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The K-1 Fiancée Visa is appropriate for:
- Foreign nationals residing abroad who are engaged to marry a U.S. citizen and intend to travel to the United States for the purpose of marrying within 90 days and adjusting status to lawful permanent residence;
- Foreign nationals present in the U.S. who are engaged to marry a U.S. citizen, intend to apply for the K-1 visa abroad, and intend to return to the United States for the purpose of marrying within 90 days and adjusting status to lawful permanent residence.
Last updated: Feb. 3, 2010
K-1 Fiancée Visa - Frequently Asked Questions
The K-1 Fiancée Visa is available to foreign nationals seeking to come to the United States for the purpose of marrying their U.S. citizen fiancé within 90 days of admission into the U.S.
The K-2 visa is for a child of a K-1 fiancée visa holder, and allows the child to either accompany or follow-to-join the principal K-1 fiancée to the United States.
All K visa petitions must be filed in the United States with the district office of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, having jurisdiction over the U.S. citizen fiancé’s current or intended residence in the U.S. After the petition is approved, the DHS will forward it to the appropriate U.S. Consulate abroad.
All K-1 and K-2 visas are processed at immigrant visa issuing consular posts, as opposed to non-immigrant visa issuing posts.
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5. What documents are required at the time of applying for a K-1 visa?
After the petition has been approved in the U.S., it is forwarded to the appropriate U.S. consulate post abroad. In general, applicants will need to provide a medical exam report, police certificate, proof of relationship, and financial affidavit of support. For more detailed guidance, please contact the particular consular post processing your case, or consult with an attorney.
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6. What is the validity period of an approved fiancée petition?
An approved fiancée petition is valid for four months, from the date of approval by the USCIS. Approved petitions may be revalidated by a consular officer for additional four month periods, provided that the petitioner and beneficiary are legally free to marry and continue to intend to marry within 90 days after the beneficiary’s admission into the U.S.
The K-1 fiancée visa is a single entry visa, valid for a six-month period. A K-1 visa holder may not leave the U.S. and return again on the same K-1 visa. The fiancée would need to apply for a second K-1 visa, which would only be available if the applicant had not yet married the U.S. citizen fiancée, and the initial 90 days had not yet expired. The couple must still marry within 90 days from the date of the first admission into the U.S.
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8. Can the requirement that the petitioner and beneficiary have met in person be waived?
The regulations require that both the U.S. citizen and the foreign national fiancée have met in person within the two year period preceding the date of receipt of the fiancée petition. This requirement may be waived, at the discretion of the U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security, if the petitioner is able to establish that compliance with the requirement would result in extreme hardship to the U.S. citizen petitioner, or that compliance would violate the beneficiary’s long-established cultural customs.
No. A fiancée petition filed prior to the termination of all marriages is not valid, and may not serve as the basis for issuance of a K-1 visa. U.S. immigration law requires that the petitioner and beneficiary be legally free to marry at the time of filing the petition and remain so thereafter.
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10. What are some of the red flags that may subject a K-1 visa application to greater scrutiny?
After petition approval, at the time of filing for a K-1 visa, there are several issues that may subject the beneficiary to greater scrutiny, and bring into question the validity of the relationship between the petitioner and the beneficiary. Examples of possible red flags include: children of the beneficiary not disclosed on the petition, undisclosed prior marriages of the beneficiary, a current pregnancy, etc.
A petition may be terminated by the petitioner in writing, requesting withdrawal of the petition, at any time prior to the arrival of the beneficiary in the U.S. The death of the petitioner automatically terminates the petition.
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12. What is the procedure for requesting the waiver of a ground of inadmissibility?
K visa applicants may apply for a nonimmigrant waiver so long as an immigrant waiver would also be available to the applicant at the time of applying for adjustment of status to a lawful permanent resident based on marriage to the U.S. citizen fiancée. If the K visa applicant would not be eligible for an immigrant waiver after marriage to the petitioner, a nonimmigrant waiver would also not be available.
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13. Can my fiancée travel to the U.S. as a visitor for the purpose of getting married?
A foreign national may travel to the U.S. on a visitor visa for the purpose of getting married, so long as the foreign national can otherwise establish her eligibility for a visitor visa. The foreign national must be able to establish to the satisfaction of a consular officer, that she will depart the United States after the conclusion of a brief and temporary visit.
A child of a K-1 fiancée, who will follow to join the K-1 fiancée in the U.S., must apply for a K-2 visa within one year from the date of issuance of the K-1 visa to the parent.
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15. For petitioners with a criminal history, what must be disclosed?
Recent changes in U.S. law require that U.S. citizen fiancé petitioners disclose criminal convictions and criminal attempts involving the following crimes to the USCIS at the time of filing the fiancée petition: domestic violence, elder abuse, dating violence, child abuse and neglect, sexual assault, stalking, false imprisonment, unlawful criminal restraint, abduction, kidnapping, slave trade, involuntary servitude, holding hostage, peonage, trafficking, torture, incest, sexual exploitation, abusive sexual contact, rape, manslaughter, murder, homicide, and crimes relating to a controlled substance or alcohol where the petitioner has been convicted on at least three occasions and where such crimes did not arise from a single act. In turn, the Dept. of State is required to disclose such criminal history to the foreign national fiancée prior to and at the time of the fiancée visa interview.
