Advice to get the K1 visa process moving quickly

[Delirium 114]

I thought it would be helpful to break down how long each step of the packet took to put together in my case to help show that it is a very simple process

1) Cover Letter- Pretty self explanatory. It's just a cover sheet stating what's included in the packet. An example would be here: http://www.***removed***/visas/kvisa/i-129f-k1-fiance-petition-cover-letter.html

2) Form I-129F- Took maybe a half hour because I triple checked the form to make sure everything was correct Found here: https://www.uscis.gov/i-129f

3) A written statement about how you met and when you first met in person. I honestly wrote like 4 lines lol. It took me 5 minutes. Also, if you met online, include the terms and conditions of the site you met on to prove it's not a marriage broker. I've seen people get RFE's for that. I didn't include the ToC but rather be safe than sorry! Needs to be signed and dated.

4) Form G-325 A for both the petitioner and beneficiary. Took about 10 minutes per form. Found here: https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/files/form/g-325a.pdf (you will also need a US approved passport photo for both you and your fiance. Make sure to write your name and your fiance's name on the back! I forgot and thought I was going to get an RFE because of it. But I got lucky haha.) Both 325-A's need to be signed.

5) Evidence of U.S citizenship. Depends on if you have your birth certificate and passport handy or not. If you do, it takes literally 3 minutes. Make sure to photo copy both sides of your B/C and copy every page of your passport.

6) Proof of having met in the last two years. This is where you would put in boarding passes, passport stamps, pictures, receipts, etc.

7) Letters of intent to marry. One from both you and the beneficiary. Need to be signed and dated. Takes 5-10 minutes at most.

8) Evidence of your relationship. Emails, texts, phone records, photo's etc.

If you need any other help feel free to PM me!

Edited July 6, 2016 by Delirium

[Scandi 3,979]

The bold (mine) is such BS.

Good lawyers have many years experience while you (anyone else) has none. They are most likely to *not* screw up anything, and have far superior knowledge than any individual.

Some people prefer to pay a lawyer to handle their case and that is completely ok.

You seem to miss the point that you don't need any specific knowledge or many years experience to file the i-129f petition - you just need to follow the VERY simple guides that are on this very site and that's it. So yeah, lawyers are just very unnecessary if you have a normal case, and there are tons of cases on VJ that shows that even if you hire a lawyer the chanses are quite big that you'll still receive an RFE. Better do it yourself, both money wise and that you yourself know every little part of the petition.

I totally do not recommend you getting a lawyer, OP. I've seen so many cases on here where the lawyers don't even seem to give a sh*t, they just send in a non-completed petition without a care in the world, they just care to get paid. Even if you do hire one that won't help your case in any way, it'll still take as long as it takes.

With a lawyer you still do almost all the work yourself. He/she only fills out the forms for you, you still need to collect all the documents required and so on.

[Delirium 114]

You seem to miss the point that you don't need any specific knowledge or many years experience to file the i-129f petition - you just need to follow the VERY simple guides that are on this very site and that's it. So yeah, lawyers are just very unnecessary if you have a normal case, and there are tons of cases on VJ that shows that even if you hire a lawyer the chanses are quite big that you'll still receive an RFE. Better do it yourself, both money wise and that you yourself know every little part of the petition.

I totally do not recommend you getting a lawyer, OP. I've seen so many cases on here where the lawyers don't even seem to give a sh*t, they just send in a non-completed petition without a care in the world, they just care to get paid. Even if you do hire one that won't help your case in any way, it'll still take as long as it takes.

With a lawyer you still do almost all the work yourself. He/she only fills out the forms for you, you still need to collect all the documents required and so on.

Agreed! A lawyer doesn't know your case like you do. They may have experience in filing cases and such, but when it comes down to it, it doesn't take a lot of knowledge in law or experience to fill out two forms Ultimately, your case means the world to you and your fiance, so chances are that you're going to take extra precautions to ensure it's done correctly. Your case isn't personal to a lawyer, it doesn't mean anything to them or impact their life in any way. It's just a business to them.

[Merrytooth 5,748]

I have to laugh at all these people who are so anti lawyer and anti visa service arguing that you should file your petition yourself and not use a service, then a large number of them are having RFE!

You have proof that many people having RFE because we DIY our own petition?

