My friend is on F1 status and he recently married his girlfriend who is a permanent resident (since last six months). Now what would be the next step for him? Is it a better idea to file an I-130 right now or he needs to wait till the naturalization of his wife and when she becomes the citizen then file I-485 (adjustment of status) for my friend?

We did Google a lot and came to the conclusion that if my friend files for I-130 right now then his case will be in queue but it may take several years before his case may get approved (4 yrs or more) and in the meantime if his case is not approved/still pending before his F1 expires then he needs to leave the United States within the grace period (60 days from the date of court notice). Furthermore, for now even if he wants to go back to Nepal for and come back then At port of entry, Immigration officers may have several questions for him because filing I-130 ( although he hasn’t till now) shows that He showed the immigration intent( while F1 status requires everybody to show non-immigrant intent).

I am sure some of the sajha friends have gone through these hassles so I would request everybody to suggest me some genuine answers.

(Please just don’t ask to see a lawyer which I might go for but at first I want to gather some information from your personal experiences).

Thanks again for your valuable time you guys have a great weekend.