IR-1/CR-1 Spouse of a U.S. citizen
This is the immigrant visa for the husband or wife of a U.S. citizen. Because spouses of citizens count as immediate relatives, no annual quota applies and no waiting line forms - the only delay is how long the government takes to process the paperwork. IR-1 is issued when the marriage is more than two years old on the day residence is granted; CR-1 is issued when it is younger than that, and the resulting green card is conditional for two years.
- Срок
- permanent
- Продление
- Not applicable to the immigrant visa itself. A CR-1 conditional green card lasts two years and must be converted to permanent residence by filing Form I-751 in the 90 days before it expires; the 10-year IR-1 card is renewed with Form I-90 without any re-examination of the marriage.
- Работа
- Yes, without restriction, from the moment residence is granted. A spouse adjusting status inside the United States may request an interim EAD on Form I-765 under category (c)(9) while the I-485 is pending.
- Члены семьи
- None of the spouse's own. A stepchild of the citizen must be petitioned separately as IR-2/CR-2; immediate relatives have no derivative beneficiaries, so children cannot ride along on a parent's I-130.
- Путь к грин-карте
- This category is the green card. Consular applicants are admitted as permanent residents on entry; applicants inside the country file Form I-485 and receive residence on approval. CR-1 holders become unconditional residents when the I-751 is approved. Naturalization is available three years after residence is granted if still married to and living with the same citizen.
- Срок рассмотрения
- There is no visa queue, so the wait is purely adjudication. USCIS publishes current I-130 and I-485 times at egov.uscis.gov/processing-times and the figures move monthly; consular cases add National Visa Center document review and interview scheduling at the specific post. Since the May 2026 adjustment-of-status discretion guidance and the resumption of routine interviews, in-country cases have been slower than the pre-2025 norm. Specific month figures here are unverified.
- Годовая квота и очереди
- None. Immediate relatives of U.S. citizens are exempt from the numerical limits of INA 203(a) and from the per-country limit, so the September 2026 Visa Bulletin lists no final action date for this category and visas are always available. For context, the FY2026 worldwide family-sponsored preference limit that does not apply here is 226,000, with a per-country limit of 28,862.
Кто подходит
- The legally married spouse of a U.S. citizen, where the marriage is valid where it was celebrated and was not entered into to evade immigration law
- Same-sex spouses on the same terms as opposite-sex spouses
- A widow or widower of a U.S. citizen who files Form I-360 within two years of the citizen's death (self-petitioning widow(er), classification IW)
- A spouse who was abused by the citizen and self-petitions under VAWA (see the VAWA record)
Требования
- A legally valid, subsisting marriage documented by a marriage certificate and proof that any prior marriages ended
- Proof the petitioner is a U.S. citizen (birth certificate, passport, naturalization certificate or FS-240)
- Evidence the marriage is bona fide - joint finances, joint residence, children, correspondence, photographs over time
- The beneficiary must be admissible under INA 212(a) or eligible for a waiver
- A sufficient Affidavit of Support (Form I-864) from the citizen spouse at 125% of the federal poverty guidelines, or a joint sponsor
- A medical examination by a designated civil surgeon or panel physician
Как подать
- 1
The citizen spouse files Form I-130 with USCIS, with Form I-130A completed by the beneficiary, plus proof of citizenship and proof that the marriage is real.
- 2
If the spouse is abroad: USCIS approves the petition and sends it to the National Visa Center, which assigns a case number and collects the DS-261 choice of agent.
- 3
Pay the DS-260 processing fee and the Affidavit of Support fee, submit Form I-864 with the sponsor's tax returns, and file the DS-260 online.
- 4
Upload civil documents to the NVC. When the case is documentarily qualified, the NVC schedules an interview at the embassy or consulate.
- 5
Complete the panel physician medical exam, attend the interview, and enter the United States on the immigrant visa; pay the $235 USCIS Immigrant Fee so the card is produced.
- 6
If the spouse is already in the United States and entered lawfully: file Form I-485 concurrently with the I-130, plus I-765 and I-131 if wanted, attend biometrics, and attend the adjustment interview.
- 7
If the card is a two-year CR-1: file Form I-751 jointly in the 90 days before it expires, or file it alone with a waiver if the marriage ended or involved abuse.
Сборы и формы
| Form I-130 petition, paper filing | $675 |
| Form I-130 petition, online filing | $625 |
| Form I-130 filed at a U.S. embassy or consulate for USCIS | $675 |
| DS-260 immigrant visa application processing (consular route) | $325 per person |
| Affidavit of Support review by the National Visa Center (domestic review only) | $120 |
| USCIS Immigrant Fee, paid after visa issuance to produce the green card | $235 |
| Form I-485 adjustment of status, applicant 14 or older, paper | $1,440 |
| Form I-485 adjustment of status, applicant 14 or older, online | $1,390 |
| Form I-765 work permit filed with an I-485 submitted on or after 1 April 2024 | $260 |
| Form I-131 advance parole with a pending I-485, paper | $630 |
| Form I-751 to remove conditions on a CR-1 card, paper | $750 |
| Form I-751, online | $700 |
Что изменилось в 2025 и 2026 годах
- 4 July 2025 - H.R. 1 (Pub. L. 119-21) became law and created a set of non-waivable immigration fees. None fall directly on the I-130 or I-485, but they raise the cost of the work permit and travel document a spouse may want while waiting.
- 1 January 2026 - the H.R. 1 fees took their first annual CPI-U inflation adjustment (90 FR, notice 2025-20622, published 21 November 2025).
- 29 April 2026 - DHS published the final rule implementing the H.R. 1 fees and related procedures, corrected 21 July 2026.
- 11 May 2026 - DHS final rule on signatures on immigration benefit requests.
- May 2026 - USCIS guidance recasting adjustment of status as an extraordinary exercise of discretion, which affects spouses adjusting inside the country rather than consular applicants. See the Adjustment of status record.
- 29 June 2026 - DHS final rule on the alien registration form and evidence of registration, which matters for a spouse who is in the country without status while the I-130 is pending.
- 20 July 2026 - DHS published a final rule rescinding the 2022 public charge regulations, effective 18 September 2026. It restores broader officer discretion on the public charge ground, so an I-864 that is merely adequate on paper is no longer the end of the inquiry.
- September 2026 - the Visa Bulletin notes that immigrant visa issuance has fallen for nationals of countries covered by Presidential Proclamations 10949 and 10998, and that final action dates elsewhere were advanced to use the numbers freed up. Immediate relatives are not capped, but consular processing at affected posts is still disrupted.
Где чаще всего ошибаются
- Filing the I-130 without real evidence the marriage is bona fide. Bank statements and a lease beat photographs and affidavits.
- Assuming a CR-1 card renews itself. Missing the I-751 window ends conditional residence and puts the person in removal proceedings.
- Adjusting status after entering without inspection. INA 245(a) requires an inspection and admission or parole; the immediate-relative exemption in 245(c) does not cure an entry without inspection, and the alternative is consular processing with an unlawful presence bar and an I-601A waiver.
- Using an I-864 sponsor whose income sits just at 125% of the poverty line, then having it fail once the officer applies the wider discretion the September 2026 public charge rescission restores.
- Travelling abroad on a pending I-485 without advance parole, which abandons the application.
- Treating the interview as a formality. Marriage interviews, including separated Stokes-style questioning, have returned in force.
Также в категории Immediate relative
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