Chilly

If one adjusts status directly from a tourist visa what box do you check for "Part 2: Application Type"?

Chilly,

I adjusted from a B1/B2 visa without an attorney and without problems. Take a look at my timeline. I think the fact that I have used a student visa and a visitor visa in the past in good faith (i.e. without overstays) also helped, they can see a person's history of entry/exit from US in their database and a good faith track record of visa usage makes a good impression.

Good luck with the process and congratulations on the baby!

Well, I have a snag. I manged to forget that my wife went back to Mexico right after our wedding for a short visit. She got back into US just fine. Heck, we had no idea there'd even be the possibility of having an issue getting back into US. So she's here now but might have trouble with I-130 because she left the country for a short visit with her family. I scheduled an appointment with our field office to talk it out with an agent.

Most warnings I've read about adjusting status say it's a big bad deal to use marriage as a means to bypass immigration law. This isn't what we've done, and she's here in the US now, so I'm inclined to submit the I-130 as accurately as possible, hide nothing, maybe even include a timeline of events, visits, etc. I can't see how they could do anything but deny the request and tell us to do a K3. Now, if someone falsified an I-130, or attempted to set up a sham wedding to submit an I-130, that's a different story. But if we were conspiring to commit fraud we'd have been the dumbest conspirators ever to have messed up our scam this way. No, scammers research very carefully. In any case, I want to talk to NSCIS before I do anything.

Chilly

I'm burying a school bus full of MREs and ammunition in the national forest this afternoon.

Chilly

where's that then? So I know not to walk over it while I'm buggin' out.

Yeah, right. You want to know where it's buried so you can steal all of the pound cake and peaches from my MREs. Maybe I'll leave a "ham" steak sitting on a stump for you. But toucha my peaches I breaka u face. Once Y3K is over and done with I'll invite you all down into the subterranian Bluebird for a celebration feast of spaghetti garnished with tabasco from tiny little novelty bottles. Bring your own sporks and trioxane.

Well, it's all a moot point. I plumb forgot that my wife went back to Mexico for two weeks right after the wedding so we forfeighted the possibility of simply adjusting status. So I'm "in the soup" with all of you other unfortunate K3 applicants after all. I guess we're lucky she got back into US at all. However, her current stay expires about six weeks before the baby is due, dang it. So we're figuring out what to do. Wish I'd have boned up on this process BEFORE we got hitched (and certainly before we got pregnant, but that wasn't...how shall I say..."planned").

I think I've satisfied the spirit and the letter of the rule about changing status in-country. While we had figured on being married at some point we did not anticipate doing it so soon. I have no quarrel with USCIS or their policies, either. One can read lots of cases on this very forum where someone did someone dirty to get in-country. Imagine how many times it happens where both parties are in on the scam and we never hear about it. Who knows, maybe our economy will tank so badly that we'll be trying to keep people from leaving the US in a few years. Reminds me, I have to get going. I'm burying a school bus full of MREs and ammunition in the national forest this afternoon.

Chilly

Having a spouse in the US and being pregnant with spouse's child are strong ties than anything else she's got in Mexico as far as they're concerned

Maybe if the officer at point of entry were to actually meet me in person he'd be wondering why she keeps coming back to the US.

Appreciate the advice. Keep me from being stupid.

Did some more reading and learning here about the fraud thing. Seems like a sore topic. I wish that I'd had a clearer picture of the immigration process before we got married but I didn't. Had no idea how complicated it could be. But facts are that she came to visit me and during the visit we decided to see the Justice of the Peace and just get married! Figured we'd sort out the immigration thing after the fact, thinking "how hard can it be? I'm a US citizen after all." We didn't plan some big event, just a couple of friends and my parents at the JOP office, none of us having any idea of the possible implications so far as immigration law is concerned. I about threw up on my keyboard when it appeared that she'd have to leave the country for several months because we also found out we're having a baby. I feel fortunate now that it appears that we might be able to adjust status from a B2 visa (I'll still get an attorney, though). We didn't exploit a loophole. Was never our plan. Was no conspiracy.

If I'd have done some studying about immigration processes and known about K1 I'd have gone that route instead. It was normal for her to go home for a few months between visits so going the K1 route would not have been a burden. However, now that we're married with a baby on the way we'd be heartbroken to be separated. So I can empathize with a lot of you who are enduring separation. It seems like our policy is established to terribly inconvenience 95% of the well-meaning people to intercept the 5% who would abuse the system. But consider what the situation could be without such rules. Opens the door for a lot of exploitation of USC by people who just want to get in-country. Also makes possible exploitation of foreigners by USC who would do virtually anything for a chance at a better life. I don't have any suggestions on how to improve the situation for those trying to immigrate legally, but I have a laundry list of ways to help de-motivate illegal immigration. But that's a topic for another forum. I wish well to all of you who are working through the process with honorable intent.

