When to start K1 for late 2019 Wedding?

[Highmystic 234]

7 hours ago, DrewCinWA said:

I just got engaged to a lovely Ecuadorian woman in Ecuador. I live in Vancouver, WA. We have been dating for 1.5 years with several trips back and forth. We are planning the wedding for Sep/Oct of 2019 in Washington. When should we start the K1 process? My concern is that the approval will come too soon before she can move to the USA. She is currently finishing a medical degree program in Ecuador.

I would say start now and not delay.  How many weeks will it take to actually fill out things, get your pictures together, all your info,  passport photos etc.  Keep in mind, that a K1 is good for up to 6 months after it is approved, for your fiancée to get POE .  Also, keep in mind, the possibility of delays from  RFE's that could  add on few weeks... or more.   Even simple things like filing on an expired form, or 1cent off on your check payment,  A pertinent line or paragraph missed, and the whole thing gets sent back.  Take your time, do it right, cross all your T's and Dot all your i's,   but don't delay too much.

[Rocko20 159]

On the USCIS government site where you download the petition, there should be caps lock big bolded words that say "petition processing times atleast 5-7+ months" that way more people are aware of just how long this takes.

 

Many people like the OP, myself included, vastly underestimated the K1 timeline process when we first filed.

 

OP,  don't start now, but right now. As a man who has been waiting for 8 months and counting for approval, this is a very long process.

Edited July 11, 2018 by Rocko20

[Orangesapples 1,954]

5 hours ago, TNJ17 said:

You were lucky. One out of millions. It’s better to expect longer processing than faster.

K1 used to take a much shorter time. 

[TM92 527]

10 hours ago, DrewCinWA said:

I fully understand that we can not marry under her tourist visa.

Actually you can marry in the US (or Ecuador or third party country) and start the CR-1 process:

 

[Brittani 484]

Once you get your NOA2 you don't have to do the interview right away you have a while but most people want to get it done quickly. We got ours April 13th and the expiration was August 13th I believe then once she has her interview she doesn't have to travel right away. Again, most people want to travel right away. She has a good few months before it expires not to mention you have 90 days to get married from POE. 

 

Ours took 9 months from filing to POE and to be honest we were one of the quicker ones from our filing time period which was last October. 

 

I'd say file now to be honest. You never know what could happen. I know one person on here who got their NOA2 just a couple of weeks after us and they're case still hadn't made it to the NVC at the time my fiance had his interview (June 12th). You just never really know with this process.

[Scandi 3,977]

Most embassies extend the validity of the NOA2 automatically, 4 months at a time, up to a year. If you need to extend the validity of the NOA2 you should contact the US embassy or consulate in the foreign country and make sure they can and will extend it for you. That way you can delay the interview with many months if needed.

 

I highly doubt you will need to have it extended though, quite the opposite. Considering what the processing times look like right now, you better file asap. Even if you do it'll still be tight with time.

Edited July 11, 2018 by Scandi

[KBA 542]

16 hours ago, LydiaP said:

It took me and my fiance 13 months. I know people who filed at the same time who are still waiting.

Yes, been over a year and still waiting...I would file earlier rather than later. We had no idea we would run into such delays 

[mich923 23]

17 hours ago, DrewCinWA said:

I just got engaged to a lovely Ecuadorian woman in Ecuador. I live in Vancouver, WA. We have been dating for 1.5 years with several trips back and forth. We are planning the wedding for Sep/Oct of 2019 in Washington. When should we start the K1 process? My concern is that the approval will come too soon before she can move to the USA. She is currently finishing a medical degree program in Ecuador.

Apply now. I applied in December and my application still hasn't been approved yet. Plus after she gets the K-1 visa, she has 6 months to come before it expires. 

[Paul & Mallory 1,398]

Step 1: Do not plan your K1 process around your wedding.

 

 

 

Should you be able to file now and have a 2019 wedding? Sure. Key word - should. There are enough people who have waited 1 year+ just for the petition to be approved. So it's strongly recommended not to make financial commitments, wedding wise, until visa is in hand. If wedding is of most importance, consider having wedding first and filing CR1 (spousal visa) instead.

Edited July 11, 2018 by Paul & Mallory

[ThomasNC1988 762]

I know you didn't ask for advice on this but my advice would be to have a court house wedding now file Cr-1 that way she will have all the privileges of a LPR(work) as soon as she enters and can leave again immediately if she wishes. Then just have a big wedding at your leisure. If you really wan the K-1 file now and you will have up to a year after the I-129f approval to have your interview.

[Prystine 184]

OP, immigration has ruined many wedding plans for many couples. The reality is you have to work around it and do what immigration wants 1st, wedding plans are a distant 2nd. IMO, you would be better off, getting married in a courthouse wedding, and applying for the CR1 while she is finishing her schooling, then plan on doing a big wedding ceremony/reception later on for friends and family after getting the approved visa in hand. The CR1 is only a couple months if that longer then the K1 and cheaper in the long run, she won't have to go through AOS, plus she will get a greencard once entering the USA and will be able to work and travel immediately and won't be stuck in status limbo like on the K1. There are so many more benefits to the CR1 over the K1 and now that the K1 is taking almost as long to process, it makes more sense to go the CR1 route. 

[Lebanese23 303]

21 hours ago, DrewCinWA said:

I just got engaged to a lovely Ecuadorian woman in Ecuador. I live in Vancouver, WA. We have been dating for 1.5 years with several trips back and forth. We are planning the wedding for Sep/Oct of 2019 in Washington. When should we start the K1 process? My concern is that the approval will come too soon before she can move to the USA. She is currently finishing a medical degree program in Ecuador.

apply now, even if you get approval lets say by 6 months, she has 6 months to travel to USA, just because they give her visa, doesnt mean she has to travel right away, she has 6 months window before her visa is expired.  apply now because they are taking almost 7-8 months for approvals now.

[kris&me 572]

u have gotten best advice here / do not plan anything until that visa is in hand /immigration is now dealing with over 6 millin applications a year

if visa is approved the visa holder needs to travel within 6 months of interview

why not marry there (in long run cheaper )   and do the CR1 (about 14 months to interview)  fitting your timeline for study a lot closer

[geowrian 22,336]

You can easily delay the immigration process for at least a year (NOA2 renewals + 6 months validity from the medical).

You cannot quicken the process (barring expedites).

 

File now, then delay it if needed.

Otherwise you'll be bashing your head against a wall if either timelines extend further or you hit any snags in the process (medical issues, any inadmissibilities, extended AP, etc.).

Timelines were ~30 days for the I-129F alone (1st step) when I filed...it ended up taking over 3 months. Others that filed a month after me waited 5+ months. People that are filing now are taking 6-8+ months. The point is that current processing timelines for people that have already filed will not necessarily equate to actual processing timelines for a new filer.

 

Or you can marry sooner (anywhere) and do a CR-1. You won't regret this if you do it...it will make things much simpler in the long run and decently cheaper overall. The K-1 is best suited for people that want to be in the US as soon as possible.

[TNJ17 1,329]

16 hours ago, essramos said:

 

yours got approved in 9 months haha! I think saying his is one out of millions is already incorrect. Sorry, with this process being stressful the last thing we need is this negativity. 

Ummm that was like over a year ago! Have you checked timelines recently? Waaaay longer. You have to be realistic in situations like this. Posting falso and outdated information won’t help people.