Got two opposing statements from local attorneys..

[superchicken 0]

Hi everybody! I have another question and therefore start another topic. This board is awsome, I got plenty of input and good ideas on my previous and first post.

Now to the point! My main plan of action is still applying for a K-1 for my girl and I got somewhat contradicting info after visiting a few law offices in the area. My situation is that I, myself, got the US citizenship not too long ago, august of '09 to be exact and one of the responses that I got was that basically a certain amount of time should elapse before I can try to get someone else into the country. I was told that a minimum of 5 years must pass from the day my greencard was approved in order to be successful in this undertaking. The lady said that I could still apply but the application would really hit the red light and I would be asked to bring a proof that my previous marriage was not a fraud if I applied before those five years elapsed. I got the greencard and the citizenship through the marriage with a US citizen. Is that true? Thanks againg, I appreciate all of your help!

[Aztec&Taino 144]

Hi everybody! I have another question and therefore start another topic. This board is awsome, I got plenty of input and good ideas on my previous and first post.

Now to the point! My main plan of action is still applying for a K-1 for my girl and I got somewhat contradicting info after visiting a few law offices in the area. My situation is that I, myself, got the US citizenship not too long ago, august of '09 to be exact and one of the responses that I got was that basically a certain amount of time should elapse before I can try to get someone else into the country. I was told that a minimum of 5 years must pass from the day my greencard was approved in order to be successful in this undertaking. The lady said that I could still apply but the application would really hit the red light and I would be asked to bring a proof that my previous marriage was not a fraud if I applied before those five years elapsed. I got the greencard and the citizenship through the marriage with a US citizen. Is that true? Thanks againg, I appreciate all of your help!

If you are now a naturalized US citizen and your divorce is final, then you have met the minimum requirements to be a petitioner for the I 129F (K1 visa).

[JlovesA 109]

Others members here have petitioned for their fiancé shortly after becoming naturalized and to my knowledge, it was not an issue.

[pushbrk 14,075]

Hi everybody! I have another question and therefore start another topic. This board is awsome, I got plenty of input and good ideas on my previous and first post.

Now to the point! My main plan of action is still applying for a K-1 for my girl and I got somewhat contradicting info after visiting a few law offices in the area. My situation is that I, myself, got the US citizenship not too long ago, august of '09 to be exact and one of the responses that I got was that basically a certain amount of time should elapse before I can try to get someone else into the country. I was told that a minimum of 5 years must pass from the day my greencard was approved in order to be successful in this undertaking. The lady said that I could still apply but the application would really hit the red light and I would be asked to bring a proof that my previous marriage was not a fraud if I applied before those five years elapsed. I got the greencard and the citizenship through the marriage with a US citizen. Is that true? Thanks againg, I appreciate all of your help!

There is no waiting period between Citizenship and your right to file a petition for a fiance or immediate relative. You will not be applying for any visa. You'll be filing a petition, which when approved, will allow your loved one to apply for a visa.

Do expect some additional scrutiny.

Edited November 16, 2010 by pushbrk

[VanessaTony 3,567]

Others members here have petitioned for their fiancé shortly after becoming naturalized and to my knowledge, it was not an issue.

The issue is the OP is just recently naturalised due to marriage to a USC and is now "suddenly" divorced and "suddenly" engaged to someone else.

Personally I think she will get some extra scrutiny at the visa stage. Depending on when your relationship started, and all that stuff you could find yourself in some hot water.

Without knowing your full timeline (including date divorced, whether this is a USC based on 3 years or 5 years, when you met your fiancee etc) we can't give you full advice but the basics are this:

- there is no timeframe for you to wait to file. You can file the day after if you like.

[payxibka 10,048]

Hi everybody! I have another question and therefore start another topic. This board is awsome, I got plenty of input and good ideas on my previous and first post.

Now to the point! My main plan of action is still applying for a K-1 for my girl and I got somewhat contradicting info after visiting a few law offices in the area. My situation is that I, myself, got the US citizenship not too long ago, august of '09 to be exact and one of the responses that I got was that basically a certain amount of time should elapse before I can try to get someone else into the country. I was told that a minimum of 5 years must pass from the day my greencard was approved in order to be successful in this undertaking. The lady said that I could still apply but the application would really hit the red light and I would be asked to bring a proof that my previous marriage was not a fraud if I applied before those five years elapsed. I got the greencard and the citizenship through the marriage with a US citizen. Is that true? Thanks againg, I appreciate all of your help!

Was your previous marriage that you gained your US citizenship from based on good faith? If so, what are you worried about... If not, maybe you need to be worried...

