K1 Visa
If you are seeking marriage abroad, you need to know how to bring your fiancee into your country. This article can give you some information about the USA visa regulations. Most of other countries have similar regulations; you may also want to ask for assistance of an immigration attorney in your country. The materials for this article were collected and arranged by Irina Timchenko, to assist you with information about the process of inviting your dear friend to visit your country.
To bring your bride to your country, a visa must be obtained for her. In the United States, the only entry visa available for the purpose of marriage is a fiancee visa (K1 visa). There is no other visa available for marrying in the U.S.
Other types of visas for a Russian fiancee - tourist, student or business visas - can not be used if your intention is marriage. If you marry your girlfriend visiting you on one of those visas, her legal status in the USA will be questionable, and she may be refused status of a permanent resident. If a violation of visa regulation is recorded, it will be difficult (if not impossible) for the person to ever receive a K-1 visa or any other type of visa to the USA.
Requirements for fiancee visa
To apply for a fiancee visa for your bride, you mus meet the following requirements-
1. You must be a U.S. citizen.
2. You have met your fiancee in person within the previous two years.
3. Both you and your fiancee must be legally free to marry.
4. You must meet certain minimum income requirements.
5. Your fiancee does not have a criminal record.
6. Your fiancee has not violated certain U.S. immigration laws.
If she is from the former Soviet Union, she will not be able to obtain a visitors visa to the U.S. If she is from a country such as England, Canada, Australia, etc., she will be able to enter the U.S. on either a visitor's visa or on visa waiver. However, she must still return to her country to obtain a fiancee visa if your intention is to marry her.
Waiting to obtain the K1 visa
Generally, the term for obtaining the K1 visa should not exceed 3-4 months if the application is handled correctly. If you have an attorney, he or she must have the knowledge and experience to solve any problems that may pop up with either the USCIS (former INS) or the Embassy. Unfortunately, problems may occur even when the petition is perfect. You need to keep in mind that the USCIS (former INS) workers, as well as the Embassies' clerks are tremendously overworked and sometimes under trained. Usually, the USCIS (former INS) or US Consulate staff only have a computer screen in front of them to look at - not your case file - and can only make educated guesses as to what the status is. The staff members may be unfamiliar with the fiancee visa or spousal visa processes because the K visa represents only a small fraction of immigration filings. A problem at the USCIS (former INS) can delay your petition 3 months or longer and a problem at the Embassy can delay the application 6-12 months. If such a delay occurs you want to have someone representing you, in order to keep the delay to a minimum. If you and your fiancee are genuine and meet the requirements, the delay should not happen.
A bit of statistics
Of the thousands of fiancee visa petitions filed every year, only about 60% result in a fiancee visa ever being issued by the Embassies. Of the 40% that do not make it, most are not denied but are terminated, by either the fiancee or U.S. fiance, because there were problems with either the USCIS (former INS) or the Embassy that created long delays in the processing. So the timing is very essential in the fiancee visa process.
The ways to approach the fiancee visa process
There are several ways you can approach the fiancee visa process:
1.You can attempt to handle the paperwork yourself
You and your fiancee fill out all documents yourselves, send them to USCIS (former INS), and wait for the results.
2. You can use a so called "fiancee visa service" to assist you
If you choose this way, you hire somebody to fill out the documents for you and your fiancee, send them to USCIS (former INS), and wait. This is not a very reliable method, for you cannot be sure you are hiring really good attorneys, for they are not the US Immigration attorneys. When a problem or delay occurs, they cannot represent you or your fiancee at the Immigration Service or in the U.S. Embassy. Please, remember that fiancee visas are processed according to U.S. law, not the laws of the country where your fiancee resides. "Foreign agents" outside the U.S. may turn out to be a scam. Always require a license when hiring an immigration service.
3. You can hire a U.S. immigration law firm that specializes in fiancee visas
Although this is the more expensive of the three approaches, if you want your fiancee with you in the U.S. with speed and certainty and with the least amount of hassles, delays, investigations or denials, this is certainly the way to go. In your search for a U.S. immigration law firm to handle your matter, it is important to find someone who has the knowledge and skill to work your case through the system in a timely manner to the successful issuance of the visa, and has the necessary experience and established connections.
Who to apply for?
The law firm, Holmes & Lolly, Immigration Attorneys was established in 1991 and until 2001 it handled only the K1 fiancee visa. In 2001 Congress created the spousal visa ( K3 visa ) for overseas marriages, and since then Holmes & Lolly handle a sizeable caseload of K3 visas as well. Larry Holmes and Allan Lolly are professional immigration attorneys. With over 3500 successful applications for K visas to date, currently the firm handles more fiancee visa and spousal visa petitions than any other law firm. Their success rate is 100% (since 1991). They service clients in all 50 states and fiancees and spouses from all countries of the world. If you call them, they will give you an honest assessment of your case based on experience and are quick and efficient about their work.
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