Best country in Latin America for spouse visa

[Bob44 12]

Hi there. First post for me here. So my girlfriend and I (I’m from the US and she is from Colombia) have been together for over a year. We are talking about marriage. We are currently in Chile and have the luxury of moving around a bit. If we do tie the knot, which country is best in SOuth America to file paperwork? And where can I find wait times for spousal visas? 
 

thanks!

[milimelo 4,494]

She needs to have legal residency in a country to be able to interview there. Can’t just shop for consulate. 

[Bob44 12]

That’s not what my immigration lawyer says. He says it doesn’t matter which country we are in. 

[Bob44 12]

I’m curious where you got your info amd where I can verify.  Assuming my attorney is wrong. 

[Duke & Marie 1,389]

18 minutes ago, Bob44 said:

That’s not what my immigration lawyer says. He says it doesn’t matter which country we are in. 

Well, when it comes to filing it doesn’t matter what country your in... BUT you can only do the interview in the country where you have legal residency... 

[Crazy Cat 41,974]

18 minutes ago, Bob44 said:

That’s not what my immigration lawyer says. He says it doesn’t matter which country we are in. 

He/she  is incorrect.  Dump him/her.  

[jan22 3,056]

You can file the I-130 petition with USCIS (the first step in the process) from wherever you are, as it is done online or mailed to a lockbox location in the US.  After it is approved months later, you can also submit documents required for immigrant visa processing to the National VIsa Center (NVC), the first step in the State Department's visa process, from wherever you are.  Once the document submission is complete and documents are accepted, your case will move forward to the visa interview, which will be scheduled by NVC at the Embassy/Consulate of the applicant's citizenship or residence -- not a place where they are only visiting.

Edited February 25, 2021 by jan22

[mushroomspore 3,044]

23 minutes ago, Bob44 said:

That’s not what my immigration lawyer says. He says it doesn’t matter which country we are in. 

Time to find a new lawyer. Or just DIY.

Edited February 25, 2021 by mushroomspore

[Crazy Cat 41,974]

29 minutes ago, Bob44 said:

Hi there. First post for me here. So my girlfriend and I (I’m from the US and she is from Colombia) have been together for over a year. We are talking about marriage. We are currently in Chile and have the luxury of moving around a bit. If we do tie the knot, which country is best in SOuth America to file paperwork? And where can I find wait times for spousal visas? 
 

thanks!

Step 1:  Marry.  You can marry anywhere and start the process from anywhere.

 

Edited February 25, 2021 by Lucky Cat

[Crazy Cat 41,974]

@Bob44 In pre-Covid times, the spousal visa processing time from filing the I-130 to having visa in hand was 12-18 months......the pandemic has created a significant backlog and delay in processing.  A couple years would not be an unrealistic guess at this point.  Good luck.

Edited February 25, 2021 by Lucky Cat

[Coco8 1,042]

You submit your paperwork to USCIS and it will get sent to the consulate much much later, when it's very close to your interview. That will be 10 months after you submit it, at least (because COVID slowed everything down).

 

I would say this: Picking a consulate is NOT a good idea. Consulates have to do background checks on the person (your fiance) IN THE FIELD. That means, they will ask for any local police reports, look if this person has been married before, etc. If you go to whatever country, everything will take longer because they will have to ask Colombia to do the paperwork for them. So even though stuff in that consulate might be faster, compared to other countries, it's only faster for residents of that country.

 

I hope this helps. I would just go to Colombia to do the interview. 

Edited February 25, 2021 by Coco8

[Bob44 12]

Thanks a ton for all your help. Away we go. 

[Juliet57 304]

not Mexico......

[joe and karol 15]

On 2/25/2021 at 10:49 AM, Bob44 said:

Hi there. First post for me here. So my girlfriend and I (I’m from the US and she is from Colombia) have been together for over a year. We are talking about marriage. We are currently in Chile and have the luxury of moving around a bit. If we do tie the knot, which country is best in SOuth America to file paperwork? And where can I find wait times for spousal visas? 
 

thanks!

You can file from anywhere.  If that's the question then I would suggest the most reliable mail system in South America.  I don't know what that is but I would use DHL and I heard Peru is terrible.  

To actually conduct an interview, it will be at her place or residency which I assume is Colombia.

Pre-covid, marriage takes a bit longer than the K1 visa but costs less.  Depends on patience and need to see her or if you can travel.  It appears you are already in South America so just marry her there and wait.  I don't know what type of visa you would have the continuous wait so you might have to hop around a bit.  

 

 

Edited February 27, 2021 by joe and karol