JFH

The UK process is quicker but more expensive and stricter. No co-sponsors allowed and no waivers for ineligibilities (as we discovered when we were denied). My brother successfully brought his wife into the UK and she has just obtained British citizenship. Overall a smooth process, from what he told me.

Good. I read it as 8/9 for some reason. So he has 9 days. Plenty of time to get married in Vegas, among other places.

The person who said that it’s 90 days in a rolling calendar year is wrong. It’s 90 days per stay and no limit on the number of stays per year with the caveat that each admission is at the discretion of CBP. Yes, your petition would still get approved even if you have an overstay on your file. USCIS does not adjudicate your eligibility to be approved for a visa, they assess your eligibility to apply for a visa, big difference. It’s the embassy that will decide whether you are approved for a visa. An approved petition doesn’t mean you are “good to go”. It just means that the connection between you and the petitioner has been found to meet the qualifying criteria for you to apply for a visa.

I assume you are also a Seattle filer with that timescale?

So she will be able to file for you but you must return home now (if you have not already done so) as you are currently in unlawful presence in the US if you are beyond your 90 days on the VWP. You also will no longer be able to visit during the process using the VWP. Even an hour of overstay on the VWP permanently excludes you from using it again. You can attempt to get a B-2 to be able to visit but your visa fee is more likely to be a donation to the Christmas party than get you a visa after an overstay and with proven immigration intent.

The most important question is how the LPR spouse obtained LPR status. If that was based on marriage to a USC they have an uphill battle if they have been in a relationship for 5 years.

I wouldn’t push it too far until she has citizenship. That’s only three years away. I understand you don’t like the cold but surely you can struggle through a couple of winters here (or maybe spend winters in Hawaii or a warmer mainland state) to ensure your wife doesn’t have any issues. Time spent outside the US in the run-up to citizenship is counted against you and it’s in your interests for your wife to obtain citizenship as soon as possible so that you can both come and go as you please, even spend 12 months a year in Thailand (subject to the Thai requirements for you). The problem with cutting it close to the 6-month period each year is that plans can be thrown off course by illness, flight cancellations, COVID-19 and its successors, etc. If one of you breaks a leg or has a heart attack the day before you are due to fly back and you have to wait weeks before you can fly again, what then? Personally I would suck it up for a few years with shorter trips and then after citizenship fulfill your dream of 5 months every year in Thailand.

*~*~*moved from “process and procedures” to “progress reports*~*~*

Whichever option you prefer. Whichever way you book, it will be the same plane.

*~*~*AOS-related question moved from “K-1 fiancé visa progress reports” to “AOS from K visas”*~*~*

She can’t travel though Paris with a K-1. Find a routing that does not pass through the Schengen area. Dubai is a good option.

And anyone thinking of doing the K-1 because the I-134 financial requirements are lower has clearly misunderstood the whole process. You have to be at 125% of the federal poverty level for AOS anyway (or find a willing co-sponsor who is). Also, the cost of AOS will soon be over $2000 and even more if K-2 children are coming along too. If 125% of the federal poverty line is a deal-breaker for the visa choice (and the federal poverty level is extremely low and in many parts of the country it’s not possible to survive on it), then paying over $2000 for AOS and supporting another adult for 6 months who cannot work, cannot claim any form of welfare and who needs healthcare (and has no access to Medicaid, etc) is going to be a lot harder than you think. Unfortunately too many people base their visa choice on timescales and don’t look at the whole picture which covers the immigrant’s first few years in the country. The most frequent question is “which visa is quicker?” when the question should be “which visa makes the most sense in the long-term?” The quickest route isn’t necessarily the best route.

We got married in the US and did a CR-1. I got married while I was visiting. It is possible to have a wedding in the US and not have to do the K-1.

A “little more” is debatable. After the October fee increase the K-1 will cost over $2000 more than the CR-1. Adjustment of status is increasing in cost from $1225 to $2170. There is no adjustment of status for CR-1. That’s an extra $2170 the K-1 people have to pay to be in an “inferior” status for months when they arrive. I never saw the benefits of a K-1 before the fee increase but even those who previously thought the K-1 was a good idea must now be re-thinking that.

Please complete your timeline. You are eligible to apply 90 days before the third anniversary of the “resident since” date on your GC.