Master prompt
I-130 bona fide marriage / relationship statement — Stokes-prep narrative
Bona fide marriage statement accompanying Form I-130 (spouse or family petition) — addresses 8 CFR 204.2(a) bona fides analysis and Stokes-interview risk for marriage cases.
USI-130MarriageFamilyBona fideStokes interview8 CFR 204.2
Draft a bona fide relationship statement accompanying [PETITIONER_NAME]'s Form I-130 petition on behalf of beneficiary [BENEFICIARY_NAME] as [RELATIONSHIP]. The statement must establish bona fides under 8 CFR section 204.2(a) and preempt the Stokes-interview-style scrutiny common to Indian-cohort marriage petitions.
Reply with ONLY this line and nothing else: "Question 1 of 6: confirm where this I-130 will be adjudicated — USCIS Service Center only (for consular processing via NVC abroad), or USCIS Field Office (for concurrent I-485 AOS interview in the US)? The audience changes the tone."
DO ask each intake question on its own line. DO NOT draft until all 6 answers received. DO NOT acknowledge with conversational filler.
INTAKE QUESTIONS:
Q1: Adjudicating venue confirmed.
Q2: Concurrent I-485 AOS filing, OR consular processing via DOS NVC then DS-260?
Q3: Petitioner's prior I-130 history? Any prior denials, withdrawals, or marriage-fraud findings (INA section 204(c) bar — fatal)?
Q4: Beneficiary's prior US visa history? Any prior US entries (B-2, F-1, H-4, etc.)?
Q5: Any preference-category retrogression issue (LPR petitioner for spouse — F2A category)?
Q6: Joint children, joint property purchase, joint lease — any of these executed and dated?
CASE OVERVIEW
- Petitioner: [PETITIONER_NAME], [PETITIONER_STATUS]
- Beneficiary: [BENEFICIARY_NAME]
- Relationship: [RELATIONSHIP]
- How they met: [WHERE_MET]
- Courtship chronology: [COURTSHIP_TIMELINE]
- Co-habitation: [CO_HABITATION]
- Joint financials: [JOINT_FINANCIAL_EVIDENCE]
- Prior marriages: None
- Risk flags: None
§1 — LEGAL FRAMEWORK (drafter's internal frame)
For [RELATIONSHIP] = Spouse, governing regulation is 8 CFR section 204.2(a). USCIS evaluates whether:
(a) The marriage was legally valid where celebrated (lex loci celebrationis).
(b) The marriage was entered into in good faith with the intent to establish a life together, NOT for purposes of evading immigration laws.
The "intent at the time of marriage" is the legal touchstone. Subsequent divorce does not retroactively prove fraud. Subsequent strong commitment does not necessarily prove bona fides (officers will examine intent AT the wedding ceremony).
USCIS uses the Bark v. INS, 511 F.2d 1200 (9th Cir. 1975) "totality of the circumstances" test:
- Did the couple intend to share a life together?
- Documentary evidence of commingling
- Witness testimony of relationship
- Conduct AFTER marriage as evidence of intent AT marriage
INA section 204(c) BAR (fatal):
- If a prior marriage was found to be fraudulent, the petitioner is BARRED for life from filing any family-based petition. This bar applies even if the prior marriage was filed by a different petitioner for the same beneficiary, and the prior I-130 was denied on fraud grounds. State explicitly in None if any 204(c) flag exists.
STOKES INTERVIEW (named for Stokes v. INS settlement, S.D.N.Y. 1976):
- When USCIS officers cannot determine bona fides from documents alone, the couple is separated and questioned in parallel about details of their daily life
- Questions cover: morning routines, meal preferences, brand of toothpaste, layout of the home, names of in-laws, gifts exchanged on birthdays, shared subscriptions, who pays which bill
- Inconsistencies → second interview → potential denial + 204(c) finding
- Indian-cohort risk: arranged marriages with short courtship before wedding may have less "daily-life accumulation" by the time of interview; the cover-letter narrative must show family-system bona fides
§2 — STATEMENT STRUCTURE (target length: 2-4 pages)
Header:
Date
To: USCIS [office]
Re: Form I-130 — Bona Fide Relationship Statement
Petitioner: [PETITIONER_NAME] ([PETITIONER_STATUS])
Beneficiary: [BENEFICIARY_NAME]
Relationship: [RELATIONSHIP]
Opening paragraph (4-6 sentences):
Sentence 1: One-line confirmation of relationship and statutory basis.
Example: "Petitioner [PETITIONER_NAME], a US citizen, files this Form I-130 under INA section 201(b)(2)(A)(i) to classify his lawful spouse [BENEFICIARY_NAME] as an immediate relative."
Sentence 2: Confirmation that the marriage is legally valid where celebrated.
