Urgent Cr-1 or K3 due to family illness

[Midwestkiwi 0]

Hi all

I would appreciate any advice on my situation.

I am a New Zealand citizen and resident. I have been married to my US citizen husband for a week but we have been together for over three years. We both live and work in NZ. We got married in the US as some of his family members are afraid of flying and it was a nice holiday option for us. I am currently in the US on a tourist visa and will be flying back in a few weeks.

Unfortunately, my husband's mother has just been diagnosed with advanced pancreatic cancer. It is not looking good and we will be lucky if she makes it past 6 months. We would really like to come back over immediately and support her through it. I wish I had applied for the K1 visa before coming over but we had no reason to stay at the time and have jobs etc back home. I have not even started a 130 petition yet.

I'm not sure what to do. All of the options appear to take more than 6 months to complete before I could return. Is there any urgent consideration process?

I may be able to keep my job back home and take unpaid leave but would need to work while in the US. I'm thinking it may be that my hubby comes over alone and I stay back home but I am very close to his family and would really like to be here to help.

Any suggestions welcome.

Thank you.

[Penguin_ie 6,005]

First- forget the K3. It is obsolete and will not save you any time.

Do you plan to stay in the US after your mother-in-law dies? If not, why not just stay a few weeks now while everyone gets used to the diagnosis, then you fly back home for a bit, then come back and you'll likely be given another 6 months stay (the usual duration for a tourist visa). Your husband, as US citizen, can of course stay as long as he wants.

If you plan to immigrate/ the diagnosis is uncertain and she may live for several years, I would have both of you return to NZ. Your husband then files the I-130 for you from there, giving his NZ address (it will get fast tracked that way, and the whole process should take less than 6 months, vs the usual 8-10 months for a CR-1). He returns immediately- if he wants- you stay in NZ and start wrapping up your affaird. You can visit the USA on your touriost visa during the process, and immigrate as soon as you get the CR-1.

[Anh map 2,098]

There are no options where you will be able to work soonish. And not to sound mean, but there isn't much of a compelling reason (in terms of expediting the process) that you have to be here for your MIL. Though there is no harm in asking.

If both of you needing to work is necessary then your job at home may be the best option and he stays, submits the spouse petition http://www.visajourney.com/content/i130guide1 and gets a job.

You could travel back and visit while the spouse visa works its way through.

If working immediately isn't needed, you could stay and file for your spouse visa/adjustment of status in the US now. http://www.visajourney.com/content/i130guide2

[Midwestkiwi 0]

Thank you both, that gives me a much better idea of my options. I forgot to say that the in laws have a huge rural property out here that they will need a lot of help with hence the needing to come back. I could probably manage not working while I wait for things to be sorted, I have just always worked and paid my own way and the idea of not being able to do so is a little scary! Also we have bills of our own so will need some form of income regardless.

Penguin to answer your question, I would like to spend at least a year in the US and see whether it would be a place I'd like to call home for longer. It had always been in our plan to do that, just not this early on. Of course I expected my MIL, whom I absolutely adore, to be around whenever we decided to come. It just hits home that you should never take anything in life for granted.

Thanks again for the very sound advice. We'll file the I-130 when we get home and I'll just do the tourist visa thing if I need to get here earlier. Will post how I get on with the processing.

Edited July 9, 2012 by Midwestkiwi