Marriage Green Card – Adjustment of Status Inside the U.S.
If you are married to a U.S. citizen and already in the United States, you can apply for a green card without leaving the country. This route is called adjustment of status. The spouse of a citizen may file Form I-130 and Form I-485 together, and while USCIS reviews them, apply for a work permit and a travel document. We prepare the whole package and support the case through the USCIS interview. Lawyer fees start at $1,750, and government fees are paid separately.
What we handle
- Check whether you can adjust status
- Prepare I-130, I-130A and I-485 as one filing
- File for a work permit and advance parole
- Prepare both spouses for the USCIS interview
Who can get a marriage green card inside the U.S.
The foreign spouse can apply from inside the United States when all of these are true:
- the marriage is legally registered and any earlier marriages of both spouses have ended;
- the foreign spouse is in the U.S. and entered lawfully, meaning they were inspected and admitted on a visa or paroled;
- the petitioning spouse is a U.S. citizen who lives in the U.S. and can sponsor on Form I-864;
- if the petitioning spouse holds a green card instead, the F2A category is current for you in the Visa Bulletin.
Spouses of U.S. citizens have no waiting line and no annual cap. An expired stay or unauthorized work generally does not block adjustment if the entry itself was lawful. For spouses of green card holders those violations block adjustment, so lawful status has to be kept the whole time. Entry without inspection is a separate situation that a lawyer should review before anything is filed.
If your spouse lives outside the U.S., adjustment of status is not the route. You need a CR-1 or IR-1 spouse visa through a U.S. consulate.
Not sure you can adjust status?
Tell us how and when your spouse entered the U.S. A lawyer will tell you which route is open.
How we handle your marriage green card
Entry and status review. We look at the I-94, visas, any past refusals, earlier marriages and the sponsor’s income. Then we tell you whether to file from inside the U.S. or go through a consulate.
One combined filing. The U.S. citizen files I-130 with Form I-130A, and the foreign spouse files I-485 the same day. The package includes the I-864 Affidavit of Support and the I-693 medical exam from a USCIS civil surgeon in a sealed envelope.
Work and travel. Together with I-485 we file I-765 for a work permit and I-131 for advance parole. Leaving the U.S. without advance parole while I-485 is pending can make USCIS treat the application as abandoned.
Biometrics and interview. USCIS schedules fingerprints and usually calls both spouses to an interview at the local field office. Beforehand we go through the questions about your life together and the documents to bring.
The green card and after. If you have been married less than two years on the day USCIS approves I-485, you get a 2-year conditional card. The conditions are removed with Form I-751 in the last 90 days before it expires.
For a week-by-week view of the case and the wait at each step, read the marriage-based green card process and timeline.
Where cases slow down most
A concurrent filing is five or six forms, and the officer reads them side by side. If I-130, I-130A and I-485 show different move dates, a different past employer or a different divorce date, it is the first thing raised at the interview, and sometimes it triggers a request for evidence before that. So before mailing we put the dates from every form into one table and fix the gaps.
Yulia Golinevich, immigration lawyer
Documents for a marriage green card
The core of the package covers the marriage, the entry and the sponsor’s income:
- marriage certificate
- divorce decrees or death certificates for all prior marriages of both spouses
- proof of the sponsor’s U.S. citizenship – passport or naturalization certificate
- the foreign spouse’s passport, visa and I-94 entry record
- the foreign spouse’s birth certificate
- Form I-864 and the sponsor’s tax documents
- I-693 medical exam in a sealed envelope
- evidence the marriage is real – a joint lease or property, shared accounts, insurance, photos, letters from people who know you as a couple
The sponsor’s income must be at least 125% of the federal poverty guidelines. From March 1, 2026, that is $27,050 a year for a household of two in the 48 contiguous states. If income falls short, a joint sponsor can sign their own I-864.
Since September 18, 2026, a new public charge rule applies. Form I-864 is still required, but the officer weighs it together with everything else and it no longer counts as an automatic plus.
USCIS accepts only the 09/18/26 edition of Form I-485 and the 08/24/26 edition of Form I-864, and rejects older ones. Download forms from the USCIS website on the day you prepare the package. Mailing addresses for I-130 and I-485 changed on October 7, 2026 – check the Form I-485 and Form I-130 pages.
Documents not in English need a full translation with the translator’s signed statement that it is accurate and that they are fluent in both languages.
