How can I get my spouse's green card? 3 Answers as of November 30, 2011

How old is your spouse now and was she brought to the US illegally? If she is over the age of 18 entered illegally, even if you marry a US citizen, she will not be eligible to adjust status to permanent residence within the US. She will need to go back to your home country and consular process there. But depending on how much over the age of 18 she is, she may be barred from reentry to the US for 3 or 10 years unless she can get a waiver on the basis of showing extreme hardship to a US citizen spouse, which is difficult to do in most cases.

The first step is to schedule a full consult with a competent immigration attorney to determine her eligibility. Did she enter legally? If so, this will greatly increase the chance of you being able to file for her in the US. Does she have a criminal record or used fake documents? These can be issues against her. Many US citizens are able to file for their spouses in scenarios like yours so please make an appointment and see if that applies to her!

Your wife can generally not get permanent residence without leaving the United States. Now there are a few situations that an individual who entered illegally may adjust his status to that of a lawful permanent resident, i.e. become legal. However, these require her to have been previously sponsored by a family member or by a business on or before April 30, 2001, the law is plainly termed 245(i) eligible. Otherwise your wife must apply for an immigrant visa by returning to her country and applying at a U..S. Consulate. She would require hardship waivers due to her illegal entry and length of time in the U.S. Those are not easy to obtain. As the laws stand now you options are limited if any, it would be best to consult with a qualified immigration attorney and see if consular processing is right for you.