This any help?
http://www.shusterman.com/marriage.htmlEach year, over 400,000 citizens of the United States marry foreign-born persons and petition for them to obtain permanent residence in the U.S. Spouses of U.S. citizens are considered "immediate relatives" under the immigration laws, and are exempt from all numerical quota limitations. In other words, marriage to a U.S. citizen is the fast lane to a green card.
Alternately, marriage to a permanent resident is very problematical and often results in the recently-married spouses living apart for many years. A legislative solution to this problem is required.
Battered spouses and children of U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents are entitled to special benefits under the law.
It is also possible for a U.S. citizen to obtain a temporary visa for a fiancee and get married once he or she arrives in the U.S.
IF THE MARRIAGE OCCURS IN THE U.S.
Procedurally, the process works like this. The U.S. citizen must submit a visa petition (form I-130) to appropriate CIS Service Center to prove that the marriage is bona fide, that is, entered into for love rather than simply for the foreign-born spouse to obtain a green card. Attached to the visa petition are the following items: (1) Biographical forms (forms G-325A) for both the husband and the wife with photos attached; (2) Proof of the citizenship status of the petitioner. This can take the form of a U.S. Passport, a Certificate of Naturalization or Citizenship or a certified copy of the citizen's birth certificate; (3) A certified copy of the marriage certificate; (4) Certified copies of the documents that terminated any previous marriages of the husband or wife, including final divorce decrees, and certificates of annulment or death.
Simultaneously, the foreign-born spouse, assuming he or she entered the U.S. lawfully, should submit an application for adjustment of status (form I-485) which is an application for a green card. Items which generally accompany form I-485 include green card photographs, an affidavit of support from the spouse, an application for employment authorization, an application for a travel permit (known in CIS jargon as "advanced parole") - assuming the non-citizen spouse has not be present in the U.S. unlawfully for 180 days or more - and numerous other CIS forms.
And don't forget the CIS filing fees. The current filing fees for form I-130 (visa petition), I-485 (application for adjustment of status), I-765 (application for employment authorization document), I-131 (application for advance parole) and for fingerprinting are listed at
http://www.shusterman.com/cisfees05.htmlThe CIS will accept the applications, cash your check, and schedule an interview somewhere between six months and 12 months. If the wait for the interview exceeds 90 days, chances are that the work card and the travel permit will be issued in a matter of weeks or months. We list the CIS waiting times city-by-city.
The CIS provides advice to U.S. citizens and permanent residents who wish to obtain permanent residence in the U.S. for their foreign-born spouses.