Wondering if Relationship is Strong Enough for CR1 or is K1 a Stronger Option?

[SalishSea 16,851]

24 minutes ago, Brendenstn said:

The mater then is just finding a proper legal legitimate service.

Not sure exactly what you mean, but if you are referring to a lawyer or 'visa service,' neither is necessary.

[Redro 4,601]

6 hours ago, Brendenstn said:

Me and my girlfriend feel that our relationship isn't the most "normal" and we worry about how strong our proof of relationship/marriage will be for either K1 or CR1 respectively (we are unsure about whether to do K1 or CR1 but leaning towards CR1)
We already know that we want to get married and will do either K1 visa or CR1 visa depending on whichever one is most likely to be accepted for our case.

We have known each other for 6 months, 2 online and 4 months in person living in the same house together 24/7 and never being separated once. Since I was in the UK without a visa, I left before it got too close to the 6 month deadline, worried about my ability for future UK visits given her ESTA was denied at Port of Entry when trying to visit me in the US (treated as immigrant without visa, no strong ties to UK)

We always had marriage in mind as an end goal for our relationship when we got into it in the first place, always kind of treated one another like a husband and wife, and after 6 months of our relationship together none of that has changed in the slightest.
Due to this amongst other factors of only knowing each other for a short time, not having many pictures together, not going out on dates much mainly staying at home, not getting along with her family for pictures and not being able to meet my family for pictures due to her ESTA denial , her being 18 me being 25,  not wanting to go into much detail about how and why we met (personal reasons),  etc. we worry how our relationship would look like for a K1 visa, thinking that CR1 visa might look stronger.

If we did marry online then met up for consummation purposes basically right now and submitted the CR1 visa asap, would our case be strong enough to be approved, or would it be stronger to not marry and submit the evidence we have (some pictures together, spending money on one another, living together for 4 month despite not having easy legal ways to prove that, letters from family recognizing relationship, call logs, chat history on discord, and whatever else evidence we can put together) for K1 visa?

Short answer. With evidence you were in the UK for 4 months (entry/exit the UK, boarding tickets, a couple of photos together). Your relationship is strong enough for both the K1 and CR1.

 

Simply speaking.

 

All you need as evidence when filing a K1 visa is proof you met at least once in the last two years. 

 

For the CR1/IR1, I have seen people from low fraud countries only include the marriage certificate. And receive approval. 

No marital evidence.

 

Others from low fraud countries will get married during the first visit.

Their marital evidence ends up being the same evidence one would include if filing the K1.

 

Get married online with Utah.

Another UK/US couple has gone that route as getting married in the UK requires a special visa.

 

Your relationship really isn't all the abnormal. And quite a few international couples get married after 1 or 2 meetings and a few weeks together. 

 

 

Edited May 20, 2022 by ROK2USA

[laylalex 7,257]

What does a "normal" relationship look like anyway? You guys sound like you've talked it through and know you want to be married at some point. You're from a low-fraud country, and if you get all your paperwork (especially the I-864) in a row, it should be very straightforward. You rarely see issues with people going through London unless there are big red flags. Being a bit of an odd duck really isn't a red flag to the consulate.

 

Now, away from the USCIS stuff, Layla is going to go mother hen here. (Sorry!) I have to say you guys are on the young side, especially your fiancée. Getting married is one of the most adult decisions you can make -- marriage isn't just about love and attraction and all the cool stuff that you enjoy talking about. I was about your age, OP, when I got married for the first time and I know how amazing it is to be very young and very, very in love. (Being older and in love is awesome too, but it's more like sipping on mellow wine than tipping back fizzing glasses of champagne.) But there are a lot more challenges when you marry young. Both of you may very well not be the same people in five years, and unless you really put in the work to build a strong foundation early on you might find things aren't how you expected them to be forever.

 

This isn't to be pessimistic. As I said, being very young and very in love is quite simply amazing, and people can and do make such relationships go the distance. My own parents met when they were 19 and got married three years later; this year will be their 45th anniversary. Put in the time -- grow your commitment by keeping your communication open, which is the key to maintaining and growing trust. My husband and I talk a LOT, about everything under the sun, big things and small things. We fight fair, and tell each other when something feels not good. We try our hardest not to keep secrets. Most of all, we are a team. You sound like you and your fiancée are too. This is all very exciting for you, and now you get to live with your best friend for the rest of your life. If there's a better present than that in the world, I've never seen it. Best of luck to you, but you sound like you are well on your way to having it sorted. ❤️ 

[Mundo254 47]

4 hours ago, pushbrk said:

Huh??  While most of us who post in the spouse visa forum are aware of the advantages of the spouse visa, the K1 is the right visa for many people based on their own circumstances and priorities.  When it fits, what we like or don't like about it (pros and cons) have to give way to personal priorities.

