Skip K1, enter on a tourist visa and Marry?

[Tina W 0]

I talked to a friend of mine. He went 4 years ago to USA from Norway on a B2 Visa. He got Married while there and just stayed.

He said if I did this I could marry quicker and dont have to wait for the K1 visa..

If so.. whats the point of the K1 visa in the first place?

Any advice?

[amysaid 9]

I guess the most apparent reason would be because it is illegal.

The second reason, in my case, is because the US doesn't issue visitor visas easily to people from specific countries, like the one that my husband is from.

I talked to a friend of mine. He went 4 years ago to USA from Norway on a B2 Visa. He got Married while there and just stayed.

He said if I did this I could marry quicker and dont have to wait for the K1 visa..

If so.. whats the point of the K1 visa in the first place?

Any advice?

[lovica_l 0]

isnt this considered fraud?

and even if you get married here, tourist visa is valid only 6 months, you will have to go back, and file for a visa

getting married doesnt mean you can legally stay here, only means you are legally married

Edited April 14, 2009 by lovica_l

[Tina W 0]

I guess the most apparent reason would be because it is illegal.

The second reason, in my case, is because the US doesn't issue visitor visas easily to people from specific countries, like the one that my husband is from.

I talked to a friend of mine. He went 4 years ago to USA from Norway on a B2 Visa. He got Married while there and just stayed.

He said if I did this I could marry quicker and dont have to wait for the K1 visa..

If so.. whats the point of the K1 visa in the first place?

Any advice?

I am lucky for the tourist visa part.. however, is it illegal? even if it is... is it still possible?

[blue123 0]

I guess the most apparent reason would be because it is illegal.

The second reason, in my case, is because the US doesn't issue visitor visas easily to people from specific countries, like the one that my husband is from.

I talked to a friend of mine. He went 4 years ago to USA from Norway on a B2 Visa. He got Married while there and just stayed.

He said if I did this I could marry quicker and dont have to wait for the K1 visa..

If so.. whats the point of the K1 visa in the first place?

Any advice?

I am lucky for the tourist visa part.. however, is it illegal? even if it is... is it still possible?

Yes, it's possible but so is deportation and being banned for entering in the future. Is it worth the risk? Why not do it the correct way and file a K1?

[PB&JAM 1]

I guess the most apparent reason would be because it is illegal.

The second reason, in my case, is because the US doesn't issue visitor visas easily to people from specific countries, like the one that my husband is from.

I talked to a friend of mine. He went 4 years ago to USA from Norway on a B2 Visa. He got Married while there and just stayed.

He said if I did this I could marry quicker and dont have to wait for the K1 visa..

If so.. whats the point of the K1 visa in the first place?

Any advice?

I am lucky for the tourist visa part.. however, is it illegal? even if it is... is it still possible?

dont risk it. I have a friend who did this and his wife got banned from the US for 5 yrs. he got a lawyer but it didnt help. 5 yrs later he tried to appeal the decision and she got an additional ban (was either 5 or 10 additional yrs, cant remember). he eventually moved to her country as he has dual citizenship. dont risk it!!

[Hell0W0rld 10]

there is a legal process to bring your spouse over here, there is no shortcuts, please don't plan to bypass the system....

[JeroenAndMichelle 28]

If so.. whats the point of the K1 visa in the first place?

Like others said it already, it is illegal to come to the US on a tourist visa or visa waiver with the intention to marry.

However, there might be a better reason for you not to do it... when you get denied, you will be denied for the rest of your life for a GC and even just visiting the US will cause you to ask for a visa, which they often not give anymore (also due to a (temporary) ban to enter the US). You will not be able to file a waiver.

If you want to come here through the K1 route, and you get denied, then at least you can file a waiver and you will still be able to legally enter the US.

My advice, do it the legal way. It is not that much longer but it is a lot safer.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

I talked to a friend of mine. He went 4 years ago to USA from Norway on a B2 Visa. He got Married while there and just stayed.

He said if I did this I could marry quicker and dont have to wait for the K1 visa..

If so.. whats the point of the K1 visa in the first place?

Any advice?

To be legal. If you are caught doing what your friend did it is visa fraud, you are deported and barred for life from ever retruning to the USA and you and your wife live in Norway. Such a deal!

[rebeccajo 14]

I talked to a friend of mine. He went 4 years ago to USA from Norway on a B2 Visa. He got Married while there and just stayed.

He said if I did this I could marry quicker and dont have to wait for the K1 visa..

If so.. whats the point of the K1 visa in the first place?

Any advice?

To be legal. If you are caught doing what your friend did it is visa fraud, you are deported and barred for life from ever retruning to the USA and you and your wife live in Norway. Such a deal!

