Leaving the US on a K1 Visa

[Tricked 33]

I'll try to be really brief about the situation:

- My fiancée and I live in Chile. She is american, I am chilean. We've lived together here for a few years.

- We are getting married in July , but we don't intend to stay in the US after the wedding. We are not planning to live in the States after we get married. At least not for some years. Our trip to the US in july will be for a total of 2 weeks and then we go to our honeymoon abroad, outside the us.

- We are traveling in May for 10 days. The original plan was this trip to be just for wedding stuff, but since I got my visa before we thought I would, we are gonna have to get married in May. Just legally, the ceremony will still be held in July.

- I don't care about naturalization or green card or anything, since we don't intended to live in the us at least in the near future. My concern is if I will have any problems coming back in July for our ceremony under the VWP since it would seem very odd that we left after a few days of getting married.

- The only reason why we got the K1 visa was because CBP officers are jerks (sorry for the vocabulary) and if they asked for the purpose of my trip to the states I didn't wanna have to say "we are getting married under a tourist visa and leave in 2 weeks" and not be believed and be sent back home before my own wedding.

Hopefully I made sense...

In that case, you would not have even needed the K1 visa. The K1 is for people to enter, to marry, and to file for AOS to become LPR.

You could have entered, married, and left, on a tourist visa/VWP (the only time this is an issue is if you then go on to stay beyond the allowed period) - Admittedly a risk.

Yea, it makes complete sense, however given the full circumstance. You could have just entered under VWP, not mentioned the marriage, and then left. Then filed I-130 down the line when you were ready to relocate, if and when.

Or, you could have had a legal marriage outside the US, then filed I-130 and had a proper ceremony in the US.

I-130 would permit travel instantly as you get a green card on entry.

[Almaviva 1]

First of all, thanks so much everyone for your time and responses.

We know now that apparently the K1 visa was not necessary for our case. But like I said before, CBP officers can be real a**holes and so we wanted to make sure that we were not gonna have problems entering the US when we wanted to get married there. If I had told an officer that I was getting married under a tourist visa, that could have been very suspicious. And if I hadn't mentioned it, that would have been lying (omitting I suppose?) and I figured it could have gotten me in trouble in the future.

We do not have any intention to live in the us in the near future, though she does want us to live in the states after a few years.

I was just worried about having any problems since we got a K1 visa that is supposed to be used if you wanna stay, but we are leaving the country after 10 days. If I have to start this process all over again in a few years once we want to move there is fine with me. I just want to make sure I'll be fine entering in July when my friends and family are coming to the states for our ceremony.

I also heard that a Fiancee visa takes less time than a Husband visa. Is that correct?

[phd1974 17]

First of all, thanks so much everyone for your time and responses.

We know now that apparently the K1 visa was not necessary for our case. But like I said before, CBP officers can be real a**holes and so we wanted to make sure that we were not gonna have problems entering the US when we wanted to get married there. If I had told an officer that I was getting married under a tourist visa, that could have been very suspicious. And if I hadn't mentioned it, that would have been lying (omitting I suppose?) and I figured it could have gotten me in trouble in the future.

We do not have any intention to live in the us in the near future, though she does want us to live in the states after a few years.

I was just worried about having any problems since we got a K1 visa that is supposed to be used if you wanna stay, but we are leaving the country after 10 days. If I have to start this process all over again in a few years once we want to move there is fine with me. I just want to make sure I'll be fine entering in July when my friends and family are coming to the states for our ceremony.

I also heard that a Fiancee visa takes less time than a Husband visa. Is that correct?

Depends on which service center you get and if they are backed up ...

[Almaviva 1]

Depends on which service center you get and if they are backed up ...

I'm so sorry but I did not understand this.

Also, I suppose then that we won't need a new Visa in the future but just the I-130 once we decide we would like to move to the states?

Thanks again everyone!

[Tricked 33]

You'd need to file for a C-1 visa at the later stage. This is the I-130

At the moment they are taking up to a year. Where as K-1's are taking in the region of 5 months. But that's depending on time of year, which site does the processing of the application, etc.

[phd1974 17]

When you went through your K-1 process, your I-129F forms were sent to a service center to be processed. For example, when I filed, mines went to the California Service Center to be processed and I sent them in in Feb 2014, I got approval in the mail in April 2014 and had my interview in July 2014.

There were people who had filed in December 2013, and went to the Texas Service Center, and I got approved before any of them ... in some cases, I got my interview date before they got any approvals. So it depends on the Service Center when it come the to K1 Visa. It could take just as long.

[Almaviva 1]

You'd need to file for a C-1 visa at the later stage. This is the I-130

At the moment they are taking up to a year. Where as K-1's are taking in the region of 5 months. But that's depending on time of year, which site does the processing of the application, etc.

Oh I see now, I think I understand both last replies then.

Once we decide to move to the states after getting married we will need a new visa. Just that this one is a different one and requires different forms. The processing time for this visa is of about a year. Well, I guess we will cross that bridge once we make it there then.

Last time and just to make sure: we use the visa in may and get married. At least the legal stuff with a Judge. Then we leave 10 days after our entry with the K1 visa.

I should be just fine entering again in July for our ceremony under the VWP?

[rutabaga 209]

You won't have problems entering using the K1, but I feel like you may have problems on any subsequent entry attempts (including the one in July) if you abandon the K1 process (and don't file for AOS/AP) as your applying for the K1 visa (and getting married) will have demonstrated immigrant intent and I feel that will be hard to overcome in the future (and that's pretty much the main thing you need to overcome for a non-immigrant visa/VWP entry AFAIK).

Edited March 28, 2016 by rutabaga

[phd1974 17]

Negative. If you leave after you get married, you will not be allowed back in. You will have to have filed AOS and received your AP card in order to travel.

[LionessDeon 2,060]

Anyway she can come in May alone to finalize wedding plans?

[Tricked 33]

Correct. K1 to enter in May, though technically not required.

Once you then leave without filling AOS/Waiting for AP this will void/invalidate the K1.

You then travel in July under a VWP if eligible, or a tourist visa. I presume as you've done this before you will still be valid for an ESTA.

If you wanted to be cautious you may wish to take documentation to show ties to your home country in July, just in case they are weird about the married couple travelling on ESTA part, so you can show you intend to leave once again.

[Almaviva 1]

You won't have problems entering using the K1, but I feel like you may have problems on any subsequent entry attempts (including the one in July) if you abandon the K1 process (and don't file for AOS/AP) as your applying for the K1 visa (and getting married) will have demonstrated immigrant intent and I feel that will be hard to overcome in the future (and that's pretty much the main thing you need to overcome for a non-immigrant visa/VWP entry AFAIK).

I feel like by trying to do the right thing and getting the visa, it will just end up back firing on us.

The one that worries me the most is the one in July, that's the real wedding with all the people attending to it. We are just getting married in May because I got my visa, we had the trip planned and booked and they told me I can't go on the VWP now in May and hold my visa until July.

[phd1974 17]

Almaviva, your best bet, is to forget about going in May .... go in July instead. then you can come back, but won't be allowed to return until you file an I-130. If you go in May, you won't be allowed back in the country for the wedding.

[rutabaga 209]

Almaviva, your best bet, is to forget about going in May .... go in July instead. then you can come back, but won't be allowed to return until you file an I-130. If you go in May, you won't be allowed back in the country for the wedding.

I concur.

[Tricked 33]

For what it's worth, I'd agree with not risking going in May as well.