To get married in the US, you need to obtain a marriage license. Most often, this is handled by the county clerk, at the county office — it could be a department in the city hall or in the courthouse. To do this, you need to submit an application (fill out an online form, send an application by mail, or fill it out in the presence of the clerk), present documents proving your identity, and pay a fee (its amount varies from several tens to over a hundred dollars in different states).

To obtain a marriage license, you need to present the following documents:

• government-issued photo ID (passport, driver's license, state ID);
• birth certificate;
• Social Security Number (SSN) — if available;
• proof of termination of previous marriages (divorce certificate, death certificate of spouse, or annulment of marriage).

In some states, your oath that you are not married will be sufficient — as, for example, in California. But in New York, you even have to indicate where your ex-spouse lives after the divorce.

All documents from a foreign citizen must be legalized, have a certified translation into English (the translation must be attached to the original) and notarized.

To formalize a legal marriage in the US, you need to obtain a K-1 visa (fiancée/fiancé visa).

K-1 visas are issued to future spouses of US citizens coming to the US for the purpose of marriage. The K status cannot be changed to any other. If the marriage is not concluded within the permitted period of stay in the US, the holder of the K status must leave the US. Otherwise, they must be deported (expelled from the country).

This visa itself is not an immigrant visa — on the contrary, it is considered temporary, non-immigrant. However, it easily turns into an immigrant visa (green card) after the fiancée/fiancé arrives in the US and the appropriate переоформления. This is the main feature of the K-1 visa — that it serves as a preliminary step to obtaining a green card through marriage.

There are no quantitative quotas for this visa. The submitted petition is considered by the immigration and naturalization service within one to four months. After the petition is approved, there is an interview at the American embassy in the homeland of the person getting married, and this process of issuing a visa to enter the US takes another one to four months.

Preliminary conditions for visa issuance

First of all, the applicant for a K-1 visa must be an American citizen. Further, both parties must have the legal right to marry. In addition, future newlyweds must not only have the intention of getting married, but must also have met in person at least once in the previous two years.

Thus, a category K visa will be issued if the applicant:

• I've been dating my fiancee for the past two years;
• will get married no later than 90 days from the moment of arrival in the USA.
• both are legally free to marry.

Applicants for a K visa do not have to prove that they have no immigration intentions, since marriage to a US citizen entitles them to permanent resident status. They must clearly express their intention to remain in the United States for permanent residence.

The list of documents for the embassy from a foreign bride or groom includes:

• DS-160 questionnaire (to be filled in online).
• The original and a copy of the passport.
• A copy and the original of the birth certificate.
• Originals and copies of divorce documents if the foreign bride or groom was married to a third party.
• Military ID (for men).
• A certificate confirming a criminal record.
• The result of the medical examination. The only center in Belarus where this procedure can be performed is the Department for Work with Migrants of the International Organization for Migration (Minsk, trans. Gorny, 3). The service is paid.
• A 5x5 photo in electronic form added to the DS-160 questionnaire;
• Confirmation of a relationship with an American citizen (photos showing the married couple together, letters to each other, phone bills, airline tickets, etc.)
• Confirmation of the financial well-being of an American spouse (Form W-2 and Form 1040, Affidavit of Support):
• Embassy fee of 265 Yandex units;
• Confirmation of an appointment for an interview.

Unmarried children of K-1 visa holders are issued a K-2 visa. Children will not only be able to enter the United States with their parent, but they will also be eligible for a green card, just like their parent.

Information about the K-2 visa for the child of a fiancée (fiancé). Children of the K1 visa applicant (under 21 years of age and unmarried) must be listed in the I-129F petition. The presence of the child at the interview is mandatory. It is possible to apply for a K-2 visa even after the main applicant (K-1) has married the petitioner and obtained permanent resident status in the United States. In this case, at the interview, it is necessary to submit, along with other documents, a notarized copy of the marriage certificate of the main applicant with the petitioner. The K-2 visa can be issued within one year from the date of issuance of the K-1 visa to the main applicant. If the submitted documents meet the requirements of the immigration law, each applicant receives a non-immigrant visa in their passport. K-1 and K-2 visas are valid for a single entry within six months. Along with the visas, applicants receive visa packets to present to the US immigration authorities.

Within 90 days from the date of arrival in the United States, you are required to marry/wed the person who applied for the aforementioned visa for you or leave the United States. If you decide to marry/wed another person - not the one who applied for your visa, you must apply to the US Immigration Center (BCIS). After that, you must return to your home country and wait for a response from the aforementioned authority. If you have married/wed, then within 90 days from the date of your arrival in the United States, your spouse must complete the necessary documents and send them to BCIS. These documents will serve as evidence of your new status. From the status of "fiancée/fiancé of a United States citizen," you will transition to the status of "Conditional Permanent Resident" (Conditional Permanent Resident). After a few months, you will receive a notice from BCIS about the date of your interview, the purpose of which is to allow BCIS to verify the reality of your marriage. Between 21 and 24 months from the date you receive your Conditional Permanent Resident status, you must complete and send Form I-751 to BCIS. If you are married at that time, your spouse must sign this document. If you are divorced due to you or your child being a victim of abuse, you may request permission to send this document unsigned. The purpose of submitting this document is to change your status from "Conditional Permanent Resident" to "Permanent Resident of the United States." Your new status can be renewed every 10 years as long as you have not committed any actions contrary to US law. The penalty for persons in a фиктивный marriage is $250 and/or imprisonment for up to 5 years. If the фиктивность of your marriage is proven, you will be permanently banned from entering the United States.

Steps, deadlines and features of a fiancée visa

Before submitting documents for a marriage visa, the American fiancé (fiancée) must first file a petition for a foreign fiancé (fiancée) — form I-129F Petition for Alien Fiance(e). The American applicant and the foreign fiancée (fiancé) will need to prepare a number of forms and documents with the BCIS to prove that the applicant and the fiancée (fiancé) need to obtain a K-1 marriage visa.

You will also need to prepare a certain package of documents, which you will send to your fiancé. If your case is approved, it will be sent to the US embassy, from where you will receive a written notification about what documents need to be submitted and the exact date of the interview will be reported.

More about obtaining a K-1 visa (step-by-step instructions): http://fiancee-visa-usa.blogspot.com.by/2013/04/fiancee-visa-1.html

The grounds for refusal may be suspicions of immigration fraud, as well as, for example, insufficient financial resources of the American citizen-applicant, who must support the fiancée and, subsequently, the spouse. The American fiancé should submit an affidavit of financial support in form I-134, or better, in form I-864. Proof of income should be attached to this form. You may also need a detailed explanation in the form of a personal affidavit, explaining the nature of the relationship between the parties, their intentions, the parties' guarantees in terms of fulfilling their intentions and the level of their financial well-being.

If the documents are оформлены correctly and the interview is successful, the visa will be issued on the same day after the interview. The fiancée (fiancé) is free to leave for the United States immediately.

All documents must be competently prepared and translated into English. Under no circumstances should documents of "dubious" origin be submitted. This is the main reason for refusing to issue a visa.

In addition to proper оформления of documents, to get a positive result, you need to prepare for an interview with the American consul.