Marriage not annulled before filing K-1

[Dogwood_Poet 16]

I am asking this for a friend of mine, his fiancée was in a brief marriage 10 years ago and the man walked out after a couple of months and has not been heard from since. She never got an annulment due to the cost and never thought she would marry again. In fact, she was not sure if the marriage was ever filed.

He started the petition and now she has to get an annulment or her lawyer said the husband could be declared dead since no one knows how to contact him or have heard from him in several years.

So, is the current petition now trash since she was not legally available to marry?

Should he just withdraw the petition and wait until everything is done and start new?

Thanks for everyone's advice!

[YuAndDan 153]

Same subject came up a week or so ago. YES, the couple MUST be free to marry BEFORE the I-129F is filed.

SEE: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=111847

AND: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=112962

[pushbrk 13,442]

I am asking this for a friend of mine, his fiancée was in a brief marriage 10 years ago and the man walked out after a couple of months and has not been heard from since. She never got an annulment due to the cost and never thought she would marry again. In fact, she was not sure if the marriage was ever filed.

He started the petition and now she has to get an annulment or her lawyer said the husband could be declared dead since no one knows how to contact him or have heard from him in several years.

So, is the current petition now trash since she was not legally available to marry?

Should he just withdraw the petition and wait until everything is done and start new?

Thanks for everyone's advice!

Your first step is to verify whether the marriage was ever registered. If not, no problem.

If the marriage was registered, the USC needs to withdraw the I-129F petition and begin again after the foreign fiance(e) is legally free to marry. You don't need to state a reason for withdrawing the petition. I think it's usually not wise to get any reason on record.

[Jasman0717 9]

The bottom line is both parties must be legally able to marry.

[marryme 0]

I am asking this for a friend of mine, his fiancée was in a brief marriage 10 years ago and the man walked out after a couple of months and has not been heard from since. She never got an annulment due to the cost and never thought she would marry again. In fact, she was not sure if the marriage was ever filed.

He started the petition and now she has to get an annulment or her lawyer said the husband could be declared dead since no one knows how to contact him or have heard from him in several years.

So, is the current petition now trash since she was not legally available to marry?

Should he just withdraw the petition and wait until everything is done and start new?

Thanks for everyone's advice!

That sucks.. how can anyone get married and then not know if it was filed or not??

They both had to sign papers to be registered. I don't think just 1 person can do it.

Either way she have to be not married to file

[Dogwood_Poet 16]

Thanks for everyone's advice, and I am sorry I did not see the other post, sometimes me and the search engine do not see eye-to-eye!

[archie07 0]

Thanks for everyone's advice, and I am sorry I did not see the other post, sometimes me and the search engine do not see eye-to-eye!

My brothers fiancee tried to declare her husband dead, but when it came time for the hearing, the husbands mother had got wind of it thru the newspaper and showed up in court. That blew that idea out the window.

[garya505 2]

I am asking this for a friend of mine, his fiancée was in a brief marriage 10 years ago and the man walked out after a couple of months and has not been heard from since. She never got an annulment due to the cost and never thought she would marry again. In fact, she was not sure if the marriage was ever filed.

He started the petition and now she has to get an annulment or her lawyer said the husband could be declared dead since no one knows how to contact him or have heard from him in several years.

So, is the current petition now trash since she was not legally available to marry?

Should he just withdraw the petition and wait until everything is done and start new?

Thanks for everyone's advice!

If she can get a CENOMAR in her maiden name the marriage probably wasn't registered.

Even if that is true, if she has been using her married name and it's on her IDs (passport, etc.) she probably is going to have a problem.

BTW, what name did they use on the I-129f?