Denied for K-1 After Waiting in AP for Two Years

[MyLifeForYou 12]

Dear Visa Journey Community:

 

My fiancé''s K-1 Visa application at the Beirut Embassy was denied today after two solid years in AP. We received an email that states as follows:

 

Thank you for your email. Section 221(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) prohibits a consular officer from issuing a visa to an alien if the consular officer has reason to believe that the alien is ineligible.  Based on indications that the beneficiary did not meet the visa issuance criteria, Mr. XXX's  visa was denied and all the supporting documents were sent back to U. S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) for possible revocation.  If USCIS determines that the information we are providing constitutes sufficient foundation for initiating revocation proceedings, the petitioner will be sent a notice of intent to revoke that includes a statement of the facts and evidence and she will have the opportunity to respond. At this time, we are unable to provide any further detail.

 

We were never asked for any documents or follow-up, so still not sure why we were denied. 

 

My question for the experts is this: When will I be free to travel to Lebanon and marry? Do I need to wait for the NOI to be sent to my home - or can we go ahead and get married now and then file for the I-130 once I have received the NOI in the mail. I have heard in previous forums that I will possibly be able to see the reason why the K-1 was denied in that paperwork and then be able to overcome those factors in our next attempt.

 

Thank you for your time and expertise. 

 

[Ben&Zian 4,397]

9 minutes ago, MyLifeForYou said:

Dear Visa Journey Community:

 

My fiancé''s K-1 Visa application at the Beirut Embassy was denied today after two solid years in AP. We received an email that states as follows:

 

Thank you for your email. Section 221(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) prohibits a consular officer from issuing a visa to an alien if the consular officer has reason to believe that the alien is ineligible.  Based on indications that the beneficiary did not meet the visa issuance criteria, Mr. XXX's  visa was denied and all the supporting documents were sent back to U. S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) for possible revocation.  If USCIS determines that the information we are providing constitutes sufficient foundation for initiating revocation proceedings, the petitioner will be sent a notice of intent to revoke that includes a statement of the facts and evidence and she will have the opportunity to respond. At this time, we are unable to provide any further detail.

 

We were never asked for any documents or follow-up, so still not sure why we were denied. 

 

My question for the experts is this: When will I be free to travel to Lebanon and marry? Do I need to wait for the NOI to be sent to my home - or can we go ahead and get married now and then file for the I-130 once I have received the NOI in the mail. I have heard in previous forums that I will possibly be able to see the reason why the K-1 was denied in that paperwork and then be able to overcome those factors in our next attempt.

 

Thank you for your time and expertise. 

 

You can go whenever you like and marry. Like you have stated, you have to overcome the reason for denial. They don't need to ask for any paperwork after the initial interview. Without knowing anything about your case, do you have any indicators from the interview itself or background issues of your fiance perhaps that oculd have let to the long AP and ultimate denial?

[Sunnyland 639]

Before you marry, try to find out whatever the reason for the denial is. What happened at his interview? 

[Crazy Cat 39,414]

I agree with @Ben&Zian.  You can marry whenever you want, but to do so without knowing why the visa was denied is unwise.  Example:  If your fiance is not legally free to marry, or if he is inadmissible for some reason, marrying would not solve the issue.

[Boiler 43,630]

Yet to come across a case where there was not a pretty good idea what the problem was.

[Ben&Zian 4,397]

2 minutes ago, Boiler said:

Yet to come across a case where there was not a pretty good idea what the problem was.

 

Some don't like to admit to it though. That tends to be the main thing I think.

[MyLifeForYou 12]

Thank you so

3 minutes ago, Ben&Zian said:

You can go whenever you like and marry. Like you have stated, you have to overcome the reason for denial. They don't need to ask for any paperwork after the initial interview. Without knowing anything about your case, do you have any indicators from the interview itself or background issues of your fiance perhaps that oculd have let to the long AP and ultimate denial?

 

Thank you so much for the advice, we appreciate your time. 