Example: "The parties were lawfully married on [date] in [city], [country], as evidenced by the certified marriage certificate at Tab A and the corresponding registration record at Tab B."
Sentence 3: One-sentence summary of bona fides:
Example: "The marriage was entered into in good faith following [X months] of courtship, with the documented joint commitment, family involvement, and financial commingling described below."
Sentence 4 (if None is non-empty): Statement that all prior marriages are properly terminated with final decrees at the indicated tabs.
§3 — HOW THEY MET (200-300 words)
In narrative third-person if drafted as a representative cover letter, OR in first-person plural ("we") if drafted as a joint personal statement.
- The introduction context: family, mutual friend, school, work, online dating, matrimonial site, religious community
- For Indian-cohort: many marriages are arranged through family or matrimonial sites (BharatMatrimony, Shaadi.com, Jeevansathi). This is normal and bona fide — NOT a red flag. Frame it explicitly: "The marriage was arranged in the traditional Indian custom by mutual family acquaintances, a practice that remains common and culturally legitimate in the Indian community."
- First conversation, first date, first in-person meeting
- Use [WHERE_MET] verbatim where possible
§4 — COURTSHIP CHRONOLOGY (300-500 words)
Walk [COURTSHIP_TIMELINE] in detail. For each milestone:
- Date
- Location
- Who was present
- What documentary evidence is in the file (e.g., photos at Tab E, WhatsApp call logs at Tab F, flight ticket at Tab G, hotel reservation at Tab H)
For Indian-cohort arranged marriages with short courtship, emphasize:
- The cultural pattern: families involved early, both sides' parents meet, formal engagement (roka, sagai) precedes wedding
- The substantive milestones: family approvals, exchange of biodata, video call introductions, in-person meetings, engagement ceremony, court marriage registration, traditional wedding
- The financial commitments: petitioner traveling to India multiple times, exchange of gifts (mention if formal), engagement / wedding expenses borne by both families
§5 — THE WEDDING (200-300 words)
- Legal civil registration: date, place, registering authority (Sub-Registrar of Marriages under the Special Marriage Act or Hindu Marriage Act or relevant personal law)
- Religious / traditional ceremony (if separate from civil): date, place, presiding priest / officiant, number of guests
- Reception or related events
- Photos documenting the wedding at Tab [E]
- Wedding-invitation card at Tab [F]
- Wedding registration receipt / certificate at Tab [A]
§6 — LIFE TOGETHER (200-400 words)
The "life as spouses" section. Address:
- Co-habitation: [CO_HABITATION]
- Pre-immigration: how often does petitioner visit beneficiary in India? Trip-by-trip with passport stamps at Tab [G]
- Post-immigration: planned co-habitation address, lease or property deed at Tab [H]
- Financial commingling: [JOINT_FINANCIAL_EVIDENCE]
- Joint accounts with dates of opening
- Joint insurance with policy numbers
- Beneficiary designations on retirement accounts, life insurance, will
- Shared subscriptions, shared cell phone plan, shared streaming services
- Family integration:
- Petitioner's introduction to beneficiary's family — when, how often
- Beneficiary's introduction to petitioner's family in the US — visits, video calls, gift exchanges
- Joint commitments toward future:
- Career planning, education planning
- Plans for children
- Plans for buying a home
- Plans for petitioner's family events the beneficiary will attend
§7 — RED-FLAG PRE-EMPTION
For each item in None, draft a one-paragraph proactive explanation. Common patterns:
Age gap > 10 years:
"The 14-year age difference between petitioner and beneficiary reflects a common pattern in Indian arranged marriages where men establish their professional careers before marriage. The age difference was openly acknowledged and accepted by both families during the matchmaking process."
Petitioner naturalized close to marriage:
"Petitioner naturalized as a US citizen on [date], approximately 6 months before the marriage. The naturalization was the culmination of a 5-year LPR period preceded by 6 years on H-1B; it was not undertaken in contemplation of this marriage. The matchmaking process began [X months] before naturalization."
Short courtship:
"The courtship from first meeting (December 2024) to wedding (November 2025) spanned approximately 11 months. While shorter than typical Western dating timelines, this is consistent with Indian arranged-marriage practice where families conduct extensive vetting before introducing the couple, and the formal courtship begins with mutual family approval already established."
No joint photos (cultural conservatism):
"The couple has limited photographic evidence of physical intimacy due to cultural and religious norms common to their community. However, abundant evidence of joint presence at family events (Tab E), joint travel (Tab G), joint financial commitments (Tab F), and joint forward planning (statements from both families at Tab I) establishes the bona fides."
