Marriage green card interview checklist

This sheet has a list of documents couples commonly bring to a marriage-based green card interview at a USCIS field office, and all 91 practice questions from Ready for My Interview. It is free. You do not need to give an email. To keep a copy, print this page, or choose Print and then Save as PDF. You may share the printed sheet or this link with anyone.

This is practice material only. It is not legal advice, and it does not come from USCIS. A real officer will not read from this list.

Your interview notice lists what to bring; follow it over this general checklist. Bring originals of documents submitted with Form I-485, plus copies to leave with USCIS. Include passports, travel documents, and Form I-94, even if expired.

What should you bring?

Identity and status

• Government-issued photo identification for each spouse.
• Passports, visas, travel documents, and Form I-94.
• The applicant's birth certificate.
• Proof of the petitioning spouse's U.S. citizenship or permanent residence.

The marriage

• Your civil marriage certificate.
• Legal name-change records, if applicable.

Evidence of shared life

• A joint lease or proof of property owned together, if any.
• Joint bank statements or other records of shared finances.
• Birth certificates of children you have together, if any.
• Other evidence of your ongoing marriage, including new evidence since filing.

Financial support, if relevant

• A copy of the filed Form I-864 and supporting records.
• Requested updated tax transcripts or federal returns with supporting tax forms.
• Requested current income evidence, such as pay stubs or an employer letter.
• Joint sponsor or household member records, if applicable.

Anything the notice asks for

• The interview notice and every document it requests.
• Full English translations with translator certifications for foreign-language records.

Prior marriages, if any

• Final divorce decrees, annulment records, or death certificates for either spouse.

Arrests or court records, if any

• Certified police and court records for arrests, charges, or convictions.
• Final court outcomes, including dismissals, where applicable.

This is not legal advice. A lawyer can tell you what applies to your case. Sources: USCIS interview document guidance, notice guidance, I-485 instructions, I-130 instructions, and I-864 instructions.

Which questions should you practice?

Answer each question out loud from memory before you look at your notes. Mark the facts you need to check. Each spouse should answer alone, in their own words. Do not write a script to memorize.

How you met

1. How did you and your spouse first meet?
2. When did you first meet your spouse, and where exactly were you?
3. Who introduced you, or did you meet on your own?
4. What was your first date, and what did you do together?
5. How long after you met did you start dating seriously?
6. What city and state or country was your spouse living in when you first met?
7. What was your first impression of your spouse?
8. Did your relationship involve any period of long-distance contact before you lived in the same place?

Relationship timeline

1. When did you and your spouse decide to get married?
2. Was there a proposal? Who proposed, and where did it take place?
3. Did you live together before you married? If so, when did you move in together?
4. Please walk me through the major milestones in your relationship from meeting to marriage.
5. When did you tell your families that you were getting married?
6. Have either of you moved cities or countries since you met? When and why?
7. What is your spouse's date of birth?

Wedding

1. When and where did you get married?
2. Who attended your wedding or ceremony?
3. Did you hold a reception or shared meal after the ceremony? What kind was it?
4. Did you go on a honeymoon? If so, where did you go?
5. Who was in your wedding party, if you had one?
6. Why did you choose that location or type of ceremony?
7. Were any of your spouse's family members unable to attend? How did you include them, if at all?
8. What did you wear on your wedding day?

Daily life

1. Who usually wakes up first in the morning, and around what time?
2. What did you eat for your most recent evening meal together at home, and who made it?
3. Who does most of the cooking in your household?
4. How do you usually spend weekends together?
5. Which bedroom or sleeping area does each of you use at night?
6. What time does your spouse typically leave for work or return home?
7. Who handles laundry, cleaning, and other household chores?
8. Do you have any pets? What are their names?
9. Where do you usually shop for groceries?
10. What did you do for your spouse's last birthday?

Home

1. What is your current home address, and how long have you lived there?
2. Do you rent or own your home? Whose names are on the lease or mortgage?
3. How many bedrooms are in your home, and which one do you both use for sleeping?
4. Describe the main furniture in the room where you usually sleep.
5. Describe the layout and appearance of your primary shared living space.
6. Who else lives at your address currently?
7. What shared entertainment or screen devices do you keep in your home, and where?
8. How do you pay rent or the mortgage each month, and from which account or method?

Money and joint records

1. Do you have any joint bank accounts? Which bank?
2. Who usually pays the household bills?
3. Do you file taxes jointly? For which tax years?
4. Do you share any insurance policies, such as health, auto, or life insurance?
5. Do you have joint credit cards or loans in both names?
6. Are paychecks from both spouses deposited into the same account or separate accounts?
7. What vehicles do you currently drive, and are any loans still owed on them?
8. Did you bring any updated joint financial records to today’s appointment that were not in your earlier filing?
9. How do you and your spouse divide day-to-day expenses?

Family and children

1. What are your spouse's parents' names, and where do they live?
2. Does your spouse have any siblings? Can you name them?
3. Have you met your spouse's immediate family? When was the last visit or gathering?
4. Do you and your spouse have any children together?
5. Does either of you have children from a prior relationship? Where do they live, and how often do you see them?
6. What did you do together for the last major holiday?
7. Have you discussed plans for children or family growth?

Travel

1. Have you traveled together since you met? Where did you go?
2. Have either of you traveled abroad since filing your adjustment application?
3. If you left the United States while your adjustment case was pending, what travel document did you use to return?
4. When was the last trip you took as a couple, and how did you get there?
5. Has your spouse visited your home country or hometown? When?
6. Do you have any upcoming travel plans together?

Work

1. Where does your spouse work, and what kind of work do they do?
2. What is your spouse's typical work schedule?
3. What is your spouse’s approximate annual or hourly income from their current job?
4. Have either of you changed employers since you filed your applications?
5. Where did your spouse work when you first met?
6. Does the adjusting spouse currently have employment authorization, and where do they work if employed?

Earlier marriages

1. Have either of you been married before?
2. When and where did your previous marriage end, and do you have the divorce or death certificate?
3. How long were you married previously, and when did that relationship end relative to this marriage?
4. Has your spouse been married to anyone else before this marriage?
5. Are there any ongoing financial or custody obligations from a prior marriage?
6. When did your current spouse's prior marriage legally end?

Mismatched answers

1. You mentioned moving in together in a particular month and year. What was the address of that first shared residence?
2. You each gave an account of a recent meal. Please state again what you had and who prepared it.
3. Your application lists a different address than the one you just gave. Which is current, and when did you move?
4. How do you communicate with each other day to day if you do not share a fluent common language?
5. The lease or mortgage shows only one name. Explain how both of you live at that address.
6. Walk me through a typical weekday morning in your household, step by step.
7. What medications, if any, does your spouse take regularly?
8. You gave different dates for when you decided to marry. Can you clarify the timeline together?

Interview day

1. Since you filed to adjust status, have any facts on your application changed, such as address, employer, or arrests?
2. I will ask several yes-or-no questions tied to your adjustment application. Answer each carefully.
3. Did you enter the United States lawfully, and what was your most recent status before filing to adjust?
4. Have you ever been arrested, cited, or charged with any crime anywhere in the world?
5. Do you understand that if you have been married less than two years at approval, you may receive conditional permanent residence?
6. Please confirm the originals of your passport, marriage certificate, and any prior divorce decrees.
7. Has a civil surgeon completed your Form I-693 medical exam, and was it already submitted or brought sealed today?
8. Do you have any questions about the next steps after today's interview?

Each question has its own page with what the officer may check and which follow-up questions to expect: readyformyinterview.com/questions/. You can answer any of them out loud, free, at readyformyinterview.com/green-card-interview-checklist.