Do I need a lawyer? CR1

[Ali_y_Juan 1]

I'm a college educated professional. My wife lives in Mexico.

I found a lawyer who will charge a reduced rate of $1000. Is that too high for filling out forms. Or is it money well spent knowing another person is looking and helping us out through the process?

Thank you for your advice in advance.

[MissDinaDee 8]

I'm a college dropout and I was able to complete my forms.

You need patience and time to do this process... If in doubt check it out! Research is the key and ask questions!

Note: If your spouse has been denied entry or overstayed on a visa in the US you may need legal assistance if not and your case is straight forward you should be able to do this on your own. Save the money!

Good luck!

MrsJ

Edited February 27, 2012 by MissDinaDee

[Samantha78 117]

If you're a college educated professional, save the money and do it yourself. There's a trillion horror stories about lawyers making major mistakes and you probably don't want to be added to that list. It's very easy and to tell you the truth, the lawyer may have an extra set of eyes but they aren't seeing your visa approval, they're seeing dollar signs. The instructions on this site are extremely helpful and anyone, educated or not, can and has done it alone so it's worth a try. Save the $1000 for the cost of things you'll need to purchase for your SO once they are here.

[Inky 1,110]

1000$ is WAY too much to spend. They do not care they don't make sure there are no mistakes on the forms. You pay them the money - they make YOU get all the papers and then all they do is fill in the blanks.

You can do it all yourself - for free - not to mention the fact that you have more time to make sure there are no errors.

VJ has example forms filled out and step by step guides showing what you need. - all free all available right here.

[Ali_y_Juan 1]

Thanks everyone.

I'm going to tackle it on my own. Our case is simple (we've never married been married, she's never travelled to the US, and Im a USA citizen).

[Hank_ 9,172]

I stayed at a Holiday Inn.... Express yet... and I still figured out the forms!

Lawyers!!? We don't need no stinkin'.....

Edited February 27, 2012 by Hank_Amy

[Pooh Pee 1]

Please be mindful. If you are not married, don't refer her as your wife. Your situation is very similar to mine. Your case is K-1 for fiancee visa not CR1. It will take some time to gather documents and fill out forms. It takes a few hours of filling out forms. $1000 for a few hours of paperwork is not a bad deal.

Start by educating yourself about the process. Then gather the forms and documents. Go to:

http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/types/types_2994.html

http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.eb1d4c2a3e5b9ac89243c6a7543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=640a3e4d77d73210VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCRD&vgnextchannel=640a3e4d77d73210VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCRD

I did my own. Boy meets girl, boy applies for fiancee visa, girl comes to US, boy marries girl. I am here if you need help.

Good luck.

[vanessa.diaz 0]

Thanks everyone.

I'm going to tackle it on my own. Our case is simple (we've never married been married, she's never travelled to the US, and Im a USA citizen).

same here I did it all by myself and all went fine! its a piece of cake if you know how to follow instructions!

[Divs 35]

I'm a college educated professional. My wife lives in Mexico.

I found a lawyer who will charge a reduced rate of $1000. Is that too high for filling out forms. Or is it money well spent knowing another person is looking and helping us out through the process?

Thank you for your advice in advance.

You don't really need a lawyer to file your CR1. All you need to do is read up well on it and collect as much info as possible before you initiate the process. Before we started out, I hadn't even heard of the CR1.

[Dan C. 18]

My wife and I also had a simple case—no kids, no previous spouses, no illegal activity. She had a tourist visa, and I'm a US citizen. I did all of the paperwork, and I'm so glad that we didn't waste money on a lawyer.

A lot of people told me "oh, you have to get an immigration lawyer". Complete BS.

Just read up, ask questions here, stay on top of the paperwork -- you know, do your homework. You'll be fine.

Edited February 28, 2012 by Dan C.

[Ryan H 3,790]

A lot of people told me "oh, you have to get an immigration lawyer". Complete BS.

I heard the same thing from some people too, and I share the same sentiment.

[Tradewind 6]

I am hiring a lawyer. Price is $1150. I think its a fair price. I am college educated but so far I like getting questions answered by someone in the legal field. I do not want to make mistakes on this.

I do not like to give away money and I am a brave guy but I don't want to do this alone. I am curious what happened to the people who started this post.

Ours is a somewhat complex and at the same time simple filing, but I remember the comment my dad used to say. He who represents himself legally has a fool for a client. No offense to anyone here that did the process themselves. I just want advice along the road with this. I am thinking this is cheap legal advise because if we need and hour of some lawyers time it will be $300. I am sure I will use the 4 hours I am spending here.

[Boggy1974 124]

1000$ is WAY too much to spend. They do not care they don't make sure there are no mistakes on the forms. You pay them the money - they make YOU get all the papers and then all they do is fill in the blanks.

You can do it all yourself - for free - not to mention the fact that you have more time to make sure there are no errors.

VJ has example forms filled out and step by step guides showing what you need. - all free all available right here.

Agreed completely!

OP, read up and build some knowledge about the process while saving yourself some money too! Good luck!

[Hollyday 122]

I am hiring a lawyer. Price is $1150. I think its a fair price. I am college educated but so far I like getting questions answered by someone in the legal field. I do not want to make mistakes on this.

I do not like to give away money and I am a brave guy but I don't want to do this alone. I am curious what happened to the people who started this post.

Ours is a somewhat complex and at the same time simple filing, but I remember the comment my dad used to say. He who represents himself legally has a fool for a client. No offense to anyone here that did the process themselves. I just want advice along the road with this. I am thinking this is cheap legal advise because if we need and hour of some lawyers time it will be $300. I am sure I will use the 4 hours I am spending here.

If you look at the signatures of 'people who started this post' you'll find that all of them succeeded.

[NikLR 13,220]

*** this is an older thread... please pay attention to the last reply dates ***

Edited July 5, 2013 by NikiR