US spouse visa for Pakistani nationals
What this visa is
The CR-1 and IR-1 immigrant visas allow the husband or wife of a United States citizen to move to the US permanently. The applicant enters as a lawful permanent resident and receives a green card shortly after arrival.
Pakistani applicants interview at the US Embassy in Islamabad.
If the couple has been married for less than two years when the applicant enters the US, the visa is a CR-1 with a conditional two year green card. Two years or more and it is an IR-1 with a ten year card.
Who can apply
You can apply if you are legally married to a United States citizen and the marriage is valid where it took place. A Pakistani marriage is solemnised under the nikah and must then be registered with the union council, which issues the marriage registration certificate. NADRA then issues a computerised Marriage Registration Certificate, which is the document the consulate expects alongside the nikah nama.
A nikah nama on its own, without registration, is regularly questioned. Register the marriage and obtain the computerised certificate before filing.
Marriages between cousins are lawful and common in Pakistan and do not affect eligibility. There is no need to present the relationship as anything other than what it is.
Both spouses must have been free to marry, with divorce documentation, including the union council divorce effectiveness certificate where applicable, or a death certificate.
Who can sponsor
The sponsor must be a United States citizen. Spouses of green card holders apply in the F2A category, which has annual limits and a waiting list.
Financial requirement
The sponsor signs Form I-864, the affidavit of support, which is enforceable against them in court.
Household income must be at least 125 percent of the federal poverty guidelines: $27,050 for a household of two in the contiguous states. Shortfalls can be covered with assets worth three times the gap, or with a joint sponsor. Active duty military sponsors need only 100 percent.
Step one: the I-130 petition
Your spouse files Form I-130 with USCIS from the United States, with the computerised marriage registration certificate and nikah nama, proof of US citizenship, and relationship evidence: photographs of the nikah and walima, travel records, message and call histories, and evidence of family involvement.
Arranged marriages are recognised and are not treated with suspicion in themselves. Document the engagement, the families’ involvement and the growth of contact between you rather than trying to fit the relationship into a different shape.
Once approved, the case transfers to the National Visa Center.
Step two: the National Visa Center
The National Visa Center collects the DS-260 application, fees, the affidavit of support and civil documents. The case only progresses once every document has been accepted.
Documents in Urdu or a regional language need certified English translations. Check that the spelling of your name is consistent across passport, CNIC, birth record and marriage certificate before submitting.
Step three: the interview in Islamabad
Interviews take place at the US Embassy in Islamabad. Applicants from Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar and elsewhere travel to Islamabad for the appointment.
Interviews can be conducted in Urdu or English. Bring original documents even where scans were uploaded.
Administrative processing
Pakistani cases are more likely than most to be placed in administrative processing after the interview, which is additional review before a decision. It is not a refusal, and it does not mean anything has gone wrong, but it can add weeks or months.
Plan around it. Do not book flights, give notice on housing or resign from a job on the assumption that the visa will be issued on the day of the interview.
Medical examination
You must be examined by a panel physician approved by the embassy before your interview. Approved clinics operate in Islamabad and appointments should be booked in advance.
The examination covers a physical check, chest x ray, blood tests and required vaccinations. Bring your vaccination records. Results go directly to the embassy.
Police certificates and civil documents
You need a police certificate covering the districts where you have lived, issued through the police authority rather than a local station letter. Follow the embassy’s current instructions on the acceptable issuing office, as the procedure has changed over time.
Birth records should be the NADRA computerised birth registration certificate, supported by the union council record. Where no birth was registered at the time, obtain the official position and support it with the oldest records available, such as school records.
If you have lived in another country for twelve months or more since turning 16, you need a police certificate from that country as well.
Documents needed
- Valid Pakistani passport
- NADRA computerised Marriage Registration Certificate
- Nikah nama with union council registration
- NADRA computerised birth registration certificate
- CNIC
- Divorce documentation including the union council certificate, or death certificate, for any previous marriage
- Police certificate covering the districts where you have lived
- Court and prison records if ever arrested or convicted
- Sponsor’s proof of US citizenship
- Sponsor’s federal tax return, W-2 forms and recent pay stubs
- Completed Form I-864 with supporting evidence
- Medical examination results from an approved panel physician
- Two US visa format photographs
- Relationship evidence spanning the whole relationship
- Certified English translations where required
Costs
- Form I-130: $625 online, $675 on paper
- Immigrant visa application fee (DS-260): $325
- Affidavit of support review fee: $120
- Medical examination in Islamabad: typically $200 to $350
- NADRA certificates and police certificate: modest local fees
- USCIS Immigrant Fee after the visa is issued: $235
Verify current amounts on the USCIS and Department of State websites before paying.
Processing times
The I-130 stage at USCIS commonly runs from several months to well over a year. The National Visa Center stage is quick when documents are correct first time. Administrative processing after the interview is the variable that most often extends Pakistani cases.
Plan for eighteen months or more from filing to arrival.
After approval: what comes next
Your passport is returned with the visa and a sealed packet that must not be opened. Travel before the visa expires, normally within six months of the medical examination.
Pay the $235 USCIS Immigrant Fee online before you fly so that your green card is produced. You can work immediately on arrival and can apply for a Social Security number.
If you hold a CR-1, you and your spouse jointly file Form I-751 in the ninety days before the two year card expires.
FAQs
Is a nikah nama enough on its own?
No. Register the marriage with the union council and obtain the NADRA computerised Marriage Registration Certificate. That is the document the consulate relies on.
We are first cousins. Does that affect the application?
No. Cousin marriage is lawful in Pakistan and is recognised. Present it plainly.
What is administrative processing and should I worry?
It is additional review after the interview and it is common in Pakistani cases. It is not a refusal. The practical advice is to avoid making irreversible plans until the visa is issued.
Our marriage was arranged. Will that count against us?
No. The officer is assessing whether the marriage is genuine, not how it came about. Document the engagement and the families’ involvement honestly.
My spouse does not earn enough. What can we do?
Use a joint sponsor who is a US citizen or permanent resident living in the United States, or rely on qualifying assets.
Can my children come with me?
Not automatically. Your spouse files a separate I-130 for each child, and the stepchild relationship must have been created before the child turned 18.