alexanderm

Thanks for replying Anibunny, I was wondering about the status of waivers. I plan on starting the K-1 process immediately and making sure the reasons for granting the waiver are all addressed. For me, the undue hardship is that I would without any choice have to leave the country indefinitely to be with my fiance/wife. I believe it's in the national interest of the U.S. to not force its own citizens to leave, just to be with loved ones. I'll also be writing letters to my Congress members on the matter.
 
I found this on a Dept of State website page (bold text regarding waivers):
 
I’ve heard that the Department of State does not grant waivers of the Proclamation.  Is this correct?
This information is incorrect. As specified in the Proclamation, consular officers may issue a visa to nationals of countries covered by the Proclamation with a waiver on a case-by-case basis, when they determine: that issuance is in the national interest, the applicant poses no national security or public safety threat to the United States, and denial of the visa would cause undue hardship.  There is no separate application for a waiver.  An individual who seeks to travel to the United States should apply for a visa and disclose during the visa interview any information that might demonstrate that he or she is eligible for a waiver.  From December 8, 2017 through May 15, 2018, at least 655 applicants were cleared for waivers after a consular officer determined the applicants satisfied all criteria and completed all required processing.  Many of those applicants already have received their visas.
 
https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/visa-information-resources/presidential-proclamation-archive/RevisionatoPresidentialProclamation9645.html
 
 

That's a good question. I wonder if I should go ahead and start the process on my end from the U.S. as the entire process takes time to complete anyway. Since the embassy grants the visa, wouldn't they deny the application in the end regardless of the interview? I wonder what is happening exactly with people who are trying to process marriage visas for travel ban countries right now. For the K-1 visa, I read that the I-129F is valid for 4 months from the date of approval by USCIS but also that the consular officer can extend this if it expires. How long would they allow an extension, is another question. It seems to take the USCIS about 4 months to process the 1-129F and another 4 months before the interview visa occurs, so getting the process started may make sense, but I don't want to start the process only to have to do it all over because of expiration.

From my understanding, the 3rd travel ban (Proclamation 9645 issued 9/24/2017 and going into force 12/4/2017 after the U.S. Supreme Court stayed preliminary injunctions issued by U.S. District Courts in Hawaii and Maryland) in effect currently prohibits K1 (and IR1 and CR1) visas from being issued for Iranians to the U.S. A waiver process is an exception to the rule but according to news articles, Senator Jeff Flake wrote in a letter to the State Department stating they'd received reports that there was a "near uniform denial of waivers for visas." In the meantime amicus briefs have been filed by 16 states, many cities, and others against the travel ban and the Supreme Court is set to hear arguments on the case starting April 25 in just over a week. On top of all of this, President Trump has stated his goal of withdrawing from the 2015 Iranian nuclear deal by May 12 unless it can be renegotiated, and violence has recently escalated once again in Syria.
 
At this point with nothing for certain, I'm not sure what my fiancée in Iran and I can plan on doing. It doesn't seem to be of any use starting the K-1 process until the travel ban is decided on by the Supreme Court. The only option for us to be together at this point seems to be living together in a foreign country, and marry there, or move to Iran which was not originally in our plans. One concern about marriage in a foreign county was my impression that CR1 visas took longer to process than K1 visas (though at the moment both aren't possible). She would like to continue her graduate studies towards a doctorate and Germany has been a first choice because of of programs that accommodate foreign students. We've also discussed her studying here in the U.S. and I've noted that student visas are still being accepted, though travel back and forth between the U.S. and Iran for Iranian students seems to be restricted.
 
At this point, just throwing my situation out here for the community. Maybe others in a similar boat can chime in, or anyone else with feedback.

Thanks for the replies salhasl and Anibunny. A lot of undue hardship is being caused by this wide-sweeping order.

Thanks for the replies salhasl and Anibunny. A lot of undue hardship is being caused by this wide-sweeping order.