Is the wedding allowed before the completion of process

[Macaan 0]

Hello all;

I am new to this site and would like to get your help and insight. My apologies if this has already been asked. My fiance (USC) and I (CDN citizen) have filed our K1 visa Nov. 2010. We recently received acceptance and are still waiting for packet 3 to arrive from MTL consulate. I have gathered all my documents. However, our wedding is planned for the middle of July in Cdn. When we applied back in Nov. we allotted enough time for the process to be complete (according to the wait times we saw on the website). Now with the postal strike here and government delays the process is really taking a long time. My question is, since our wedding is a religious one and since it is taking place in Cdn, can we still go ahead with it although I don't have clearance to live in the US. I was hoping to stay there with my fiance until I get the interview then come back to Cdn and take the interview. Would this be violating any terms?

Thanks so much for your help!

[belinda63 3,053]

Will it be a legal marriage? The rule varies by country is why I ask. If the marriage is just a religious ceremony and you are not Legally married you will be fine.

[canadian_wife 1,831]

2 problems I see with your plan

1 - the K-1 is for a fiance, if you marry before the process is complete, you can start ALL OVER from the begining as you would not be able to enter the US as a spouse on a fiance visa - I am sure you can understand why

2 - part of the K-1 procedure is that you marry IN the US. Once the visa is issued, the beneficiary will enter the US, marry the petitioner within 90 days. The beneficiary (in this case...you) would not be able to leave the US until advanced parole is issued AFTER adjustment of status had been applied for.

Now, I am not even sure at the moment that you're July wedding in Canada can work under the terms of the K-1 visa

Good luck

[Macaan 0]

Will it be a legal marriage? The rule varies by country is why I ask. If the marriage is just a religious ceremony and you are not Legally married you will be fine.

It would simply be a religious marriage unless we choose to do a legal civil one as well which we wouldn't until we get to the US.

I see what you mean, Canadian wife. However the delays in the process have made it really difficult for us - as everyone here is or has experienced. I guess we went into this being pretty niave of the length it could take. Even now, waiting for the packet to arrive is taking forever!

Edited June 10, 2011 by Macaan

[Casprd 167]

Even if everything went according to the average timelines, you were going to have problems with a July religious ceremony in Canada. To get through the K-1 and the AOS so you can travel back to Canada was really pushing things. Was your plan to have the wedding in Canada before entering the US but after the K-1 approval? Either way, you are really walking a tightrope here. Even though you are just having a religious ceremony, CBP may not view it this way and they may determine that you are married and therefore the K-1 is not valid. You really need to be careful with this situation as it could cause some major headaches for you. Best/safest bet would be to postpone the Canadian wedding until after everything is completed. I know it makes a difficult situation even more stressful, but that is why everyone will tell you not to make plans before you get the visa.

[JoannaV 174]

If you can avoid all talk of it being a wedding/marriage then technically you should be fine. But it's very dicey. I guess there is no reason why USCIS should find out about it anyway. But if you decide to go ahead with this plan then make sure to tell ALL your wedding guests that this it is a religious celebration and NOT a legal wedding and that you are NOT married in the eyes of the law. Kind of an annoying thing to have to say at your wedding, I know, but you don't want too many references to you being husband and wife going around.

You can certainly visit your fiance in the US and stay with him for as long as you are legally allowed, so long as the border official allows you. But remember you are visiting your fiance and not your spouse, and avoid any talk otherwise. I don't know how long the visa process takes in Canada, but hopefully it won't be too long anyway :-)

[lovetimhortons 1]

empathize with your situation.

this is the thing with immigration: it certainly doesn't allow for wedding plans exactly when, where, and how you want it! it's frustrating. we set a date in the US of 1 year and a couple weeks post engagement (we filed about 1 month post engagement) for our wedding in the US, and i was still pretty stressed the timeline was not going to work out! (it ended up working out perfectly).

for the interview paperwork, you/your fiance will be required to submit affidavits saying you are free to marry. if you are already married to each other by a religious ceremony in canada, i'm not sure if that means you are legally free to marry or not.

you may want to consult an immigration lawyer to ask this question.

good luck.

