Incase you did not know, marrying a person to keep them in the country (for citizenship) is illegal under false pretenses. However, there are ways to fight this. Tyrese Gibson speaks out in his first formal interview since the ending of the custody battle with his former wife. 

The rules of the law according to Allow.com.

“If you are an undocumented immigrant in the United States (sometimes referred to as an “illegal immigrant”), nothing stops you from marrying a U.S. citizen, or most anyone else you wish to marry. U.S. citizens marry illegal immigrants on a regular basis. (The main limitations on marriage in the U.S. have to do with your age and whether the person you wish to marry is a close relative.)

Whether that marriage will get you a green card (U.S. permanent residence) however, is another matter. In theory, these immigrants are “immediate relatives,” and are eligible for a green card through the marriage. But undocumented immigrants face some very high hurdles in claiming this right.”

Tyrese stopped by the Rickey Smiley Morning Show and talked about his lawsuit against his ex-wife Norma Gibson. 

“My daughter got spanked, two times in 10 years,” he said. “The first time I spanked my daughter is because her mother asked me to do it. The second time I spanked my daughter was because I told her to tell me the truth about something she did and she didn’t, so I literally spanked her with my right hand, directly on her butt. Didn’t abuse, didn’t do anything crazy. So when her mom, who I gave her the heads up — ‘She got caught lying, I told her to tell me the truth, she didn’t, I just want to give you the heads up that for the second time in 10 years, I just spanked Shayla.’ She ended up running to court on September 11 and literally accused me of abusing my baby.”

Meeting Other Criteria for Getting a Green Card Through Marriage to a U.S. Citizen

Of course, to get a green card based on marriage, you would also have to prove that you meet all the various other eligibility criteria, such as that it is a valid (legally recognized) marriage and that it’s “bona fide” (you’re not just getting married to get a green card).

You’d also have to overcome any other possible grounds of inadmissibility, by showing, for example, that you haven’t committed certain types of crimes (or more than two of any crimes), don’t have a communicable disease that would present a danger within the U.S., and won’t require public assistance (sometimes called welfare). But as mentioned above, these are the least of your worries if you entered without a visa.

Tyrese went on to speak on his former marriage with Norma. 

“Now I can say to you, Norma, I love you. I appreciate you. I appreciate what we did. We had an angel. But I married you to keep you in the country,” he said. “I never married you because I was happily married. You’re from London. I married you because we had a baby on the way and I had to do whatever I had to do to so I’m not traveling all the way to London to spend quality time with my baby. So now you’re running around painting this picture like we were like [sing’s ‘Wedding March’], ‘Daaaaah, dah dah daaaaah.’ Bro, we got married and it was like seven people there. I am the most flashiest, flamboyant dude, other than Floyd Mayweather, I am the flashiest. There is nothing about me that’s low-key and quiet. You know that I married her to keep her in the country.”

You can watch the full interview below.