Immediate Family Member Based Immigration to the U.S.A.

 

A spouse or parent or child is an immediate family member.  This is where the cliche comes from, that someone can "get into" the U.S.A. by marrying a citizen.  There is some truth to this, but, the rules are set up to prevent fraudulent marriages from allowing someone to get a green card.  And, even a good faith marriage may still be insufficient to get the foreign spouse a green card.

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For example, even a good faith marriage does not get anyone a green card unless the U.S.A. citizen spouse, or another U.S.A. citizen, signs an affidavit of support where they show the government that they (1) (a) make more than certain amount of money, or (b) have more than a certain amount of assets; and (2) promise to support the foreign applicant in case they ever require economic assistance in order to avoid becoming eligible for U.S.A. welfare services.

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