US Immigration from Thailand

My Fianc e's K-1 interview was on June 29th at the US Embassy in Bangkok. She is from Myanmar, but has lived in Thailand for 16 years. She obtained a Thailand Police clearance which was submitted with her package and given to the consular officer on the date of her interview. She was told her visa was approved after the interview, but then was called the next day and asked about how long she has been living in Thailand.

Today the consular officer e-mailed, and it appears she is now in 221G administrative processing. They requested a Myanmar (Burma) Police Certificate, which the only way to get is to travel back to Myanmar and apply in person. With the current issues in Myanmar she would have to travel through technically a war zone to get to her village, which is not a Burmese village but a Karen village.

We are trying to see if a relative still there can obtain one at the nearest Police center which is a 2 hour drive from her village, but as of this morning have not heard back.

Does anybody have some information on how she could get the police clearance without risking her life to do so by driving back into Myanmar.

Based on feedback from our initial post over in the K-1 forum here:

We are withdrawing our I-129F petition and filing an I-130. I am now reading through the CR-1 filing guides as well as combing through the posts from folks in a similar situation. It is my understanding that we simply file the I-130 and accompanying I-130A to initiate the process. However, I have read somewhat conflicting posts regarding the withdrawal of the I-129F. Some say that the filing of the I-130 automatically voids the I-129F so don't bother sending a letter because USCIS won't acknowledge the letter anyway, while others say sending a letter requesting withdrawal to the processing center handling our case is the appropriate course. I figure sending a letter won't cause any harm. Just one more thing to do in terms of time and treasure (mailing even a few pages to the US from Thailand is fairly costly).

Nonetheless, we will initiate the CR-1 process this week barring any advice to the contrary. I mentioned in the other post that I am "early retired" but I don't want to keep living on retirement savings so I figured I should jump back into the market. I am actively seeking employment in Thailand so I can establish legal residence, bank account, etc. in Thailand while we wait. If nothing materializes in the corporate world (Thailand can legally discriminate based on any factor they want...like age) I know that I can get a job as an English teacher since I have my TEFL certification. My wife could then live in Thailand with me on an "O" visa which holds more weight in terms of residency than her current education visa. No need to return to Myanmar except to visit family occasionally.

Now we are just settling in for the long (hopefully not too long) journey ahead.

Im currently awaiting my NOA2 an USCIS is working my month so im trying to get ahead of myself anf get some questions answered.

My fiance has 3 kids and we have them listed on our I129F application. But 2 the 19yro and the 10yro will be staying behind. The 19yro is going to collage and the 10yro will be staying with his grandfather for a while. Im still intending on filing the DS160 for him so if i can bring him to the US in a year then that will still be an option..

My question about the 19yro..

She is currently attending collagehere in Bangkok and we would like to bring her with us after the interview so she can start her change of status when we get married in the U.S.. We'v been told that she would be eligable to return back to Bangkok after filing a change of status to continue her education and another type of educational exit visa/ form.. Not sure which one cause i cant seem to find it. SO what are are my options for her?

My question concerning the 10yro.

Does he have to attend the interview with my fiance, an get the medical check up an other stuff (file the DS160, ect...) if he is following within the year..

Hello everyone. I had a few questions and also seeking some opinions about my situation.

My Fiancee has an interview for her K1 Visa mid September. I was planning a trip to go see her so I could be there for her interview as well as having her come back with me if all goes well.

I wanted to know the average timeline for getting a Visa after interview.

The problem I'm having though is my work won't let me take time off to go.

If she gets approved or not I still want to go visit her, as its been over a year since seeing her last, and if she is approved I do not want her to come alone either.

Thanks for any suggestions.

Hello everyone,

Quick background:

I am a USC, my partner is Burmese. We met in Thailand in 2022. She moved to Thailand looking for employment, and I was there taking a TEFL course to potentially teach English abroad (I sold my business in 2016 and took a sabbatical in November 2020 so I am technically "retired early"). I proposed in January and we had a ceremony in Myanmar February 28, 2023, but we never signed any documents to make the marriage official because we intended to file for the K1 and we want to do everything by the book. The ceremony was mainly for her friends and family to celebrate our union. We have a condo in Thailand in her name because she is here on an 11 month ED visa. I have lived in Thailand with her since January, but I am here on a tourist visa. My permanent residence is still in the US.

We hired an immigration attorney in March to help us file the 129F, gathered all our supporting docs and he filed in late April. We received receipt confirmation a couple weeks later (May 12, 2023), and now we are digging in for the long journey ahead. Living with my partner has been a blessing that I know most couples in the K1 queue don't have the privilege of enjoying; however we share the same desire as everyone here and that is to be together in the US ASAP so we can start building some permanency into our lives. It seems the more we review our options, the more questions we have. We realize that every case is different and there are many variables to consider with every question.

- Her ED visa expires in October. Should we pack up and move to Myanmar so she can spend time with her family the next few months while we wait? Will moving to a new country delay the process? Would getting an appointment at US embassy in Yangon potentially be faster than getting an appointment in Bangkok which has a larger case load?

We are simply looking for anyone with experience at either of these two embassies or any tidbits of advice anyone is willing to toss our direction. Every decision we make is driven by the question everyone has: "will this speed up or slow down the process?". We realize that the answer to the question of move or not move is a personal decision, but we are trying to gather as much information as we can to make as educated a decision as possible.