Any reason NOT to withdraw K1 and do CR-1 instead for Philippines??

[Walter94 7]

My I-129F has been at the California center since late March...I should be getting the NOA2 any day now. But from what I've seen, the backlog for K1 interviews at the US Embassy in Manila is so insanely long that it will likely take YEARS just for my fiance to get her interview, even after my petition is approved by USCIS!

 

I'm thinking that my best option would be to do the Utah Zoom marriage and then start all over with a CR-1 visa. As I understand it, the delays are not very long for getting the CR-1 once the USCIS processes the case. I'm in California, and I see that the processing time at the CSC is currently 26-34 months for an I-130 visa. However, it's shorter for other centers, and I've read that it's rare for the CSC to handle an 1-130 case for a US citizen trying to bring a foreign spouse to America. Can anyone confirm whether this is true? I'm thinking even in the worst case scenario where my case gets sent to the California center, it would still probably take less time than waiting for the K1 backlog to clear at the embassy.

 

Are there any facts I'm missing here? I'm seriously leaning toward going this route,  but I want to make absolutely sure I'm doing the right thing before I make the jump.

 

Thanks

[aaron2020 11,651]

Sorry, no one is going to be able to tell you which path would be quicker for you.  Just not possible.

 

You will have to decide what is best for you.

 

Best of luck.

[Zach2015 211]

Maybe a mod can move this to the Philippine forum. Quite a few people in that forum did just that and it went much faster. 

[JeanneAdil 6,308]

If u can travel to Philippines to consummate the marriage why not marry there?

no guarantees where a new petition would go so a new officer will be starting from scratch with yours

 

but there are so many advantages to the CR1 i don't blame u for thinking to do it

Best wishes

[Karabast39 11]

13 minutes ago, Walter94 said:

My I-129F has been at the California center since late March...I should be getting the NOA2 any day now. But from what I've seen, the backlog for K1 interviews at the US Embassy in Manila is so insanely long that it will likely take YEARS just for my fiance to get her interview, even after my petition is approved by USCIS!

 

I'm thinking that my best option would be to do the Utah Zoom marriage and then start all over with a CR-1 visa. As I understand it, the delays are not very long for getting the CR-1 once the USCIS processes the case. I'm in California, and I see that the processing time at the CSC is currently 26-34 months for an I-130 visa. However, it's shorter for other centers, and I've read that it's rare for the CSC to handle an 1-130 case for a US citizen trying to bring a foreign spouse to America. Can anyone confirm whether this is true? I'm thinking even in the worst case scenario where my case gets sent to the California center, it would still probably take less time than waiting for the K1 backlog to clear at the embassy.

 

Are there any facts I'm missing here? I'm seriously leaning toward going this route,  but I want to make absolutely sure I'm doing the right thing before I make the jump.

 

Thanks

My understanding is that Manila is currently scheduling K-1s with I-129F priority dates of November 2020, so I don't think you're looking at years.  You can also request an expedite once you get to the DS-160 stage.  

[SteveInBostonI130 3,330]

The Utah Zoom marriage works for CR1 only after you have consummated the marriage - that is, spent at least 1 night physically together. Or if you are physically together and only the officiant is on the Zoom call.

 

You cannot file the I-130 without this requirement.

 

CR1 is superior to K1, but if you can't visit your partner anytime in the near future then K1 is the better path for your situation.

[Walter94 7]

37 minutes ago, Karabast39 said:

My understanding is that Manila is currently scheduling K-1s with I-129F priority dates of November 2020, so I don't think you're looking at years.  You can also request an expedite once you get to the DS-160 stage.  

Where did you see that the US Embassy in Manila is currently processing K1 cases from Nov 2020?

 

https://visawhen.com/consulates/manila/k1

 

According to this site, the backlog is currently at just under 10,000 cases and growing by roughly 400 every month. Even since they "resumed" processing cases in July of this year, they've only been averaging about 100 per month. At this rate it would take years and years for them to get to cases submitted more recently. Even if, by some miracle, they got back to normal processing time TOMORROW (which won't happen), it would still take almost two years just to get back up to speed. 

 

Again, I might be missing something here... but it looks really really bad for anyone trying to get their Filipina fiance here to America on a K1.

3 minutes ago, SteveInBostonI130 said:

The Utah Zoom marriage works for CR1 only after you have consummated the marriage - that is, spent at least 1 night physically together. Or if you are physically together and only the officiant is on the Zoom call.

 

You cannot file the I-130 without this requirement.

 

CR1 is superior to K1, but if you can't visit your partner anytime in the near future then K1 is the better path for your situation.

Yes I'm aware of this. The Zoom marriage would allow me to visit her in PH on a 9a visa, and then I could file the I-130 afterwards.

[TBoneTX 43,546]

Thread is moved to the Philippines forum.

[top_secret 2,134]

2 hours ago, JeanneAdil said:

If u can travel to Philippines to consummate the marriage why not marry there?

no guarantees where a new petition would go so a new officer will be starting from scratch with yours

 

Under the current Philippine travel ban, a "fiancé" has little chance of being able to acquire the visa required to travel to the Philippines.  However a "spouse", even from an "un-consummated" online marriage, can fairly easily obtain the required visa to enter the Philippines.  Thus, in this unique circumstances,  it is becoming more popular to follow the formula,,,, Utah online marriage, register the marriage with the Philippine consulate, apply for a Philippine visa for the US spouse to enter the Philippines, consummate, file I-130.  Whether it would be slower or faster than waiting out a K1 is open for debate but the Utah online marriage is often the only way couples are able to be together.  That is also a HUGE point in favor of the online marriage.  No mater how long it takes there is likely few options for the K1 couple to spend time together at all during the wait, but the CR1 couple would have opportunities for the American spouse to visit in the Philippines.

