K1 visa application while in the US.

[soccerpriest 0]

Hello everyone!

My name is Aldo and I look forward to a great answer as you have all been doing in the past.

Here's my dilemma: My girlfriend and I have been dating for about one year. We are ready to marry. We are both Costa Rican citizens. However, I hold a dual citizenship between the US and Costa Rica, with all of my documents up to date, and I reside in the US. I would like for us to do a civil wedding here in the US and then do a religious wedding in CR. Furthermore, she is coming to visit me in June (an important detail). So my question is: Can I file for the K1 visa while she is here visiting me, or would there be a problem with that? I guess that if she can, she would have to return once I receive the I-797 in order to fill out the paper work in CR.

Thank you all for your time and help!

God bless,

Aldo

Edited April 19, 2012 by soccerpriest

[aaron2020 11,652]

Hello everyone!

My name is Aldo and I look forward to a great answer as you have all been doing in the past.

Here's my dilemma: My girlfriend and I have been dating for about one year. We are ready to marry. We are both Costa Rican citizens. However, I hold a dual citizenship between the US and Costa Rica, with all of my documents up to date, and I reside in the US. I would like for us to do a civil wedding here in the US and then do a religious wedding in CR. Furthermore, she is coming to visit me in June (an important detail). So my question is: Can I file for the K1 visa while she is here visiting me, or would there be a problem with that? I guess that if she can, she would have to return once I receive the I-797 in order to fill out the paper work in CR.

Thank you all for your time and help!

God bless,

Aldo

A visa is for entering the US.

Why don't you just marry when she enters the US on the visitor visa? She will need to return to Costa Rica. If she uses her visitor visa to enter the US and adjust, then she would be committing visa fraud. So, make sure she goes home after you get marry.

Once you are married in the US, you can file the I-130. She interview in Costa Rica for a spousal visa. Once she enter the US, she automatically get a green card.

The visit, leaving the US, filing for the K-1, enter US to marry, return to CR, then apply for a spousal visa is just adding an additional trip and extra expenses.

[C-ma'am 684]

So my question is: Can I file for the K1 visa while she is here visiting me, or would there be a problem with that?

Aldo

Hola Aldo!

Yes, you can. We filed while I was visiting too. You'll just have to add the information of the I-94 on the 129-f ... She will have to return home to do some waiting, and to attend the interview in Costa Rica.

[soccerpriest 0]

Hola Aldo!

Yes, you can. We filed while I was visiting too. You'll just have to add the information of the I-94 on the 129-f ... She will have to return home to do some waiting, and to attend the interview in Costa Rica.

Hola Celeste!

Thank you for your response. I greatly appreciate it. Now, my next questions are: about how long was the process between filing the I-129f and receiving the I-797? Also, did you return to your country after the I-797 arrived? How did you time that return? When should she go back? Well, those last questions are assuming that you did not have a two-way ticket. I guess I should clarify that we buy a one way ticket for her to come here and then we buy another ticket a couple of months before she leaves (since that's a little cheaper). With that said, she stays here for several months at a time. So the dilemma would come in choosing the time for her to leave to CR and do the filing there.

I hope I didn't confuse you that much .

Thanks again for your help.

[C-ma'am 684]

Hola

Ok so for timings, you can check out my Timeline http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/profile.php?id=92506 and see; however... keep in mind that every case is unique and the Timelines should only be taken as references. Nothing is written in stone and anything can happen to ANY of us (meaning delays and such).

Since your fiancee is from Costa Rica and, as far as I can see, she must have entered the US on a tourist visa. She'll be able to stay ONLY (not a day more or two....ONLY) until the day stamped on her i-94 card when she cleared immigration. Typically, they give you a total of 6 months, but there are exceptions, so please check her i-94 and look at the date stamped in red ...

In my case.. I traveled July 29th 2011 and was authorized to stay until Jan 28th 2012; and although I could have stayed until Jan 28th.. I came back to Argentina in December because my sister was getting married and I have been here since then; so that makes 4 and 1/2 months.

I did have a Round Trip ticket, because if you are not a USC or LPR (while I understand that many countries allow it) it's an irregularity.

... Either way.... Unfortunately, like all of us here, you will have to be apart for some time. How long? Well, it will depend on how you time it, but she will need plenty of time to gather personal documentation that will be requested from her in Costa Rica (medical check up, police records, etc).

