It is not uncommon for a United States citizen to get married to someone who is a citizen of another country. If the couple at any point wishes to live in the U.S., the spouse who is the U.S. citizen must apply to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service for a spousal sponsorship so that their partner may legally live and work in the country. This process, it seems, can take longer than some believe it should.
As explained by Forbes, couples can take some steps to help move their applications along as efficiently as possible given the current immigration system. This includes ensuring that they have any foreign-language content on the application translated and certified prior to submitting it. Copies of all documentation should be kept so they can reference it at any time if questions or issues arise.
Couples seeking a spousal sponsorship should also carefully review their applications to make sure they have not missed any details or failed to provide all documentation requested. If they move or change any contact information during the time their application is being reviewed, they should keep immigration officials updated appropriately.
The goal of the process is to ensure a couple is legitimately married, not simply seeking a way for a person to gain entrance into the country. Officials also want to monitor potential security or public health threats. Couples may be forced to wait as long as one year before they are granted the sponsorship. After that point, the case needs to be reviewed two years later.
