K1 VISA REGULATIONS

[bebehlop 0]

Hay,

i come from Indonesia and my boyfriend is American.

we plan to get marriage soon by K1 visa.

he will come to Indonesia this may 2017 and plan to get engagement and prepare everything we need to fulfill the K1 Visa.

as we know K1 Visa will take long time about 5-7 months even more.

we plan to get marriage by church in Indonesia first while our K1 Visa is running.

 

marriage by church not include by papers/government. is it fine or?

because we plan when K1 visa is running/waiting process, we still can visit each other because we know we already husband and wife by church (not legally by country).

 

thank you for your information.

God bless!

Edited April 10, 2017 by t.djlestari

[Petulc 28]

Hello!

If you get married by the church, they might take it as "too married" for a K1, but "not enough married" for a CR1. 

 

[geowrian 22,338]

No, any marriage at all will likely result in a denial of the K-1 visa, regardless of legal paperwork. Others have been denied as "too married" for doing less.

[Scandi 4,190]

Get married and file for CR-1 instead. You can still visit each other while it's pending, you'll be married for real. That way you also get a greencard when you move to the US.

[KULtoATL 1,551]

Probably better to just get married legally and go the CR-1 route. If you can't obtain a B2 to visit him in the US while the application is pending approval, he can always visit you in Indonesia. To file an I-129F/K-1 now would be a futile attempt.

[bebehlop 0]

20 hours ago, Petulc said:

Hello!

If you get married by the church, they might take it as "too married" for a K1, but "not enough married" for a CR1. 

 

thank you for this information.

whats the differences between K-1 Visa and CR-1?

which one more fast to apply and approve?

[bebehlop 0]

19 hours ago, geowrian said:

No, any marriage at all will likely result in a denial of the K-1 visa, regardless of legal paperwork. Others have been denied as "too married" for doing less.

thank you!

i am not marriage yet and not apply K-1 visa yet. im still look at which one for the best for us

[bebehlop 0]

18 hours ago, Scandi said:

Get married and file for CR-1 instead. You can still visit each other while it's pending, you'll be married for real. That way you also get a greencard when you move to the US.

whats the differences between K-1 visa and CR-1?

if we take CR-1, should we take legally marriage in my country or only by church is fine?

for my case now, im still looking for which one for the best.

thank you!

[geowrian 22,338]

8 minutes ago, t.djlestari said:

thank you for this information.

whats the differences between K-1 Visa and CR-1?

which one more fast to apply and approve?

K-1 is a fiance visas. CR-1 is a spousal visa.

 

K-1 takes ~6-8 months. Then you need to do AOS once married in the US.

CR-1 takes around a year. No AOS needed after arrival.

 

Edit: K-1 lets you be together sooner, but you must marry in the US within 90 days. It's also more expensive and you cannot work or travel abroad until you file for AOS + EAD + AP. Ther EAD + AP will take about 3-4 months to receive, then you can work and travel abroad. The AOS itself will probably take 10+ months.

 

7 minutes ago, t.djlestari said:

thank you!

i am not marriage yet and not apply K-1 visa yet. im still look at which one for the best for us

Understood, but I'm saying that a church wedding is more than sufficient grounds to result in a denial for a K-1, and could come back to haunt you at any point later (POE, AOS, ROC, etc.). Given your desired marriage timeframes, you would need to either delay the marriage (civil or church) until after you get the K-1 visa and do it in the US, OR get legally married and then file for the CR-1 visa.

Edited April 11, 2017 by geowrian

[bebehlop 0]

16 hours ago, KULtoATL said:

Probably better to just get married legally and go the CR-1 route. If you can't obtain a B2 to visit him in the US while the application is pending approval, he can always visit you in Indonesia. To file an I-129F/K-1 now would be a futile attempt.

thank you!

i am not marriage yet and not apply K-1 visa yet. im still look at which one the best for us

 

do you know whats the differences between K-1 visa and CR-1?

[SparklePony 238]

Study the guides and flow charts on VJ (link up top on the menu) to give you an idea of the differences between the two visas. Both have advantages and disadvantages. I would agree with the others who have said that even though a church wedding isn't legal in your country it may be seen by the embassy as legal, so if you end up doing a K1 it might be best to avoid the church ceremony. 

[KULtoATL 1,551]

K-1 you apply as an engaged couple while you wait outside of the US and you will enter the US as an alien. Subsequently, you'll have to adjust your status to get your conditional green card before your 10-year green card followed by naturalization in the latter stage.

 

CR-1 you apply as a married couple and you wait outside of the US pending approval. Upon approval, you'll enter the US and be granted a green card immediately at point of entry. Of course you'll have to get naturalized to in the latter stage.

 

Main difference is the immediate granting of a green card with the CR-1. For CR-1, you probably need to check if you have bona fide marriage evidence to support such application.