Where should we get married?

[marieandjames 0]

Hello! My fiance and I area starting to plan our wedding and we would like to know if the location of our wedding (i.e. Canada or the US) will effect the processing time of the K-3 visa. We would like to be together as soon as possible, of course. Or... do you think we should get married in both countries? That's an option we're willing to explore also.

Thanks for your advice!

Marie

[Jersey Girl 2]

You can marry in either country. The only thing that affects timing is when you start submitting your documents!

[patrick & relyn 0]

MAYBE IM MISSING SOMETHING BUT IF YOURE NOT MARRIED YET THEN YOU'RE LOOKING AT A K-1 VISA. THAT IS IF THE PETITIONER IS IN THE U.S. AND YOU PLAN ON GETTING MARRIED IN THE U.S. IF YOU GET MARRIED IN CANADA THEN YOU NEED THE K-3 SPOUSE VISA. SHOULD YOU GET MARRIED IN CANADA THE K-3 HISTORICALLY TAKES MORE TIME. THE K-1 TAKES LESS FOR SOME REASON. MUCH LESS. IF I'VE MISSED SOMETHING HERE PLEASE ENLIGHTEN ME. IM NEW AT THIS TOO BUT THIS IS WHAT I UNDERSTOOD.....PATRICK

[lucyrich 19]

Or... do you think we should get married in both countries?

You can have multiple celebrations, parties and receptions, but you only get to have one legally binding wedding, and it's got to be in one country or the other. Be clear on where and when your one legally binding wedding is, and always be consistent in what you tell the authorities about the date and place of your wedding.

If you have two celebrations to satisfy relatives in different countries, the first celebration should be the legally binding one. There's no problem at all with having lots of celebrations afterwards, though.

In immigration matters, you always carry the burden of proof. In order to get a K-1 visa and use it to enter the US, you've got to prove you're single, and to get a K-3 or CR-1 visa, you've got to prove you're married. It can sometimes be hard to PROVE you're single, but easy to show a marriage certificate to prove you're married. If there is any evidence of a non-binding wedding that happens before your entrance into the US on a K-1, you'll have the burden of proving that the celebration was indeed non-binding, and this burden can be pretty difficult to sustain. That's why it's best to have the first wedding be the clear legally binding one. You avoid that messy ambiguous state where you're not really married but not provably single.

A K-1 marriage has to be held in the US.

A K-3 or CR-1 marriage can be in any country. If you can get into the US, you can get married here. Then you'd have to leave the US to get the K-3 or CR-1 visa.

There may be difficulty getting into the US for the wedding, however. If the border guards think there's a chance you'll get married and stay in the US, they have a duty to refuse entry (unless you're in posession of a K-1 visa).

[Reba 2]

well that depends on if they plan to live together in the US immediately following a US wedding from a K1.

It IS possible to go to the US, get married and then return to Canada. People do it all the time. I did it! The place of our marriage doesn't matter for a K3, as long as I did not enter the US in order to get married and stay to adjust status. I got married and returned to Canada. The difficulty sometimes would be telling the border officials that you're going there to get married and then they deny you entry for suspecting you're going to settle.

To the OP, read the guides above, decide which visa is the closest to what you need for when and where you want to settle, and then figure out which country to get married in.

And if you decide to marry in a third country, remember a K3 would have to return to that country for the consular interview. So a beach marriage in Nassau could be quite costly in return trips!

[meauxna 15]

One objection I've read of in the past is the length of time it takes to get a marriage certificate from Ottawa. You can not beging filing any petitions until you have the recorded marriage certificate.

If you'd marry elsewhere in Canada, that may not be an issue.

[Shakil 4]

This post is written with regards to you getting married in Canada.

Marrying in Ottawa, well basically marriage in Ontario is a problem. I got married on the 23rd of June this year. I had to take the marriage licence from the registrar generals office and then after the marriage a temporary solemnization record of marriage is given. Remaining parts are filed with the record of birth, deaths and marriages section of the govenment of Ontario. It takes somewhere between 8-12 weeks for it to get registered and then the official certificate can be issued. I used the temporary one to file my case for US and its going pretty well. I just now received my marriage certificate (official one) and I forwarded it to USCIS and it was added to my file. The bottom line is that even if you do start with the temp one its okay but be sure to send the original one as soon as it is available. Also mention this in the cover letter you send with your case that Ontario Government takes 8-12 weeks to register the marriage. The website in this regards is www.serviceontario.ca

Hope that helps.

[meauxna 15]

The bottom line is that even if you do start with the temp one its okay but be sure to send the original one as soon as it is available. Also mention this in the cover letter you send with your case that Ontario Government takes 8-12 weeks to register the marriage. The website in this regards is www.serviceontario.ca

Hope that helps.

Thanks for that update!

[Yodrak 7]

lucyrich,

To pic a nit, off topic in the context of Marie's situation - not necessarily.

