Hi everyone,

I was just reading through the new I-129f instructions and form and came across they may give an indication as to wether or not IMBRA affects the spousal petition.

In the instructions, first page #3. Compliance with International Marraige Broker Regulation Act(IMBRA). it states the following..."If you met your fiance or spouse through the services of an international marraige broker, ........"

I'm just going by thier language here, but they do say fiance or SPOUSE...that would indicate to me that it affects the K-3 also......lets hope not, but according to the instructions the K-3 applicants have to answer the "imbra" questions also on the new form.

Yes, I was hoping for something different because of the significant process you usually have to go through to get married overseas anyhow.

So this means, for K3-ers, more intense background checks and at the interview a handing out of a flyer that tells my wife to be "careful" with me, even though we will have been married for a year or so at that point! Thanks for the vote of confidence, GBJ! Arse...

I agree. The fact that they have included the word "SPOUSE" in question 19, it does appear that K3 is also affected.

19. Did you meet your fiancé(e) or spouse through the services of an international marriage broker?

Where did you get the new I-129f instructions and forms ?.Should i assume that you have got your RFE or you just downloaded it from the internet or is just a sample ?

Its the real thing now and is listed on the USCIS site under forms.


Jazzy
I agree and have believed from the beginning on reading the IMBRA that K-3's were also very much included. IMO wrong but unfortunately that seems to the case.

Some from VSC for K-1 are just now starting to receive emails

Why are K3s affected?

Because, I venture to guess, there has never been a separate I-129 form for spousal visas. Instead of I-129F it would have been I-129S. But they never got around to making one, so spouse petitions are lumped together with fiancee petitions. This is such an absurd, clerical, bureaucratic bumbling reason for K3s being held up that I'm inclined to believe it.

The new question #19 asks if you met your finacee or spouse through a marriage broker. If so, give their name. Now I'm on the floor laughing. Because everyone who has met through a broker will simply answer No.

aussiwench: why didn't you tell me applying for K3 was like being in a Monty Python skit?

aussiewench,

Why wrong? It would make the law easily circumventable if one could simply marry overseas rather than in the USA and petition for a spouse rather than for a fiance(e).

Having written that, maybe there is a gaping loophole in the Act.....

Yodrak

Yes there is.. and the result is a lawsuit in the Federal Courts with the contention that that is an unequal treatment under the law in respect that it is being applied unequally since it applies only to K visas. So if a married couple goes for a CR-1, there is no check.. if they go for a K-3 , there is...

You are right that people could circumvent the law, but what can they do? If a couple met through a broker without meeting the requirements, do they expect the couple to get divorced or live in another country? I realized this the other day. I don't see how they can apply these requirements to K-3s.

Jersey Girl,

Then they'd better create a good tale for an alternate way of having been introduced. And they'd better not forget any of the details of the story they've created as they go from petition to visa interview to AOS (or immigrant visa interview) to naturalization.

Because if it ever comes out that a material misrepresentation was made in order to obtain an immigration benefit they're going to be in deep doo-doo.

Yodrak





giao,

They can easily apply the requirements to K3s - as illustrated by the fact that they've done so.

What's curious is the 'unlocked back door' that they've left by not applying the requirements to spousal immigrant visas thereby making it easy, if a bit more time-consuming, to circumvent the law.

Yodrak

Don`t they already do those background checks for the CR-1 overseas BEFORE someone is able to come to the US ? ( at the embassies?)

Wouldn`t that be the difference between these k-1 and k-3 visas , because they did not have to go through such thorough background checks (and their spouses) BEFORE they arrived on US soil? They were allowed to come here and THEN it took place as they applied for AOS. (and where some of these k-1`s ran into trouble)


But isn`t it with the CR-1 ...that everything is done overseas already.....including all of those checks?


How would a CR-1 be a circumvention of this ?

Thanks

The USC petitioner filing the I-130 for their spouse is not being asked if they met through a marriage broker.....nor if they have any criminal history or about multiple filings of petitions. Yes they go through the regular security checks at service center, NVC etc but that is the same for the I-129F for fiance and spouse. What the IMBRA is asking for now is more on top but not for those that file the I-130.

the main difference being is that a spouse petitioning only with an I-130 is not having to endure a criminal background check, whereas petitioners with I-129F do. That's the loophole and backdoor. Couples who meet thru IMBs can now just get married and apply for CR1 and circumvent that whole I-129F process. it'll probably take just about as long now.

MPGGPM,

No. "those background checks" performed up until now by the USCIS and the DoS are not the background checks of the petitioner required by IMBRA.

Yodrak

I would like to know my I130 was already approved do they send it after they approve it to have it check. Because if it takes so long after is been approved I could only imagine that is because they are doing some type of background check.

After your I-130 is approved, USCIS sends them to the NVC for further processing.

Yes but then the person going through the IMB has to have the background done in order to even meet someone to start with. Likely if anything happens in this it is going to be the IMB's go out of business and everyone meets on standard chat programs, and then marry and file for the CR-1 "the great loophole"! Or as stated before they just lie and say no IMB involved, so long as you keep the story straight how would they ever know? Suppose the IMB's can come up with some creative way around all of this. Similiar to these paid commercials, they charge you for one thing in order for you to get to the next step which is FREE!

This law has a good point behind it, but that point is lost with such a large loop hole left.

B