What Counts as Relationship Evidence for USCIS Petitions

Relationship evidence is the documentation you submit to prove that your family relationship is genuine and legally valid. What counts as acceptable evidence depends on the form you file: for a fiancé(e) petition you must show a bona fide intention to marry and that you met in person, while for a spouse petition you must show a valid marriage and that the marriage was entered in good faith. For refugee and asylee petitions, the relationship is usually proven by marriage or birth certificates. For removing conditions on residence, you must show the marriage was not entered into to circumvent immigration laws. The evidence requirements are set out in the USCIS form instructions and checklists, and the specific items you need depend on the basis of your petition.

Relationship Evidence for a Fiancé(e) (K-1) Petition

If you file Form I-129F to bring your fiancé(e) to the United States, you must provide evidence that you and your fiancé(e) have a bona fide intention to marry, that you intend to marry within 90 days of their admission as a K-1 nonimmigrant, and that you met in person within two years of filing the petition.

If you have not met within two years, you may instead submit evidence that meeting in person would violate strict and long-established customs of your fiancé(e)‘s foreign culture or social practice, or would be an extreme hardship on you as the petitioner.

USCIS also requires evidence of your U.S. citizenship, such as a copy of your birth certificate, naturalization certificate, Form FS-240, unexpired U.S. passport, or a statement from a U.S. consular officer. If either of you was previously married, you must provide a final divorce decree, annulment order, or death certificate for the prior spouse.

You must also submit one colour passport-style photograph of yourself and one of your fiancé(e), taken within 30 days of filing the petition.

Relationship Evidence for a Spouse (K-3) Petition

If you file Form I-129F to classify your spouse as a K-3 nonimmigrant, the relationship evidence required is different. You must provide a copy of Form I-797C, Notice of Action, showing that you have filed Form I-130 on behalf of your spouse, unless the two forms are filed concurrently. You must also provide a marriage certificate issued by the appropriate civil authority showing your valid marriage to the beneficiary.

The same citizenship evidence and photograph requirements apply as for a K-1 petition, and if either spouse was previously married, you must include evidence that the previous marriage was legally terminated.

Relationship Evidence for Refugee and Asylee Following-to-Join Petitions

Form I-730 is used by a principal refugee admitted to the United States within the past two years, or a principal asylee granted asylum within the past two years, to request that their spouse and unmarried children under 21 join them. In certain circumstances, unmarried children over 21 may be eligible, and a waiver of the two-year filing deadline may be granted for humanitarian reasons.

The relationship evidence for this form centres on proving the family relationship. You must submit a passport-style photograph or a recently taken clear photograph of each family member you are petitioning for. If you do not provide the required photo, USCIS may issue a request for evidence, which can slow processing.

Documents in a foreign language must be accompanied by a full English translation with a certification from the translator verifying that the translation is complete and accurate and that the translator is competent to translate from the foreign language into English.

Evidence of a Good-Faith Marriage for Removing Conditions

If you are a conditional permanent resident who obtained status through marriage, you file Form I-751 to remove the conditions. The relationship evidence here is more extensive because you must prove that the marriage upon which you were granted status was entered in good faith and was not for the purpose of circumventing immigration laws.

You should submit copies of as many documents as you can to establish this fact, demonstrating the circumstances of the relationship from the date of the marriage to the present date. The checklist also requires copies of the front and back of your Permanent Resident Card, and the cards of any conditional permanent resident children included in the petition.

If you are filing jointly, you must also provide an explanation for filing late if applicable, an explanation for filing separately from your primary conditional permanent resident parent if applicable, and dispositions on criminal charges, arrests, or convictions if applicable.

If you are filing from outside the United States because you, your spouse, or your stepparent is residing outside on U.S. military or government orders, you must provide two passport-style photographs for each petitioner and dependent, two completed Form FD-258 fingerprint cards for each petitioner and dependent aged 14 to 79, and a copy of current military or government orders.

Waiver Requests and Relationship Evidence

If you are not filing Form I-751 jointly, you may request a waiver of the joint filing requirement for specific reasons: extreme hardship if your status is terminated and you are removed; death of your spouse or stepparent if you or your parent entered the marriage in good faith; divorce or annulment if the marriage was entered in good faith; or battery or extreme cruelty committed by your U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident spouse or stepparent.

For a waiver based on the death of the petitioning spouse, the relationship evidence includes your Permanent Resident Card, the cards of any conditional permanent resident children, evidence of the good-faith marriage from the date of marriage to the date of death, and your spouse’s or stepparent’s death certificate.

The evidence you need to support a waiver depends on the specific ground you are claiming, and the form instructions provide more specific guidance.

Presenting Evidence and Common Rejection Reasons

USCIS will reject a form if required fields are missing. For Form I-129F, these include the classification sought for your beneficiary, your family name, your mailing address, your date of birth, and the beneficiary’s classification, family name, and date of birth. An unsigned form will also be rejected.

Do not submit original documents unless specifically requested in the form instructions or applicable regulations. If you submit documents in a foreign language, you must include a full English translation with a translator’s certification.

Do not include anything that contains electronic chips and batteries, such as musical greeting cards, or non-paper materials such as CD-ROMs, DVDs, toys, action figures, or thumb drives. USCIS will not accept these materials.

What to Verify Before You File

Before filing any petition, check the current edition date of the form. USCIS will reject forms that use pages from different editions, and all pages must be from the same form edition. You can find the edition date at the bottom of the form and instructions page.

Check the filing fee on the USCIS Fee Schedule page, and confirm the correct filing address for your form. For Form I-129F, file at the USCIS Dallas lockbox. For Form I-730, mail to the Phoenix lockbox. For Form I-751 and Form N-400, check the direct filing addresses page for your form.

If you file online, you must create a USCIS online account. If you file by mail, USCIS will send you an Account Acceptance Notice with instructions for creating an online account to track your case.

Finally, review the checklist of required initial evidence for your form before submitting. The checklist is an optional tool and does not replace statutory, regulatory, and form instruction requirements, but it is a useful way to confirm you have the relationship evidence you need.