Because we are trying to get this visa before my contract is over in Korea (the end of July), we are rather stressed about the timeline. If everything goes smoothly, the average time calculations put it right at the end of July. However, no one thinks it will go smoothly. My mom tells me not to get my hopes up. My fiance talked to an Iraqi friend that was in the same situation here and he said I should just sign another yearlong contract. I'm so stressed because we might be out of a place to live in Korea if this stuff doesn't happen. I can't give my boss an accurate departure date and I can't figure out my living situation back in Arizona. I know people going through this process abroad might be having similar issues. I hope someone has some advice. If I knew for a fact it would take 6+ months or so, I would sign another contract. The problem is not knowing. I hate not knowing.

This process is very unpredictable. There are just so many different steps that you can get stalled at any point. Add to that the fact that there is a high possibility that your fiance will be sent into AP after the interview and that makes it even that more unpredictable.

One thing to remember is that once your fiance gets the K1 visa, he has 6 months to enter the US. I don't know if that would change your plans at all, but just something to consider.

Good luck.

i just wanted to wish u good luck on ur journey.........no one can tell for sure what how long csc can take.......while being here on this forum i have seen what i thought would be complicated applications go thru with no problem and others that are easy simple applications get hung up for months after everyone else is done that filed the same time as u did.........my best guess would be to agree to the contract for work.........i think that would be easier to deal with if u need to leave than trying to second guess the process..........good luck to u and may ur journey be swift and problem free

I wish you the best of luck as well.

I notice that you are petitioning for a loved one in Iraq. I imagine the stress concerning the war is present as well. What are the complications that might be present in the situation Iraq is in?

i agree it's so frustrating not to know when the k-1 will be approved. in my case, i did not sign for another contract. i am a preschool teacher and i can't bear leaving my young kids in the middle of the schoolyear if ever my k-1 visa will be granted in the normal processing time. if it won't, then too bad i will have to be jobless for a couple of months. it's really sad and frustrating, but it's the choice i made.

sorry i can't give any advice to you. i just wanted to wish you luck and strength in this journey.

There is no way to accurately predict the time the process will take. Too many unknowns.

I wish you luck on your journey.

You soon learn not to base life on timelines and what ifs, but a couple of either cr1/or k3 from iraq got approved way quicker lately than most

You are the first K1 I have seen for Iraq. The rest of us were K3 or CR1. We all got approved in around a month or less through the vermont service center. I'm not sure why your case was sent to California unless it has to do with it being a K1 visa. I wish I could give you better advice, but everything I know to speed it up is for people who already got married. Good luck and if I can help please let me know.

I'm not sure what you mean. You mean about paperwork and what not? He is currently living in South Korea.



What did you do to speed it up?

Well, as my husband, he qualifies for refugee as an immediate family member of a US citizen, now so he is undergoing the interviews for that and they do all the Iraqi background checks in two to four weeks if it is for refugee. Also, the vermont service center is putting priority for approving Iraqi immigration cases. His being my husband also gave me more leverage with my congressman and when I wrote letters to the department of state. They started processing him as refugee within two weeks of me sending those letters (though I can't be for sure it helped and they wouldn't do it anyway).

Wow, your process went so fast!

Yes, I don't quite understand still how me and my Fiancee are so blessed.