a non-native English speaker may not understand. Words like “espionage,” “totalitarian,” and “polygamy,” may be unfamiliar. So, if you don’t understand a word in the officer’s question, ask for clarification and/or ask the officer to repeat or rephrase the question. Do not just guess or say something that you think the officer wants to hear.
Every now and then, you might encounter a hostile USCIS officer who might ask questions that are irrelevant or unreasonable. If you do have an attorney who will be representing you at the interview, the attorney definitely should speak up if an officer is being rude or asking irrelevant or unfair questions. I have on numerous occasions confronted an officer and requested to speak to a supervisor if I believe that an officer is acting out of line.
What Happens After My Interview?
Assuming that all goes well during the interview, USCIS should approve your green card application. Is there a usual timeline by which USCIS has to make a decision on your application? No. USCIS is not required to issue a decision within any timeframe. If the officer does not volunteer any information after the interview is concluded, I always nicely ask the officer if they need anything further from my clients. Once USCIS actually approves the I-130 petition and I-485 application, most clients will receive their green card in the mail shortly thereafter.
There is no way to guarantee an approval after a USCIS interview. That said, you can drastically improve the chances of success with adequate preparation and (in particular) having attorney representation at your interview. Having legal representation at a USCIS interview usually minimizes the possibility of “bad behavior” on the part of an officer.