 

As for your questions about the interview, it was a tough one. I was there outside the embassy in Beirut with his family during the interview, but was not let in the building. My fiancé took my passport inside with him and let the interviewer know I was outside in case they wanted to speak with me. The interview was done in a side room and took over two hours. We knew it was going to be a difficult sell because I am the woman, of Christian faith, 20 years older than my fiancé. He is Muslim and has never been married. Also, 15 years ago I petitioned for and was granted a K-1 for my ex-husband, who I have an 11 year old daughter with. He was deported in 2010 back to his country of origin due to a felony conviction. I have been to Beirut twice, have met my fiancé's entire family, submitted photos of us together with the extended family at an engagement party/dinner, have a  custom engagement ring purchased in Beirut by my fiancé, and I am a professional here in the U.S. and easily meet the financial criteria. The consular officer dogged him during the interview repeatedly as to why we would want to be together, why me, why him - she was upset that he knew all the answers to every question she had about me. The interviewer even knew about an investment property that I had co-owned with a family member a few years earlier and interrogated him about that. He knew every answer to everything, because we are very close - and he said she would get upset every time he had the exact answer for every question she posed. I believe they have doubts about us as a real couple, and therefore we will proceed with the next step - as we had a feeling this could very possibly happen.

[MyLifeForYou 12]

10 minutes ago, Sunnyland said:

Before you marry, try to find out whatever the reason for the denial is. What happened at his interview? 

Thank you for your advice, we appreciate your time and help. I just posted a narrative about our interview and what transpired - I believe there are doubts about our intentions as a couple due to age difference, religious differences, and the fact that I was granted a K-1 visa for my ex-husband in 2004. 

 

I believe, like you say, it is necessary to find out what the reason for denial was before moving forward. Thank you again for your advice. 

[Ben&Zian 4,397]

8 minutes ago, MyLifeForYou said:

Thank you so

 

Thank you so much for the advice, we appreciate your time. 

 

As for your questions about the interview, it was a tough one. I was there outside the embassy in Beirut with his family during the interview, but was not let in the building. My fiancé took my passport inside with him and let the interviewer know I was outside in case they wanted to speak with me. The interview was done in a side room and took over two hours. We knew it was going to be a difficult sell because I am the woman, of Christian faith, 20 years older than my fiancé. He is Muslim and has never been married. Also, 15 years ago I petitioned for and was granted a K-1 for my ex-husband, who I have an 11 year old daughter with. He was deported in 2010 back to his country of origin due to a felony conviction. I have been to Beirut twice, have met my fiancé's entire family, submitted photos of us together with the extended family at an engagement party/dinner, have a  custom engagement ring purchased in Beirut by my fiancé, and I am a professional here in the U.S. and easily meet the financial criteria. The consular officer dogged him during the interview repeatedly as to why we would want to be together, why me, why him - she was upset that he knew all the answers to every question she had about me. The interviewer even knew about an investment property that I had co-owned with a family member a few years earlier and interrogated him about that. He knew every answer to everything, because we are very close - and he said she would get upset every time he had the exact answer for every question she posed. I believe they have doubts about us as a real couple, and therefore we will proceed with the next step - as we had a feeling this could very possibly happen.

 

The bolded above in your message is probably the main cause. Different religions, and him being that much younger, which I assume is uncommon in his country. The embassy is well aware to the local traditions/customs and such. As to "he knew the answer to each question perfectly", for me, if you yourself weren't physically in the interview with him, it's simply him telling you his side of the story but not getting the other side from the CO so I'd throw that out as proven information. Doubting your previous K-1 had any affect on this at all, that would have occurred during the USCIS stage.

 

Could be also perhaps short relationship? Only two visits? I'm not familiar with how tough the embassy in Beirut is; but if he was in the literally for 2 hours, they never believed from the beginning I doubt that it was a real relationship. The CO's can generally make a decision before the interview itself even starts from reviewing the original petition. And again for some 2 hours in an interview sounds like they were digging some info out of him about something. Is that all there was to it? No clue myself that's what the CO's are trained to look for. 

 

If it was the only issue, the bolded above again, then sounds like you'll need a lot more face time in person because again like you said, you need to prove them wrong. And really only way to show it is more and more visits I would think.

Edited July 5, 2018 by Ben&Zian

[MyLifeForYou 12]

12 minutes ago, missileman said:

I agree with @Ben&Zian.  You can marry whenever you want, but to do so without knowing why the visa was denied is unwise.  Example:  If your fiance is not legally free to marry, or if he is inadmissible for some reason, marrying would not solve the issue.

