When to get married on K-1

[pushbrk 14,053]

If you get married on day 91 and then try to adjust, most likely they will deny the AOS and deport them (and then possibly incur any ban which would be from day 91 through to the day of the interview.

This is not correct. If you marry after the 90 days, you file an I-130 and I-485 at the same time and move forward with AOS.

So what is the time limit requirement regarding filing the AOS for a K1 Visa after being married?

Technically, there isn't one. This question has already been answered in this thread. There are many good reasons to file promptly but no actual time limit.

[gary9891 10]

I have a Nolo guide to Fiance & Marriage Visas in which it says that even though you have 3 months on a K-1 Visa to get married, that it is wise to get married immediately. The reason the guide gives for this is that you need a marriage certificate in order to submit the adjustment of status forms and acquiring a marriage certificate can sometimes take up to three months.

I'm trying to get a sense of how true this is. Does it really take three months to get a marriage certificate? Is there a way to know for sure how long it will take? What happens if you don't get the marriage certificate by the end of the 90-day period? Do you have to file for an adjustment of status before the 90-day period of the K-1 visa is up, an what if you don't? Finally, I'm curious when people on this forum who may have gone through the process have typically been married within the 90-day period.

Thanks in advance for the help...

3 months? I was married the 19th at my county courthouse in Florida (married almost 1 week now!). The ceremony was 15 minutes or so. The clerk said wait a minute and 3 MINUTES later gave us 2 certified copies of our license legal in all 50 states and even the Feds.

I think a call to the marriage license bureau in your county is needed and I am bettin' it is in no way that long to get a certified copy.

[SuperDuper! 230]

I am going to follow the 180 day rule to file AOS, after getting married on a K1. Folks who wait up to 2 years and fall out of status are foolish and are the type who are always looking for a shortcut in life that never pays off in the end. Thanks for the info, Peace.

[baron555 934]

If you get married on day 91 and then try to adjust, most likely they will deny the AOS and deport them (and then possibly incur any ban which would be from day 91 through to the day of the interview.

This is not correct. If you marry after the 90 days, you file an I-130 and I-485 at the same time and move forward with AOS.

So what is the time limit requirement regarding filing the AOS for a K1 Visa after being married?

Technically, there isn't one. This question has already been answered in this thread. There are many good reasons to file promptly but no actual time limit.

pb you didn't read my statement correctly. I said that if you wait until after day number 91 to marry on a K-1 and then you file AOS and then you go to the AOS interview, you will have given them information that you DID NOT marry on a K-1 within the 90 day window. That, from what I know, is immediate denial of AOS. You did not meet the rules of the K-1 and you will have told USCIS as such. I can not see them granting the AOS. And if they do deny the AOS and deport the person, they will also impose whatever ban is incurred from day 91 up until the interview date. During this entire time this person was certainly out of status.

Do you agree with this?

[pushbrk 14,053]

I have a Nolo guide to Fiance & Marriage Visas in which it says that even though you have 3 months on a K-1 Visa to get married, that it is wise to get married immediately. The reason the guide gives for this is that you need a marriage certificate in order to submit the adjustment of status forms and acquiring a marriage certificate can sometimes take up to three months.

I'm trying to get a sense of how true this is. Does it really take three months to get a marriage certificate? Is there a way to know for sure how long it will take? What happens if you don't get the marriage certificate by the end of the 90-day period? Do you have to file for an adjustment of status before the 90-day period of the K-1 visa is up, an what if you don't? Finally, I'm curious when people on this forum who may have gone through the process have typically been married within the 90-day period.

Thanks in advance for the help...

3 months? I was married the 19th at my county courthouse in Florida (married almost 1 week now!). The ceremony was 15 minutes or so. The clerk said wait a minute and 3 MINUTES later gave us 2 certified copies of our license legal in all 50 states and even the Feds.

I think a call to the marriage license bureau in your county is needed and I am bettin' it is in no way that long to get a certified copy.

I'm sure you mean a marriage certificate. Don't confuse a marriage license with a marriage certificate even if they are on the same sheet of paper. One comes before marriage and the other after.

[baron555 934]

I have a Nolo guide to Fiance & Marriage Visas in which it says that even though you have 3 months on a K-1 Visa to get married, that it is wise to get married immediately. The reason the guide gives for this is that you need a marriage certificate in order to submit the adjustment of status forms and acquiring a marriage certificate can sometimes take up to three months.

