While online dating services’ popularity keeps growing and has reached 22.3% penetration rate in the US, it’s important to understand mail order brides legal processes. I’ll start with great news for you, my friends, and say that there’s no problem marrying your overseas love interest in America, and so it is in most countries worldwide.
However, I often hear questions concerning regulations and immigration procedures from my clients, so I see that the topic requires clarification. Discover is it legal to mail order a bride in my post!
| Country | Number of K-1 visas (2024) |
| The Philippines | 10,228 |
| Thailand | 1,201 |
| Vietnam | 2,208 |
| India | 1,128 |
| Mexico | 4,180 |
| Dominican Republic | 1,969 |
| Colombia | 1,863 |
| Brazil | 1,193 |
| Poland | 138 |
| Ukraine | 60 |
In general, mail order brides are welcomed in the USA, and the government has established laws that specifically target marriages with spouses from abroad. Those regulations aim to protect a foreign fiance and provide the necessary support in case of domestic abuse. Next, I’ll explain them briefly.
IMBRA, or the International Marriage Broker Act, was signed into law in 2005 for the protection of legit mail order brides and their children from abuse by a US spouse. Let’s take a look at the key points of IMBRA requirements:
Criminal history checks, repeated sponsorships, penalties, and other aspects mentioned are part of a serious control over international marriages.
Next time you’ll ask yourself are mail order spouse illegal, think about the Violence Against Women Act, which allows an alien spouse to petition for a Green Card separately from a US partner who abused her. At this point, VAWA protects an overseas wife from deportation and permits her to work legally. Also, she can include her children or other relatives in her petition. Here are some requirements to apply for an Adjustment of Status without an abusive sponsor:
VAWA is a powerful tool for immigrant spouses who suffer at the hands of their partners, which makes their petitioning path possible without an abuser.
Both immigration laws have the protective potential for K-1 visa holders. However, they cover different needs. IMBRA is focused on the safety of a foreign spouse and providing her with information about her rights, and VAWA opens a Green Card path for victims of domestic violence.
The next aspect in our clarification on are mail order brides legal in the US topic is bringing your future wife to America. These are the main stages for international couples:
So, basically, an immigration process for a foreign bride consists of 3 stages, but each one has very specific requirements that must be followed.
Certainly, your curiosity can go further, and you may wonder are mail order brides legal on a global scale. My answer is yes, but here are a few interesting details about the Philippines and Turkmenistan:
It’s legal to get an overseas wife, but you should also take into account marriage norms in her homeland.
There’s nothing lawfully wrong with intercultural relationships, but there are still some misconceptions about legit mail order brides:
With this information, you can relax and don’t worry about questions like are mail order spouse illegal. Different government instruments, including IMBRA and VAWA, control marriage immigration and handle the protection of alien spouses in the USA. Certainly, you must be attentive to the details and strictly follow the requirements when bringing your bride into the country, but the result will affect your future life.
