louisaelouise

8 hours ago, FrankEPatrick said:

when you are talking about legalities and foreign governments, it is more complicated then married is married because it comes down to whether the US govt will accept the marriage document. On the other hand, they come to the US and get married, then married is married is clear and with an apostille,  just about any first world country will accept married is married. 

 

the US has to accept the marriage document, which can be complicated in and of itself 

 

what the poster wants is to get the spouse into the US as fast as possible, enter on K-1 get married, its the same diff to the US govt as if you do a K-3 and bring them in that way. 

 

the switch to the K-3 may make the process take even longer, which nobody wants

 

 

 

 

No, my original post wasn't about getting him here faster. We just had a fiance visa that we abandon and it was bothering me that it was still "open". I called UCSIS and they told me not to worry about it. In the end our I-130 was approved as for now, they accepted our marriage certificate as valid!

Basically the representative told me that I didn't have to worry because they would switch my K1 to a K3 without me requesting because I am married and that it wouldn't cause me to waste the year I waited on the fiance visa. I honestly have no idea what they did, but it didn't matter because they approved my I-130 the same time as if they would have approved my fiance visa. 

12 hours ago, FrankEPatrick said:

Isn't it faster to let the K-1 stand and then just get married again in America at the court house? 

 

I am obviously out of date, but I considered both of these routes, and the K-1 was a bit faster back in 2016 then the K-3, once you are into it, isn't it just faster to wait out the K-1 experience? 

That was in the past but unfortunately the fiance visa takes just as long and if not longer than the I-130. We previously wanted to get married first but because of COVID lockdowns we couldn't meet up to do so. Once we were finally had the chance to get married we were already a year in the K1 process. We had a long discussion and ultimately decided that we rather him be able to work right away when he gets here and  be able to travel. So we decided to abandon the fiance visa and get married. We were expecting the marriage green card to take and additional year before it passes the USCIS stage, but it only took two month!  So 100% don;t regret our decision 

I

On 10/3/2022 at 3:19 AM, FrankEPatrick said:

I am confused? 

 

Is shifting to a K3 expected to speed anything up? 

 

What country? 

What do you mean by married? 

 

Is there a legal paper trail. 

I originally applied for a fiance visa. We waited about a year and my husband and I decided to get married (we have a marriage certificate and it is registered in the country we got married in). Once I returned back to America I filed an application for the marriage green card and sent in all the evidence including out marriage certificate. I also sent a letter saying that I am no longer engaged and that I am married. 

I expected my fiance visa application to be closed since my husband was no longer my fiance, but it was never closed. My fiance visa still remained open. I kept my eyes on it waiting to see when it would be closed. Finally UCSIS started to process the month I applied for the fiance visa last year and I was waiting to see what happened. I called UCSIS to let them know that my K1 was still open and they told me not to worry that once they got to my old   K1 they will  process it as a K3 since I am married now. I have no Idea if they did that or not. But the representative told me also  not to worry because I wouldn't loose all the time I previously waited (over a year with the previous K1). They were right about that. In the end, the fiance visa was finally closed and my I-130 was approved! So I think my old fiance visa ended up speeding up my I-130 process!! 

But you can't apply for a K3 visa unless you are actually married, and you have to show proof of marriage. So I think what happened is they got to my old fiance application, saw that I also had a I-130 application and looked at both. In the end they closed my fiance visa and approved my marriage visa. 

On 10/3/2022 at 12:15 AM, Ximena Anna said:

Wooohoo! Congratulations! So glad you called up the actual people processing your case and didn't get disheartened by the random people on here being negative!! Surely a tier 2 supervisor would have more "authority" than a random forum user.

THANK YOU!!!!! My husband and I are so excited!!!! Its been so long and we can't wait to be finally living together soon ❤️ 

25 minutes ago, nastra30 said:

As you can see K1 wasn't converted to K-3.

I-130 being approved in two months is a fast time in USCIS circles; count your lucky stars. 

Hope for more fast times with NVC and Consulate. 

Congrats on your quick approval and best of luck with the rest of the process.

 I have no idea what went on with the K1/K3. But the reps said I wouldn't lose anytime by switching, so I am glad they ended up being right about that at least. So hoping my luck continue for the rest of the process!! 

Thank you for all the help!

15 hours ago, Jorgedig said:

You won’t find that on VJ, because you received bad information and that’s not how it works.

 

Please come back in 6-12 months and tell us how it all worked out for you.

I-130 was approved today!!! and received a notification stating that K1 "case was close due to benefits received through other means ". Its been two months no expedite. I dont know if the K1 helped or not but is from now on things country dependent? 

Update: My I-130 was approved!!!!!!! I also  checked my mail and received a notification saying the K1 case was close due to benefits received through other means dated back to  several days ago.

 I have no idea if the K1 ended up expediting my I-130 case or maybe it was me calling but I'm not gonna complain!! Thank you for everyone who responded!!!!!!!!!

8 minutes ago, Crazy Cat said:

You said, in your first post, "When I sent the I-130 I included the notice of withdrawal of a K1 visa and the decision to get married instead.". 

Good luck.  Out.

Yes like I said, I knew that by marrying my K1 visa would become inactive. So in my head I thought I was "withdrawing" and starting a new application. But I looked back at the letter I sent, it never uses the word withdrawal.