In my humble opinion, one of the most important things that should never be done is overstaying a visa... so she needs to leave on time. In my personal experience, I have NEVER overstayed a single hour more than I was authorized for, because I was granted extensions..and YET, at my interview last month, the consul bluntly accused me of overstaying. Because of the things she said, I KNEW they hadn't even checked if I stayed lawfully or not.. they assumed. I can't really blame her (although I wanted to punch her through the glass) because A LOT of people overstays in the US. They checked my records, "found" my extensions, approved my visa....but ALL THIS set us back 3 weeks).

So, as you can see... there is not exact time on for this process, but I hope I was able to shed more light on your dilemma

I hope I didn't confuse you either, but if I did, please feel free to message me for clarifications.

Celeste

[C-ma'am 684]

Oh and I forgot to say that:

While I arrived in July, we filed in September (almost 2 months after). We purposely waited because we knew we were going to move and preferred to have the new permanent address to file everything. If we had filed in July, then.. perhaps... I would have been here for half the time.

[soccerpriest 0]

Hola

Ok so for timings, you can check out my Timeline http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/profile.php?id=92506 and see; however... keep in mind that every case is unique and the Timelines should only be taken as references. Nothing is written in stone and anything can happen to ANY of us (meaning delays and such).

Since your fiancee is from Costa Rica and, as far as I can see, she must have entered the US on a tourist visa. She'll be able to stay ONLY (not a day more or two....ONLY) until the day stamped on her i-94 card when she cleared immigration. Typically, they give you a total of 6 months, but there are exceptions, so please check her i-94 and look at the date stamped in red ...

In my case.. I traveled July 29th 2011 and was authorized to stay until Jan 28th 2012; and although I could have stayed until Jan 28th.. I came back to Argentina in December because my sister was getting married and I have been here since then; so that makes 4 and 1/2 months.

I did have a Round Trip ticket, because if you are not a USC or LPR (while I understand that many countries allow it) it's an irregularity.

... Either way.... Unfortunately, like all of us here, you will have to be apart for some time. How long? Well, it will depend on how you time it, but she will need plenty of time to gather personal documentation that will be requested from her in Costa Rica (medical check up, police records, etc).

In my humble opinion, one of the most important things that should never be done is overstaying a visa... so she needs to leave on time. In my personal experience, I have NEVER overstayed a single hour more than I was authorized for, because I was granted extensions..and YET, at my interview last month, the consul bluntly accused me of overstaying. Because of the things she said, I KNEW they hadn't even checked if I stayed lawfully or not.. they assumed. I can't really blame her (although I wanted to punch her through the glass) because A LOT of people overstays in the US. They checked my records, "found" my extensions, approved my visa....but ALL THIS set us back 3 weeks).

So, as you can see... there is not exact time on for this process, but I hope I was able to shed more light on your dilemma

I hope I didn't confuse you either, but if I did, please feel free to message me for clarifications.

Celeste

Thank you again, Celeste.

I agree with the overstaying part. She has never overstayed and we have always addressed that issue very seriously. She has always left well before her I-94 expires and has never filed for an extension. Of course, she's only been here twice: once for one month, and once for about 5 months. And the time frame that you were here is about the same time frame that she was here for the second time. And yes, she has a tourist visa.

So then, I see from your time line that you received approval after you arrived in Argentina. Then it followed that you had to apply for that visa. So another question: if I apply almost as soon as she arrives here (which I intend to do), should she leave after we receive the NOA2? Because form what I understand, this precedes the package that is sent to the foreign country's embassy. I would like to know if it would be ample time to purchase a return ticket after we receive notification of approval.

Thanks!

Aldo

[grrrrreat 110]

Hello everyone!

My name is Aldo and I look forward to a great answer as you have all been doing in the past.

Here's my dilemma: My girlfriend and I have been dating for about one year. We are ready to marry. We are both Costa Rican citizens. However, I hold a dual citizenship between the US and Costa Rica, with all of my documents up to date, and I reside in the US. I would like for us to do a civil wedding here in the US and then do a religious wedding in CR. Furthermore, she is coming to visit me in June (an important detail). So my question is: Can I file for the K1 visa while she is here visiting me, or would there be a problem with that? I guess that if she can, she would have to return once I receive the I-797 in order to fill out the paper work in CR.