I'm trying to get a sense of how true this is. Does it really take three months to get a marriage certificate? Is there a way to know for sure how long it will take? What happens if you don't get the marriage certificate by the end of the 90-day period? Do you have to file for an adjustment of status before the 90-day period of the K-1 visa is up, an what if you don't? Finally, I'm curious when people on this forum who may have gone through the process have typically been married within the 90-day period.

Thanks in advance for the help...

3 months? I was married the 19th at my county courthouse in Florida (married almost 1 week now!). The ceremony was 15 minutes or so. The clerk said wait a minute and 3 MINUTES later gave us 2 certified copies of our license legal in all 50 states and even the Feds.

I think a call to the marriage license bureau in your county is needed and I am bettin' it is in no way that long to get a certified copy.

I'm sure you mean a marriage certificate. Don't confuse a marriage license with a marriage certificate even if they are on the same sheet of paper. One comes before marriage and the other after.

PB Don't mean to hijack this thread but if a couple does not marry within the 90 days of a K-1, do you think that they can successfully AOS?

Edited October 25, 2009 by baron555

[pushbrk 14,053]

I have a Nolo guide to Fiance & Marriage Visas in which it says that even though you have 3 months on a K-1 Visa to get married, that it is wise to get married immediately. The reason the guide gives for this is that you need a marriage certificate in order to submit the adjustment of status forms and acquiring a marriage certificate can sometimes take up to three months.

I'm trying to get a sense of how true this is. Does it really take three months to get a marriage certificate? Is there a way to know for sure how long it will take? What happens if you don't get the marriage certificate by the end of the 90-day period? Do you have to file for an adjustment of status before the 90-day period of the K-1 visa is up, an what if you don't? Finally, I'm curious when people on this forum who may have gone through the process have typically been married within the 90-day period.

Thanks in advance for the help...

3 months? I was married the 19th at my county courthouse in Florida (married almost 1 week now!). The ceremony was 15 minutes or so. The clerk said wait a minute and 3 MINUTES later gave us 2 certified copies of our license legal in all 50 states and even the Feds.

I think a call to the marriage license bureau in your county is needed and I am bettin' it is in no way that long to get a certified copy.

I'm sure you mean a marriage certificate. Don't confuse a marriage license with a marriage certificate even if they are on the same sheet of paper. One comes before marriage and the other after.

PB Don't mean to hijack this thread but if a couple does not marry within the 90 days of a K-1, do you think that they can successfully AOS?

Yes, and I already told you how. They file the I-130 and I-485 at the same time like anybody else who entered legally and overstayed a visa. The overstay is forgiven.

[winifredbee 1]

Arrived March 26th. Married May 23rd. No problems here.

[Kathryn41 3,207]

pushbrk is right - you enter the US on a K-1 and marry within the 90 days, you file I-485 and the AOS is based upon the K-1. If you marry after the 90 days, you file I-485 plus I-130 (Spousal petition), and the AOS is based upon the I-130. If you marry after the 90 days and don't file an I-130, then yes, the AOS will be denied because she can't adjust from the K-1 as the terms of the visa were not met.

To the OP, you can do the AOS without a lawyer if you are good at following directions and pay attention to detail. Read over all the instructions and all of the forms involved carefully. Make a list of all of the evidence you need for each form. Once you see it broken out like that you realize it is a matter of collecting the necessary evidence, organizing it and filling in the blanks on the forms.

It is best to file for AOS while the I-94 is still valid (within 90 days). Think of the K-1 as the first step of a two step process - obtaining permission for your fiancee to enter the US so that you can get married and then apply for part 2 - permission to remain in the US, which is what the AOS provides - permanent resident status. While you can file for AOS after the 90 days, each day afterwards your spouse accumulates a day of -out of status - or illegal presence in the US. Without status she can't work, go to school, drive a car, in some cases open a bank account, or do many of the things most of us take for granted. You will want to get her status in the US straightened out as soon as you can for her benefit.

To answer your last question - I arrived on the K-1 on May 7th, married on June 19th and applied for AOS July 23.

Edited October 25, 2009 by Kathryn41