Beneficiary's prior US presence on B-2:
"Beneficiary visited the US on a B-2 visitor visa from [dates] in 2024 — approximately [X] months BEFORE the parties met in December 2024 at a wedding in Hyderabad. The B-2 visit was unrelated to petitioner and is documented with full itinerary and on-time departure at Tab K."
§8 — JOINT PERSONAL STATEMENTS (if filed alongside the representative cover letter)
For the strongest cases, both petitioner and beneficiary should file SEPARATE one-page first-person statements describing:
- How they met (in their own words)
- What they love about each other (without being mawkish)
- Their vision for life together
- Their commitment despite the geographic distance during pendency
These statements humanize the file. Officers approve files; statements like these give them confidence.
§9 — STOKES-PREP CHECKLIST (for in-person AOS interview)
If [RELATIONSHIP] = Spouse and the case is concurrent I-485 going to a Field Office interview, prepare the couple for potential Stokes-style separated interview by ensuring both can answer:
- Date and place of meeting
- Date of proposal and date of court marriage and date of traditional ceremony
- Names and occupations of each other's parents and siblings
- Names and ages of nieces / nephews
- Each other's birthdays, favorite foods, allergies, fears
- Daily routine on weekdays vs weekends
- Layout of current home: bedroom, kitchen, bathroom locations
- Last birthday / anniversary / Diwali / Eid gift exchanged
- Last vacation taken together
- Names of mutual friends, religious community, neighbors
- Joint accounts: bank names, approximate balances, who deposits
§10 — INDIA-COHORT SPECIFIC NOTES
(1) Marriage law applicability
- Special Marriage Act 1954 (interfaith and inter-state secular marriages)
- Hindu Marriage Act 1955
- Indian Christian Marriage Act 1872
- Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act 1937
- Parsi Marriage and Divorce Act 1936
- State which applies and provide statutory citation; this confirms legal validity for USCIS
(2) Civil registration AFTER religious ceremony
- Many Indian couples have a traditional religious ceremony first, then civilly register weeks or months later under the Special Marriage Act
- USCIS counts the CIVIL REGISTRATION date as the legal marriage date
- The traditional ceremony is supplementary cultural evidence — not legal marriage
- If the gap between traditional ceremony and civil registration is significant, address it explicitly: "Couple celebrated the traditional Hindu ceremony on [date] and subsequently completed civil registration under the Special Marriage Act on [date]. For USCIS purposes, the marriage took legal effect on the civil registration date."
(3) Notarised vs apostilled marriage certificates
- Indian marriage certificates require apostille (since India is a Hague Apostille Convention party since 2005) to be accepted by USCIS / NVC
- Apostille issued by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) via authorised centers (CSC Centres / Branch Secretariats)
- State explicitly: "The marriage certificate at Tab A bears MEA apostille [number] dated [date]."
(4) Name change conventions
- Many Indian women adopt husband's surname after marriage but passport name change requires Gazette notification + new passport
- Cover the name-change paperwork or affirm that the passport will be re-issued with new surname before consular processing
- Cross-reference names consistently throughout
§11 — OUTPUT DELIVERABLES
Produce:
(1) The full bona fide statement (2-4 pages) on representative letterhead OR as a joint personal statement.
(2) An exhibit index covering: A) Marriage certificate apostilled, B) Civil registration receipts, C) Petitioner status proof (Cert of Naturalization or I-551), D) Prior marriage termination decrees (if any), E) Wedding photos (10-20 representative), F) Courtship photos & message logs, G) Petitioner travel to India (passports, tickets), H) Joint financial documents, I) Family supporting statements, J) Joint property / lease documents (if any), K) Beneficiary's prior US travel records (if any).
(3) Two separate one-page first-person personal statements (one from petitioner, one from beneficiary).
(4) A Stokes-prep Q&A document for the couple to study before the AOS interview (25-40 questions).
(5) A consultant pre-flight checklist (12 items) verifying apostille, name consistency, prior-marriage termination, no 204(c) bar, financial commingling fresh.
OUTPUT FORMAT
Third-person narrative for the representative cover letter; first-person plural for joint personal statements; first-person singular for individual personal statements. NO bullets in the statement body (USCIS officers prefer narrative). Cite the 8 CFR section + INA section at first reference. Use US date format. NO emojis. Photographs are referenced by tab letter and brief caption ("Tab E-3: Engagement ceremony at Sharma family home, 10 May 2025, 80 guests in attendance").
End with: "DRAFT bona fide marriage / relationship statement — for licensed US immigration attorney review. Verify apostille status of foreign documents, confirm all prior marriages are terminated by final decree, confirm no INA section 204(c) bar, and stress-test the Stokes-prep document with the couple separately. Bona fide cases are won at the FILE level by indexed documentation; Stokes interviews recover or close marginal cases. The statement is the spine; the exhibits are the proof."Unlock the vault to see the full prompt