Where does your spouse work, and what kind of work do they do?

“Where does your spouse work, and what kind of work do they do?” is a practice question about work 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 ask about your spouse's work to understand your knowledge of their daily life and current circumstances. An employer name identifies the workplace, while a job title or plain description explains the work itself. Those details may give context to employment information in the case and to the routines you share.

What might the officer ask next?

• What is the name of the employer?
• What job title does your spouse use?
• What tasks do they normally do in that role?

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 the employer your spouse works for now, not a former company you remember more easily. Distinguish the company name from a client or location where the work happens. Use ordinary words for job duties if the formal title is hard to explain. If you cannot remember the exact title, say that and describe only the work you know. Do not invent duties to make a short answer sound more detailed.

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 work questions

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

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