Thank you all for your time and help!

God bless,

Aldo

You're actually the petitioner when you file the I-129F. She doesn't fill out anything but her biographical details, and it doesn't matter where she is when it's filled out.

Thank you again, Celeste.

I agree with the overstaying part. She has never overstayed and we have always addressed that issue very seriously. She has always left well before her I-94 expires and has never filed for an extension. Of course, she's only been here twice: once for one month, and once for about 5 months. And the time frame that you were here is about the same time frame that she was here for the second time. And yes, she has a tourist visa.

So then, I see from your time line that you received approval after you arrived in Argentina. Then it followed that you had to apply for that visa. So another question: if I apply almost as soon as she arrives here (which I intend to do), should she leave after we receive the NOA2? Because form what I understand, this precedes the package that is sent to the foreign country's embassy. I would like to know if it would be ample time to purchase a return ticket after we receive notification of approval.

Thanks!

Aldo

Yes, she'll have plenty of time to go back to CR after you get the notice of approval. You have to file more documents at the consulate to get an interview, so you can delay that process until you are ready for it. The main thing will be making sure that she is receiving the mail she is getting from them.

[C-ma'am 684]

Thank you again, Celeste.

I agree with the overstaying part. She has never overstayed and we have always addressed that issue very seriously. She has always left well before her I-94 expires and has never filed for an extension. Of course, she's only been here twice: once for one month, and once for about 5 months. And the time frame that you were here is about the same time frame that she was here for the second time. And yes, she has a tourist visa.

So then, I see from your time line that you received approval after you arrived in Argentina. Then it followed that you had to apply for that visa. So another question: if I apply almost as soon as she arrives here (which I intend to do), should she leave after we receive the NOA2? Because form what I understand, this precedes the package that is sent to the foreign country's embassy. I would like to know if it would be ample time to purchase a return ticket after we receive notification of approval.

Thanks!

Aldo

Yes, we received the NOA2 approval notice while I was here in Argentina; but since I was allowed to stay until Jan 28th, I could have been in the US. Again, though, each case is UNIQUE and there are people who get their NOA2 in just a couple of months (literally) while others have been waiting for +5months. After you actually get NOA2 the timing depends on and how long it takes, in Costa Rica, for the Embassy to start taking care of business (this is Embassy specific).

This is our complete timeline since NOA2 was received:

Jan 10th: Received NOA 2

Feb 7th: We had no news, so we called NVC (National Visa Center) and they gave us our new case number and said that they had mailed our petition to the Embassy in Buenos Aires on Jan 31st.

Feb 7th: Emailed the Embassy with the NVC case# and asked if they had received it

Feb 15th: Received email from the Embassy saying they received our case and they attached the instructions and documents I needed to gather and complete.

Feb 16th: I had collected all the documents and followed the instructions by taking everything requested to the Embassy... personally (I live an hour away and I preferred to drop it off myself just to be sure)

Mar 5h: Received email from the Embassy saying that they had processed (lol right) our papers that they scheduled my interview for March 27th (THIS IS COUNTRY SPECIFIC... some Embassies schedule the interviews for you and other's don't)

Mar 27th: Interview without a resolution

April 3rd: Received email from the Embassy saying..... and I quote "Dear Miss XXXXX Please send us all your passports by DHL" ... THAT WAS IT

April 3rd: I mailed all my passports as requested

April 4th: They received my passports

April 16th: Received an email from the courier, at 9.30PM, saying my passport is going to be delivered at my house in 48hrs (no word from the Embassy... we had no idea if we were approved or not)

April 17th: Forwarded the courier's email to the Embassy and asked if anyone could please tell us if our case had been approved or not. They replied two hours later with the confirmation of approval.

April 18th: Passport arrived with all the documents I'll have to present at POE. Make sure all the information on the visa was correct (names, dates, etc)... Paid for my ticket.. leaving on Sunday

... THE END

The sooner you apply, the better... and I've heard that within these months.. things might move a little faster at the Service Centers.... but we can only speculate about that with the information provided by USCIS.

For specific questions about how the process will go in Costa Rica, I suggest you turn to the Regional section of this forum for advise. http://www.visajourn.../153-caribbean/

Edited April 20, 2012 by Celeste & C