Governmental and Industry Roles and Responsibilities With Regard to International Marriage Brokers

The unregulated nature of the international marriage broker (IMB) industry endangers women by denying them information necessary to make informed choices with respect to their intended U.S.-based citizen spouses. This article (a) provides an overview of the contemporary IMB industry, including a discussion of reasons underlying women's choices to use IMB agencies to meet and marry U.S.-based spouses, (b) discusses how this industry's marketing of marriages potentially endangers many women recruits, and (c) offers an update and analysis of new provisions under U.S. immigration law that strengthen protections available for women who immigrate as fiancés and spouses of U.S. citizens, including those in marriages arranged by IMBs.