## Facts

- A U.S. citizen filed a Form I-130 immigrant visa petition for his same-sex spouse.
- The couple married in Vermont, and USCIS determined on remand that the marriage was valid under Vermont law.
- USCIS nevertheless denied the petition based on DOMA § 3’s federal definition limiting “marriage” and “spouse” to opposite-sex couples.
- The petitioner appealed to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA).
- While the appeal was pending, the Supreme Court held DOMA § 3 unconstitutional in *United States v. Windsor*.
- The case returned to the BIA to determine the effect of *Windsor* on spousal recognition under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) and the proper framework for adjudicating the I-130.

## Issues

1. Whether DOMA § 3 can continue to bar recognition, for INA purposes, of a same-sex marriage that is valid under the law of the place of celebration after *United States v. Windsor*.
2. Whether USCIS must adjudicate an I-130 petition based on a valid same-sex marriage under the same state-law validity and bona fide marriage standards applied to other marriages.

## Decision

- The BIA sustained the appeal.
- The BIA held that DOMA § 3 is no longer an impediment to recognition of lawful same-sex marriages and spouses under the INA when the marriage is valid where celebrated.
- The BIA remanded to USCIS for further proceedings to adjudicate the petition under the ordinary INA and regulatory requirements, without relying on DOMA § 3.
- The BIA did not approve the I-130 itself, leaving remaining eligibility and factual determinations to USCIS on remand.

## Legal Principles

- Following *United States v. Windsor*, DOMA § 3 cannot be applied to deny immigration benefits based solely on the same-sex nature of a marriage that is valid under state law.
- For immigration purposes, marriage validity is assessed under the law of the place of celebration.
- To establish spousal eligibility under the INA and implementing regulations, the petitioner must show a legally valid marriage and that the marriage is bona fide, applying the same standards used for any other spousal petition.
- When an agency denial rests on an invalid legal bar, the proper disposition is to correct the legal framework and remand for adjudication of any remaining issues under the correct standard.

## Conclusion

The BIA ruled that, after *Windsor*, USCIS may not treat DOMA § 3 as a basis to refuse recognition of a same-sex marriage valid where celebrated, and it remanded for adjudication of the I-130 under the ordinary validity and bona fide marriage requirements.


Matter of Zeleniak, 26 I. & N. Dec. 158 (B.I.A. 2013)