[baron555 934]

The issue is the OP is just recently naturalised due to marriage to a USC and is now "suddenly" divorced and "suddenly" engaged to someone else.

Personally I think she will get some extra scrutiny at the visa stage. Depending on when your relationship started, and all that stuff you could find yourself in some hot water.

Without knowing your full timeline (including date divorced, whether this is a USC based on 3 years or 5 years, when you met your fiancee etc) we can't give you full advice but the basics are this:

- there is no timeframe for you to wait to file. You can file the day after if you like.

I agree completely. A CO may look at the bigger picture and see a purposeful trend in your actions.

The Ukraine Embassy is keen on this.

[*Yankee Love* 15]

My Fiances Naturalization was done in 2008 and now in 2009 we are filing just fine

[C and Lore 3]

There is no statute I'm aware of that prevents it.

I would agree there'll be extra scrutiny before you're approved and a visa is issued.

I'd prepare now to create a definite timeline with documentation that supports your claims. Prepare to show, divorce date, when you met your new girlfriend when it turned serious enough for you to consider wanting to marry. These are things they'll want to see clear concise evidence of each of these. If your missing one, they are likely to be highly suspicious.

[JimVaPhuong 4,865]

There won't be any problems with the petition stage. You're a US citizen so you're eligible to submit a petition. However, this does indicate a pattern of fraud that they look for at many (maybe most) consulates. They'll look at the timeline, for one thing. If your life events coincide with your immigration events then that will raise their suspicion. For example, if you filed for divorce shortly after getting your unconditional green card. If you knew your new fiancee before you married the US citizen who sponsored you then you can expect deep scrutiny by the consulate.

[Justine+David 218]

My Fiances Naturalization was done in 2008 and now in 2009 we are filing just fine

Germany is much lower for fraud scrutiny compared to Ukraine...

[superchicken 0]

Thank you for all the inputs again! Now I 'm kinda worried.. My previous marriage was the real deal though so I don't feel compromised in that respect but what I feel and what an officer will feel are two different things of course.

Ok, here are some facts/timelines about my previous marriage and an ongoing relationship:

-I got married in '03

-My permanent greencard was approved in February 06. I never had a temporary one because the time that had passed from the time of marriage was sufficient as I was explained to be issued a permanent greencard at that point.

-Around march of '09 I started the Citizenship process and got naturalized in August of '09

-On January 12 th of 2010 my wife filed for divorce. That attorney said however that they (IO's) are not going to consider the fact that she filed and it is still a burden on my shoulders so I dunno..

-I met my current fiance on a dating site around October of '09 while me and my wife were still legally married but we weren't living together any more at that time. Is that somthing that will create problems?

-On July 22nd of 2010 I arrived to Ukraine to meet her and I stayed through the August 4th. My divorce was finalized on July 29th, six month after filing.

-I haven't filed the petition yet but want to do it as soon as possible.

Some additional facts:

I remember on my naturalization interview I was asked if we were planning to have kids. An odd question if you ask me but may be they do occasionally ask stuff like that. I answered that my wife can't have children therefore no. He asked why she can't and I said that a medical condition prevents her from that. She indeed couldn't after multiple attempts. Also I told the officer that she was mentally ill and was udergoing medical treatments and was regularly seen by a psychiatrist. He was typing something on the computer when I told him all this. Do you think he made a note of some of this and this can help me later. My wife eventually got disability based on her mental condition and living with her was absolutely unbearable for the last 2-3 years. This is my story, what do you guys/gals think? I 'm somewhat worried now after reading all the replies. Thanks again!

[baron555 934]

Thank you for all the inputs again! Now I 'm kinda worried.. My previous marriage was the real deal though so I don't feel compromised in that respect but what I feel and what an officer will feel are two different things of course.

Ok, here are some facts/timelines about my previous marriage and an ongoing relationship:

-I got married in '03

-My permanent greencard was approved in February 06. I never had a temporary one because the time that had passed from the time of marriage was sufficient as I was explained to be issued a permanent greencard at that point.

-Around march of '09 I started the Citizenship process and got naturalized in August of '09

-On January 12 th of 2010 my wife filed for divorce. That attorney said however that they (IO's) are not going to consider the fact that she filed and it is still a burden on my shoulders so I dunno..

-I met my current fiance on a dating site around October of '09 while me and my wife were still legally married but we weren't living together any more at that time. Is that somthing that will create problems?

-On July 22nd of 2010 I arrived to Ukraine to meet her and I stayed through the August 4th. My divorce was finalized on July 29th, six month after filing.

-I haven't filed the petition yet but want to do it as soon as possible.

