Our CrazyRide, From Mexico to the USA

[CrazyRide 2]

Hello Everyone, my name is Patrick and I was born and raised right here in the USA, and like all of you my fiance was not Her name Is Dalia and she is from Mexico. Dalia and I met, believe it or not, in the state of Maine. Over the past two years our friendship grew into a romance that contiuned to thrive and then in July, two weeks before her work visa expired, I proposed to her and she said yes!! We weren't really sure what to do next, she already had a plan ticket home once her visa was up, and she haddent seen her family in two years, so there was little debate on changing her flight plans, plus I was already flying with her to meet her family and spend some time in her native country. We tossed around the idea of doing a quick marrage right here in the States and not telling anyone, but we had little time to prepare, infact I found out after it was too late that in the state of Pensylvainia it takes about a week to finalize a marrage, which we didn't have. So we packed our bags and went to Mexico!

Now I am back in the States and my fiance is in Mexico and we have stated the process of the K-1 Fiance Visa I have spent this week doing a LOT of research and to my pleasure have found VJ.com!! Which so far has been an incredible resourse for us! As well as several guides and the correct forms to fill out on http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis.

Thoughout the whole process I am going to keep updating this thread and post as much information as possible for the comunity. I'm sure there will be plenty of ups and downs as well as lessons learned that can be shared with the next couple starting this journey.

-Patrick

[Pitaya 2,576]

~~Moved from K-1 Process to K-1 Progress Forum~~

~Progress of K-1 journey to follow~

Edited August 3, 2013 by A&B

[janet&adonis 57]

Good luck on your journey!

[CrazyRide 2]

Ok so I am going to summerize what research I have done up to this point and where we curently stand with the K-1 process.

So when my family found our that Dalia and I were engaged my cousins were the first people to tell me about the "Fiance Visa" with that phrase and google, I was able to wander my way on to the USCIS website and read about the I-129F form which would start the petition for the K-1 Visa.

USCIS Fiance Visa Information <--- Start Here!!

USCIS I-129F Information

Instructions for I-129F Form! <--- I read several times and highlighted everything important!!!

After finding these documents there were still a few questions that we had, mostly how long does this process take!!! I asked my uncle and he said 10 months, but then his wife said it only took 4!? So off to google I went and searched something like, "Fiance Visa Time" and thats when I stumbled arcoss VisaJorney.com and their guides.

I found a nice flow chart:
K-1 Process Flowchart

And a detail guide:
K-1 Step-by-Step Guide

I was a little upset that VJ.com's I-129F was very out of date, by about 7 years As well as their "example" I-129F form. The guide refercens several question numbers that are on the old form, but not the new one and also says, "4. Declaration of how you met in person in the last two years. This should be a single typed page attachment regarding question 18 of the I-129F. Make sure to sign and date it."[/size] This is incorrect to the current I-129F form. As required I wrote out about a page worth of how we met as "Proof that we Met" and our continued relationship with evidence backing it up, but it does not pertain to any question on the I-129F form, there is however a question on the form, Part 2, 34.a that asks you to "Discribe the circumstances under which you met." And I just wrote a brife discription on the three lines of how we met. This is just an observation that had me a little confuesed at first.

So after I read though all the guides I started filling out the I-129F from on my computer, I did what I could and e-mailed a copy to Dalia along with a G-325A Form USCIS Website, an out of date example of the G-325A Form VJ.com and the VJ.com Fiance Letter of Intent Example

I asked her to send the I-129F from back to me via e-mail, but to fill out, sign, and snail mail me the other forms along with a passpport photo and a ticket stub from the Broawdway Show Chicago that we saw together.

So thats pretty much it for now, I have been working on a "proof we have met" packet, trying to round up as much evidence as possible. I'd like to scan it and attach it to this thread so you can tell me what you think, but that wont be til next week sometime. If Dalia sends out her stuff Monday, I am hoping to get the I-129F petition in the mail by mid August, I hope...

[KayDeeCee 4,892]

I was a little upset that VJ.com's I-129F was very out of date, by about 7 years As well as their "example" I-129F form. The guide refercens several question numbers that are on the old form, but not the new one and also says, "4. Declaration of how you met in person in the last two years. This should be a single typed page attachment regarding question 18 of the I-129F. Make sure to sign and date it."[/size] This is incorrect to the current I-129F form. As required I wrote out about a page worth of how we met as "Proof that we Met" and our continued relationship with evidence backing it up, but it does not pertain to any question on the I-129F form, there is however a question on the form, Part 2, 34.a that asks you to "Discribe the circumstances under which you met." And I just wrote a brife discription on the three lines of how we met. This is just an observation that had me a little confuesed at first.