 

Lol Cmon, its a VJ joke! 😁

[carmel34 3,533]

14 hours ago, Brendenstn said:

we would rather live in US than UK for both personal reasons and that it would be easier for us and me to find work and sponsor her

Assuming that you have documentation to prove that you lived together for four months in the UK (original boarding passes, passport stamps, lease/receipts, a few photos together, other evidence), your biggest challenge will be to get a job in the US so you can sponsor her.  You have lots of time to accomplish this, as the visa interview is likely to be more than a year from the date of filing either an I-129F or I-130 petition.  Another option for the financial part is to find a qualified joint sponsor in the US.  You will have many months apart in the 1-2 years it will take, that's just the way it is.  CR-1 is a superior visa for many reasons, like she can work and travel internationally immediately upon entry to the US, she will be a legal permanent resident.  Good luck!

[Crazy Cat 39,567]

7 hours ago, Mundo254 said:

Lol Cmon, its a VJ joke! 😁

A joke?  I don't get it...... K1 vs CR1 is an extremely important decision.  

[Mundo254 47]

4 hours ago, Crazy Cat said:

A joke?  I don't get it...... K1 vs CR1 is an extremely important decision.  

@pushbrk was responding to @JeanneAdil regarding the ''we don't like that here'' (K1) comment. @pushbrkresponse was rather serious, felt @JeanneAdil was simply having a light moment when they put that in bracket, thats why i said it was a joke the respondent didn't seem to realize! We all know how CR1 is advocated for over the K1 in this forum. I totally understand what you are saying regarding the seriousness of the matter. Clearly, you didn't get it!

[JeanneAdil 6,239]

46 minutes ago, Mundo254 said:

@pushbrk was responding to @JeanneAdil regarding the ''we don't like that here'' (K1) comment. @pushbrkresponse was rather serious, felt @JeanneAdil was simply having a light moment when they put that in bracket, thats why i said it was a joke the respondent didn't seem to realize! We all know how CR1 is advocated for over the K1 in this forum. I totally understand what you are saying regarding the seriousness of the matter. Clearly, you didn't get it!

And it was late at night when i responded and i should have qualified my answer

i answer for both my spouse and i and he said say we meaning us (my husband and me)

just too tired sometimes -my appologies to the group 

 

I am a big girl and i can take criticism 

[Family 3,549]

 

To clarify the “ weight of a marriage certificate “ , I will point to FAM ( Foreign Affairs Manual) link https://fam.state.gov/fam/09FAM/09FAM050402.html.  , thus unlike K-1 that can be denied at Consular discretion with no recourse , the I-130 ( barring fraud) REMAINS VALID and any Consular concerns can be addressed, without the need to re file or start from zero. 

 

 

 

 

(CT:VISA-1403;   10-29-2021)

(U) An approved petition under INA 204 establishes that the requirements for the visa classification, which were examined by USCIS during the petition process, have been met.  However, the approval of a petition by USCIS does not relieve the applicant of the burden of establishing visa eligibility.  You should confirm that the facts claimed in the petition are true during the visa interview.  Remember that USCIS interacts solely with the petitioner; the interview is the first point during the petition-based visa process where a USG representative has the opportunity to interact with the beneficiary of the petition.  Additionally, you benefit from cultural and local knowledge that adjudicators at USCIS do not possess, making it easier to spot misrepresentation in qualifications.  While validity of the relationship between the petitioner and the beneficiary, familial or employer and/or employee, is presumed to exist, if you have specific, substantial evidence of misrepresentation in the petition process or discover facts unknown to DHS at the time of approval, you may consider returning the petition to DHS.  See 9 FAM 504.2-1 and 22 CFR 42.43.  Unless a petition has been automatically revoked under INA 203(g), a properly approved petition remains valid indefinitely if the familial or employer and/or employee relationship exists.

 

[pushbrk 12,221]

5 hours ago, Family said:

 

To clarify the “ weight of a marriage certificate “ , I will point to FAM ( Foreign Affairs Manual) link https://fam.state.gov/fam/09FAM/09FAM050402.html.  , thus unlike K-1 that can be denied at Consular discretion with no recourse , the I-130 ( barring fraud) REMAINS VALID and any Consular concerns can be addressed, without the need to re file or start from zero. 

