CASE: Marriage-Based Green Card (Same Sex Marriage Case)
CLIENT: Filipino
LOCATION: Chatsworth, GA
Our Filipino client came to the United States on a J-1 in May 2018. He married his U.S. Citizen partner in November 2019.
On June 26, 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court held that restricting U.S. federal interpretation of “marriage” and “spouse” to apply only to heterosexual unions, by Section 3 of the defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), is unconstitutional under the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment. United States v. Windsor, 570 U.S. ___ (2013). After Windsor decision, the USCIS implemented a new policy that the USCIS officer must review immigration via petitions filed on behalf of a same-sex spouse in the same manner as those filed on behalf of an opposite-sex spouse. As long as a same-sex couple is married in a U.S. state that recognizes same-sex marriage, their marriage shall be considered a valid marriage under the immigration law.
They married in Georgia where same-sex marriage is recognized. Our client contacted our office and retained us on November 15, 2019. We filed the application on November 22, 2019. Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices, fingerprint appointment, and work permits all came on time.
Prior to the interview, we thoroughly prepared our clients via conference calls. On February 10, 2021, our client was interviewed at the Atlanta, Georgia USCIS office. Eventually, on February 12, 2021, his green card application was approved by the USCIS.