Edited June 10, 2011 by lovetimhortons

[kaibosh 3]

Hello all;

I am new to this site and would like to get your help and insight. My apologies if this has already been asked. My fiance (USC) and I (CDN citizen) have filed our K1 visa Nov. 2010. We recently received acceptance and are still waiting for packet 3 to arrive from MTL consulate. I have gathered all my documents. However, our wedding is planned for the middle of July in Cdn. When we applied back in Nov. we allotted enough time for the process to be complete (according to the wait times we saw on the website). Now with the postal strike here and government delays the process is really taking a long time. My question is, since our wedding is a religious one and since it is taking place in Cdn, can we still go ahead with it although I don't have clearance to live in the US. I was hoping to stay there with my fiance until I get the interview then come back to Cdn and take the interview. Would this be violating any terms?

Thanks so much for your help!

You should update your time line to help everyone out.

[canadian_wife 1,831]

Keep in mind, I do not mean to scare you, but people have been denied for having a 'ceremony' because the CO then assumed they were married and doubted the legality of the marriage.

Double check, in Canada a religious ceremony may be considered a legal marriage, thus nullifying your K-1 pursuits. Post on the Canada forum to verify

Good luck

PS Here is a recent thread http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/251629-separating-the-religious-ceremony-from-the-civil/page__hl__religious+ceremony+canada

Pay attention to "Religious ceremonies in Canada and the US are legal and binding."

PM Krikit for further explanation

[baron555 934]

Hello all;

I am new to this site and would like to get your help and insight. My apologies if this has already been asked. My fiance (USC) and I (CDN citizen) have filed our K1 visa Nov. 2010. We recently received acceptance and are still waiting for packet 3 to arrive from MTL consulate. I have gathered all my documents. However, our wedding is planned for the middle of July in Cdn. When we applied back in Nov. we allotted enough time for the process to be complete (according to the wait times we saw on the website). Now with the postal strike here and government delays the process is really taking a long time. My question is, since our wedding is a religious one and since it is taking place in Cdn, can we still go ahead with it although I don't have clearance to live in the US. I was hoping to stay there with my fiance until I get the interview then come back to Cdn and take the interview. Would this be violating any terms?

Thanks so much for your help!

No problem. You can get married anytime you want; there is nothing preventing that.

You can live in the US with your fiance/spouse if you can obtain the proper visa and get through the border.

Then when it comes time for the K-1 interview, they will deny the K-1 visa because it is only for unmarried couples. Since you then would be married, you would need to refile for the CR-1 spouse visa. And again you can visit if you can get past border control.

Very simple. Of course the visa process doesn't care about your plans or your feelings for each other....it does want you to follow the rules and requriements.

[Macaan 0]

Thanks all for your input. This process certainly isn't easy and finding this site earlier would have helped with planning. I'll be sure to follow up with more questions.

[Love Eth 14]

While you processing for K-1 visa, you don’t have to get married officially. If it is a religious marriage or some other kind, as far as you sing the certificate, you are legally married. So you have to be very caution on what you are going to do during the wedding. Otherwise that precious moment could ruin the whole process.

Good luck

[Inky 1,111]

It would simply be a religious marriage unless we choose to do a legal civil one as well which we wouldn't until we get to the US.

I see what you mean, Canadian wife. However the delays in the process have made it really difficult for us - as everyone here is or has experienced. I guess we went into this being pretty niave of the length it could take. Even now, waiting for the packet to arrive is taking forever!

Packet 3 is located online for Montreal now. Why not just use that do it all and then send it back instead of waiting for P3? http://montreal.usconsulate.gov/content/content.asp?section=visas&document=visa_pkt3

There have been quite a few recently who never even got P3 in the mail and went ahead using the website and have their visas now and still no P3 arrived for them.

Edited June 10, 2011 by Inky

[dyana 0]

Two of my friends 'facebook' have same problems, so they write email to embassy whether they can held church/tribe ceremony while waiting K-1 process completed, and embassy reply 'it's allowed as long as not registered to goverment', and while went to interview date, they bring email from embassy (one even pregnant), and they have no problem...

[newlyweds2010 208]

What type of "ceremony" is that? Is it something that changes your status from single to married in Canada? Would you be considered husband and wife? Would it legally change your obligations toward your partner? If you answer yes, then you will have a problem with the K1, because the K1 visa is for fiance(e)s, not for married people.