MUST READ!!!! Married outside 90 days

[SuperDuper! 230]

Bottom Line: If couple does not marry within the 90 days on a K1 visa, you are in for a world of hassle. How simple can the rules be: Marry within 90 days!

I'm not impressed with all the suggestions for fancy paperwork to get things right if the couple fails to marry within 90 days. It says chapters about the couple if they can't comply with such a simple 90 day requirement. There simply is no excuse for not getting married within 90 days. Does not bode well for the longevity of the relationship. Pffffft!

[klicristina 0]

Hi All,

At this point, I am concerned that the Consulate will use the correct expiration date of 90 days against my wife. It would put my wife beyond 180 days before we filed the AOS, but if they accept the expiration date writtened on the I-94 than it will be no issue for us. The judge issued the court order knowing that the I-94 was a mistake and that he still believed that my wife didn't violate the 180 day rule. Please keep your opinions and comments revelant...we know that we made mistakes. Thanks.

[canadian_wife 1,795]

I'm sorry that you found yourself in such a troubling situation. Mistakes and errors were made in the past but it looks like you need to put your energy on focusing on the future.

No one can tell you what the outcome will be at the consulate. I suggest you put your energy into preparing a waiver packet just in case you will need it. You certainly don't want to waste time if there is a denial trying to put together a packet. A good packet takes months to prepare

Good luck.

[klicristina 0]

Hi All,

Let assume that my wife's CR1 visa will be denied next Friday. I spoke to a waiver lawyer today and he told me that my best waiver is a hardship waiver. He told me that if I wait until after the denial, then I would have to resubmit the I-130 all over again. Is this true? I don't have much time so please quick comment on this issue. Thanks.

[payxibka 10,044]

Hi All,

Let assume that my wife's CR1 visa will be denied next Friday. I spoke to a waiver lawyer today and he told me that my best waiver is a hardship waiver. He told me that if I wait until after the denial, then I would have to resubmit the I-130 all over again. Is this true? I don't have much time so please quick comment on this issue. Thanks.

No, as long as the consulate is aware a waiver request will be forthcoming, they will (or should) keep the approved I-130 on post... besides you cannot even submit a waiver request until a visa has been denied.... You can however begin to prepare the waiver request package but they won't accept it until a denial has happened

Edited October 31, 2009 by payxibka

[rebeccajo 14]

Bottom Line: If couple does not marry within the 90 days on a K1 visa, you are in for a world of hassle. How simple can the rules be: Marry within 90 days!

I'm not impressed with all the suggestions for fancy paperwork to get things right if the couple fails to marry within 90 days. It says chapters about the couple if they can't comply with such a simple 90 day requirement. There simply is no excuse for not getting married within 90 days. Does not bode well for the longevity of the relationship. Pffffft!

Point of clarification -

It's not a 'suggestion for fancy paperwork' that the couple file I-130 and I-485 if they marry outside the 90 days. It's a perfectly legal path.

Personally I'd rather see couples NOT marry within 90 days if there is doubt in their minds. If they marry just because they are staring down the barrel of a deadline this says nothing about prospects for longevity of the marriage. All it says is they were desperate.

The risks are all on the alien when this path is chosen though. If the couple is not going to marry, the alien needs to return home before Day 180 after the I94 has expired. To stay one day longer starts the ban. Aliens from VWP nations lose their personal VWP privileges for staying even one day past the expiry of the I94. So staying without marrying by the 90th day is more damaging for VWP aliens than others.

We need to remember that just because some couples don't 'do what we did' that they aren't lawbreakers or even system abusers. I'd rather see people take some responsibility for their future happiness than jump across some line in the sand drawn by the immigration law. BUT - if they take such a path - beware of the risks and play by the rest of the rules. Not doing so can be very detrimental to the future happiness of the alien abroad.

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

It's not a 'suggestion for fancy paperwork' that the couple file I-130 and I-485 if they marry outside the 90 days. It's a perfectly legal path.

I can't find any reference to this "legal path" in the CFR's or INA. There are several places on both the USCIS and DoS websites that say a K1 visa holder can only adjust status on the basis of having married the K1 petitioner within 90 days. Nowhere can I find anything about "changing horses", so to speak, and taking the I-130 route once the beneficiary arrives in the US. It appears, at least from what I've been able to find out, that a K1 visa holder has only one possible path to adjust status, and that is by satisfying the requirements of the K1 visa.

