Generally speaking, a proxy marriage is a wedding in which one or both of the individuals being united are not physically present. Instead, an absent party may be represented by another person (“proxy”).
Historically, some reasons for proxy marriage have included separation due to military service, imprisonment, or travel restrictions; or when a couple lives in a jurisdiction in which they cannot legally marry (e.g., Israel, where only religious marriages are allowed).
During COVID-19, virtual marriages via videoconference proliferated because lockdowns and international travel restrictions made it harder for couples to get to the same place to marry. The state of Utah, for example, permits virtual marriages. The parties may reside out of state. The marriage license application can be signed electronically. The ceremony may be held over video conference, and the parties may be in separate locations, including abroad. For more, see the website of the Clerk/Auditor of Utah County, Utah on “Getting Married via Video Conferencing in Utah.”
A virtual marriage is a new technology for dealing with situations where the parties and the officiant are not all together in the same place. No proxy is required.
Is a Utah Virtual Wedding Valid for Immigration Purposes?
The Immigration and Nationality Act is written so as require that proxy marriages be consummated in order to be valid:
The term “spouse”, “wife”, or “husband” does not include a spouse, wife, or husband by reason of any marriage ceremony where the contracting parties thereto are not physically present in the presence of each other, unless the marriage shall have been consummated.
INA § 101(a)(35), 8 U.S.C. § 1101(a)(35).
The Immigration and Nationality Act has focused on proxy marriages since 1924, when the terms “wife” and “husband” were defined to exclude a spouse “by reason of a proxy or picture marriage.” The historic rationale for treating proxy marriages different than other marriages is the concern that the absent party is not able to directly manifest their voluntary to consent to the officiant. More generally, Congress was concerned that proxy marriages may not be in good faith. See Kathryn Rae Edwards, Kicking the INA Out of Bed: Abolishing the Consummation Requirement for Proxy Marriages, 22 Hastings Women’s L.J. 55, 60-61 (2011); Kerry Abrams, Peaceful Penetration: Proxy Marriage, Same-Sex Marriage, and Recognition, 2011 Mich. St. L. Rev. 141.
USCIS recognizes virtual marriages and classifies them as proxy marriages requiring consummation only if the parties are not in the same place during the ceremony:
A virtual marriage is one that takes place remotely, usually through electronic media technology. The parties to the marriage may or may not be physically present together and are generally physically located in a place other than where the officiant to the ceremony is located…. A virtual marriage is valid for immigration purposes if it is valid in the state or country that issued the marriage certificate, and it does not violate the public policy of the United States or a state where the petitioner resides, or where the couple will reside. For the marriage to be valid for immigration purposes, the parties also must consummate the marriage after the ceremony if the parties were not physically together for the ceremony.
6 USCIS-PM B.6(B)(5) (internal citations omitted).
For what it’s worth, in my opinion, any virtual marriage is a proxy marriage under INA § 101(a)(35) because that definition excludes (unless consummated) “any marriage ceremony where the contracting parties thereto are not physically present.” In other words, the statute turns on the location of the ceremony, which is arguably the location of the officiant. And the statute requires the parties to be there. See 6 USICS-PM B.6(B)(5) (“A proxy marriage occurs where the contracting parties are not physically in the presence of each other at the marriage ceremony.”). See also Form I-130 Instructions 2 (Apr. 1, 2024) (a marriage is not valid for immigration purposes “if you and your spouse were not both physically present at the marriage ceremony, unless the marriage was consummated.”)
The Consummation Requirement
According to the USCIS Policy Manual,
Acceptable evidence that the parties consummated a proxy marriage includes but is not limited to:
- The birth certificate of a child born to the couple, and listing both parents on the certificate, after the
ceremony took place;- Passport or airline tickets showing that the petitioner and alien beneficiary were in the same place at
the same time subsequent to the marriage ceremony; or- Evidence of residence together after the ceremony took place such as a joint lease or signed witness
affidavits.
–6 USCIS-PM B.6(B)(5) (Nov. 27, 2025)
Other evidence that the couple were in the same place at the same time may include admission stamps in passport(s), hotel bills, photos taken together, and a declaration (without graphic details) explaining the date and place the couple had “marital relations” after the marriage.
The consummation requirement for proxy marriages applies to all immigration benefits for “spouses” under the Immigration and Nationality Act, such as:
- Naturalization as the “spouse” of a U.S. citizen;
- Qualification for a green card as the “spouse” of a U.S. citizen, a permanent resident, or a principal beneficiary of an immigrant petition.
- Qualification for a nonimmigrant visa as the “spouse” of certain nonimmigrants (e.g., F-1 student, J-1 exchange visitor, H-1 temporary worker, L-1 intracompany transferee).
Concluding Thoughts
Other examples of jurisdictions that allow virtual marriages are Ukraine (only for Ukraine citizens) and Brazil (only civil registry offices in jurisdictions where one party resides and where videoconference procedures have been implemented).
It has been our firm’s pleasure to successfully represent in U.S. immigration matters many couples, including same-sex couples, with proxy marriages and virtual marriages. Please feel free to contact us to discuss representation in your case.
Further Reading
Hong Kong LGBTQ couples seek love, recognition in mass wedding – Digital Journal (June 26, 2024)
Israel must recognize online marriages conducted via Utah, Supreme Court rules | The Times of Israel
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