Can my fiancée come, have a wedding celebration and fly back home on a TOURIST visa (while the K-1 is still pending)?

[TBoneTX 43,058]

Not at all -- it's not HER wedding.

[baron555 934]

Wait, are you saying that when she comes for my friend's wedding in May, she should even refrain from mentioning that she's attending his wedding?? And just say she's coming to visit me/tour the States with me?

That's OK, but no wedding anythings for you two.

[NigeriaorBust 4,087]

You are posting your intent to do things that are not visa friendly on a site monitored by immigration. Don't be surprised if you get some rather specific questions about celebrations during your interview ,

[ozzy686 1]

You are posting your intent to do things that are not visa friendly on a site monitored by immigration. Don't be surprised if you get some rather specific questions about celebrations during your interview ,

Well, based on everyone's feedback, I'll definitely play it safe by waiting to do any type of celebration until after the K1 is approved as it's just not worth the risk. Asking my question here was helpful and I appreciate the responses/advice.

[Pennycat 880]

Okay, this is helpful. Forgive my ignorance, but I thought "married" (in the eyes of the legal world) means obtaining the marriage certificate. Until a couple gets the marriage certificate, I always figured they're simply not married yet - even if they've thrown a party.

Does having a wedding party in fact prove that you are married? Because in many cultures, the religious marriage ceremony (where the girl gets an engagement ring) more or less gets termed as an engagement here in the States. So the couple is already religiously married, but by American standards, they're just engaged.

I wish there were a guideline or something that clearly defines what the terms mean. What is marriage?, Does throwing a wedding party effectively render the couple married?, etc. Do you see what I'm getting at?

The embassies go by the cultural standards and laws and customs of the host countries. If a religious marriage is the cultural norm, and they know about it (and they will 100% ask-- PRY about this and lying will only lead to huge problems and a possible lifetime ban), then you will be denied a K1 visa.

If you want to be married before she immigrates, get married abroad (or here, wherever) and file for CR1.

We've all been there-- we all know the difficulties in wedding planning during the K1 process--I myself got stuck with a January wedding, horrible ugly time of year where I live and a difficult time of year for people to travel, but the other alternative was putting it right in the middle of the holidays-- Thanksgiving to New Year and making people travel during that high-cost time of year. End result of my January wedding? Blizzard and a cancelled wedding. -- This is all to say that we GET it, and totally understand the wanting to find a work-around to being able to plan a wedding with a convenient timeline and wanting to immigrate as quickly as possible. But that just doesn't work like that. If there was a way to get what you want (or, really, what all of us probably wanted), someone would have found it by now.

[IcezMan_IcezLady 582]

You two can attend any number of celebratory parties and wherever you want. But nothing with the word wedding in it.

it doesn't matter what you call it. If CO believes it is a wedding and it is a wedding by the norm of their country , it doesn't matter whether it is explicit or not.

[Silvia_B 0]

Okay, this is helpful. Forgive my ignorance, but I thought "married" (in the eyes of the legal world) means obtaining the marriage certificate. Until a couple gets the marriage certificate, I always figured they're simply not married yet - even if they've thrown a party.

Does having a wedding party in fact prove that you are married? Because in many cultures, the religious marriage ceremony (where the girl gets an engagement ring) more or less gets termed as an engagement here in the States. So the couple is already religiously married, but by American standards, they're just engaged.

I wish there were a guideline or something that clearly defines what the terms mean. What is marriage?, Does throwing a wedding party effectively render the couple married?, etc. Do you see what I'm getting at?

Just for the records (and I'm sure lots of people will come back to me and say "don't do it") both myself and my fiancée have emailed the Naples Consulate (Italy) and we received twice the written confirmation that a catholic religious-only wedding ("matrimonio non concordatario", which you can only have with specific approval of your bishop, which we have) WILL NOT INTERFERE with a K1 visa application. I know, that's no grant that we will be approved in the end, but I feel reassured.

There may be something similar for Morocco, for a religious celebration that is not legally binding.

So we are doing it, for a number of personal reasons, we will have the religious wedding in Italy before I enter the US on the K1, and then have the legal/civil wedding in the US.

I'll let you guys know how it goes!!

[LionessDeon 2,060]

Just for the records (and I'm sure lots of people will come back to me and say "don't do it") both myself and my fiancée have emailed the Naples Consulate (Italy) and we received twice the written confirmation that a catholic religious-only wedding ("matrimonio non concordatario", which you can only have with specific approval of your bishop, which we have) WILL NOT INTERFERE with a K1 visa application. I know, that's no grant that we will be approved in the end, but I feel reassured.

There may be something similar for Morocco, for a religious celebration that is not legally binding.