" I filed an I-129F form on _________ (Case Number: _________). When we first submitted our application, we thought that would be able to be reunited and married within a year. However, due to processing delays and longer wait times my partner and I decided that it would be best for our situation and mental health to get married.____________________. So, I hope that you will consider our new I-130 petition and allow my husband and I to be reunited promptly so that________________________________ " 

that was what my letter actually said. Im sorry I used the word "withdrawal" but it didn't use that word in the letter I sent. Just assumed that by letting them know I was married they would "withdraw" the application and turn it inactive as I am very much aware that by marrying my K1 visa was no longer applicable. However, the K1 has remained and still is currently active for several months now since I sent the letter. I called USCIS today for that whole reason, knowing that a K1 shouldnt be active after marriage. 

1 hour ago, Crazy Cat said:

They have no authority to change a withdrawn K-1 to a K-3.  A withdrawal letter is irrevocable and final.  These have popped up later to bite the beneficiary long after they were submitted. 

Let me clarify. It wasn't a "withdrawal" notice. It was a notice stating that we went ahead and got married. I assumed that by doing so they would close and withdraw the K1 but they kept the case active. The tier 2 agent told me I don't need to do anything further and just wait it out, that they will either switch it over and send me the notification  or they will ask for a RFE (asking for marriage etc) which will then switch it over as the I-129F forms are the same. Anyways, I'm just gonna wait it out and see what they do 

1 hour ago, Mike E said:

Did the supervisor self identify as a tier 2? AFAIK the supervisor of a tier 1 officer is also a tier 1 officer. 

The supervisor identified as tier 2 and provided me with the badge number

6 minutes ago, Boiler said:

If you are Married by definition your K1 is not active. You no longer qualify.

Like I said. I am very much aware of this hence why I sent a letter notifying them. I called them and let them know "hey, I'm married now so the k1 is no longer active but its still showing active, what do I have to do to , do you need another letter?"

 And like a said several time the supervisor, not a tier 1, told me "dont worry you dont have to do anything, once we get to the K1 application we will see the I-130 and then close the K1 and open a K3 application for you and process things that way" 

Anyways, I will update what ends up happening. 

4 minutes ago, Marieke H said:

Okay... So what kind of input are you looking for here? We keep telling you that this is not how it works and you keep insisting that we are wrong.

Good luck. Please keep us updated.

I was more looking for input on someone who went through a similar situation. A person who had both an active K1 and an I-130.

Like I said I already sent a withdrawal letter a few months ago for the K1 but both are still active, and I also talked to USCIS and let them know that the two are active. So I've done everything on my end to notify them.

I will update on what happens. 

3 minutes ago, Marieke H said:

What is the previous discussion you are referring to? If you have posted about this issue before, maybe under a different name, it would help if we would be able to read that background.

 

This isn't a thing. When you got married, withdrew the K-1, and filed the I-130, you started a brand new process with its own processing time, unrelated to the previously filed I-129f. A I-129f doesn't get "turned into" a K-3.

Yes I was under that impression until I was told the same thing by a Tier 2 representative. I knew that tier 1 can say misinformation  but I was surprised to hear the same thing reiterated by the Tier 2 agent.  

13 minutes ago, louisaelouise said:

Right, the tier 1 person I talked to didn't know and she transferred my call to a tier 2 supervisor who told me the information. 

 

Edit: the tier 1 rep I talked to  told me to send a second letter. When my call escalated to the tier 2 supervisor, he told me there was no need. They will close the K1 and change it to a K3. 

Just to clarify, I was talking to a tier 1 and she didn't know how to answer my questions so she transferred me to a tier 2 supervisor. The supervisor is the one who advised me afterwards to not worry about sending a second additional letter, that once they reach my K1 case they will see the I-130 and turn the K1 into a K3 and process it that way as I am now married. And  that I should expect to see the change happen in the upcoming weeks. 

17 minutes ago, Crazy Cat said:

 You withdrew the I-129F.  Then, you married.  The process starts from scratch with the I-130.  There is no K3.   Never trust a Teir 1 rep.  They just aren't knowledgeable enough to answer a question like this. 

 

One more thing: The I-129F you filed was marked for a fiance....not for a spouse. 

Right, the tier 1 person I talked to didn't know and she transferred my call to a tier 2 supervisor who told me the information. 

Edit: the tier 1 rep I talked to  told me to send a second letter. When my call escalated to the tier 2 supervisor, he told me there was no need. They will close the K1 and change it to a K3. 

So update on a previous discussion post. 

I previously was doing a K1 visa. My then fiance and I ended up getting married and we filed an I-130. When I sent the I-130 I included the notice of withdrawal of a K1 visa and the decision to get married instead. Previously, I had talked to a tier 1 rep who told me that if I ended up getting married "I wouldn't lose my waiting time" because "things would be transferred."

My K1 visa still shows as active and it has been two months since I submitted the withdrawal notice from the I-130. I ended up calling UCSIS and talked to the tier 1 rep about what I should do. She told me to send a letter the CSC since my I-130 case is in a different location. I brought up my previous conversation with the tier 1 rep and she told me that she wasn't sure and placed me on hold to talk to a supervisor. The supervisor then came and told me that I did not need to do anything. As soon as they would get to my K1 case, they will see the I-130 in the system and automatically close the K1 and turn it into a K3 and then process that......

Anyone has any input on the situation?