[Delirium 114]

I agree on not using a lawyer because its overkill and overly expensive, instead I highly recommend you use a visa processing service such as RapidVisa they are not lawyers and have a very nice automated script you enter your info and it generates your package then you send it to RapidVisa to review for errors, they also have a very good support team to answer your questions and they guide you through the whole process. Yes you can research and use that to guess what documents and requirements to send, but when you use a service they will send you detailed instructions what to gather, then you send it to them to organize and they check for any missing requirements or incorrectly filled out forms, if you have any mistakes or missing docs they will notify you and tell you what to send to them. They were very fast for us, there was a 1 week delay for us because I forgot to include page 6 of the I-129F and RapidVisa caught it before we sent to uscis, that would have resulted in an RFE! Anyway, to us the $475 RapidVisa fee (we ordered the premium service which was $100 extra) was well worth the personalized help we receive from them its like having a personal team assisting us through the entire process. And no I am not an affiliate or working for them in any way, i'm just a very happy satisfied customer. I have to laugh at all these people who are so anti lawyer and anti visa service arguing that you should file your petition yourself and not use a service, then a large number of them are having RFE! If you can afford it hire a professional service to assist and guide you, save yourself the hassle of spending day after day researching but do research the basics so you have an understanding of the process. And no a lawyer or service cannot make your visa process any faster than the government moves, but they can help prevent you from having unnecessary delays or RFEs. Its not just about hiring a service to fill out forms, its all about the extra support and extra eyes checking your petition, and the personalized service and ability to call or chat with them to get instant answers to your questions, professional answers from a professional team experienced with immigration visas, not just some guys in a forum with only experience processing their own visa ONCE in their lifetime who think they know it all.

I don't think anyone here claims to "know it all". I think people are just very adamant about how simple the initial process really is and like to share their own experiences. Visa Journey members have given me invaluable advice during this process due to their own experiences. We're all here to help one another. However! I'm going to go ahead and agree with you that having extra eyes review your case would definitely be beneficial, and furthermore, agree that if OP were to go through a third party to assist him with the process, to use Rapid Visa over a lawyer. That being said, it also depends on you as a person and what means more to you. Honestly, I felt a huge sense of accomplishment after creating my own case and being approved (without an RFE ). It was a very rewarding experience and it definitely made me confident about the rest of the process. But to each their own! Who really cares how it gets done; all that matters is we all get approved and get to be with our loved ones!

[Merrytooth 5,748]

I don't think anyone here claims to "know it all". I think people are just very adamant about how simple the initial process really is and like to share their own experiences. Visa Journey members have given me invaluable advice during this process due to their own experiences. We're all here to help one another. However! I'm going to go ahead and agree with you that having extra eyes review your case would definitely be beneficial, and furthermore, agree that if OP were to go through a third party to assist him with the process, to use Rapid Visa over a lawyer. That being said, it also depends on you as a person and what means more to you. Honestly, I felt a huge sense of accomplishment after creating my own case and being approved (without an RFE ). It was a very rewarding experience and it definitely made me confident about the rest of the process. But to each their own! Who really cares how it gets done; all that matters is we all get approved and get to be with our loved ones!

Nah, VJers who DIY are just amateurs who either processed their visa years ago (outdated procedures) or who are currently processing and dont fully understand the process to begin with.

So it is better to go with lawyers or visa processing services for professional help.

[Delirium 114]

Nah, VJers who DIY are just amateurs who either processed their visa years ago (outdated procedures) or who are currently processing and dont fully understand the process to begin with.

So it is better to go with lawyers or visa processing services for professional help.

That's your opinion I, and many, many other members,did our petitions ourselves and saved hundreds if not thousands of dollars I can think of so many better ways to use 500-2000 dollars than over a simple process which can be done correctly if you're willing to do a simple bit of reading.

*Edit* Wait...I get the joke now...I'm dumb XD

Edited July 6, 2016 by Delirium

[Scandi 3,979]

Sometimes I get the feeling that the whole "I want a lawyer" stance is an American thing. Where I come from we do everything ourselves unless we're in deep sh*t and actually NEED one.

[ch3john 308]

Nah, VJers who DIY are just amateurs who either processed their visa years ago (outdated procedures) or who are currently processing and dont fully understand the process to begin with.

So it is better to go with lawyers or visa processing services for professional help.

I'm a VJ'er that did everything myself without any issues. Filed K-1 petition last year. Approved no problems. Filed AOS/EAD/AP February of this year on my own. Didn't get the EAD or AP because my wife received her green card in six weeks after applying. All completed without the help of a lawyer.

Lawyers are only good for two things. They will help if you are in a court of law in front of a judge, which rarely happens by the way. And they are also good for telling you need a lawyer to fill out paperwork.

