K1 Visa HELP! Potential pitfalls after NOA2..

[SalishSea 16,770]

6 hours ago, Lucky Cat said:

Where did you hear this?   I am amazed at the misinformation out there......

The YouTubes.

[SalishSea 16,770]

6 hours ago, Charlie&Kate said:

I knew he put a suspension on NEW Green Card processing from April and it looks to have been extended for the rest of the year based on these articles, although obviously they may not be the most reliable sources...

You seem to have a lot of misinformation.  There is no suspension to eligible green card applicants who are legally in the US.

 

Also - An approved petition is valid for four months.  Expired ones can (and will) be extended per the embassy.  Some embassies do it automagically, as @payxibka says - others you may need to request.  Check with London or on the UK board here.

 

Best source of info for you going forward would be VJ and official sites, such as USCIS.gov.  This entire process requires research and education.

[Hawksquill 151]

8 hours ago, Charlie&Kate said:

1. Passport issue - A passport valid for travel to the United States and with a validity date at least six months beyond your intended period of stay in the U.S. (unless country-specific agreements provide exemptions) is required for the Visa to be issued. My current UK passport is valid until May 31st 2021... with the delays in processing both at USCIS and the London Embassy, I feel like I'm going to need to apply for a new passport before I go for my medical appointment/interview etc...what do you guys think, and do you have any recommendations or ideas?

 

 

Just to give you a sense of timeline, my British husband's UK passport expires this month.  We applied for a renewal in May and just got the approval email in July.  The passport still has to be printed and mailed to us.  I'm sure the queues might get even longer in the future depending on how long the disruption lasts.

All just a warning to not get too complacent or leave it too long to apply!

[arae 81]

43 minutes ago, Jorgedig said:

You seem to have a lot of misinformation.  There is no suspension to eligible green card applicants who are legally in the US.

 

Also - An approved petition is valid for four months.  Expired ones can (and will) be extended per the embassy.  Some embassies do it automagically, as @payxibka says - others you may need to request.  Check with London or on the UK board here.

 

Best source of info for you going forward would be VJ and official sites, such as USCIS.gov.  This entire process requires research and education.

The part I bolded. Wondering if someone can clarify because I may have misunderstood this earlier in my process. I know that the embassy can extend the approved petition. Where I'm confused is the 1 year mark that people bring up from time to time. If we hit the 1 year mark after approval and still have not had an interview, do we start over? Or will the embassy keep extending 1 year and beyond if needed?

[Wuozopo 4,285]

3 hours ago, arae said:

. If we hit the 1 year mark after approval and still have not had an interview, do we start over? Or will the embassy keep extending 1 year and beyond if needed?

 There has never been a circumstance that I know of where a person actively pursuing a petition based visa could not make it to interview within one year because of State Department delays. It’s just another thing to wait and see how they address it if it becomes a reality. 

[Scandi 3,970]

I would worry more about the potential furlough than any misinformation regarding AOS applications. 

Imagine coming to the US on a K-1, you get married and send in your AOS application. All of a sudden USCIS furloughs 70% of their work force until further notice.. Wow, imagine being stuck in limbo land for god knows how long because USCIS barely has any employees working on cases. Who knows how long it would take to get a work permit, or advance parole.. not to mention the actual greencard.. 

Edited July 9, 2020 by Scandi

[Sarahbmalvin 49]

On 7/8/2020 at 9:50 PM, arae said:

The part I bolded. Wondering if someone can clarify because I may have misunderstood this earlier in my process. I know that the embassy can extend the approved petition. Where I'm confused is the 1 year mark that people bring up from time to time. If we hit the 1 year mark after approval and still have not had an interview, do we start over? Or will the embassy keep extending 1 year and beyond if needed?

Specifically for London, they will extend it automatically to one year. If you pass that year mark all you need to do is bring an updated letter of intent to marry to your interview. They have this information on their website. 

[Wuozopo 4,285]

6 hours ago, Sarahbmalvin said:

Specifically for London, they will extend it automatically to one year. If you pass that year mark all you need to do is bring an updated letter of intent to marry to your interview. They have this information on their website. 

If you pass the FOUR MONTH mark (petition expired) you have to bring a new letter of intent to the interview.

