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K-1 Fiance Visa VS Spouse Visa

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Filed: IR-1/CR-1 Visa Country: Jamaica
Timeline

K1 is faster but will cost more in long run since you have to do AOS. K3 seems better since you come into the country able to work and no AOS required. I hear many say they created a photo journal of them together, keep prints of phone logs, text messages, Skype logs, etc. as well as have others vouch for them.

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K1 is faster but will cost more in long run since you have to do AOS. K3 seems better since you come into the country able to work and no AOS required. I hear many say they created a photo journal of them together, keep prints of phone logs, text messages, Skype logs, etc. as well as have others vouch for them.

K3 doesn't really exist anymore. What it was was something that you could apply for concurrently with the CR1 visa and basically see which one comes out faster. This portion of the State Department's site on the matter says as much:

http://travel.state.gov/content/visas/en/immigrate/family/spouse-citizen.html#5

What has been happening in recent years that the i-130 is almost always approved before the i-129f and therefore the i-129f (the petition for the K3) is administratively closed and you proceed with the CR1. It doesn't save any time, and costs the extra filing fee (plus, in OP's case, they'd still have to wait until they're married whereas they can apply for K1 more or less immediately). Plus, you cannot work on a K3. You can't work until you adjust status (and K3s do have to adjust status). K3 was basically the same thing as a K1, except you're allowed to already be married. But this option really does not exist anymore.

Edited by CatherineA

Marriage/ AOS Timeline:

23 Dec 2015: Legal marriage

23 Jan 2016: Wedding!

23 Jan 2016: "Blizzard of the Century", wedding canceled/rescheduled (thank goodness we were legally married first or we'd have had a big problem!) :sleepy:

24 Jan 2016: Small "civil ceremony" with friends and family who were snowed in with us. December was a bit of a secret and people had traveled internationally and knew we *had* to get married that weekend, and our December legal marriage was nothing but signing a piece of paper at our priest's kitchen table, without any sort of vows etc so this was actually a very special (if not legally significant) day. (L)

16 Apr 2016: Filed for AOS and EAD/AP (We delayed a bit-- no big rush, enjoying the USCIS break)

23 Apr 2016: Wedding! Finally! :luv:

27 Apr 2016: Electronic NOA1 for all 3 :dancing:
29 Apr 2016: NOA1 Hardcopy for all 3
29 Jul 2016: Online service request for late EAD (Day 104)
29 Jul 2016: EAD/AP Approved ~3 hours after online service request
04 Aug 2016: RFE for Green Card (requested medicals/ vaccination record. They already have it). :ranting:
05 Aug 2016: EAD/AP Combo Card arrived! (Day 111)
08 Aug 2016: Congressional constituent request to get guidance on the RFE. Hoping they see they have the form and approve!

K-1 Visa Timeline:

PLEASE NOTE. This timeline was during the period of time when TSC was working on I-129fs and had a huge backlog. The average processing time was 210+ days. This is in no way predictive of your own timeline if you filed during or after April 2015, unless CSC develops a backlog. A backlog is anything above the 5-month goal time listed on USCIS's site

14 Feb 2015: Mailed I-129f to Dallas Lockbox. (L) (Most expensive Valentine's card I've ever sent!)

17 Feb 2015: NOA1 "Received Date"
19 Feb 2015: NOA1 Notice Date
08 Aug 2015: NOA2 email! :luv: (173 days from NOA1)

17 Aug 2015: Sent to NVC

?? Aug 2015: Arrived at NVC

25 Aug 2015: NVC Case # Assigned

31 Aug 2015: Left NVC for Consulate in San Jose

09 Sep 2015: Consulate received :dancing: (32 days from NOA2)

11 Sep 2015: Packet 3 emailed from embassy to me, the petitioner (34 days from NOA2).

18 Sep 2015: Medicals complete

21 Sep 2015: Packet 3 complete, my boss puts a temporary moratorium on all time off due to work emergency :clock:

02 Oct 2015: Work emergency clears up, interview scheduled (soonest available was 5 business days away--Columbus Day was in there)

13 Oct 2015: Interview

13 Oct 2015: VISA APPROVED :thumbs: (236 days from NOA1)

19 Oct 2015: Visa-in-hand

24 Oct 2015: POE !

15 Dec 2015: Fiance's mother's B-2 visa interview: APPROVED! So happy she will be at the wedding! :thumbs:

!