The example forms here on VJ are outdated, but that is because most of the new versions just came out recently USCIS seems to be overhauling all their forms. The questions are mainly the same though, even if numbered differently. Also, the part about attaching an extra sheet was not a requirement of the old form either. Some people put only what fits in the few lines on the form and some people attach an extra sheet with a longer explanation. Attaching the sheet was just a recommendation and not something that was actually a requirement of the previous I-129F form version.

[CrazyRide 2]

The example forms here on VJ are outdated, but that is because most of the new versions just came out recently USCIS seems to be overhauling all their forms. The questions are mainly the same though, even if numbered differently. Also, the part about attaching an extra sheet was not a requirement of the old form either. Some people put only what fits in the few lines on the form and some people attach an extra sheet with a longer explanation. Attaching the sheet was just a recommendation and not something that was actually a requirement of the previous I-129F form version.

Thank you Jay-Kay. I actually just finished reading your timeline and enjoyed it so much that I sent it to my fiance to read, I cant believe it took your fiance about 4 months to get a K-1. I hope we have a speedy process like that.

[KayDeeCee 4,892]

Thank you Jay-Kay. I actually just finished reading your timeline and enjoyed it so much that I sent it to my fiance to read, I cant believe it took your fiance about 4 months to get a K-1. I hope we have a speedy process like that.

You are welcome. We got really lucky to have sent the petition at a time where they were approving petitions really quickly. Once your petition is approved, it does not take too long to be able to get everything done and have the K-1 interview. The petition approval will be the longest wait. While waiting, you can read and ready yourselves for how it all works to get through Juarez > http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/438076-what-exactly-do-we-ask-the-nvc-for/?p=6327340

Good luck you you both! Oh, and my brother's name is Patrick.

[CrazyRide 2]

August 7th Update:

So no doubt the most time consuming and frustrating part, other then waiting for my Fiance to send her signed G-325A and passport photos, of the I-129F petition is gathering "proof" of my fiance and I meeting. I have been researching vj.com and reading several RFEs and it seems, the number one RFE is the USCIS requesting more proof, even after the petitioner sends in the required and recommended evidence, pictures, conversations stating a meeting, plane tickets, ect. So after reading about primary evidence and secondary evidence and using them to prove your case I have come up with approximately 50 pages stating and supporting my case. Now 50 pages may seem like a lot but the more I read the more it seemed like the USCIS can for whatever reason ask for more evidence, so I figured I would make extra sure to have all my bases covered. Now I am not saying I printed out 50 pages of Facebook chats, that it self does not prove anything, nor does a few photos of us together. Instead, every time I supplied "evidence" I made sure to back it up, after all anyone can fake conversations, so if we made plans to meet, I would look for anything to prove that meeting took place, aka, receipts, photos, FB tags, affidavits. I also included a two page letter in front of the evidence stating my case that gives an narrative with dates and the accopaning supporting document that proves that we were together. Example: "On January 15, 2012 Dalia and I traveled to New Your City together and spent the weekend there, See Supporting Document #4." I felt the need to support every claim because, well, that is what they are looking for!

I hoping that this proof is enough It's amazing how after 2 plus years of Dalia and I meeting how it can be so hard to find concrete examples of us being together, we hardly took photos of together, I didn't save any receipts, and we hardly traveled together, at least in a plane or train. Our saving grace is that last month I flew with her to Mexico, and we took several photos, and I just happen to have a few original receipts with me and i hadn't had the chance to delete any of our boarding passes or itineraries

So my advice for anyone trying to put together their "proof" is that think about, how can you prove your proof? That and check every coat pocket and pants pocket as well as every drawer, because you never know what receipt or ticket stub you might come across!

[KayDeeCee 4,892]

Passport stamps are some of the best things you can show for proof of meeting. Boarding passes and baggage claim tickets are good too. If you do not have receipts, bank or credit card statements showing use wherever you were while visiting can work too. Chat logs prove nothing for proof of meeting, Chat logs and phone records are for proof of relationship, which is not the same thing. USCIS does not even care about your proof of relationship and will most likely never read a word from your FB chats.