Thank you missileman for your advice, we appreciate your time. I do agree with your comment - and believe it is wise to wait until we know why the visa was denied. In our heart we feel that the consular officer had trouble believing that our relationship is bona fide due to our many differences. I will be anxious to receive the NOI and hopefully find out what the matter was.

 

 

[MyLifeForYou 12]

2 minutes ago, Ben&Zian said:

 

The bolded above in your message is probably the main cause. Different religions, and him being that much younger, which I assume is uncommon in his country. The embassy is well aware to the local traditions/customs and such. As to "he knew the answer to each question perfectly", for me, if you yourself weren't physically in the interview with him, it's simply him telling you his side of the story but not getting the other side from the CO so I'd throw that out as proven information. Doubting your previous K-1 had any affect on this at all, that would have occurred during the USCIS stage.

 

Could be also perhaps short relationship? Only two visits? I'm not familiar with how tough the embassy in Beirut is; but if he was in the literally for 2 hours, they never believed from the beginning I doubt that it was a real relationship. The CO's can generally make a decision before the interview itself even starts from reviewing the original petition. And again for some 2 hours in an interview sounds like they were digging some info out of him about something. Is that all there was to it? No clue myself that's what the CO's are trained to look for. 

 

If it was the only issue, the bolded above again, then sounds like you'll need a lot more face time in person because again like you said, you need to prove them wrong. And really only way to show it is more and more visits I would think.

Your advice and point of view is very helpful, thank you so much for bringing those topics up. I agree with your view on the long, difficult interview. They asked him questions about my ex-husband, about his felony conviction, about my daughter, what school she goes to, details about my profession - and all of that goes to exactly what you said about them doubting the validity of our relationship from the beginning. You are 100% right about that.

 

Does anyone know how long it will take for the NOI to reach me? A year? 18 months? Just trying to get an idea. I am planning a trip to Beirut this fall; it would be great to have it before then, but not holding my breath.

 

Thank you! 

[geowrian 22,336]

Sounds like the I-129F was (or is being) sent back to USCIS. This only happens if they believe it is invalid...usually because they believe it's not a bona fide relationship.

Once returned to USCIS, it will sit to expire and die. Ignore the part about USCIS reviewing it for revocation, NOIR, etc. Current policy is to let it to expire. They will not issue a NOIR stating why they believe the I-129F is invalid.

[Boiler 43,630]

How did you meet?

[MyLifeForYou 12]

2 minutes ago, geowrian said:

Sounds like the I-129F was (or is being) sent back to USCIS. This only happens if they believe it is invalid...usually because they believe it's not a bona fide relationship.

Once returned to USCIS, it will sit to expire and die. Ignore the part about USCIS reviewing it for revocation, NOIR, etc. Current policy is to let it to expire. They will not issue a NOIR stating why they believe the I-129F is invalid.

Thank you for the great advice - this is very helpful. So, it is not standard policy to issue an NOIR stating why they believe the 1-129F is invalid? Wow. OK, well, that will make it a bit more of a challenge. Do we need to wait for the petition to "die" before getting married and filing the I-130? I just want to make sure I don't file too soon and ruin our chances with an I-130.

 

Thank you!

[MyLifeForYou 12]

I am a translator/interpreter for the US government and he is an aspiring Arabic/French/English translator/interpreter as well. We met on a translation website where interpreters and translators all over the world collaborate and ask each other questions and advice on legal, medical, technical terminology. He asked me a question, I responded - ended up exchanging Skype information so we could talk about it and became friends and then it just moved on from there. I went to Beirut to meet him about a year after we began speaking over Skype.  

Just now, MyLifeForYou said:

4 minutes ago, Boiler said:

How did you meet?

 

I am a translator/interpreter for the US government and he is an aspiring Arabic/French/English translator/interpreter as well. We met on a translation website where interpreters and translators all over the world collaborate and ask each other questions and advice on legal, medical, technical terminology. He asked me a question, I responded - ended up exchanging Skype information so we could talk about it and became friends and then it just moved on from there. I went to Beirut to meet him about a year after we began speaking over Skype.