[Karabast39 11]

16 hours ago, Walter94 said:

Where did you see that the US Embassy in Manila is currently processing K1 cases from Nov 2020?

 

https://visawhen.com/consulates/manila/k1

 

According to this site, the backlog is currently at just under 10,000 cases and growing by roughly 400 every month. Even since they "resumed" processing cases in July of this year, they've only been averaging about 100 per month. At this rate it would take years and years for them to get to cases submitted more recently. Even if, by some miracle, they got back to normal processing time TOMORROW (which won't happen), it would still take almost two years just to get back up to speed. 

 

Again, I might be missing something here... but it looks really really bad for anyone trying to get their Filipina fiance here to America on a K1.

Yes I'm aware of this. The Zoom marriage would allow me to visit her in PH on a 9a visa, and then I could file the I-130 afterwards.

They grant some expedite requests in urgent cases.  (Ones where a U.S. citizen child is involved are likely the highest priority.)   

Your Utah plan seems sound in theory. 

 

I quibble a bit with the statistics on that site, Manila was doing a lot more than 484 cases a month before the pandemic.  They kept up with the demand as the number of I-129Fs increased (worldwide) in the last few years, getting close to 1,000 cases a month.   But you're right, they won't be anywhere near that level of processing for a while.  I see some threads about successful visas from the Utah online marriages.  So long as you consummate it before the I-130, should be good. 

Edited December 2, 2021 by Karabast39

[MarJhi 926]

On 12/1/2021 at 2:18 PM, Walter94 said:

My I-129F has been at the California center since late March...I should be getting the NOA2 any day now. But from what I've seen, the backlog for K1 interviews at the US Embassy in Manila is so insanely long that it will likely take YEARS just for my fiance to get her interview, even after my petition is approved by USCIS!

 

I'm thinking that my best option would be to do the Utah Zoom marriage and then start all over with a CR-1 visa. As I understand it, the delays are not very long for getting the CR-1 once the USCIS processes the case. I'm in California, and I see that the processing time at the CSC is currently 26-34 months for an I-130 visa. However, it's shorter for other centers, and I've read that it's rare for the CSC to handle an 1-130 case for a US citizen trying to bring a foreign spouse to America. Can anyone confirm whether this is true? I'm thinking even in the worst case scenario where my case gets sent to the California center, it would still probably take less time than waiting for the K1 backlog to clear at the embassy.

 

Are there any facts I'm missing here? I'm seriously leaning toward going this route,  but I want to make absolutely sure I'm doing the right thing before I make the jump.

 

Thanks

It's like switching checkout lanes in the grocery store, you think the other lane looks like it is moving faster so you move over there only to see the lane you were in starts going quicker. You can't win.

 

Think about this. It's been nearly 2 years since people can travel, which means the number of people getting added to the end of the line will soon stop. You have to meet in person within 2 years, but if people who have fallen in love online have not met in person yet, they wont be able to file for a K1. Yes there is a huge backlog, but as we approach the 2 year since the lockdowns began there wont be anyone added to the back of the line. 

[bmfj 2]

That’s a great point @MarJhiIt’s also super difficult to find accurate processing data on the DOS website regarding K1’s. Seems like every other visa class is there. Anyone know why that is? 

[Adventine 3,187]

21 hours ago, bmfj said:

That’s a great point @MarJhiIt’s also super difficult to find accurate processing data on the DOS website regarding K1’s. Seems like every other visa class is there. Anyone know why that is? 

 

Yes. The Department of State lists K visas on a separate page, linked here: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal/visa-law0/visa-statistics/nonimmigrant-visa-statistics/monthly-nonimmigrant-visa-issuances.html

 

192 K visa were processed in Oct 2021. Look at the data from previous months to get an idea of how fast they are processing the backlog.

[Katopo 0]

I think of all the psychological damage that the Phils K-1 shutdown continues to cause and feel like my main goal is to be with my partner, regardless of how we do it. From that perspective, I would recommend the Utah online ceremony for anyone just starting out. For those of us with a year or more already in the black hole, it seems to be a wash. At the current rate, I expect a K-1 interview in Oct 2022. If we were to get married this month, the CR-1 would happen in about the same timeframe, based on other recent couples' experience. The main difference would be no need for AOS, and I'd be able to visit in the Phils. This has a lot of appeal to me, even though getting her here would take the same amount of time. I also feel paralyzed with the choice, knowing that USEM could just as easily shut down the CR-1 program if they thought it was being abused or over-used. Feeling burned out.

[bmfj 2]

We’re 270 days in as of today. Progress at the USCIS is slowing it seems with the 5-7 months timeframe being laughable at this point. I’ve stopped looking at the USCIS site. September 2019 was the last time I physically saw her. And with the PH government’s open/close mentality, the borders could open when I leave LAX, but closed again before I arrive at NAIA. That’s even if miraculously the USA finds itself on the green list. Doubt that’ll happen. Sometimes I just want to scream and do about 20 mins on a punching bag. And then there’s the offloading issue about meeting in a 3rd country. Wonder if being married helps with that 🤔. Anyone know? Thanks for the link @Adventine. Much appreciated. Just checked the K1 for PH, USEM did 192 K1’s for Oct and 116 for Sept. Good news is they managed 5,667 b1/b2’s for the same time period. Can’t see how they’ll clear the K1 backlog at that pace. 

Edited December 7, 2021 by bmfj