Ireti

CSC and VSC have different procedures. Your method is not good advice for anybody with a petition being returned to VSC.

so are you saying its not a good idea to re-apply through VSC which is my service center?

When you contact your states senator/congressman, they should have an aide that will help with assisting them with the congressional inquiry. They will ask you a couple of questions like what your name is, your fiancee name, what was written on the 221g (visa denial notice) and etc. You may even have to fax them permission to do a congressional inquiry on you and your fiancee's behalf. Last year December 30,2009, my husband (he was my fiancee then) was denied saying that our marriage was for immigration purposes as well. I was devestated. That same day thats when I contacted my senator for help. 2 days later, the Lagos Consulate contacted my husband to reschedule an interview. Another couple was in the same position as I was in, contacted their senator and they too were granted a second interview. It really all depends. Dont be discouraged. Continue to fight. And with prayer, anything is possible. Take care.

Thank you Nwanyioma, I will try this route. Hopefully it turns out well. Otherwise, looks like I will have to withdraw the first one and start all over.

No matter what others say you can do a second K1 and be successful. We did it. Talk to your fiance about any questions and his answer and see if any were not the same as your paperwork stated. Nigeria is famous for denying first time applicants. Do not give up

Thanks for your encouragement. Did you withdraw the first one before reapplying for the second?

Was only the last visit documented?

No all the visits were documented. We have pictures from 2003, 2004 and 2010 but the most recent of this year had the majority of the pictures. I have the passport and visa stamps from these times too.

Were you given a denial notice or a 212g asking for a new qualified sponsor and more relationship evidence?

We were given a denial notice stating that the marriage is for immigration purpose and will be sent back to uscis for revocation and he was told to appeal.

Well first you need to find out who your state congressman/senator is. You can google that information. Contact them as soon as you can. Explain to them what happened at the consulate and ask them to do a congressional inquiry. If successful they could give you another interview date. At least thats what happened in my case. I hope that was helpful? All the best and goodluck.

Nwanyioma

Ok thank you so much. This gives me hope. Do I have to speak to the congressman/senator or just anyone in their office? I will call first thing tomorrow morning. What would they need from me to do a congressional inquiry? Were you denied your k-1 at first and told the marriage was for immigration purpose because that is what they told my fiancee. Thank you so much Nwanyioma. Where there is life, there is hope.

If processed at the California Service Center then you can be virtually certain there will be no opportunity to appeal. If Vermont, you might have a chance to make an appeal but only the slimmest of chances for an eventual K1 success.

Unless you're prepared to marry in Nigeria and start over with a properly managed spouse visa process, your chances of being together are slim and none. Otherwise, chances are pretty good. I would plan on spending as much time together in person as possible as well as getting your financial or sponsorship house in order.

What exactly should we do if we were to appeal in Vermont? I had to go visit him in the middle of the semester in school and that took a toll on my academics. I am not sure I can afford to go again since I am so busy rotating in hospitals. Should I just withdraw the denied one and start all over? I just went to Lagos in February so I can still use the pictures and stuff from that visit if I start reapplying now right? Thanks for ur help.

Do you have a co sponsor now?

Otherwise all of the above does not really matter.

Yes we have a co-sponsor now. We just didn't have enough time to get it all together before the interview. What do you suggest we do now?

So you had a relationship with him 6 years ago and broke up but then started last year and you visited him only ONCE prior filing for I-129F? If this is the case, i can see why they deny your fiance. I am sorry for being honest here but thats how it looks to the 3rd eye in my opinion. If you had visited him atleast 3 times prior filing would have been (since 2009) a different story i feel. Is this the case here?

Yes we started about 6 years ago and were both very young. We talked about marriage then, but didn't want to rush and decided to wait. Since reconnecting, I could only afford to visit once this year considering being in Medical school.

Ireti,

So sorry for what you and your fiancee is going through. Lagos Consulate is a very very difficult consulate to obtain a visa from. I was once in your situation before sometime last year, and I know how you feel. My senator from the State of Maryland (Senator Benjamin Cardin), helped me quite a bit. See if you can get in contact with your states senator/congressman for more assistance. Please dont be discouraged. There is ALWAYS a solution to a solveable problem. Make sure that you are able to find a co-sponsor. I hope that everything works out for the best for you and your fiancee so you two can be reunited together soon. Take Care.

Nwanyioma

Thank you so much. What exactly do I need to do to obtain help from my senator as you did?

Lot's of good hypothetical answers here folks but until the OP posts the exact wording of the notice handed to her fiance, it's all speculation. Please post exactly what the notice says, so the speculation can stop and real help begin. The right answer has probably already been given but there's no way to know without reading the notice.

What you can be sure of is that no fiance or spouse visa is going to be issued without a qualified sponsor's affidavit of support.

