Green card grind: Newlyweds face tougher entry to America despite marrying US citizens

Once seen as a fairly smooth route to settling in the United States, marriage to a US citizen or green card holder no longer offers newlyweds a swift path to the American Dream. What used to be a relatively straightforward immigration process is now marked by longer wait times and tougher scrutiny — changes that immigration attorneys say are lingering effects of the Trump administration’s crackdown on suspected marriage fraud and policy shifts, ToI reported.

Now, newlywed spouses must brace for more intense vetting. Gone are the days when interviews could be waived. Each case now undergoes detailed examination, starting with a rigorous interview process that many describe as significantly tougher than in the recent past.

For Indian spouses still in India, the interview is conducted by officials at the US consulate. For those already in the US — for instance, on a non-immigrant H-1B work visa — they can apply for permanent residency through a process known as adjustment of status. In such cases, the interview is carried out by officers of the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).


Immigration attorney Ashwin Sharma said that officers are now exercising their discretion more actively during the interview stage. Applicants should be prepared for close questioning and meticulous checks of documentation. "Officers will be looking deeper... leaning into their discretion more often than they did in the Biden years. They are already spending more time verifying marriages and we are seeing an increase in requests for evidence," he told ToI.

The emotional cost of separation, the stress of prolonged uncertainty, and the bureaucratic complexity of navigating the immigration system have become central features of a process that once took months but now stretches well beyond two years for many.

The delays are not limited to interviews alone. The Economic Times reported last week that family-based immigration — especially green cards for spouses and parents — is facing record-level delays. Immigration lawyers said that US citizens are now waiting as long as two to three years, and in some cases even longer, to reunite with their spouses or secure legal residency for them.

According to Jath Shao, principal attorney at the US-based Shao Law Firm, what was once a relatively short administrative process has turned into a drawn-out ordeal. “By the first Trump administration, it was about a year and a half. Now we’re seeing even US citizens’ spouses take two to three or more years to get through,” Shao told ET.

The shift has been particularly hard on Indians, who remain among the top four nationalities — along with the Chinese, Filipinos, and Mexicans — navigating the US immigration system.

Also Read: Green card gridlock: Family-based immigration to US slowed by delays and policy shifts post Trump

While applications were already taking longer, attorneys believe that the full effects of the Trump-era policies are only now beginning to manifest fully. These included heightened document verification, more discretionary interviews, and greater reliance on detailed evidence — measures that continue to affect current processing timelines.

With both consulate and USCIS officers applying increased scrutiny to every case, applicants are urged to be fully prepared.