K-1, fiance visa

[ddlli 0]

Please help.

I applied for a fiance visa, but I am not sure that I will get it by August of this year.

Can I fly on ESTA if I only want to visit my fiance and then come back home after 2 months or will they not let me in the USA, since I wont have my yfiance visa yet and they will see in their system that I have applied for it? Anyone has experience with this?

Thank you

[Mike Z 8]

i am assuming you want to enter under the VWP?

as far as im aware, ESTA is a security check system linked to the visa waiver program, so you cant actually "fly on esta"

you can certainly try to enter under VWP, even whilst you are applying for a visa.

you have to be honest about your intention to visit your fiance when asked at the point of entry.

its up to the officer then to decide if you are allowed in. so no one can give you a definite answer of what will happen.

they may question your motivation to leave again and deny entry.

they may also say ok and stamp your passport.

someone else will have to comment if a denied entry causes problems for your K-1 visa. <- thats the important part.

[N&S 32]

You didn't write when you applied - if you only just put in your application it is almost certain that you won't get the fiance visa before August (you can check Igor's list on VJ to see who on this forum has been recently approved to give you a rough idea of time scope; this is not an official stat or anything and only a small sample but proved pretty accurate for me). However, I have visited a few times while the application was pending; the general recommendation is bringing lots of evidence of "ties to home", e.g. your lease, a letter from your employer, utility bills etc to prove that your intention is that you are not planning to stay in the US. As the previous poster mentioned, it is ultimately up to the processing immigration officer to judge if you are okay to get into the country or not.

The other thing is that you cannot get married in the US in August and then fly back home and wait for the K1 visa to be processed - not sure if that was your intention or if that is why coming in August is critical - as K1 is for fiance(e)s only and once you are married, obviously you are no longer a fiance.

Hope this helped a bit.

Good luck!

[ddlli 0]

Thank you for your answers, they got our papers in the middle of February and our case hasnt moved from the second step yet.

Yes my plan was to go on ESTA (in case my K1 is not ready by then) get married and then come back and apply for the spouse visa.

Thank you for the tips of taking lots of papers proving that I have a reason to come back!

[LeftCoastLady 441]

Thank you for your answers, they got our papers in the middle of February and our case hasnt moved from the second step yet.

Yes my plan was to go on ESTA (in case my K1 is not ready by then) get married and then come back and apply for the spouse visa.

Thank you for the tips of taking lots of papers proving that I have a reason to come back!

The process usually takes 5+ months before one's case is adjudicated. If your plan was to travel to the US to get married and then go home, then why did you two file a petition for the K-1 in February? By getting married, you would no longer be eligible for the K-1 and would have to start over again. You would be resetting the clock on when you two would be together in one place for the long-term.

[Penguin_ie 6,005]

Why is the August date for the wedding so important?

You'd start again from the beginning, the marriage visa (CR-1) takes longer than the K1, and you'd need to pay all fees again.

[Moomin 292]

If you don't care about the extra time/money, then sure; visit on VWP, get married, go back and file the i-130 and wait it out.

Letting you in while having a pending petition/visiting in general: The CBP officer greeting you is the only person who can tell you that for sure. Usually, people on VJ are advised to bring a copy of NOA1 since it shows that you're doing everything the legal way. For you to show a copy of that and in the same breath of air saying you're getting married would - IMO - not go hand in hand. I will advise you to be honest when arriving however. Don't talk their ears off but don't hold back on questions you're asked at POE either. "Just visiting" and happen to have a wedding dress in your carry-on or checked luggage isn't the ideal situation.

.. But yes you can visit. Everybody with approved esta and from a VWP country are eligible to visit but your unique situation determines how far you'll get.

[ddlli 0]

Ah, ok.

Our plan is to get K1 and get married and for me to stay in the USA and from there adjust my status and do all the things that are needed.

The thing is, we are not sure if we will have the K1 by August, that is why Im trying to find out as much information about what to do in case I dont get my fiance visa. Also my whole family will already be there so that is why I need K1 by August (they are leaving very shortly after the wedding back home to Europe and wont be able to come back to the States anytime soon, therefore we dont want to post pone the wedding by couple months and have it without my family and friends who already got their air tickets).

From what we found out and were told is, that for me in order to get married and do all the things the right way I should get the fiance visa. Getting married without a fiance visa and staying there could cause a lot of problems in the longer run and is risky (like having to leave the country if I dont prove that this whole wedding wasnt planned ahead of time and so on). That is why I thought that maybe getting married and leaving back to Europe and wait here for the spouse visa to get done would be smart. Yes we dont want to be separated after getting married but is there any other way to do it?

We are basically trying to find out the best way and what to do in case we dont get the K1, but still want to get married in August, if that is even possible?

[LeftCoastLady 441]

The likelihood of the K-1 visa being in your hand by August is pretty slim. Sure, there are exceptions to the rule, but having the entire process done in under six months -- from filing the petition to being interviewed and receiving the visa -- is not something I'd gamble on. There's a popular saying on this board, "Don't make plans until the visa is in your hand."

In any event, if having the wedding in August is that important, your fiancé should withdraw the I-129F petition. Have your wedding in August and then file for the IR-1/CR-1. But, as others have mentioned, there is a chance CBP may not allow you to enter the country. Do you have enough ties that would show that you absolutely 100% will be returning to your country? If you're working, get a letter from your employer stating you're expected back at work by X date, for example.

Better planning should have been in place if your heart was set on getting married by a specific date. But you two need to decide which is more important -- getting married by a specific date or waiting until the K-1 visa is in your hand, and then making plans for a wedding.

Edited April 8, 2012 by LeftCoastLady

[didopage 337]

We are basically trying to find out the best way and what to do in case we dont get the K1, but still want to get married in August, if that is even possible?

Yes, but you will have to cancel the K-1 process (you won't be refunded), get married (crossing fingers they will let you in at the airport…), come back to your home country, file for a spouse visa, which means start a whole new process with a whole new long wait (and new fees).

Planning the wedding only 6 months after filing for the fiance visa, and having your family and friends buy their plane tickets was not a wise thing to do… It's usually not advised to make early plans until you don't have the visa in hand. A common advice is to not plan anything (or not as early), get civilly married after you get the visa in hand so then you can plan a wedding with family and friends when you want.