K1 -vs- K2 and General Questions

[rs1971 0]

Apologies in advance if this isn't exactly the right forum for this question but I didn't see anything for general Visa discussion.

So, my girlfriend and I have recently started to talk about marriage and I just wanted to get a little advice on what strategy we should pursue. I am a natural born US citizen and she is a Colombiana who is currently living in Santiago, Chile where she has just recently begun a Master's program which she will be finishing in December '09. Her not finishing her Masters isn't an option so December '09 would be the earliest she could leave Santiago (permanently).

Our goal then is to get her to the States as soon after December '09 as possible. It seems that there are, generally speaking, two options. She can either come her on a K1 and we'd get married here or I can travel to Colombia (or even Santiago) and we could marry there and then she could come on a K3. I'm having trouble figuring out the pluses and minuses between these two approaches.

One other thing I'll mention is that we'll be spending three weeks together in August, traveling through Chile/Uruguay/Argentina and she'll be most of January and February here (as things stand now on her Tourist Visa). Does it make sense for us to try to use either of these dates to help us along in the process (eg, try to get her a K1 by January, or maybe get married in Chile) or would we be better off just waiting to start the process after she finishes school? I suspect the latter, but thought I'd throw this out there. Okay, thanks in advance for any thoughts anyone might have. This looks like a great site.

-rs1971

[sydkym 0]

I think overall, K-1 is a faster process, but having said that, there's nothing that says a K-1 will take EXACTLY this long, and a K-3 will take EXACTLY this long. It fluctuates from month, to year, to country, to situation.

Basically, if you get a K-1, you get the visa, go to the US, and within 90 days get married. Then she can stay, file for AOS, etc. If you pursue a K-3, you need to get married in her country (just a civil marriage will do) and then apply. Depending on the process for marriage in Chile, that could take a couple months, then the K-3 process could take up to another 6, 7, 8 months, or more.

If you get married in Chile, you might also want to consider a CR-1. It's just like the K-3, but without the 129f petition, and when you arrive in the US, you get residence status so you don't need AOS and they can also work immediately. We started as K-3 and didn't get our 129f approved at the same time as our 130, so we were changed to a CR-1 by USCIS. It wasn't our first choice, but it worked out none the less, in not much more time than the K-3 would have.

You can't really say "I'd like the visa by _________" (month). It just won't work like that.

[pj1959us 0]

For a K-1, she would also have 6 months before having to even use it after it's issued. I'm not sure if the K-3/CR-1 are the same since that isn't the route we took; but if it is, keep that in mind for your processing. You might want to have a bit of a cushion so she isn't waiting after she's ready to move.

PJ

[motu 5]

rs - your options are exactly the same ones that people told you on PBH its in how you want to do it - thats up to you. If I remember its crucial to her to finish her masters - so wait till she is about to finish (one semester or so before she finishes) And then apply for whichever visa you choose - K1 or K3 - the worst case will be she may have to spend a couple months more in Colombia - but doesn't she want to see her family one more time before leaving for USA? Good Luck

[pushbrk 12,152]

Apologies in advance if this isn't exactly the right forum for this question but I didn't see anything for general Visa discussion.

So, my girlfriend and I have recently started to talk about marriage and I just wanted to get a little advice on what strategy we should pursue. I am a natural born US citizen and she is a Colombiana who is currently living in Santiago, Chile where she has just recently begun a Master's program which she will be finishing in December '09. Her not finishing her Masters isn't an option so December '09 would be the earliest she could leave Santiago (permanently).

Our goal then is to get her to the States as soon after December '09 as possible. It seems that there are, generally speaking, two options. She can either come her on a K1 and we'd get married here or I can travel to Colombia (or even Santiago) and we could marry there and then she could come on a K3. I'm having trouble figuring out the pluses and minuses between these two approaches.

One other thing I'll mention is that we'll be spending three weeks together in August, traveling through Chile/Uruguay/Argentina and she'll be most of January and February here (as things stand now on her Tourist Visa). Does it make sense for us to try to use either of these dates to help us along in the process (eg, try to get her a K1 by January, or maybe get married in Chile) or would we be better off just waiting to start the process after she finishes school? I suspect the latter, but thought I'd throw this out there. Okay, thanks in advance for any thoughts anyone might have. This looks like a great site.

-rs1971

K1 is generally the fastest way to a visa but you aren't in a hurry. If I were in your shoes, I would seriously consider marrying in Columbia sometime in late 2008. You might be able to marry in Santiago but sometimes the process for two foreigners to marry can be cumbersome. You might check that out.

Then once you're married, I'd skip the K3 and just file an I-130 for a CR1 immigrant visa. Her interview and visa issue would be about a year after filing and she'd have six months to enter the US. Once she enters, she has permanent resident status, so is work authorized and would have a conditional two-year green card in hand within a month. The K3 is faster (you're not in a hurry.) but more expensive and takes several months to be work authorized after entry. It does offer some additional flexibility in that you have two years to use it after issue. K3 must interview in the country of marriage, so that can complicate your situation too.

K2 is for the child of a fiance(e).

Edited June 14, 2008 by pushbrk

[rs1971 0]

I just wanted to take a second to thank everyone for all of the advice and information. It was all very useful.

-rs1971