Chilly

Eureka! Just what I was looking for! My Mexican sweetheart came to visit me and we got married. She'd had her B2 visa for a while (before she knew me), and had visited a few times. But we got married on last visit. So it looks like we can adjust status (she's still here in the US) and she won't have to leave country while we wait for her card? That's wonderful if true because we also found out we're going to have a baby. I was dreading that I'd miss the entire pregnancy and birth.

Nothing wrong with your thinking, it COULD work well. However, there is always a chance of her being denied entry, especially now she is married to a USC and once she starts showing...

I've read posts about being denied re-entry at POE while under a K visa. Haven't read anything about someone being denied reentry with a tourist visa. As far as anyone is concerned she's a Mexican married to an American with no intention to immigrate. No law against that as far as I can tell. Once one demonstrates some some intent to immigrate (i.e. K visa) they get all suspicious because they figure if/when they deny the application the applicant will not leave the country. The only downside I can see is that she'll have to leave for a couple months every once in a while. Just as well, she could probably use a break away from me every now and then.

My wife if Mexican. She's visiting on a B2 (tourist) visa. Marriage was not the intent of getting the B2, she got her visa and visited the US (to see a mutual friend who is a Mexican here on work visa) before we ever met. Shortly after marriage we found out we would have a baby. Now I'm looking into the immigration stuff and it's really chapping my rear that it's so complicated for us to be together.

So why should I even bother? Is there any reason NCIS would care that a US citizen is married to a Mexican citizen, and that we come and go to visit each other as much as possible without over-staying our visas? She's going to have our baby this spring and it seems like there's going to be a big hassle with re-entry once we apply for the visa. So why bother until after the baby is born? It's my child so the baby has right to citizenship anyhow, regardless of where the birth takes place. She could go home for a while, then return after a few months so we could be together for the birth. Then she could go back home when we initiate the process. What's wrong with my thinking?

Thanks,

Chilly

We met here in US in 2006. She was visiting a mutual friend that I know from work (also from Mexico, here on work visa). We went to some dinners and movies, not really dating but just trying to entertain a friend's guest. We enjoyed each other's company, though, and continued corresponding via email. We decided to start a relationship and she visited a couple more times for a few weeks each time. During this last visit we were married. I had not investigated the immigration process and assumed that getting married would be a shorter route than fiance visa and all of that. Soon after wedding we discovered that we were going to have a baby! Now that I'm investigating the immigration process I'm very worried that we will be separated during her pregnancy, and maybe even the baby's birth. This is my first child and I don't want to miss a moment of her pregnancy and certainly don't want to be separated for the baby's arrival.

So far as intentions go, there was no sort of long-distance arrangement before our initial introduction. She was a tourist, we met, she visited again and we fell in love, she visited again & we got married (for what it's worth, for the last visit she was here in the US for nine weeks before we were married). Pretty normal story except we happen to be from different countries. I was not prepared for how complicated this would be.

Chilly

To clarify, my wife was here on a tourism visa from Mexico when we were married. She does not have a K1 or K3 visa. Don't you need a K1 or K3 visa before you can adjust status?

Chilly

Hey all. New here. Starting application for my new wife. Have a few questions.

Vital Stats: I'm US citizen. She is living with me here in US, visiting with passport. We were married here in US last month.

Questions:

1. Can she come and go using her passport as a tourist while we do this application thing?

2. Are there some travel restrictions once we start the process?

3. I'm still not clear on the K3 vs CR1/IR1 thing. Which do I want to use?

Reading and learning.

Thanks,

Chilly

If she didn't come to the US with intentions of marrying you she can apply to adjust status and stay here.

Wow, that easy? How would one prove intentions, though?

Hey all. New here. Starting application for my new wife. Have a few questions.

Vital Stats: I'm US citizen. She is living with me here in US, visiting with passport. We were married here in US last month.

Questions:

1. Can she come and go using her passport as a tourist while we do this application thing?

2. Are there some travel restrictions once we start the process?

3. I'm still not clear on the K3 vs CR1/IR1 thing. Which do I want to use?

Reading and learning.

Thanks,

Chilly