There is a lot of information out there about what, and what is not, required for the K-1 Fiance visa. You may be confused by it. The following is meant to be a straight forward, no-nonsense, statement of the fiancee visa requirements. If you have additional questions after reading it, please contact a New York fiancee visa lawyer. The firm is able to assist K-1 visa clients throughout the United States and the world.
K-1 Fiancee Visa Requirements
- Both the U.S. Citizen petitioner and the foreign national beneficiary must be free to marry at the time the petition is submitted.
- Both the U.S. citizen petitioner and the foreign national beneficiary must be able to marry each other in the state where they plan to reside.
- Both the petitioner and the beneficiary must be ready to marry within 90 days of the beneficiary’s entrance into the United States.
- The petitioner and beneficiary must have a good faith relationship with each other (and be able to demonstrate it).
- The petitioner and beneficiary must have physically seen each other within the two years immediately before the petition is filed.
Further Explanations:
1. Both the K-1 Petitioner and K-1 Beneficiary Must be Free to Marry
This means that at the time the petition is filed, both individuals must be single. Any divorces must be finalized before the petition is submitted.
2. Both the K-1 Visa Petitioner and Beneficiary Must be Able to Marry In the State Where They Plan to Reside
The couple must be able to marry in the state where they plan to reside. This means that they must fit into a particular state’s marriage laws. For example, both must be of legal age in the state, and must not violate any of the state’s incest laws.
3. Both the petitioner and the beneficiary must be ready to marry within 90 days of the beneficiary’s entrance into the United States
Both must be willing and ready to marry withing 90 days of the beneficiary entering the United States. The visa is not meant to provide a “trail period.” When the petition is filed both should be committed to being married once in the United States.
4. The petitioner and beneficiary must have a good faith relationship with each other (and be able to demonstrate it)
It will be necessary to demonstrate to the immigration agency and the consulate interviewer that the couple has a good faith relationship with each other and plan to marry based on reasons other than immigration-based.
5. The petitioner and beneficiary must have physically seen each other within the two years immediately before the petition is filed
The law requires that a couple physically see each other within the two years immediately before a K-1 Visa petition is filed. This is a strictly enforced policy – it is not sufficient to have seen each other three years ago, or immediately after a petition is submitted. The encounter must be within the two year period. There are two exceptions to this requirement: if the visit would cause extreme hardship to the petitioner, or if the visit would violate traditional customs.
To learn more about applying for a K-1 Fiancee visa, please contact the firm.