K and T

If u just got married back in Dec--will be the CR-1--same process, just that the greencard is good for 2 yrs,where as the Ir-1 is 10 yrs---its based on how long one is married.

She can visit the USA, many of did while going thru the visa process

Ah yes.. CR1.. thanks. I always get those two mixed up. Gotta remember.. C for Conditional.

I know that she can visit US.. but she doesnt have strong ties back to Canada. She works part-time at a pizza-pizza and lives with her parents. Her college ended a week ago and she wont be working full-time again till she's in US. Plus.. we're planning to travel on Canada west coast or Carribean/Mexico. We can travel US later

Hi all,

I love this site.. will love it even more after I finally apply for my wife's IR1

My religious wedding is in Toronto in July and by that time, I will have already applied for my wife's immigration process (I'm thinking EP ) (On a side note.. I got married December 31st and still dont have my Marriage Certificate. Damn you to whoever made a spelling mistake on my first Marriage Certificate )

Anyways.. the main question that I had was that can my wife enter a US airport? I mean.. some of the trips I am looking at right now have layovers within US.. so will it be fine if she enters US only for changing flights? We wont be coming out of the airport while in US.

Second question: any location recommendations for honeymoon? My budget is $2000 total for 5/6 nights.

I've been looking around on westjetvacations.com, kayak.com, cheapcarribean.com, skyauction.com, etc. trying to look for something but at this point.. i'm totally lost

Thanks in advance

Follow Up: Ontario office called up on Thursday and told me that it was their mistake and told me they will ship me the corrected Marriage Certificate as soon as they receive the mispelled Marriage Certificate that I have (and sent back on Friday).

Geez.. if this is an indication as to what's about to come, I'm in for a hell of a ride

Thanks for the reply. Anybody else?

TIA

I'll be calling USCIS in a few days to ask them if that's OK.

Hi all,

I'm the US citizen filling out information for my Canadian wife. I'm filling out the initial package and I just received my Marriage Certificate from Toronto, Canada today. In the marriage certificate, one of the letters is missing in my middle name. I called up Toronto Marriage office and they told me that they will send me a form by mail (which will take 2-3 weeks) and then i have to fill out form and then send it back after which it will take about 6 additional weeks for me to finally get the corrected Marriage Certificate. That is the only way (according to them atleast..) that the name change is possible.

My question is this: Can I send the package with the Marriage Certificate with incorrect middle name and a note saying that I will send in corrected Marriage Certificate when I receive it? I have the Marriage License with correct names which i can send a photocopy of with the initial package as a proof of my correct middle name and what I used for Marriage Certificate. Does the middle name matter?

:help: Thanks in advance. :help:

This is so frustrating.. 10-11 weeks for a correction to a middle name? Are we living in 21st century? :angry:

The NOA-2 is the approval of the petition, not the visa itself. After the petition is approved, there will be an interview and upon a successful interview, the visa will be grated.

If you marry your fiance on New Years Eve then file the I130 as soon as possible (remember, you'll need the marriage certificate for the registry of marriage before you apply, the solomization of marriage is not sufficient - this takes about 6 weeks to get after the marriage) then follow the steps for the CR-1.

Good luck

Yup.. that's the worst part. The waiting for the marriage certificate.

Atleast it'll get me enough time to get other documents (W2,1940,etc etc) ready.

Makes me wonder why do they have K3 option in the first place

Used to be CRs were WAY slower so the LIFE act was inniated to enable families to get together quicker.

They would get the K3, go and live in the US until the CR-1 visa interview and return home and et the CR visa.

CRs have speeded WAY up and doing a K3 is obsolete now.

I guess things couls change.

Just a few reasons why to go with the CR-1. If you are eligible for a IR-1 then you would be nuts going with a K3!

The K3 has to adjust status which cost $1010 + $131 visas application fee.

Have to go thru the cost and hassles of getting a I-693 also.