Work, travel and processing times
While I-485 is pending, you can stay in the U.S. on the basis of the application. You can work once the EAD card arrives and travel only with advance parole in hand. USCIS quarterly data for April – June 2026 showed these median times:
| Application | Median time |
|---|---|
| I-485, family-based | 7 months |
| I-765, work permit based on adjustment | 6.4 months |
| I-131, advance parole | 5.8 months |
A median means half the cases were decided faster and half slower. In the same quarter about 18% of family-based I-485 decisions were denials, most often over thin evidence, questions about the entry or past violations. USCIS updates these numbers every quarter.
Marriage green card cost
The first table shows VizaUS fees. You pay government fees directly to USCIS, and they are not part of our price.
VizaUS fees
| Service | Price |
|---|---|
| Marriage green card – I-130, I-485, work permit, advance parole | from $1,750 |
| Form I-864 Affidavit of Support preparation | from $250 |
| Response to a USCIS request for evidence (RFE) | from $250 |
| Removal of conditions (I-751) | from $950 |
USCIS filing fees
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| I-130 petition | $675 |
| I-485 application (age 14 and over) | $1,440 |
| I-765 filed with I-485 | $260 |
| I-131 advance parole filed with I-485 | $630 |
| I-693 medical exam by a civil surgeon | set by the doctor |
Full list of prices for visas and USCIS forms
Fees shown are for paper filing. Online, I-130 is $625, I-485 is $1,390 and I-131 is $580. A child under 14 filing I-485 with a parent pays $950. Prices and fees are current as of October 2026; see the USCIS Fee Schedule for the latest fees.
Adjustment of status or a spouse visa through a consulate
The right route depends mostly on where the foreign spouse is now and how they entered.
| Adjustment of status | CR-1 / IR-1 visa through a consulate | |
|---|---|---|
| Where the spouse is | in the U.S., lawful entry | outside the U.S. |
| What is filed | I-130 and I-485 together | I-130, then DS-260 through NVC |
| Main fees | I-130 $675 + I-485 $1,440 | I-130 $675 + $325 + $120 + $235 |
| Work before the green card | with an EAD | permanent resident from entry |
| Interview | USCIS field office | U.S. embassy or consulate |
| VizaUS fees | from $1,750 | from $2,250 |
If your spouse is abroad, the consular route is covered on the US spouse visa page. Still engaged and planning the wedding in America? See the K-1 fiancé visa.
Marriage green card FAQ
How much does a marriage green card cost?
VizaUS fees start at $1,750 for I-130, I-485, the work permit and advance parole. USCIS fees for paper filing are $675 for I-130, $1,440 for I-485, $260 for I-765 and $630 for I-131 – $3,005 in total. The medical exam is paid to the doctor separately.
Can I file I-130 and I-485 at the same time?
Yes, if you are the spouse of a U.S. citizen, you are in the U.S. and you entered lawfully. Both forms go in one package with I-864 and the medical exam. The spouse of a green card holder can file I-485 only once the F2A category is current in the Visa Bulletin.
Can we marry in the U.S. while I’m on a visitor visa and then apply?
A B visa does not prohibit marriage, and the spouse of a U.S. citizen who entered lawfully can adjust status. The risk is timing. If the wedding and the green card filing happen within 90 days of entry, the officer may presume you hid your real purpose at the border. That is misrepresentation, and the consequences are serious, so talk to a lawyer before filing.
Can I work or travel while I-485 is pending?
You can work once the EAD card arrives – the USCIS median for April – June 2026 was 6.4 months. Travel only with approved advance parole. Leaving without it usually means USCIS treats the green card application as abandoned.
Will there be an interview?
For marriage cases USCIS usually interviews both spouses at the local field office, though it can waive the interview. Prepare either way – the questions cover how you met, your life together and the documents in the package.
Why is my green card valid for only 2 years?
If you had been married less than two years on the day I-485 was approved, your status is conditional. Within the 90 days before the card expires, you and your spouse file I-751 together to get a 10-year card. See removing conditions on a green card.
Do I become a citizen by marrying a U.S. citizen?
Not right away. You need the green card first, and you can apply for citizenship 3 years after getting it if you have stayed married to and living with your U.S. citizen spouse the whole time. See U.S. citizenship through marriage.
Still have questions?
Message us. A lawyer will look at how your spouse entered and tell you where to start.