Abuse of the visa waiver program to enter the US with intent to immigrate is visa fraud.

On the other hand, living in Europe as a married couple isn't exactly some sort of hell.

[Marina-Del 10]

I just wanted to point out why what your friend did was MAYBE NOT illegal and why what you want to do is illegal.

If your friend came to the US on a B2 visa, just to travel or whatever, and THEN met his future wife/husband, they fell in love, spur-of-the-moment decided to get married and then filed for his/her AOS then what they did was not illegal. If your friend came on the B2 visa with the intention to marry his/her American fiance(e) then what he/she did is illegal and he/she was VERY VERY lucky that they did not get caught. As others have said, if you do get caught you get really harsh bans. So what's the point in bypassing the legal route when it takes 6 months to a year when if you do bypass it you could be facing a life ban from the US? Even if your fiance(e) is okay living in Norway that means you'd NEVER be able to travel to the US, never met his/her parents unless they come to Norway, ect.

You cannot come to the US on a tourist visa with the intent to marry. This could be why what your friend did was okay, because maybe he/she did not have the intent to marry when they entered.

Just get the K-1.

[rebeccajo 14]

I just wanted to point out why what your friend did was MAYBE NOT illegal and why what you want to do is illegal.

If your friend came to the US on a B2 visa, just to travel or whatever, and THEN met his future wife/husband, they fell in love, spur-of-the-moment decided to get married and then filed for his/her AOS then what they did was not illegal. If your friend came on the B2 visa with the intention to marry his/her American fiance(e) then what he/she did is illegal and he/she was VERY VERY lucky that they did not get caught. As others have said, if you do get caught you get really harsh bans. So what's the point in bypassing the legal route when it takes 6 months to a year when if you do bypass it you could be facing a life ban from the US? Even if your fiance(e) is okay living in Norway that means you'd NEVER be able to travel to the US, never met his/her parents unless they come to Norway, ect.

You cannot come to the US on a tourist visa with the intent to marry. This could be why what your friend did was okay, because maybe he/she did not have the intent to marry when they entered.

Just get the K-1.

There's no problem with entering the US on a tourist visa with the intent to marry. Nothing illegal about that at all.

The problem is entering the US with intent to immigrate , and using a marriage as a vehicle to circumvent other legal paths of living in the US.

[Marina-Del 10]

You cannot come to the US on a tourist visa with the intent to marry. This could be why what your friend did was okay, because maybe he/she did not have the intent to marry when they entered.

Just get the K-1.

There's no problem with entering the US on a tourist visa with the intent to marry. Nothing illegal about that at all.

The problem is entering the US with intent to immigrate , and using a marriage as a vehicle to circumvent other legal paths of living in the US.

Thanks for the correction. You are right of course!

[krystiandjon 0]

Another option you have is to marry in the US on a tourist visa, file the K3 and stay in the US until you have your interview (or until your stay on the VWP runs out, which will probably happen first) and then go back to Norway for the medical/interview. Not necessarily quicker but you don't HAVE to go the K1 route. For the record, I think the K1 is ridiculous because after receiving the visa you have to adjust status (to the tune of a thousand bucks).

[Marina-Del 10]

Another option you have is to marry in the US on a tourist visa, file the K3 and stay in the US until you have your interview (or until your stay on the VWP runs out, which will probably happen first) and then go back to Norway for the medical/interview. Not necessarily quicker but you don't HAVE to go the K1 route. For the record, I think the K1 is ridiculous because after receiving the visa you have to adjust status (to the tune of a thousand bucks).

Good point, that is another option. But, the tourist visa lasts for 3 months right? Most likely that means that you'd only be in the US for a very very very short amount of time out of the entire K-3 process. And, if I understand correctly, the K-3 takes longer in most cases than the K-1. If you want to be with your fiance during the K-1 processing, that's okay as long as the two of you can afford it. You can come to the US now and file the K-1 while you are here and stay until your visa is set to expire, then go back to Norway. Around the time you go back to Norway you'd be around time that you'd get your NOA2 (most likely, but every country/case is different!). Then if your fiance could, he could come to Norway with you and stay the (I think) 3 months that that tourist visa is good for. That means you'd be together for about 6 months out of the whole process and then hopefully you'd be almost done. I lived in London throughout my first K-1 filing (of course, I had a work/student visa to live there, so I wasn't a tourist)...but being together through the whole process is totally possible as long as the two of you can afford it.

As another option, if the two of you were married, could your then husband live in Norway with you and work? Then if he is willing to live in Norway then it wont matter if the K-3 takes a bit longer because you are still together and then you could move to the US. Some countries allow the foreign spouse to work once they are married (no fiancé/spouse visa needed), but others, like the US, do not.

Good luck!