American engaged to marry Indian who previously held Nepali citizenship

[tim626]

Hello,

Hopefully this is the correct forum for this question; any help would be appreciated. I do intend to speak to a professional about my situation as well.

I am an American citizen living and working in the UAE. I'm engaged to be married to an Indian lady, who also lives and works in UAE. However, she was previously married to a Nepali man. When she initially married him, all the paperwork was done in Nepal; she was granted a Nepali citizenship for this purpose. However, since it is illegal to hold dual citizenship in India, she never notified the Indian authorities about this marriage, so that she could keep her Indian citizenship and passport. Their divorce was also filed in Nepal, and once again the Indian government had nothing to do with it.

I'm concerned about the implications of this for when I register my marriage with her, and apply for a spouse visa to the U.S. We will have to disclose this former marriage, but I'm afraid that this may alert the Indian authorities to the situation, and may cause issues with her passport and Indian citizenship status.

Any input would be greatly appreciated. What would be the proper way to proceed, to best avoid any unpleasant legal issues on our journey to getting her a U.S. visa? Thanks in advance.

[rayb]

While being processed for a U.S. visa at an American Embassy (or consulate) in the UAE, the only Indian government contact your fiancee may require will be obtaining a "Statement of No Criminal Record" from the Indian Embassy having jurisdiction over UAE. One minor complication, however, is that your fiancee's Nepali citizenship may disallow her eligibility to obtain an Indian "Statement of No Criminal Record," since this document is not available to non-Indian citizens. Most likely, however, the U.S. Embassy will expect both Indian and Nepal clearances, and your gal will have to request these clearances separately, and she'll just apply for the Indian clearance without reporting her Nepal citizenship.

-Ray B

Hello,

Hopefully this is the correct forum for this question; any help would be appreciated. I do intend to speak to a professional about my situation as well.

I am an American citizen living and working in the UAE. I'm engaged to be married to an Indian lady, who also lives and works in UAE. However, she was previously married to a Nepali man. When she initially married him, all the paperwork was done in Nepal; she was granted a Nepali citizenship for this purpose. However, since it is illegal to hold dual citizenship in India, she never notified the Indian authorities about this marriage, so that she could keep her Indian citizenship and passport. Their divorce was also filed in Nepal, and once again the Indian government had nothing to do with it.

I'm concerned about the implications of this for when I register my marriage with her, and apply for a spouse visa to the U.S. We will have to disclose this former marriage, but I'm afraid that this may alert the Indian authorities to the situation, and may cause issues with her passport and Indian citizenship status.

Any input would be greatly appreciated. What would be the proper way to proceed, to best avoid any unpleasant legal issues on our journey to getting her a U.S. visa? Thanks in advance.

[tim626]

While being processed for a U.S. visa at an American Embassy (or consulate) in the UAE, the only Indian government contact your fiancee may require will be obtaining a "Statement of No Criminal Record" from the Indian Embassy having jurisdiction over UAE. One minor complication, however, is that your fiancee's Nepali citizenship may disallow her eligibility to obtain an Indian "Statement of No Criminal Record," since this document is not available to non-Indian citizens. Most likely, however, the U.S. Embassy will expect both Indian and Nepal clearances, and your gal will have to request these clearances separately, and she'll just apply for the Indian clearance without reporting her Nepal citizenship.

-Ray B

Thank you, this elucidates things a bit!