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Filed: K-1 Visa Country: Vietnam
Timeline

Greetings,

Congratulation to both of you, Hopefully you are already working as a team. I've read all the posts here regarding what you are doing. I will not offer up anything of that which is already spoken for:

So, where all the acronyms have caused me a learning curve, I will write you a narrative.

1. 04 July 2015, ....... we met casually. We were not looking for what was to follow. I overstayed for another two weeks.

2. 28 August 2015, ....... By this time I had processed her I 129-F, we knew what we wanted.

3. 16 September 2015, .........I go back to Vn,

4. 27 September 2015. .........Our engagement ceremony. Committed to our relationship "$formally." The dollar sign is not a mistake. Our ceremony was worth every dong/dollar.

We had a "Dam Hoi" or le dinh hon" Vietnamese language is not eloquent to a non native, To an active learner/language instructor it is intriguing.

OK< ...we (both) know 1+ 1 = 2 ALWAYS. ....Never 3 or 4, or 5. We had planned on spending a month- six weeks together, but life came charging in. There were funeral services, etc., etc., we decided we/I stay there longer. Again, not an easy decision. It is commitment.

We enjoyed learning so much more about each other. Hell, we even had time for a disagreement of two, or was it three? ..or four, dun no, looking back pretty cool though!

5. 08 September 2015. .........I received a notice: I-797-C at my house; " = I-797-C = "Notice of Action" # 1. This was the notice her 1-129-F was "approved" (we were living in Vn. at the time)

WOW ! it is sooooooo, .....nice to be approved. Wait! there's more!

6. 28 October 2015 .........Another notice is sent. A formal "Acknowledgement is sent" UNITED STATES OF AMERICA" = I-797 = The form letter of "Notice of Action # 2"

7. 10 November 2015 ..........I return to the U.S. I read all this stuff that came in the mail while I was gone.

8. 01 December 2015 .........She received her package at her house in Vietnam. I'm driving from work, she is excited, my phone is jumping up and down, This is the crucial step after the initial baptism of learning. After this it really sinks in, much more is still to be done.

9. 15 January 2016 .........This is the date we will "project" to have her requirements done according to the instructions on her "Approved copy of the I-129-F and detailed instructions in the Package # 3. The instructions came to her with letter from the American Consulate in Ho Chi Minh City = HCMC. = where she will be interviewed.

10. 29 February 2016 ......... I fly back to her in Sai gon (HCMC)

We await the "interview."

  • We have "earned" this process together.
  • Some will tell you need a "coach" I know we did.
  • We knew nothing about this when we started.
  • visajourney.com is a calming hand.

We've got to remember:

"one of you is a foreigner, I've always disliked this word. My mother's family gave me many opportunities to fisticuffs' over this, (without getting punished) Where my family had immigrated before WWII, Our government is not in the same mood about it now, my fiancé does not have civil rights to America." (An attorney I did not hire told me this) ...This must be understood. Our I-129-F says it is approved; "whoopee"

The K 1 visa? The other one? CR-1? Others here know way more than I do. I just gave our story. One K -1. We are worth all the efforts.

Kind regards,

KimMerrell

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Filed: AOS (pnd) Country: China
Timeline

One thing to keep in mind is that if you do K-1, you won't need to wait until AOS is completed before you can legally work. At the same time that you apply for AOS, you can apply for a temporary employment authorization document (EAD) that takes about 3 months and will allow you to work while you wait for your green card. Good luck!

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Filed: K-1 Visa Country: Vietnam
Timeline

Greetings,

One more, this time a question:

REF: our K-1 visa @ package 3

I was reading some posts (2014) regarding answers to "ceremony: VS "Marriage" in Vietnam, I am not confused about our ceremony, however the word "wedding" must be avoided in the interview?

Culturally, everyone wished us "Happy Wedding"

It is an engagement ceremony, but we always reach out to each other as fiancé/wife/husband, and a few other pet names,

Culturally we are engaged. We will be formerly married in America.

Anyone have some insight into this? duh?

Kind regards,

KimMerrell

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