The exact wording read to me by my finacee is that the marriage is believed to be for immigration purposes and will be returned to uscis for revocation. I really wish we could get another interview date while its still in Lagos and I believe I read that somewhere on this site about couples that had similar situations and were allowed to come another date. We don't know what to do

Sorry for being ignorant. What is "OP"?

Hi, my fiancee read the letter saying that the marriage is for immigration purposes and the petition will be returned to uscis for revocation. Is there anything we can do now since the petition is still with them in Lagos?

The OP also said the consular officer "feels the relationship is not genuine" and "said we didnt have enough pictures".

The marker has to do with the reason the consular officer cites for returning the petition to USCIS. If the consular officer cites only INA 212(a)(4), which relates to the public charge requirement, then a finding of fact would only mean the beneficiary was inadmissible because they couldn't meet the public charge test, but there would be no ban. If the consular officer returns the petition because they believe the relationship is a sham, primarily for the purpose of securing an immigration benefit, then they cite INA 212(a)(6)(C ), which relates to misrepresentation or fraud to secure an immigration benefit. Consular officers cite paragraph (6)(C ) the majority of the time when they use their discretion to deny a visa, even if the reason was because the beneficiary didn't have enough pictures or chat logs to convince them the relationship was real. A finding of fact means the beneficiary is guilty of fraud, and subsequently banned from the US.

The P6C marker exists if the consulate cited paragraph (6)(C ) when returning the petition. It becomes a finding of fact if USCIS makes a final decision not to reaffirm the petition approval. If they send a NOID or NOIR then they're telling you that they intend to make that final decision unless you can successfully convince them otherwise. If you withdraw the petition then they may close the petition with the same finding, which means the P6C becomes a finding of fact. Or, they can close the petition without prejudice, which means they are making no final decision, so the P6C marker is left unanswered. This is the scenario where some consulates were apparently sitting on the second approved petition because USCIS made no final decision on the previous petition.

Marc covered this in pretty good detail in his articles. Yes, paragraph (6)(C ) IS specifically about fraud and misrepresentation, but consulates cite it when they just aren't convinced. Something about the circumstances didn't seem right to them, or the beneficiary didn't answer the questions to their satisfaction, or just didn't have enough evidence. No actual fraud was committed, but the bureaucratic process leaves them essentially guilty of fraud anyway.

My fiance states that he was told to appeal but given a letter stating that the marriage is for immigration purposes and will be returned to Uscis for revocation. He said the officer firmly asked "so how do u intend to support yourselves if your both still in school"? I hope to graduate in 2 years and get into a good residency but will not be working till then. What is the most practical thing we can do for now? I really wish something can be rectified while still in Lagos because having it sent back is an unbearable thought to deal with. Any suggestions?

K1's are frequently expired , especially for CSC petitions , which means there is no accidental bad notes on your file. Withdrawing the petition will cause that to happen which is what a lot of people do when going CR1, I did the double K1 and came out on top. You have to really prepare for Lagos and going in less knowing you don't meet the affidavit requirements is just impossible. The thing about going for a second K1 is that it doesn't require another trip to Lagos to get the ball rolling. Question for the OP , how many times have you been together ? One trip or more ?

We met in 2003 in Lagos, started dating then and went back in 2004. We were both young at the time, then things died down a bit between us but we reconnected again early last year and I went to visit this year. Any suggestions on what we can do?

Sorry to hear that.

I disagree with JimVaPhuong. You were prepared but someone bailed out on you. Find someone you can trust and rely on to be your co-sponsor such as a family member. Honestly, I sent about 20 pics to my fiance, but it gas a variety of pics (ei. with family, friends, just the two of us). Hope it doesn't effect our decision. Do you have anymore pics to present? What form were you given? Looks like you are given a second chance. Wish you the best.

Thanks Joyjoy, he was told by the officer to appeal but the actual form given as he read to me states that the visa was denied because they believe the marriage is for immigration purpose and will be sent back to USCIS do for revocation. It doesn't look like a second chance and we don't know what to do.

Hello everyone,

I didn't know where else to turn and so happy I found this site.

The story is that my fiancee was denied his K-1 visa at his interview in Lagos, Nigeria yesterday (friday 11/19). He says that the interview went well until he was asked for affivadit of support which he had but unfortunately our co-sponsor flopped last minute and we didn't have enough time to get someone else and he only had mine as primary sponsor. The problem is that I am a full-time student in my third year of Medical School and do not work. The CO said that he doesn't believe that we can support each other since we are both students and feels the relationship is not genuine. The CO also said we didnt have enough pictures but he had about 30. We don't know what next action to take or how we can rectify anything. My fiancee states that he was given a form to appeal. Can anyone please advice on what we should possibly do next. I already emailed the consulate requesting another interview date to find another co-sponsor. Anyone pls help....Thanks