Appyling for a K-1 visa in Germany for my Pakistani fiance

[jessica0987 0]

My boyfriend and I are currently earning our masters degrees in Germany in the same program. We met here and want to go back to the US together when our program ends in October 2016, on a K-1 visa. We're unsure about the extra hurdles we might face applying from Germany (there is a USCIS center in Frankfurt), or barriers that his nationality might present. Does anyone have experience applying for a K-1 from Germany (or anywhere in Europe), or with getting a K-1 for someone from a developing country? Our case is naturally going to be under a lot more scrutiny. We're just wondering how we should go about applying for the visa and what sort of timeline we should plan on, to enter the US around october 2016. For example, will he need police records from Pakistan? We're not engaged yet, but are planning to be by early next year.

Any and all help would be appreciated!

Edited May 21, 2015 by jessica0987

[TabeaK 516]

Do not bother with the K1. Get married and file for DCF. All you, as the USC, has to prove, is being a legal German resident for 6+ months. As you have a valid student visa I am assuming this is not going to be an issue.

DCF takes 3 months give or take as you bypass USCIS, you save about $1000 and your husband doesn't have to adjust his legal status in the US and has a green card/work permit immediately.

As a Pakistani, he may be subject to lenghty administrative processing though, so I'd apply sooner rather than later, but the visa will only be valid for 6 months after issuance.

Yes to police records.

[Boiler 43,428]

I thought you could not get Pakistan police records.

[jessica0987 0]

Do not bother with the K1. Get married and file for DCF. All you, as the USC, has to prove, is being a legal German resident for 6+ months. As you have a valid student visa I am assuming this is not going to be an issue.

DCF takes 3 months give or take as you bypass USCIS, you save about $1000 and your husband doesn't have to adjust his legal status in the US and has a green card/work permit immediately.

As a Pakistani, he may be subject to lenghty administrative processing though, so I'd apply sooner rather than later, but the visa will only be valid for 6 months after issuance.

Yes to police records.

Thank you so much for this reply! Up until now we didn't really know much about DCF and assumed you had to be a permanent resident to qualify. We will definitely be trying to go this route, if possible!

[HafsaJawwad 39]

I thought you could not get Pakistan police records.

You can get them but the Embassy says it is not required. I think most people said they are not reliable. My fiance got a police certificate (even though I told him not to) and it was a headache for him to get. I would say again, don't bother with police certificate from Pakistan.

Probably they need it from Germany though right?

[Amhara 460]

You can get them but the Embassy says it is not required. I think most people said they are not reliable. My fiance got a police certificate (even though I told him not to) and it was a headache for him to get. I would say again, don't bother with police certificate from Pakistan.

Probably they need it from Germany though right?

I think the Islamabad embassy doesn't require them, but the embassy that they apply to will. So if they apply in Germany, that embassy will determine what is and what isn't needed. Double check that though - that's my understanding...

[icechamp31 11]

If you require police checks, apply a few months early. You never know how long they could take to get to you. We had to apply for a police record from Canada for my fiance and the finger printing company we used said it takes on average from 5-10 business days if there is no match in the system. Ours took two months and we had to go to the interview without it. There was no match in the system but it took way longer than they claimed.