K-1 Visa

K-1 Visa - Fiancee


How Do I Bring My Fiancé(e) to the United States?

The Fiancé (e) Visa allows a US Citizens only (not Legal Permanent Residents) to apply for permission with a U.S Consulate abroad to allow his or her Fiancé (e) to enter the U.S with a Fiancé(e) visa. The U.S Consulate abroad will only review this application after there has been an approved petition by the USCIS which must be applied inside the United States by the US Citizen on behalf of his or her fiancé(e).

The marriage must take place within 90 days of the fiancé(e) entering the United States. If the marriage does not take place within 90 days or the fiancé(e) marries someone other than the U.S. citizen filing USCIS Petition for Alien Fiancé, the fiancé(e) will be required to leave the United States. Until the marriage takes place, the fiancé(e) is considered a nonimmigrant. A nonimmigrant is a foreign national seeking to temporarily enter the United States for a specific purpose. A fiancé(e) may not obtain an extension of the 90-day original nonimmigrant admission.

If the fiancé(e) intends to live and work permanently in the United States, the fiancé(e) should apply to become a permanent resident after the marriage. (If the fiancé(e) does not intend to become a permanent resident after the marriage, the fiancé(e)/new spouse must leave the country within the 90-day original nonimmigrant admission.

The fiancé(e) may enter the United States only one time with a fiancé(e) visa. If the fiancé(e) leaves the country before married, the fiancé(e) may not be allowed back into the United States without a new visa. The fiancée is not able to apply for adjustment of status through marriage to a person other than his/her US K-1 Petitioner.


Who is Eligible

U.S. citizens who will be getting married to a foreign national in the United States may petition for a fiancé(e) classification (K-1) for their fiancé(e). You and the fiancé(e) must be free to marry. This means that both of you are unmarried, or that any previous marriages have ended through divorce, annulment or death. You must also have met with the fiancé(e) in person within the last two years before filing for the fiancé(e) visa. This requirement can be waived only if meeting the fiancé(e) in person would violate long-established customs, or if meeting the fiancé(e) would create extreme hardship for you. You and the fiancé(e) must marry within 90 days of the fiancé(e) entering the United States.

You may also apply to bring the fiancé(e)'s unmarried children, who are under age 21, to the United States with K-2 visa


Procedure:

1. USC petitioner files form I-129F with supporting documents.
2. Once I-129 F is approved, USCIS sends the approved petition to National visa center, which in turns forwards to the consular post, which issues visas. (approved petition is valid for only four months and may be revalidated by the consular officer for additional period of four months if it expires before the processing of the visa application is completed.
3. Apply for K-1 visa with requested evidence from visa issuing consulate. (Most consulate requires I-134 form, Affidavit of support).
4. Have an interview. Once the interview is successful, the beneficiary receives a visa stamp valid for a simple entry to the US within six months of issurance and a sealed envelop to present at the port of entry.
5. The beneficiary is admitted for a 90 day period to get married. If following to join, the K-2 visa must be issued within one year from the date that the K-1 visa is issued.

Will I Get a Work Permit?

After arriving in the United States, your fiancé(e) will be eligible to apply for a work permit. (You should note that USCIS might not be able to process the work permit within the 90-day time limit for your marriage to take place.) If your fiancé(e) applies for adjustment to permanent resident status, your fiancé(e) must re-apply for a new work permit after the marriage.


How do I get a Green Card?

Once inside the United States, the Fiancé and the U.S Citizen have 90 days to marry. Once married, the now spouse of a U.S Citizen (and children if applicable) may be eligible for three immigration Service benefits. These include: 1. work permit, 2. travel permission and 3. Green Card. The work and travel permits generally take from 60 to 90 days, while the green card can take from 6 to 12 months on average. Upon verification of a valid and legitimate marriage, the USCIS will issue the spouse a Conditional green card that will be valid for two years.   Petitioner does not have to file I-130, petition for immediate relatives and the fiancée beneficiary can adjust from K-1 just filing I-485, and so is his dependent children with K-2.


What if marriage did not occur within 90 days:

In this case, K-1 visa holder is subject to removal. But if the marriage takes place outside of the 90-day period due to unforeseen circumstances, the original petitioner could file form I-130 concurrently with I-485 AOS (adjustment of status) applications.


By when K-2 (dependent child of K-1) should adjust:

K-2 child can file an AOS even if the USC marries the K-1 finance after the child urns 18 years old. However USCIS’s current interpretation, officers should allow the AOS of a K-2 child under the age of 21.  Therefore, when filing an AOS, a minor with a potential age out problem (becoming ineligible to adjust status because of turning 21 years old), expedited processing should be requested.

However there is a case law (Verovkin v. Still, 2007 WL 4557782(ND Cal. 2007) held that the date of determining a K-2 eligibility for AOS is the date the K-2 visa is issued and K-2 visa hold does not age out, provided that the visa was issued to him or her turning 21

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