In some jurisdictions a wedding celebration plays no part in a legal (government recognized) marriage. Solves a lot of family problems for K1s coming from such places (but can create immigration problems in the US if flaunted).

Yodrak

.....

If you have two celebrations to satisfy relatives in different countries, the first celebration should be the legally binding one. There's no problem at all with having lots of celebrations afterwards, though.

.....

[lucyrich 19]

That's why I said "should", not "must". It's not always essential to do it that way, but many potential problems are avoided by having the first ceremony be the legally binding one.

Yes, it is sometimes legally possible to have a non-binding wedding before the legally binding one, and one might even enter on a K-1 after the non-binding wedding and before the legally binding one without breaking any laws whatsoever. But marriage laws vary widely from country to country. The kind of ceremony that would clearly be non-binding in one jurisdiction might be a fully legal marriage if performed in another place. The big problem is that CBP officers aren't experts in all countries' marriage laws.

If one tries to enter the US with a K-1 while wearing a wedding ring, carrying wedding pictures, or showing other evidence that a wedding may have happened, however ceremonial and non-legally binding, then I wish them good luck in convincing the officer that they are really eligible to enter on the K-1.

lucyrich,

To pic a nit, off topic in the context of Marie's situation - not necessarily.

In some jurisdictions a wedding celebration plays no part in a legal (government recognized) marriage. Solves a lot of family problems for K1s coming from such places (but can create immigration problems in the US if flaunted).

Yodrak

.....

If you have two celebrations to satisfy relatives in different countries, the first celebration should be the legally binding one. There's no problem at all with having lots of celebrations afterwards, though.

.....

[jonty 0]

Hello! My fiance and I area starting to plan our wedding and we would like to know if the location of our wedding (i.e. Canada or the US) will effect the processing time of the K-3 visa. We would like to be together as soon as possible, of course. Or... do you think we should get married in both countries? That's an option we're willing to explore also.

Thanks for your advice!

Marie

Hello,

You can get married either in Canada or US it is upto you, though the best route would be the K-1 fiancee visa.

[salgood411 0]

Hello! My fiance and I area starting to plan our wedding and we would like to know if the location of our wedding (i.e. Canada or the US) will effect the processing time of the K-3 visa. We would like to be together as soon as possible, of course. Or... do you think we should get married in both countries? That's an option we're willing to explore also.

Thanks for your advice!

Marie

Hello,

You can get married either in Canada or US it is upto you, though the best route would be the K-1 fiancee visa.

Well yes after receiving the visa you can get married in the recipients country, then fly to the US and get married again. Just don't flash your wedding ring or marriage pictures.

[meauxna 15]

Hello! My fiance and I area starting to plan our wedding and we would like to know if the location of our wedding (i.e. Canada or the US) will effect the processing time of the K-3 visa. We would like to be together as soon as possible, of course. Or... do you think we should get married in both countries? That's an option we're willing to explore also.

Thanks for your advice!

Marie

Hello,

You can get married either in Canada or US it is upto you, though the best route would be the K-1 fiancee visa.

How is the K-1 the 'best route' if they want a K-3?

Hello! My fiance and I area starting to plan our wedding and we would like to know if the location of our wedding (i.e. Canada or the US) will effect the processing time of the K-3 visa. We would like to be together as soon as possible, of course. Or... do you think we should get married in both countries? That's an option we're willing to explore also.

Thanks for your advice!

Marie

Hello,

You can get married either in Canada or US it is upto you, though the best route would be the K-1 fiancee visa.

Well yes after receiving the visa you can get married in the recipients country, then fly to the US and get married again. Just don't flash your wedding ring or marriage pictures.

A K-3 is a visa for married people. The OP is asking where to marry *before* they apply for a visa.

I also wouldn't issue your blanket advice for K-1s--there are some situations where that would be very bad advice indeed.

[Reba 2]

there have been couples thru here over the years (yeah, I've been here a while ) who have had "ceremonies" before actually getting the K1 visa, and they've been denied because it was deemed that the "ceremony" was in fact a wedding. They had to re-start, for a K3. and before they could do that, they had to actually get legally married.

Having receptions or ceremonies that are not "legal" before getting a K1 can be right risky. And in Canada, you'll be hard pressed to find a legal officient to perform a not legal wedding, because of the marriage laws they just can't do it. You'd have to find an unofficial officient, someone who is not licensed or ordained to perform marriages.

[Jersey Girl 2]

Since you are only in the wedding planning stage, and you want to be together asap, you might consider no wedding at all, and look at timelines for K1, as someone already suggested. This puts the focus on getting here quickly, and yes, it's a gamble because there could be snags, but everyone in this forum gambles on timelines no matter what they're pursuing.

A K1 also circumvents the whole business of legal vs. non-legal ceremonies here or there. Just get to the States, marry, and if you really want, go back to Canada to renew your vows in the presence of family. It's a plan. Hey, how often do you get to be engaged?