If I'm missing something, please educate me.

[john_and_marlene 162]

It's not a 'suggestion for fancy paperwork' that the couple file I-130 and I-485 if they marry outside the 90 days. It's a perfectly legal path.

I can't find any reference to this "legal path" in the CFR's or INA. There are several places on both the USCIS and DoS websites that say a K1 visa holder can only adjust status on the basis of having married the K1 petitioner within 90 days. Nowhere can I find anything about "changing horses", so to speak, and taking the I-130 route once the beneficiary arrives in the US. It appears, at least from what I've been able to find out, that a K1 visa holder has only one possible path to adjust status, and that is by satisfying the requirements of the K1 visa.

If I'm missing something, please educate me.

Fiance(e)

You were a fiancé who was admitted to the United States on a K-1 visa and then married the U.S. citizen who applied for the K-1 visa for you. (If you married the U.S. citizen but not within the 90-day time limit, your spouse also must now file USCIS Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative ). Your unmarried, minor children are also eligible for adjustment of status. See How Do I Bring My Fiancé to the United States? for more information. If you did not marry the U.S. citizen who filed the K-1 petition in your behalf, or if you married another U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident, you are not eligible to adjust status in the United States.

http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/men...00048f3d6a1RCRD

[rebeccajo 14]

It's not a 'suggestion for fancy paperwork' that the couple file I-130 and I-485 if they marry outside the 90 days. It's a perfectly legal path.

I can't find any reference to this "legal path" in the CFR's or INA. There are several places on both the USCIS and DoS websites that say a K1 visa holder can only adjust status on the basis of having married the K1 petitioner within 90 days. Nowhere can I find anything about "changing horses", so to speak, and taking the I-130 route once the beneficiary arrives in the US. It appears, at least from what I've been able to find out, that a K1 visa holder has only one possible path to adjust status, and that is by satisfying the requirements of the K1 visa.

If I'm missing something, please educate me.

Fiance(e)

You were a fiancé who was admitted to the United States on a K-1 visa and then married the U.S. citizen who applied for the K-1 visa for you. (If you married the U.S. citizen but not within the 90-day time limit, your spouse also must now file USCIS Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative ). Your unmarried, minor children are also eligible for adjustment of status. See How Do I Bring My Fiancé to the United States? for more information. If you did not marry the U.S. citizen who filed the K-1 petition in your behalf, or if you married another U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident, you are not eligible to adjust status in the United States.

http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/men...00048f3d6a1RCRD

Think of persons in this situation being the same as any other out-of-status alien and then it becomes perfectly clear why the I-130 filing is allowed.

[john_and_marlene 162]

It's not a 'suggestion for fancy paperwork' that the couple file I-130 and I-485 if they marry outside the 90 days. It's a perfectly legal path.

I can't find any reference to this "legal path" in the CFR's or INA. There are several places on both the USCIS and DoS websites that say a K1 visa holder can only adjust status on the basis of having married the K1 petitioner within 90 days. Nowhere can I find anything about "changing horses", so to speak, and taking the I-130 route once the beneficiary arrives in the US. It appears, at least from what I've been able to find out, that a K1 visa holder has only one possible path to adjust status, and that is by satisfying the requirements of the K1 visa.

If I'm missing something, please educate me.

Fiance(e)

You were a fiancé who was admitted to the United States on a K-1 visa and then married the U.S. citizen who applied for the K-1 visa for you. (If you married the U.S. citizen but not within the 90-day time limit, your spouse also must now file USCIS Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative ). Your unmarried, minor children are also eligible for adjustment of status. See How Do I Bring My Fiancé to the United States? for more information. If you did not marry the U.S. citizen who filed the K-1 petition in your behalf, or if you married another U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident, you are not eligible to adjust status in the United States.

http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/men...00048f3d6a1RCRD

Think of persons in this situation being the same as any other out-of-status alien and then it becomes perfectly clear why the I-130 filing is allowed.

The only additional restriction on K visa entries is that the adjustment has to be based on marriage to the K visa petitioner.