So we are doing it, for a number of personal reasons, we will have the religious wedding in Italy before I enter the US on the K1, and then have the legal/civil wedding in the US.

I'll let you guys know how it goes!!

Sounds like playing with fire. No wedding ceremony is more important to me than getting my fiance approved for a visa without any added stress and/or risk of denial or turned away at POE. I would never recommend this to anyone. Just my opinion.

Good Luck. Let us know how it turns out.

[flfreddy 92]

dude, place immigration procedures above your wedding or planning or plans. After you have a K1 sticker in your passport, then do whatever you want. People here are experts in lessons learnt and acquired the hard way, dont repeat the wheel. No ceremony wedding, no wedding word.... just engagement in simple clothing will be fine. My attorney says you can instead put all your wedding plans on paper, and call it a wedding book for a FUTURE date to be presented with I129 at K1 application.

[Ms Hogan 295]

Just for the records (and I'm sure lots of people will come back to me and say "don't do it") both myself and my fiancée have emailed the Naples Consulate (Italy) and we received twice the written confirmation that a catholic religious-only wedding ("matrimonio non concordatario", which you can only have with specific approval of your bishop, which we have) WILL NOT INTERFERE with a K1 visa application. I know, that's no grant that we will be approved in the end, but I feel reassured.

There may be something similar for Morocco, for a religious celebration that is not legally binding.

So we are doing it, for a number of personal reasons, we will have the religious wedding in Italy before I enter the US on the K1, and then have the legal/civil wedding in the US.

I'll let you guys know how it goes!!

I would not want to risk losing the K1 and having to start all over again. I don't know all the details of Catholic ceremonies BUT am wondering how it would not be considered to be a real wedding. It is my understanding that these ceremonies are done after couples are already married in a civil service but then on the other hand the Catholic church doesn't recognize marriage that isn't performed in their church. It certainly is confusing. But i'm wondering how a Catholic church performing a wedding ceremonly would NOT consider it a legally binding marriage since in the eyes of the church the only way that a Catholic marriage can take place is in a Catholic ceremony. My head is spinning as I write this but I'd certainly love to understand it better.

[Lemonslice 4,554]

Just for the records (and I'm sure lots of people will come back to me and say "don't do it") both myself and my fiancée have emailed the Naples Consulate (Italy) and we received twice the written confirmation that a catholic religious-only wedding ("matrimonio non concordatario", which you can only have with specific approval of your bishop, which we have) WILL NOT INTERFERE with a K1 visa application. I know, that's no grant that we will be approved in the end, but I feel reassured.

There may be something similar for Morocco, for a religious celebration that is not legally binding.

So we are doing it, for a number of personal reasons, we will have the religious wedding in Italy before I enter the US on the K1, and then have the legal/civil wedding in the US.

I'll let you guys know how it goes!!

No matter what the Consulate says, you could still be denied entry. Does not interfere with your application, but might block your entry as it has been seen here on VJ.

[LionessDeon 2,060]

My first wedding was in a Catholic Church. It was legal and recognized us as a married couple.

Have no idea why people go through all these K1 hoops and $$ and even consider doing anything to risk it all.

[Cathi 5,610]

She's a Moroccan citizen, but lives/works in France. Her interview will be in Paris. I get that you don't qualify for a K1 visa if you're married, which is why we want to hold off on getting a marriage certificate until after the K1 visa is approved.

Also, the plan for her is actually this: Fly from Paris for wedding in Morocco, then one week later fly to US for wedding party in the States. Then fly back to Paris if there's no K1 visa yet. (So she's only coming to the States once for the wedding in the fall... she's coming in May for a visit.) I'd like to hear your thoughts with this clarification.

DO NOT have a wedding party before her K-1 is issued, PERIOD. In Islam at the wedding party you sign the wedding contract and that seals the deal. Comprende? It does not matter what you call it, the CO's know customs and rules of Islam, and they know wedding party=marriiage contract=legally married.

Edited February 9, 2016 by mimolicious

[kalusha 21]

The ball is in your court now, we have done our duty which was to inform you and to advice. You might wonder why sometimes it takes long for some of these process to get approved, its because the CO sometimes are busy investigating and getting educated in cultures of the land. They take their time to get educated to know what the norms are and when they are well versed they deal with each k1 app that comes to their desk. Do not think they cant smell it, do not fool your self. Good luck.

[Adil & Jeanne 296]

Shel lives and works in Farance but is she also a french resident or citizen?

Since you plan morocco wedding celebrarion i assume not

meaning she will still have to interview in Morocco

First forget the K 1 visa as most are denied in Morocco

Do your marriage and apply for CR 1

do not plan any US marriage

wait till she is here

allah yekbel

Jeanne and Adil

incah allah you will succeed