Marriage green card, outside the U.S.
Family
For a spouse living abroad, the case runs through consular processing: Form I-130 first, then the DS-260 immigrant visa application, and an interview at a U.S. consulate. You enter the United States as a permanent resident.
The forms
The family relationship petition — it proves the qualifying relationship between you and your relative.
The State Department’s online immigrant visa application, used for consular processing abroad.
The affidavit of support — the sponsor’s promise that the immigrant will have financial support.
Why this route
The visa is decided before the move. You enter the U.S. as a permanent resident, and the card mails to your new address.
Work, family, and school carry on in your country while the case processes — no status limbo abroad.
Petition, National Visa Center, consulate interview: three stages, in order, each with its own checklist the software builds.
Entry history and status inside the U.S. matter less when the whole case runs from abroad.
Requirements
The steps
USCIS approves the relationship petition.
Fees, the DS-260, and your civil documents — the case becomes interview-ready.
At the U.S. embassy or consulate for your country, with the medical exam done just before.
Visa in the passport, entry to the U.S. as a permanent resident, card in the mail.
How it works
In English, Spanish, or Portuguese. The software puts your answers on the official USCIS forms.
Your evidence is sorted into a numbered exhibit index, and every field, signature, and document is checked for completeness.
Download the assembled packet and file it yourself — or have an independent licensed attorney review and file it for you.
Pricing
Your exact technology fee depends on your petition type and is shown during the free eligibility check, before you pay anything. USCIS filing fees are set by the government and paid by you directly to USCIS.
Questions
If you are married to a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, a marriage green card may be your path — inside or outside the U.S. The free check asks about your situation and shows the exact forms, documents, and government fees for your case.
Spouses, parents, children, and siblings each have their own petition paths, and which ones are open depends on whether the petitioner is a citizen or a permanent resident. Pick the relationship in the chooser, or let the free check identify the right petition from your answers.
The K-1 fiancé visa is the path for bringing your fiancé to marry in the U.S. Its page explains the requirements and documents, and the free check confirms whether it fits your situation.
Go deeper
Marriage green card, outside the U.S.