Absent a DHS discretionary determination that the petitioner poses “no risk” to the beneficiary, individuals who have been convicted of any of the following offenses against a minor, are ineligible to file a petition on behalf of a foreign national family-member or fiancée: an offense (unless committed by a parent or guardian) involving kidnapping; an offense (unless committed by a parent or guardian) involving false imprisonment; solicitation to engage in sexual conduct; use in a sexual performance; solicitation to practice prostitution; video voyeurism as described in section 1801 of title 18, United States Code; possession, production, or distribution of child pornography; the use of the Internet to facilitate or attempt such conduct; criminal sexual conduct involving a minor, or any conduct that by its nature is a sex offense against a minor.
Last updated: February 01, 2010
Eligibility Requirements for the K-1 Fiancée Visa
You may qualify for K-1 Fiancée Visa if you meet the following requirements:
- You are engaged to be married to a U.S. citizen;
- Both you and your U.S. citizen fiancé are legally free to marry at the time of filing the petition (all prior marriages must have been legally terminated);
- You have met your U.S. citizen fiancée in person within the two years immediately preceding the filing of the K-1 fiancée petition (this requirement may be waived in limited circumstances);
- You and your U.S. citizen fiancée intend to marry one another within ninety days of your admission into the U.S. on a K-1 visa.
Last updated: February 3, 2010
Accurate and Persuasive Case Preparation
Submitting an immigration case is not simply a matter of filling out the correct government forms. At PowerVisa we don't simply prepare and file forms, we prepare and file your individual and unique case. Your case is unique and deserves to be presented to the government with all its strengths, not just as another set of forms. We prepare and file each client's case with the personal attention it deserves. We think outside the box and prepare each client's case as a comprehensive filing package, highlighting the unique strengths of each case. We guarantee the accuracy of our filings and guarantee that your case will never be rejected for improper or incomplete filing.
Making Your Case - Supporting Document Guidance
The strength of your case not only requires persuasive and accurate forms,it also requires presenting your supporting documents in the strongest light. We provide all PowerVisa Clients with a comprehensive Supporting Document Checklist, listing all required and supporting documents needed for filing your case. We provide individual guidance on how to identify and locate hard-to-find persuasive documents, and suggestions on selecting the strongest documents as evidence. We also provide clients with a secure online account for uploading and submitting required documents in digital format.
Department of State Forms Preparation
For our consular processing clients, we prepare and submit up-to-date versions of all required Department of State forms, in accordance with State-prescribed format and the highest professional standards.
Communications with the USCIS
As your attorney of record, we conduct all necessary phone, email and fax communications with the USCIS on your behalf.
Communications with State Department
For our consular processing clients, we conduct all necessary phone, email and fax communications with the National Visa Center, and the U.S. Consulate and Embassy abroad.
Visa Interview Guidance
For our consular processing clients, we provide detailed guidance on how to properly prepare for and conduct the visa interview at the U.S. Consulate abroad, including guidance on what to say, and what not to say, where to go, when to appear, etc. We also provide a list of sample interview questions that the examining consular officer is likely to ask during the visa interview.
Client Updates
We keep clients informed of their case status at all times. We promptly provide clients with courier service tracking numbers and USCIS receipt numbers, including links for monitoring delivery status and case progress online.
Attorney Communications
Our clients enjoy direct email and telephone access to their attorney, during regular office hours, throughout the duration of their case. Clients can expect all emails and phone calls to be returned promptly.
Expediting Your Case
We prepare and submit your case within a maximum of five business days from receiving all requested information and documentation from you. Once submitted, we make all reasonable efforts to see that your case is processed within the shortest time frame possible. If there is a way to speed the process up for you, we will get it done.
Approvability and Risk Assessment
We thoroughly review and evaluate the merits of each case to determine the client’s preliminary eligibility for the benefits sought. If we determine that a client’s case may have trouble being approved, we work with the client to determine an appropriate strategy for overcoming any red flags or issues of approvability prior to filing. If there is a high risk of denial, we will let the client know and proceed with filing only after informed consent.
CLIENT TESTIMONIALS
(published with permission)
“Our attorney was an extremely reliable person who fulfilled his commitments. In our working with him, we had great confidence in his abilities, he communicated well, made himself available to us, and is also a very friendly and pleasant person to deal with. He proved a very knowledgeable, skillful, and effective attorney. The online systems in place at Powervisa made it really easy to exchange information and view the status of our case. ”
- Rose Taylor, Vice President, Marpa Foundation, San Francisco, California, U.S.A.
“Working with PowerVisa has been a great and pleasant experience. Our attorney was not only knowledgeable but also working very hard and kind to us. Throughout the immigration visa application process I always know that we are in good and capable hands. ”
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- Anonymous Client, U.S.A.
“Excellent! Great advice, good support, excellent organization. ”
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“Our PowerVisa attorney was very patient and informative. He answered all of our questions in a direct and simple manner. ”
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