I'm not against visa services such as RAPID VISA or VISA COUCH. They can help guide you through the process and do all of the paperwork for roughly a quarter of the cost of a lawyer.

"So it is better to go with lawyers or visa processing services for professional help". - This line made me LOL and roll eyes at the same time LOL!!!

[ch3john 308]

The OP's original question is how to quickly move the process.

Pro-Lawyer people and lawyers on here - Fill us in on how they speed up the process

[Scandi 3,979]

The internets don't appreciate dat sarcasm. I'm very sorry, Merrytooth.

[moemac59 192]

Welcome to the process of dealing with USCIS. Your case timeline will vary depending on what your case is like. It varies for each individual. The processing times are a crapshoot for some and each case is different.

You do not need a lawyer unless you have a very complicated case. I filed all of my own paperwork up until I applied for citizenship and that was the only time I used an attorney as I work for a Canadian company and have to go back and forth to Toronto weekly. I wasn't sure how my case would be affected as I was only at home 70% of the time/.

I put together my packet for citizenship and just had my lawyer review it. When it came time for my citizenship interview, the IO joked about the amount of stuff that I had submitted.

Follow the guidelines and you should be fine. Patience will be your best friend when it comes to this long journey.

[ch3john 308]

I'm a VJ'er that did everything myself without any issues. Filed K-1 petition last year. Approved no problems. Filed AOS/EAD/AP February of this year on my own. Didn't get the EAD or AP because my wife received her green card in six weeks after applying. All completed without the help of a lawyer.

Lawyers are only good for two things. They will help if you are in a court of law in front of a judge, which rarely happens by the way. And they are also good for telling you need a lawyer to fill out paperwork.

I'm not against visa services such as RAPID VISA or VISA COUCH. They can help guide you through the process and do all of the paperwork for roughly a quarter of the cost of a lawyer.

"So it is better to go with lawyers or visa processing services for professional help". - This line made me LOL and roll eyes at the same time LOL!!!

Dangit! Merrytooth got me too. I read their response from my phone and didn't see that it was a joke about another post until now.

Thanks for getting me worked up over nothing LOL

[lmihler 23]

My reply was directed at the "getting a lawyer will make it more likely for you to get an RFE".

That is the main point which is obviously wrong.

And anyway, waste of money to whom? Some people are willing to spend money for their peace of mind and to not worry about filing, gathering knowledge from the internet etc... You can recommend your opinion but don't lie outright please.

Pretty sure there was no lie in my post- maybe you need to re-check.

Yes some people prefer to have a lawyer for "piece of mind" which is fine if they want to spend the money. The couple is still gathering all the documentation, then handing it over to the lawyer to fill out forms and send off.

How much knowledge do you need to "gather". Go to USCIS and everything is right there or this site. If you can read and follow instructions/guides, you will be just fine.

[mollenne 11]

When my husband and I were engaged, we assembled the petition and corresponding paperwork ourselves. However, we did hire a lawyer to translate documents from Hebrew to English. My husband speaks English fluently but we felt better having an official translation done.

We also used the same lawyer to counsel us regarding his traffic record. He had his license suspended for about 11 months nearly 10 years ago because of a DWI (though nobody was hurt or killed, a cop saw him get in the car and breathalyzed him) he had in his home country. He did not serve any jailtime, and this did not appear on his criminal record, but it counted as a moving violation on his traffic record. He has had zero incidences before or since. We paid for the lawyer to translate the court documents from Hebrew to English, and though it was a little expensive, it was worth it. He did have to indicate it on one of the forms he submitted before the K1 interview and it was asked about in the interview, but it ended up not being a big deal.

For all of the other paperwork, we handled it ourselves and have had no issues with the K1 or the AOS process.

Even if you choose to have a lawyer handle it for you, you need to make yourself very aware of the process and keep everything organized, because it will help you during the AOS process.

If you choose to hire a lawyer for any reason during the immigration process, I recommend finding one who is either from the beneficiary's home country, or shares a common language and speaks English fluently. Our lawyer was in Israel but spoke Hebrew and English fluently, and I am glad we saw her instead of a stateside lawyer; she was a lot more familiar with the Israeli government documents and the consulate in Jerusalem, which is where we had the interview.

A piece of advice that I feel really saved us time: front load your application as best as you can. Send a lot of proof of your relationship, tax transcripts for more than just one year, English translations of anything that is not already in English. Try to make the application as airtight as possible. For the things that need your fiance's signature, make sure it's the real signature and not a copy. Submit real photos and label the details of the photo on the back (who is in the picture, the location, the date, etc.).

Good luck to you and your fiance!