Some additional facts:

I remember on my naturalization interview I was asked if we were planning to have kids. An odd question if you ask me but may be they do occasionally ask stuff like that. I answered that my wife can't have children therefore no. He asked why she can't and I said that a medical condition prevents her from that. She indeed couldn't after multiple attempts. Also I told the officer that she was mentally ill and was udergoing medical treatments and was regularly seen by a psychiatrist. He was typing something on the computer when I told him all this. Do you think he made a note of some of this and this can help me later. My wife eventually got disability based on her mental condition and living with her was absolutely unbearable for the last 2-3 years. This is my story, what do you guys/gals think? I 'm somewhat worried now after reading all the replies. Thanks again!

Technically you are in the clear. You are a USC, so no issue there. And when you will file, you will be free to marry and have the certified divorce documents that will be required to be sent in with the I-129F. I would say make sure your fiance understands all about your timeline and that when you two met you were still technically married and all that since she may be asked about it at the interview. Other than that, I'd say that you are free to file.

[Gary and Alla 3,696]

Hi everybody! I have another question and therefore start another topic. This board is awsome, I got plenty of input and good ideas on my previous and first post.

Now to the point! My main plan of action is still applying for a K-1 for my girl and I got somewhat contradicting info after visiting a few law offices in the area. My situation is that I, myself, got the US citizenship not too long ago, august of '09 to be exact and one of the responses that I got was that basically a certain amount of time should elapse before I can try to get someone else into the country. I was told that a minimum of 5 years must pass from the day my greencard was approved in order to be successful in this undertaking. The lady said that I could still apply but the application would really hit the red light and I would be asked to bring a proof that my previous marriage was not a fraud if I applied before those five years elapsed. I got the greencard and the citizenship through the marriage with a US citizen. Is that true? Thanks againg, I appreciate all of your help!

Stop visiting attorneys. They clearly do not know what they are talking about.

There is no time period to wait. The exact moment that your citizenship is granted, you can file the petition. Take the oath, drop it in the mailbox on the way out. It is not a red flag and I have worked with several cases at the Ukrainian consulate including ones where the petition was mailed THE SAME DAY as the citizenshp papers were received, and the question was never asked. ANY person applying for a visa must show proof that the relationship they are applying for is not a fraud. NOT the one you were previously in. OBVIOUSLY you showed THAT relationship was not a fraud because they issued a green card and citizenship.

USCIS only asks one question in this regard..."Are you a citizen?" A citizen who took the oath 10 minutes ago has EXACTLY the same rights as one born here. Period.

The level of stupidity of some people sometimes frightens me. Better if they just say "I don't know" rather than invent new laws out of thin air. There is no shame or stigma attached to being uninformed, we are all uninformed about many things...just say so. When we, knowingly, make up stuff to cover that we are uninformed...THAT is stupid.

Thank you for all the inputs again! Now I 'm kinda worried.. My previous marriage was the real deal though so I don't feel compromised in that respect but what I feel and what an officer will feel are two different things of course.

Ok, here are some facts/timelines about my previous marriage and an ongoing relationship:

-I got married in '03

-My permanent greencard was approved in February 06. I never had a temporary one because the time that had passed from the time of marriage was sufficient as I was explained to be issued a permanent greencard at that point.

-Around march of '09 I started the Citizenship process and got naturalized in August of '09

-On January 12 th of 2010 my wife filed for divorce. That attorney said however that they (IO's) are not going to consider the fact that she filed and it is still a burden on my shoulders so I dunno..

-I met my current fiance on a dating site around October of '09 while me and my wife were still legally married but we weren't living together any more at that time. Is that somthing that will create problems?

-On July 22nd of 2010 I arrived to Ukraine to meet her and I stayed through the August 4th. My divorce was finalized on July 29th, six month after filing.

-I haven't filed the petition yet but want to do it as soon as possible.

Some additional facts:

I remember on my naturalization interview I was asked if we were planning to have kids. An odd question if you ask me but may be they do occasionally ask stuff like that. I answered that my wife can't have children therefore no. He asked why she can't and I said that a medical condition prevents her from that. She indeed couldn't after multiple attempts. Also I told the officer that she was mentally ill and was udergoing medical treatments and was regularly seen by a psychiatrist. He was typing something on the computer when I told him all this. Do you think he made a note of some of this and this can help me later. My wife eventually got disability based on her mental condition and living with her was absolutely unbearable for the last 2-3 years. This is my story, what do you guys/gals think? I 'm somewhat worried now after reading all the replies. Thanks again!

Nothing that would cause a visa to be denied. BE SURE your fiancee knows all this. SHE would be the one that would have to answer any questions at a visa interview. YOU will not be asked ANY questions.