Marriage Green Card – How Much Does it Cost

The current marriage green card cost varies from from $1,280 to $1,960. 

In a nutshell, the government fees to be paid by an applicant living in the U.S. sums up to about $1960.

For an applicant living abroad, the cost turns up to be approximately $1400.

You will learn more about the entire detailed fee structure and break-ups, later in this article.

Marriage Green Card Cost for Spouses Living in the U.S.

If you are currently living in the U.S. and you entered the country lawfully, you will need to file the following forms:

• Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative: to establish the legality and legitimacy of your marriage to the USCIS, and
• Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust status: to establish the green card eligibility of the immigrant spouse.

You can check out all the details of these Form I-130 and Form I-485, to help understand them better.

If you are married to a U.S. citizen and you entered the U.S. lawfully, you may file the Form I-485 together (“concurrently”) with the Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative filed on your behalf.

You can also file Form I-485 while Form I-130 is pending, or after the Form I-130 is approved (and remains valid).

You may file the Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status to apply for a Green Card without leaving the country. This is called “adjustment of status.”

 “Adjustment of Status” fees (if foreign spouse is in the U.S.):

Note: The fee break-out and the different sections mentioned in the table above, are only the mandatory fees required by USCIS. 

You should also consider any translation, travel, copying, postal expenses as well as attorney fees when evaluating the total cost of your green card. 

 *While filing the Form I-485, Adjustment of Status, the USCIS doesn’t charge the same filing fee for immediate relatives of all age groups.

The fee structure for filing fee as decided by USCIS for different age groups are illustrated below.

Marriage Green Card Cost for Spouses Living Abroad

There are two different methods of applying for a marriage green card: ‘Adjustment of Status’ procedure we discussed above and the ‘consular processing’ method.

Consular processing is the only method available to people who are currently not physically present in the United States.

After Form I-130 is approved, the National Visa Center will notify the Petitioner that a visa is about to become available.

 Once your immigrant petition is approved and an immigrant visa number is immediately available to you, you may apply at a U.S. Department of State consulate abroad for an immigrant visa in order to come to the United States and be admitted as a permanent resident. This pathway is referred to as consular processing.

 For the procedure of consular processing, the applicant doesn’t need to submit Form I-485. 

After Form I-130 is approved, the candidate is expected to submit the Form DS-260, Immigration Visa Application.

The sponsoring spouse will also have to submit the Form I-864, or Affidavit of Support, ensuring that he/she will be able to financially support his/her spouse in the U.S. 

Consular processing fees (if foreign spouse is abroad):

*There is no fee if the sponsored immigrant files this form with USCIS or abroad with the Department of State (DOS); however DOS does charge a fee if they file in the U.S.

**Even though there is no fee charged for the Form I-693, the cost of the medical exams will vary by doctor and country. 

We have, however, scrutinized different cases and have found out that the medical examination fee varies from $100 to $500 but $200 is typical.

You can also use this fee calculator provided by the USCIS, to help you determine the expenses you’ll need to pay.

Other Expenses to Keep in Mind

 Apart from direct government fees and the medical exam fee, a number of other fees will add to your expenses when applying for a green card:

• Vaccination Fees: If your medical exam requires you to have vaccinations, update it before filing your complete medical report.
• Documents Translation Fee: If in your application package, you’ve added any document(s) not in English, you’ll have to attach the translated copy of each of these document(s) as approved by the translator. For instance, a single page birth-certificate translated document varies between $20-$40.
• Document Fee: Government agencies generally charge fees for issuing certain official documents.
• Travel Expenses: To travel for different purposes like a green card interview, or medical exam, or biometrics, the USCIS won’t reimburse you for travel charges incurred.
• Shipping Costs: If you live abroad, or even in the U.S., you’ll have to send the document packages and supporting documents to different locations, paying a nominal shipping and postal charges.