Getting Married
Applying for Your Sudanese Spouse to Come to the U.S.
Recent legislation has led to changes in the procedures American citizens abroad will follow if they wish to sponsor an immediate relative for an immigrant visa. an immediate relative is a spouse (husband or wife), a parent, or a child under age 18.
As of January 22, 2007, the Department of State and USCIS (US citizenship and immigration service) instructed consular offices at u.s. embassies and consulates to stop accepting certain immigrant visa petitions (i-130s) because consular officers lacked the means to perform the required criminal background checks on the American citizen petitioners, as required by the Adam Walsh Act.
Subsequently, the department of state and USIC worked to develop a mechanism whereby USIC will perform these required "Adam Walsh Act" checks for any petitions accepted abroad by consular officers.
As of march 21, 2007, consular officers abroad will accept petitions for immediate relative immigrant classification (i-130 petitions) from American citizens who reside in their consular districts, as well as true emergency cases, such as life and death or health and safety, and others determined to be in the national interest.
To demonstrate residency in a consular district, the American citizen petitioners must be able to show that they have permission from the government of Sudan to reside in Sudan, and that they have been doing so continuously for at least six months before filing the petition.
Individuals who are in Sudan in a temporary status, such as student or tourist, do not meet the residency standard.
All American citizens resident in the united states or with a permanent address in the united states, and all lawful permanent residents, must file i-130 petitions at the USIC service center having jurisdiction over their place of residence, as indicated on the USIC website: http://www.uscis.gov/files/form/i-130.pdf