[Jamaican JNR 2]

Looks like she will get a ban according to INA depending on which one she gets that determines if she will be eligible for a waiver BTW the I-94 has nothing to do with her status..they would have given her a stamp based on the visa class which she entered but it would be up to her to take the proper steps to ensure she maintains legal status while she is present in the US, because you can enter on a K1 and get married within the 90 days and submit AOS but might not get AOS approval until months later....it (I-94) will however prove that she entered the US legally

( B ) ALIENS UNLAWFULLY PRESENT.-

(i) In general.-Any alien (other than an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence) who-

(I) was unlawfully present in the United States for a period of more than 180 days but less than 1 year, voluntarily departed the United States (whether or not pursuant to section 244(e)) prior to the commencement of proceedings under section 235( b )(1) or section 240, and again seeks admission within 3 years of the date of such alien's departure or removal, or

(II) has been unlawfully present in the United States for one year or more, and who again seeks admission within 10 years of the date of such alien's departure or removal from the United States,is inadmissible.

(ii) Construction of unlawful presence.-For purposes of this paragraph, an alien is deemed to be unlawfully present in the United States if the alien is present in the United States after the expiration of the period of stay authorized by the Attorney General or is present in the United States without being admitted or paroled.

(v) Waiver.-The Attorney General has sole discretion to waive clause (i) in the case of an immigrant who is the spouse or son or daughter of a United States citizen or of an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence, if it is established to the satisfaction of the Attorney General that the refusal of admission to such immigrant alien would result in extreme hardship to the citizen or lawfully resident spouse or parent of such alien. No court shall have jurisdiction to review a decision or action by the Attorney General regarding a waiver under this clause.

(9) ALIENS PREVISOUSLY Removed.-

(A) Certain aliens previously removed.-

(i) Arriving aliens.-Any alien who has been ordered removed under section 235( b )(1) or at the end of proceedings under section 240 initiated upon the alien's arrival in the United States and who again seeks admission within 5 years of the date of such removal (or within 20 years in the case of a second or subsequent removal or at any time in the case of an alien convicted of an aggravated felony) is inadmissible.

(ii) Other aliens.-Any alien not described in clause (i) who-

(I) has been ordered removed under section 240 or any other provision of law, or

(II) departed the United States while an order of removal was outstanding, and who seeks admission within 10 years of the date of such alien's departure or removal (or within 20 years of such date in the case of a second or subsequent removal or at any time in the case of an alien convicted of an aggravated felony) is inadmissible.

(iii) Exception.-Clauses (i) and (ii) shall not apply to an alien seeking admission within a period if, prior to the date of the alien's reembarkation at a place outside the United States or attempt to be admitted from foreign contiguous territory, the Attorney General has consented to the alien's reapplying for admission.

Long but useful info...

[Magnolia31 0]

What i don't understand is this ....

I have been on VJ since around 2006 or so. I have seen plenty of posts from people on here who also did not get married within the 90 days, and still they filed for AOS.

This really confuses me. Have you asked this question in the AOS section? Perhaps others in that section will answer who have faced a similar problem. I know with 100% certainty that others have done this.

[Magnolia31 0]

Bottom Line: If couple does not marry within the 90 days on a K1 visa, you are in for a world of hassle. How simple can the rules be: Marry within 90 days!

I'm not impressed with all the suggestions for fancy paperwork to get things right if the couple fails to marry within 90 days. It says chapters about the couple if they can't comply with such a simple 90 day requirement. There simply is no excuse for not getting married within 90 days. Does not bode well for the longevity of the relationship. Pffffft!

You're really not answering the question. You don't know why they did not get married within the required time frame. Fact is that it wasn't done so now it's time to think of other options/solutions. Dwelling on the past won't help them in the matter.

[payxibka 10,044]

What i don't understand is this ....

I have been on VJ since around 2006 or so. I have seen plenty of posts from people on here who also did not get married within the 90 days, and still they filed for AOS.

This really confuses me. Have you asked this question in the AOS section? Perhaps others in that section will answer who have faced a similar problem. I know with 100% certainty that others have done this.

Had he filed for AOS properly (with an I-130) this could have been avoided... but he did not, and that was an unfortunate misstep...

[klicristina 0]

I am back from my interview and the decision was no decision. My case was returned to the State Department for consultation with their in-house lawyers. US Consulate in Rio de Janeiro did not know how to apply the law to my case. The issue is what to do because my I-94 was valid for 15 months and not 90 days as it should have been. Obviously, my I-94 is incorrect so what to do now? US Consulate doesnt know so they kicked it back to the State Dept. What is your crystal ball telling you?