If you are married to a US citizen and both of you live in the United States, you can apply for your green card (Lawful Permanent Residency) immediately after your marriage. There is no mandatory waiting period before you can submit your application.
Under the 90-day marriage rule, if a foreign national enters the U.S. and marries a U.S. citizen or permanent resident within the first 90 days of being in the country, USCIS will presume the marriage to be a fraud and will deny a Green Card, claiming the applicant misrepresented his or her intentions in coming to the ...
- The processing time for U.S. citizens filing Form I-130 for a spouse beneficiary ranges from 13-54.5 months. - The processing time for legal permanent residents filing Form I-130 for a spouse beneficiary ranges from 32-67.5 months.
You may file Form N-400, Application for Naturalization, 90 calendar days before you complete your continuous residence requirement if your eligibility for naturalization is based upon being a: Permanent resident for at least 5 years; or. Permanent resident for at least 3 years if you are married to a US citizen.
You can apply for US citizenship after 3 years if you are a permanent resident (Green Card holder) and have been married to and living with the same US citizen spouse during that time. Otherwise, most Green Card holders must wait 5 years before applying for naturalization.
Naturalization Process for Marriage Green Card Holders Meet Eligibility Requirements. Prepare Form N-400. Biometrics Appointment. Naturalization Interview. English and Civics Tests. Oath of Allegiance Ceremony. Receive Certificate of Naturalization.
All green card holders, as long as they meet key conditions, can apply for U.S. citizenship after five years (known as the “five-year rule”) — but those with a U.S. spouse and a green card through marriage can apply after only three years (known as the “three-year rule”).
The spouse must have continuously resided in the United States after becoming a lawful permanent resident (LPR) for at least 3 years immediately preceding the date of filing the naturalization application and must have lived in marital union with his or her citizen spouse for at least those 3 years.
3 Years of Continuous Residence. The spouse of a U.S. citizen residing in the United States must have continuously resided in the United States as an LPR for at least 3 years immediately preceding the date of the filing the application and up to the time of the Oath of Allegiance.