K3 normally has to do biometrics and have a AOS interview. Time off from work cost the petitioner. PLUS the hassles of submitting the paperwork and going for the interview. Tain’t fun.. Especially if denied or questioned. Ever done a Stokes interview?

That’s the second interview if they are in doubt of your relationship.

Also a possibility of being deported. Yeah doesn’t happen much but it happens.

K3 has to wait about 90 days after they file to get EAD or GC so they can get SSN and be able to work.

CR-1 can work as soon as they get the GC and SS card in the mail. Normally with 6 weeks.

Can’t do a LOT of things without SSN. Like work or get a drivers license in some states.

Some K visas don’t get GC for a LONG time.

If petitioner goes belly up before you get GC you stand a chance of being deported.

If the petitioner loses his/her job after the interview you don’t have to worry about getting a co sponsor to adjust status!

CR-1 cost about $470

Get their GC and SS card in the mail within 6 weeks of arrival.

No biometrics , dealing with civil surgeons, AOS interviews, going to SSA for SS card.

I’m sure I’ve missed a few things.

Bottomline is anyone that goes with the K3 the way things are now are masochist!

Yeah I did but at that time K3s were a LOT faster. That’s not the case anymore.

Wow! That's a very detailed reply. Thanks for that.

My mom was after me saying that K3's can come early.. and I knew that wasn't true.. Now I can show her this thread.

My question is based on the info on --> http://santodomingo.usembassy.gov/atc-090601.html

I will be getting married to my fiance on Dec 31st in Toronto.

If I apply for a K3 visa, since it is considered a non-immigrant visa, it says it will allow my "spouse to travel to United States and apply through USCIS to become a Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR)".

So does that mean after I am done with I130/I129-F part and get my NOA2, my then wife will be able to travel to US and apply to become a LPR? I understand that she will still have to go back for her medical and interview, since we live only 7-7.5 hours away by car from each other, that would be no problem.

I think what i am saying above is not possible. Am I correct? Or she can in fact come to US and then file for LPR and then after she gets her visa file for AOS. I dont mind with the extra money associated with K3/AOS nor do I mind her not being able to work right after she comes to US.

Thanks in advance

It's once you GET the K3 visa, your spouse can travel to the US and apply for LPR. So, you have to go through the whole process, including an embassy interview in your spouse's country.

Thanks for the reply!

Hmm.. then what's the purpose of applying for LPR? Is AOS the process to become a LPR? And in the case of CR1, she gets the green card right away.. if i recall correctly.

Makes me wonder why do they have K3 option in the first place

My question is based on the info on --> http://santodomingo.usembassy.gov/atc-090601.html

I will be getting married to my fiance on Dec 31st in Toronto.

If I apply for a K3 visa, since it is considered a non-immigrant visa, it says it will allow my "spouse to travel to United States and apply through USCIS to become a Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR)".

So does that mean after I am done with I130/I129-F part and get my NOA2, my then wife will be able to travel to US and apply to become a LPR? I understand that she will still have to go back for her medical and interview, since we live only 7-7.5 hours away by car from each other, that would be no problem.

I think what i am saying above is not possible. Am I correct? Or she can in fact come to US and then file for LPR and then after she gets her visa file for AOS. I dont mind with the extra money associated with K3/AOS nor do I mind her not being able to work right after she comes to US.

Thanks in advance

Yes, she will interview and have her medical in Toronto.

You could have all the forms ready to go, filled out and signed, as well as the supporting documentation so incase she is in India when time comes to submit the forms, you could simply mail them in for her.

IF, and that is a big if, the interview is scheduled before she returns to Canada then you would need to contact the consulate in Montreal and request another interview date. The medical she schedules once the interview has been assigned so you won't need to reshedule that, just schedule it when she is in Toronto.

Read the guids, particularly LingChe's short cuts to complete all the necessary forms before she goes to India. She doesn't have to date them, you could do that at the time of submission

Good luck.

