SnowColdIce

So basically if we marry in person then immediately it's all ok since we are physically there. If we marry through Utah Internet Marriage, even if we have seen each other physically before, we need to see each other physically again after the marriage for the CR-1 to be valid?

Do you happen to know if you can start the process as soon as you get married?

Thanks! Why did you wait 4-5 months to file your petition? Was it personal choice? Or is there some wait time between when you marry and when you can submit the petition? Also, when you visited, did you do so on a B Visa or with the Visa Waiver Program?

Hi @TBoneTX! Yes I have been reading quite a lot about that region since I have also been considering K1. I feel like I know you now because I have seen you in so many threads haha! Yes I am aware Warsaw is no longer a safe option so most people are having it transferred if possible. As I understand, we need a marriage certificate to submit the application. In case of marriage on a 3rd country or even in the US with Utah Zoom Marriage, we take the marriage certificate of that country is that correct? For example if married on Turkey, then we need to get the Marriage Certificate from there and possibly even have it translate it?

Lemonslice, does that mean that for CR1, usually the interview is had where she resides? Even if we get married in a 3rd country?

Although that would be the normal route, US immigrant visa services are not going on at the moment in Moscow. They are all transferred to Warsaw, Poland by the NVC.

Hello everyone, Quick question to all of you folks that are more experienced on the CR1 side of things. My other half is Russian, she lives there. I cannot just simply go there due to the current world situation, so we just meet in 3rd countries. Our next trip will probably be in Dubai or Turkey due to the relatively ease of travel for her to be able to go there. Now we are also in the process of deciding if go with K1 or CR1, for CR1 my question now is, I read somewhere that the interview is had where you get married. Example, if we go to Turkey and get married there, then our Visa interview WILL be in Turkey? Am I correct in this? I cannot marry her on Moscow for obvious reasons that is somewhat dangerous for me to go. Another thing would be to do a Utah Zoom Marriage, which apparently it is fully recognized by USCIS and there are no issues with it whatsoever according to some posts here. Is that correct? In the case that we marry using the Utah Zoom Marriage, where do we have our Interview? (Assigned consulate for Russia is Warsaw, Poland. Problem is that Russians cannot enter there unless they get REALLY creative, so most people doing K1 for example are having the case transferred to Turkey, or Kazakhstan.) As a side question, any idea if AFTER applying to CR1, will it be ok for her to apply for B2 so we can at least meet here whenever we want while she waits for the I-130 to process? Thank you all in advance!

Holy cow this blew up a bit. Thank you all for this info! I am now considering both this and CR1 depending on our possibilities and timelines.

I am just curious for your perspective and experience on this, no need to react this way. Just questioning your statement the same way as I question theirs out of curiosity. I am genuinely just curious about your experience.

I understand the letter of intent. However what about other people's experience? @powerpuff and @SalishSea seem to have indicated an engagement ring and wedding plans are not required as much.

Hi powerpuff, yes I am starting to consider it now more. I am aware of the AOS application also, and its drawbacks, but now I just found out how long the work permit also takes. And she would not want to sit idle for too long here. I will research into CR1 now, same as to decide between a marriage in 3rd country or Utah Zoom Marriage.

Thank you SalishSea! I am starting to think about it more now when you said this. I will read more on VJ now.

I understand, however the CR-1 adds to the whole process that we need to get married AND also have some sort of proof of our marriage like joint accounts, etc..which are an impossible thing to do since she lives in Russia. Although I must say I have considered CR-1 a lot as well. The whole AOS is a huge PITA and I thought honestly that the work permit would take much shorter.

Ah that makes sense, I thought PDFs were not allowed for some reason since the signature ink is not "fresh" or something... Did you submit your process by yourself? Or did you use a Visa service or lawyer? Any recommendation from your end?

SalishSea, thanks for your reply! I might be asking an obvious thing here, but how would we be able to sign the statement if she is halfway across the world until we see each other in 1-2 months? Assuming that I want to submit my application at least by the end of this upcoming week.

Hi everyone! My girlfriend and I met while on a trip. We exchanged numbers we were purely friends then. She went back to her country, and I came back to US. We kept talking as friends and as usually things goes, we planned a trip to see each other for 2 weeks, we did and it was amazing and all great. Because we have been talking for so long and also because we are already planning another trip to see each other and be together, we also discussed the K1 possibility since we do want to be together. I have not proposed yet, and I completely understand the whole K1 process and it's requirements. However one thing stood up to me, do I need to be engaged to her before starting the process? Can I start the process, get engaged, then marry as soon as she come? I have evidence of our intentions, due to chats, and also photos of us together since we were a relationship pretty much from day 1 since we just clicked. Will have even more photos on the second trip but that is like 2 months from now. In essence, any issues I submit now and don't have specific wedding plans or are not engaged yet? Even though I do plan on getting engaged with her.

Thank you all, that makes total sense. I understand now.

Hello Everyone, new to the forum! I was wondering, USCIS has varying wait times for Visa processing centers (K1), for example Texas and California have 16.5 months wait time as of now. However Vermont for example has 5, and Potomac 14 I think. Obviously we all want our cases to be approved and followed as fast as possible. But is there even a way to decide where does your application go to? For example I do not mind traveling to Vermont for 1 or 2 days just to submit my application there. (I live in FL). Or can you specify so in Form 129F? I understand patience is key and part of the process, but it just feels so off that processing centers have such a varying degree of wait times. Thanks in advance!