Did you live together before you married? If so, when did you move in together?

“Did you live together before you married? If so, when did you move in together?” is a practice question about relationship timeline for a marriage-based green card interview at a USCIS field office. A real officer may ask it in other words, ask something else, or skip it. Practice can help you explain your own facts. It cannot tell you what USCIS will decide.

What is the officer checking with this question?

The officer may use this question to understand when you began sharing a home. Your answer can connect the marriage timeline with the addresses and dates in your case. Staying overnight, visiting for an extended period, and moving into a shared home are not always the same event, so the officer may ask you to explain the distinction.

What might the officer ask next?

• What was the address of the first home you shared?
• Did both of you move there at the same time?
• Where was each person living just before that move?

The next question usually comes from the words in your answer. If you name a person, a place, or a month, expect a question about it. The guide to green card interview follow-up questions explains how to practice past the first answer.

How do you prepare to answer it?

Review whether you actually lived together before the wedding rather than assuming the question requires a yes. If you did, identify the first shared address and when each of you began living there. Separate the move from earlier visits or overnight stays. A lease or other relevant record may help you check the timing before practice, but explain any remaining uncertainty rather than choosing the date when you signed a document by default.

Answer from your own memory, in your own words. Do not learn a script or a sample answer. If your spouse remembers a detail differently, first check whether you mean the same event. Ask your lawyer about any concern with your forms or documents.

Can you practice this question out loud for free?

Yes. Choose "Answer it now, free". The officer asks this question first. You answer out loud, and the officer follows up on what you said. You can try 3 questions free, and you do not need documents. Feedback comes after the session, not while you speak.

More relationship timeline questions

• When did you and your spouse decide to get married?
• Was there a proposal? Who proposed, and where did it take place?
• Please walk me through the major milestones in your relationship from meeting to marriage.
• When did you tell your families that you were getting married?
• Have either of you moved cities or countries since you met? When and why?
• What is your spouse's date of birth?

Read the relationship timeline topic guide, or see all 91 interview questions.