Many thanks to you and all others who replied. I'm freaking out a little less now

Yes, such information could indeed effect the outcome of the interview. Most consulates don't like to hear about ANY ceremony that remotely sounds like a 'wedding' when they are considering issuing a K1 visa.

And yes, you can marry anywhere in the world and then apply for a CR1/K3 (I'd do a CR1).

only caveat would be that a K-3 interview would occur in the country of marriage (so for example, if you got married in Mexico you would have your visa interview there even if you were a resident of Canada)... unless of course it took place in the USA, then it would be in the applicant's country of residence

So if I go to Toronto on 25th.. and assume we get married on like 28th or 29th or something like that, come back to US and then file CR1.

She would have medical in Toronto and her interview in Montreal, correct?

I think CR1 would be the best route for us now.

Just a little side question, to reconfirm an answer. After we have started the process, she has to go to India for about 1.5 months. Will her not being able to fill out forms affect things negatively (other than the extra time it takes). While she has gone to India, if she gets mailed Medical test dates or interview dates and assuming she would not be in Canada at that time, how would the rescheduling of those events take place?

TIA

Thanks for the info!

I guess I should have been more clear. The wedding I am talking about will not be the legal wedding. It will just be a religious wedding with family and friends at a temple in Toronto.

The real wedding will just be a court wedding after she gets her visa and enters US.

My interview took 8 months from the date of filing and we had no issues, no RFEs.

Also, are you sure your religious wedding will not be offical? If you are married before your fiance Visa is used, then you will have to ditch the fiance Visa and file all over again for a spousal Visa.

I also had a question about that..

The religious wedding will not be official. But assume for some reason someone tells immigration officials or tries to imply that the religious wedding was official (even though there was no marriage certificate issued), would that cause a problem before interview or in the two year period after she gets her greencard and becomes absolutely legal resident? Assume someone shows photos/videos of wedding and us taking our vows or something like that.

Question 2: I am going to Canada this winter anyways. Can I marry her in a Canadian court and then start the CR1/K3 filing? Or do we have to get married in US before we can do that?

Thanks you all so much. It's so frustrating and i'm pissed on myself for waiting so long to get this started.

Thanks for the info!

I guess I should have been more clear. The wedding I am talking about will not be the legal wedding. It will just be a religious wedding with family and friends at a temple in Toronto.

The real wedding will just be a court wedding after she gets her visa and enters US.

Thanks for the info!

I got couple more questions..

Assuming I go the K1 route, after I am done with my side and things transferred from NVC to Embassy and after Embassy mails forms to my fiancee, does she have to fill out the forms right away? The reason I'm asking is because if I file soon, she might be in India around the time she gets mailed the forms.

Second question is how long does it take from when she starts sending out initial forms to the interview date? From reading people's timelines on this side, I'm seeing everything from 2 months to 6 months. Is it really that random?

Thanks in advance again.

Hi all.. first post here. I've been reading the forums and doing research on my own.. but i'm a little confused.

Background information on me:

I am a US citizen (resident of India till 1999) and having been living in NJ, US for the past 11 years. I met the love of my life through internet and we have been together (virtually ) since 2/14/09.

Background information on her:

She lives in Toronto and is currently an Indian citizen as she came to Canada about 4 years ago. She took the Canadian citizenship test and should get her Canadian citizenship in a month or two hopefully.

We have met in person 3 times (June in Syracuse, NY; July in Philadelphia; August in Toronto) and will be together for 9 days in Toronto between 12/25 and 1/02

Currently we're engaged.. but I am confused as to what way would be better for us to take. I can just as easily get married in court when I go to Canada.

Now here are the bigger problems:

1) She is not a Canadian citizen yet. How would it affect the process if we apply for K1/K3 before she gets her Canadian citizenship?

2) She will be going to India for her brother's wedding in late April and wont be back till June. How will that affect some of the process requirements? (ex. physical test)

3) Our parents and we are planning the wedding to be in July '10.

She currently has a 10 year visa to travel US. Can we apply for her immigration and live together while the process is ongoing?

Thanks in advance for all your answers.