Adding in a bit of relationship evidence is not a bad thing though. That evidence will be in your file for when your fiancee goes for her K-1 visa interview. Keep in mind that anything you supply them with can be used for them to form their line of questioning around, so the fiancee should know exactly what is sent with the I-129F petition and read it all.

[CrazyRide 2]

Good points!

I have a question about the passport stamp, Ideally we would both want a stamp to show as proof, but when we went to mexico, of course only I got the stamp, I have included the stamp in my passport in the petition but wan't really sure what it proved. I guess it validates my trip.

[KayDeeCee 4,892]

It shows that you were in Mexico when you say you were. The bank/credit card statements, boarding passes and photos together from that same time all help form your proof of meeting face-to-face.

[visagreenhorn 4]

Ok so I am going to summerize what research I have done up to this point and where we curently stand with the K-1 process.

So when my family found our that Dalia and I were engaged my cousins were the first people to tell me about the "Fiance Visa" with that phrase and google, I was able to wander my way on to the USCIS website and read about the I-129F form which would start the petition for the K-1 Visa.

USCIS Fiance Visa Information <--- Start Here!!

USCIS I-129F Information

Instructions for I-129F Form! <--- I read several times and highlighted everything important!!!

After finding these documents there were still a few questions that we had, mostly how long does this process take!!! I asked my uncle and he said 10 months, but then his wife said it only took 4!? So off to google I went and searched something like, "Fiance Visa Time" and thats when I stumbled arcoss VisaJorney.com and their guides.

I found a nice flow chart:

K-1 Process Flowchart

And a detail guide:

K-1 Step-by-Step Guide

I was a little upset that VJ.com's I-129F was very out of date, by about 7 years As well as their "example" I-129F form. The guide refercens several question numbers that are on the old form, but not the new one and also says, "4. Declaration of how you met in person in the last two years. This should be a single typed page attachment regarding question 18 of the I-129F. Make sure to sign and date it."[/size] This is incorrect to the current I-129F form. As required I wrote out about a page worth of how we met as "Proof that we Met" and our continued relationship with evidence backing it up, but it does not pertain to any question on the I-129F form, there is however a question on the form, Part 2, 34.a that asks you to "Discribe the circumstances under which you met." And I just wrote a brife discription on the three lines of how we met. This is just an observation that had me a little confuesed at first.

So after I read though all the guides I started filling out the I-129F from on my computer, I did what I could and e-mailed a copy to Dalia along with a G-325A Form USCIS Website, an out of date example of the G-325A Form VJ.com and the VJ.com Fiance Letter of Intent Example

I asked her to send the I-129F from back to me via e-mail, but to fill out, sign, and snail mail me the other forms along with a passpport photo and a ticket stub from the Broawdway Show Chicago that we saw together.

So thats pretty much it for now, I have been working on a "proof we have met" packet, trying to round up as much evidence as possible. I'd like to scan it and attach it to this thread so you can tell me what you think, but that wont be til next week sometime. If Dalia sends out her stuff Monday, I am hoping to get the I-129F petition in the mail by mid August, I hope...

I was excited to check out your detailed information, but the links aren't working for me at all. Some of them lead me to blank pages and one leads to this error:

404 - Requested Page Not Found on Site

The page you requested is not on our site.

Please look for related information on the USCIS Home Page.

Sorry for any inconvenience.

Am I the only one experiencing this with the links?

[dwinge 34]

Best Wishes on your journey!

[KayDeeCee 4,892]

I was excited to check out your detailed information, but the links aren't working for me at all. Some of them lead me to blank pages and one leads to this error:

404 - Requested Page Not Found on Site

The page you requested is not on our site.

Please look for related information on the USCIS Home Page.

Sorry for any inconvenience.

Am I the only one experiencing this with the links?

It is not just you. A lot of those links do not work.

This is the ink to the I-129F info on the USCIS site >

http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.5af9bb95919f35e66f614176543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=a10e4154d7b3d010VgnVCM10000048f3d6a1RCRD&vgnextchannel=db029c7755cb9010VgnVCM10000045f3d6a1RCRD

This is the G-325A info > http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.5af9bb95919f35e66f614176543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=d7c84154d7b3d010VgnVCM10000048f3d6a1RCRD&vgnextchannel=db029c7755cb9010VgnVCM10000045f3d6a1RCRD

[CrazyRide 2]

Best Wishes on your journey!

Thank you

As for the dead links, thanks for the heads up! I must have typed them out wrong when I embedded the text, I'll fix that as soon as I can.