 

 

 

 

(CT:VISA-1403;   10-29-2021)

(U) An approved petition under INA 204 establishes that the requirements for the visa classification, which were examined by USCIS during the petition process, have been met.  However, the approval of a petition by USCIS does not relieve the applicant of the burden of establishing visa eligibility.  You should confirm that the facts claimed in the petition are true during the visa interview.  Remember that USCIS interacts solely with the petitioner; the interview is the first point during the petition-based visa process where a USG representative has the opportunity to interact with the beneficiary of the petition.  Additionally, you benefit from cultural and local knowledge that adjudicators at USCIS do not possess, making it easier to spot misrepresentation in qualifications.  While validity of the relationship between the petitioner and the beneficiary, familial or employer and/or employee, is presumed to exist, if you have specific, substantial evidence of misrepresentation in the petition process or discover facts unknown to DHS at the time of approval, you may consider returning the petition to DHS.  See 9 FAM 504.2-1 and 22 CFR 42.43.  Unless a petition has been automatically revoked under INA 203(g), a properly approved petition remains valid indefinitely if the familial or employer and/or employee relationship exists.

 

Yes, a marriage certificate has "weight".  But, USCIS does not issue visas.  Even reaffirmed petitions go back to the Consulate for  a decision.

 

In terms of timing, from CR1 or IR1 visa denial until any possible return to the Consulate for a second interview, is often as long or longer than getting a new I-129f approved for a K1.  Lot's of visa fraud in CR1 cases.  The bona fide relationship decision is still critical for CR1, just as it is for K1.

[Ryan H 3,795]

Moved from IR-1/CR-1 Process & Procedures to What Visa Do I Need - Family Based Immigration forum; OP is considering both options.

[DaveAndAnastasia 2,079]

On 5/19/2022 at 5:42 PM, pushbrk said:

Huh??  While most of us who post in the spouse visa forum are aware of the advantages of the spouse visa, the K1 is the right visa for many people based on their own circumstances and priorities.  When it fits, what we like or don't like about it (pros and cons) have to give way to personal priorities.

Heck, many of us who did a K-1 and are 100% convinced it was the right decision for us at the time are well aware that a spousal visa is a better visa (and were at the time); it's just that when things were working semi-normally, the K-1 process worked better for couples where the beneficiary couldn't easily get a US tourist visa and marrying in the beneficiary's country was expensive and/or time-consuming (and didn't want to visit a country where two foreigners could marry quickly and easily just to get married, and this was before Utah zoom marriages were a thing).

[RebeccaDub 2]

On 5/19/2022 at 11:43 AM, Brendenstn said:

Me and my girlfriend feel that our relationship isn't the most "normal" and we worry about how strong our proof of relationship/marriage will be for either K1 or CR1 respectively (we are unsure about whether to do K1 or CR1 but leaning towards CR1)
We already know that we want to get married and will do either K1 visa or CR1 visa depending on whichever one is most likely to be accepted for our case.

We have known each other for 6 months, 2 online and 4 months in person living in the same house together 24/7 and never being separated once. Since I was in the UK without a visa, I left before it got too close to the 6 month deadline, worried about my ability for future UK visits given her ESTA was denied at Port of Entry when trying to visit me in the US (treated as immigrant without visa, no strong ties to UK)

We always had marriage in mind as an end goal for our relationship when we got into it in the first place, always kind of treated one another like a husband and wife, and after 6 months of our relationship together none of that has changed in the slightest.
Due to this amongst other factors of only knowing each other for a short time, not having many pictures together, not going out on dates much mainly staying at home, not getting along with her family for pictures and not being able to meet my family for pictures due to her ESTA denial , her being 18 me being 25,  not wanting to go into much detail about how and why we met (personal reasons),  etc. we worry how our relationship would look like for a K1 visa, thinking that CR1 visa might look stronger.

If we did marry online then met up for consummation purposes basically right now and submitted the CR1 visa asap, would our case be strong enough to be approved, or would it be stronger to not marry and submit the evidence we have (some pictures together, spending money on one another, living together for 4 month despite not having easy legal ways to prove that, letters from family recognizing relationship, call logs, chat history on discord, and whatever else evidence we can put together) for K1 visa?

 

 

Your proof of relationship is going to be the same whatever route you take. The only difference is that you'll have a marriage certificate to add. 

Make the choice that best suits you both. 

You'll not be approved quickly so you'll have plenty of time to gather more proof of a relationship too. 

Take pictures! Even if you're just hanging out at home. It's still time together that can be proved. 

I met my now husband only 2 times before we applied (a total of 20 days physically together) and by the time I had the embassy interview we'd met 3 times. 

My proof of relationship consisted of pictures of the 3 visits together, pictures of birthday/christmas cards, call logs showing that we spoke every day, message and video call screen shots and social media posts,  (to show that others knew of our relationship)- you don't need physical interaction with friends and family as any proof of a relationship. And that was it. Approved. 

 

Your age gap is no one's business, you're both conseting adults.