 

London website—

Petition Affirmation Letter (if applicable)

If your petition expires before the visa interview takes place, you are required to bring to your interview a signed letter from your petitioner confirming that you both remain legally free to marry and that you will marry within 90 days of your arrival in the United States
 

I am applying for a K-1 visa, I have heard that I need a letter from my fiancé(e) to reaffirm the petition, what is this?

If the visa interview is scheduled more than 4 months from the date the petition is approved, the applicant is required to provide an original letter from the petitioner, confirming that they both remain legally free to marry and that they intend to do so within 90 days of the applicant’s entry to the United States.  There is no requirement that the letter be notarized

[Sarahbmalvin 49]

1 minute ago, Wuozopo said:

If you pass the FOUR MONTH mark (petition expired) you have to bring a new letter of intent to the interview.

 

London website—

Petition Affirmation Letter (if applicable)

If your petition expires before the visa interview takes place, you are required to bring to your interview a signed letter from your petitioner confirming that you both remain legally free to marry and that you will marry within 90 days of your arrival in the United States
 

I am applying for a K-1 visa, I have heard that I need a letter from my fiancé(e) to reaffirm the petition, what is this?

If the visa interview is scheduled more than 4 months from the date the petition is approved, the applicant is required to provide an original letter from the petitioner, confirming that they both remain legally free to marry and that they intend to do so within 90 days of the applicant’s entry to the United States.  There is no requirement that the letter be notarized

Weird, I was told by the embassy my petition was automatically extended to a year of validity from initial contact with the embassy to schedule my interview. It also says this now on the website. 
 

“If your application is being processed by the Embassy in London, applicants are given 12 months from the date on which the Embassy’s Immigrant Visa Unit writes to them with instructions about the status of their case in which to apply for the visa.

If you have been advised that your case file has been forwarded to the Embassy in London, you may refer to our website for an overview of the application procedure, and begin compiling the necessary supporting documents. You may book a medical appointment and proceed with the application process after normal operations have resumed. Please check this website regularly for updates about visa services and travel.

If the fiancé(e) visa petition expires, you may revalidate the petition with a letter from the petitioner stating that you both remain legally free to marry and that you will do so within 90 days of your arrival in the United States. You should take the letter with you to your visa interview in the future, not mail it or email it to the Embassy.“

 

Link: https://uk.usembassy.gov/information-for-nonimmigrant-visa-applicants-following-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak/

 

Although, I think a letter of intent is something you are required to bring regardless, so we will be doing that. 

 

 

[Wuozopo 4,285]

11 minutes ago, Sarahbmalvin said:

Weird, I was told by the embassy my petition was automatically extended to a year of validity from initial contact with the embassy to schedule my interview. It also says this now on the website. 

They will keep the case active a year, ie. not bin it when the petition expires. But they want a new letter from the US fiancé  if the interview is after the date the petition is shown to expire on the NOA2. 

[Sarahbmalvin 49]

2 minutes ago, Wuozopo said:

They will keep the case active a year, ie. not bin it when the petition expires. But they want a new letter from the US fiancé  if the interview is after the date the petition is shown to expire on the NOA2. 

ahhh gotcha okay, makes sense. Thanks for clearing that up! We will be sure to bring a new one to our interview (whenever that may be 🤷‍♀️)

[leroyleviticus 80]

On 7/8/2020 at 8:26 AM, Charlie&Kate said:

I knew he put a suspension on NEW Green Card processing from April and it looks to have been extended for the rest of the year based on these articles, although obviously they may not be the most reliable sources...

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-52391678

npr.org/2020/06/20/881245867/trump-expected-to-suspend-h-1b-other-visas-until-end-of-year
https://www.rollcall.com/2020/06/12/administration-puts-hold-on-green-card-requests-from-us/

 

I'm having trouble finding any more information on the White House Website.

Here you go, I believe this is what you are referring to:

 

https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/proclamation-suspending-entry-aliens-present-risk-u-s-labor-market-following-coronavirus-outbreak/

 

However, this proclamation wouldn’t affect you as a K-1 visa holder, so I wouldn’t worry about this too much if I were you