K1 approved, what next ?

[Bmikey 1]

Hey Everyone

 

So my fiancee and her daughter have gotten their K1 and 2 visas approved!  Super excited and I'm happy the wait is all over!

Now that I'm going to bring her to the States, I'm curious can we just go to a court or someplace near orange county to get this process done?

 

What are the next steps?  I hears something about Adjustment of Status for her.

We are having a simple wedding in Colombia and I want to have a simple process for her when I get to the states no wedding just legal stuff

 

Any advice or links would be very helpful, Thanks alot 

 

 

[debbiedoo 2,339]

you can get married at your local courthouse. Contact them for details.

 

i dont think you can get MARRIED in Colombia. you could have a ceremony but i think the legal marriage has to occur in the US (i could be wrong on that but a K1 is a FIANCE visa, not a SPOUSE visa). Otherwise, you should have married there and filed a CR1.

 

After you marry, you will file for AOS and EAD/AP. Cost is around $1200. Read through the guides.

[Dashinka 23,236]

2 hours ago, Bmikey said:

Hey Everyone

 

So my fiancee and her daughter have gotten their K1 and 2 visas approved!  Super excited and I'm happy the wait is all over!

Now that I'm going to bring her to the States, I'm curious can we just go to a court or someplace near orange county to get this process done?

 

What are the next steps?  I hears something about Adjustment of Status for her.

We are having a simple wedding in Colombia and I want to have a simple process for her when I get to the states no wedding just legal stuff

 

Any advice or links would be very helpful, Thanks alot 

 

 

Note, if you get married in Colombia she is no longer your fiancé and the K1 visa would not be valid (if this is wrong, hopefully another member will pipe in).  I would have her come here, get married in a simple civil ceremony, start the AOS process, and once she has the AP/EAD you can plan a wedding celebration back in Colombia if desired.

 

The guides for AOS (Adjustment of Status) are here.

 

https://www.visajourney.com/content/k1k3aos

 

Good Luck!

[Ann&James 179]

Just now, Bmikey said:

Hey Everyone

 

So my fiancee and her daughter have gotten their K1 and 2 visas approved!  Super excited and I'm happy the wait is all over!

Now that I'm going to bring her to the States, I'm curious can we just go to a court or someplace near orange county to get this process done?

 

What are the next steps?  I hears something about Adjustment of Status for her.

We are having a simple wedding in Colombia and I want to have a simple process for her when I get to the states no wedding just legal stuff

 

Any advice or links would be very helpful, Thanks alot 

 

 

You should not attempt to have any type of wedding Columbia before getting married in the us. 

[JFH 12,189]

Your legal wedding MUST be in the US if she is coming with a K-1 visa. You can go back to Colombia once she has her green card or AP approved and have a celebration/vow renewal/wedding party there but the actual legal ceremony absolutely must take place in the USA. 

[Going through 5,668]

Do not get married in Columbia...the purpose of the K1 is for your fiance to marry you in the United States, not another country. 

If you get married in Columbia first, you will cause problems for yourself once you reach the AOS stage/interview...and is very easily found out once they compare the date of your marriage certificate to the date of entry under the K1.

[Dashinka 23,236]

28 minutes ago, Going through said:

Do not get married in Columbia...the purpose of the K1 is for your fiance to marry you in the United States, not another country. 

If you get married in Columbia first, you will cause problems for yourself once you reach the AOS stage/interview...and is very easily found out once they compare the date of your marriage certificate to the date of entry under the K1.

Particularly if they try to AOS using a Colombia issued marriage certificate.

 

If this member wasn't so far along, I would certainly advocate for the CR1, but since the K1 is in hand, that makes no sense now.

[Ash.1101 1,755]

Even if the marriage isn't "legal" in Columbia. If you submitted pictures of your marriage in Columbia when you file for AOS, they could quickly realize that a marriage (Formal, Legal, or Ceremonial) took place BEFORE entering the US on a K-1 visa.

While I don't know if it would happen, technically USCIS COULD go the fraud route by saying they invalidated their K-1 visa upon marriage (formal, legal, or ceremonial) and committed fraud when entering the US. 

The K-1 visa isn't permission to marry IN GENERAL, it's permission to come into the US and marry if that's what you choose to do, OR leave if you choose not too. The K-1 visa is only given to those who aren't married, and if they want to marry they need to do so in the US.


No one here will support a Columbian marriage PRIOR to the K-1 marriage. Most people who want a marriage in their home country, will come into the US on a K-1 visa, do a court house wedding for legality, and then have the formal ceremony in their home country once AOS is approved. 



Either way again your next steps now that K-1 is approved, are to come into the US and marry and then file for AOS. https://www.visajourney.com/content/k1k3aos

Heavily recommend NOT getting married in Columbia until AFTER the AOS has been approved. 

Edited October 9, 2018 by Ash.1101

[Jenny17655 283]

You can not get married in Colombia!!!!! K1 visa is to marry in the US

[JFH 12,189]

6 hours ago, Ash.1101 said:

Most people who want a marriage in their home country, will come into the US on a K-1 visa, do a court house wedding for legality, and then have the formal ceremony in their home country once AOS is approved. 

 

Or, even better, get married in their home country and then apply for a CR-1 spouse visa to avoid the AOS picnic and have the spouse become a permanent resident the moment she arrives. 

[Ash.1101 1,755]

15 hours ago, JFH said:

Or, even better, get married in their home country and then apply for a CR-1 spouse visa to avoid the AOS picnic and have the spouse become a permanent resident the moment she arrives. 

I agree with that. With AOS wait times going up and up, it would be wiser now just to marry and go for a CR-1.

[Bmikey 1]

Hello everyone thank you all for the responses,

 

I didn't know it was a big issue, we didnt want to legally do anything in colombia just have a ceremony with her family. Nothing legally in paper work or writing.  

we just wanted to do a small get together with her family. But if that is also an issue please let me know and I'll have to change things around.

 

Thanks so much for the responses 

 

 

 

[Dashinka 23,236]

4 hours ago, Bmikey said:

Hello everyone thank you all for the responses,

 

I didn't know it was a big issue, we didnt want to legally do anything in colombia just have a ceremony with her family. Nothing legally in paper work or writing.  

we just wanted to do a small get together with her family. But if that is also an issue please let me know and I'll have to change things around.

 

Thanks so much for the responses 

 

 

 

The issue is that it could be considered to be a problem.  There are many stories of folks that have some sort of ceremony or celebration prior to getting the K1 and then were refused a visa because the appeared "too married" for a K1 even if it wasn't legal.  Now in your case, your fiancé and future stepdaughter already have their visas in hand, so it could only come up at the AOS stage when the USCIS officer (not a consulate officer) interviews you and your now wife.  If you are only planning on having a party in Colombia prior to their departure, it may not be an issue, but there is always a risk.  The safest thing to do is have them come here, you and your fiancé get married legally in the US, file for the AOS/AP/EAD, then plan a trip back to Colombia when they receive their AP/EAD combo cards, and have your celebration (this is what my now wife and I did after she had her visa).  From an adjustment standpoint of your fiancé and her daughter, it might be a better idea to plan a trip afterward as it may help with any homesick feelings they may have.

 

Good Luck!

[IBE2CA 34]

On 10/18/2018 at 5:51 AM, Bill & Katya said:

The issue is that it could be considered to be a problem.  There are many stories of folks that have some sort of ceremony or celebration prior to getting the K1 and then were refused a visa because the appeared "too married" for a K1 even if it wasn't legal.  Now in your case, your fiancé and future stepdaughter already have their visas in hand, so it could only come up at the AOS stage when the USCIS officer (not a consulate officer) interviews you and your now wife.  If you are only planning on having a party in Colombia prior to their departure, it may not be an issue, but there is always a risk.  The safest thing to do is have them come here, you and your fiancé get married legally in the US, file for the AOS/AP/EAD, then plan a trip back to Colombia when they receive their AP/EAD combo cards, and have your celebration (this is what my now wife and I did after she had her visa).  From an adjustment standpoint of your fiancé and her daughter, it might be a better idea to plan a trip afterward as it may help with any homesick feelings they may have.

 

Good Luck!

How would the USCIS know or find out about a celebration/ceremony of a  "mock wedding" among her family members prior to being granted a K1 Visa? We would like to do the same for her family. Of course, we would not share any photos at the interview or post on social media. We would not apply/file  for a marriage license either until she reached the US. It seems a couple could have a "mock wedding" ceremony ( un-documented) for her family to celebrate before she leaves? The couple would not be married legally.

[aaron2020 11,651]

40 minutes ago, IBE2CA said:

How would the USCIS know or find out about a celebration/ceremony of a  "mock wedding" among her family members prior to being granted a K1 Visa? We would like to do the same for her family. Of course, we would not share any photos at the interview or post on social media. We would not apply/file  for a marriage license either until she reached the US. It seems a couple could have a "mock wedding" ceremony ( un-documented) for her family to celebrate before she leaves? The couple would not be married legally.

You may want to use the research function on VJ to see what has happened to other people who have had "mock weddings."  If you think you are special and nothing will happen, then good luck to you.