# Help; my Fiance (British from England) help with steps



## xperez42 (Mar 7, 2016)

We have been together since August 2015. We got engaged over Christmas while I was visiting her and her family. We have booked a venue and expect to be married in the UK on March 11th 2017. I am aware I must apply for a fiancee visa at least 3 months prior to the wedding. we want to live in the US while I finish some education. We both work. I currently make enough to sponsor her. Here's the problem, I've called immigration to figure this out and have gotten no where.There is no way for me to start my petition now (as it takes so long) so that once we're married we both take the same flight back home and start green card application while USCIS application is processing. we want to close this distance as soon as possible but we already booked a venue and are vested to be married on the projected date March 11th 2017 in the UK. Can someone please help me? is there something I can do to get my fiance/wife back to the USA with me to start our married lives together and not have to be separated? is there something that we can do so that we can be together once we married as quickly as possible legally?


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## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

You can go the route of K1 fiancé or CR1 spouse. Travel.state.gov will walk you through everything from forms to fees.

CR1 - you may want tompost on the UK forum about getting married in the UK.


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## Davis1 (Feb 20, 2009)

the UK cit need to earn £18,600 per annum to sponsor for a UK spousal fiancee visa 
UK Fiance Visa Advice & Assistance
the US cit need to earn a min $20025 per annum to sponsor a spouse
and that could take a year to get 
SPOUSAL VISA
https://travel.state.gov/content/visas/en/immigrate/family/immediate-relative.html

your going a very expensive and ddifficult way..
better to marry in the country you intend to live and be done


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## Crawford (Jan 23, 2011)

If you want to live in the US following your marriage then why not just get a marriage visitor visa? This allows you 6 months in which to get married but then the non Brit spouse must leave.

Here is where I get confused with your posting. You say that you visited her over Christmas but then say you want to live in the US while you finish some education.

*Presuming y*ou do not currently have *a visa to live in the States* you would need to apply for a visa (while you the Brit is in the UK) before you can move to the States to live.

Therefore there will be no getting married and flying home to the US while Green card application is in process - you must be outside of US to apply.

The process could be as follows:

- Get marriage visitor visa and marry in the UK 

- Wife returns to US to start your spouse visa application

- Once visa obtained you fly into the States

As spouse visa for the US is currently taking anything from 8 to 10 months to process - so there is a time of separation which you cannot avoid.


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## xperez42 (Mar 7, 2016)

Thank you all very much, a few other questions with some clarifications.

I am the US citizen. She is the one living in the UK. she carries a standard 90 day visitor visa. we have had an LDR since August of 2015. 

since she has more family in the UK and she wants to have a propper wedding we opted to have it in the UK which means I will have to apply for the visa to marry within the UK within 3 months for the wedding from my understanding. after marriage I know I have to apply for the petition and spousal visa to bring my spouse to the US which will take 8-10 months to process. 

She wants to come over after we marry to have a honeymoon etc in the US with return to UK, so can she still visit while the application is processing (I-130 and K-3 at the same time)? I've heard a lot of yes and no's... from what I hear as long as her intentions are not to stay in the US for an extended period of time.

another question, if the petition (I-130) is processed within the time she's in the US visiting, can we just adjust status and await application for green card (K-3) to come through and have her stay in the US from that time period and have us do the interview here etc??

basically there is no way around this until we are actually married so I should convince her for us to marry in the US via courthouse/Vegas-style (apply K1/ I-129F) and start application for K-3 etc. so that by the time we have our "wedding" (reception not actual wedding) we can just move over if approved by then. this is the only other option I see to solve my issue. if I am making any sense... 

also, what is the website to check the time frames of approvals etc? can any of these visas or petitions be expedited?


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## Davis1 (Feb 20, 2009)

K-3 is virtually obsolete ... it would be the CR1 that can take up to a year to get 

bringing the spouse into the US on a VW .. could get her denied entry for immigrant intent 

it may pay you to have a chat with an Aila lawyer 

And you have only known each other 7 months ..how much time have you spent together


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## Crawford (Jan 23, 2011)

Forget the K-3.

She can visit you while the I-30 and other procedures are going through.

Do not try and adjust status while I-130 is going through as this will show intent for immigration while entering the US on the Visa Waiver program. She will be denied and probably get a ban.

Please try and understand that you cannot apply for the spouse visa until you are married. From the point of application to obtaining the spouse visa will take some 8 to 10 months. During that time you will be apart - visits are allowed.

Spouse visa cannot be expedited.


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## xperez42 (Mar 7, 2016)

@David1 my fiancé and myself have seen each other about six times a total of about 2 months within that time frame... Why do you ask? Is this something that you think may lead to an issue? 

I understand. we're okay to wait until after the wedding etc, we understand that this is a long process. that's not a problem just want to make sure we both have a grasp of what needs to occur in order for us to close the distance in a legalized and realistic manner within a reasonable time frame. She will be here for a month or 2 as she's taking time off in the summer to visit family that lives here as well as visiting myself etc.


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## xperez42 (Mar 7, 2016)

@Crawford can you clarify a little bit what you mean about forgetting the k-3? I'm so sorry I don't understand and I appreciate greatly of your advice. also is the I-30 the same as the I-130? Thank you both David and Crawford for helping me, I thank you for pointing me in the right direction


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## BBCWatcher (Dec 28, 2012)

Please note that there is no requirement to have a big wedding party and a civil legal marriage on the same date. The latter is what USCIS cares about, not the former.


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## Crawford (Jan 23, 2011)

xperez42 said:


> @Crawford can you clarify a little bit what you mean about forgetting the k-3? I'm so sorry I don't understand and I appreciate greatly of your advice. also is the I-30 the same as the I-130? Thank you both David and Crawford for helping me, I thank you for pointing me in the right direction


What I mean is that the K-3 at some time in the distant past was used as an interim visa while folks were waiting for their spouse/fiance visas to be processed.

It was supposed to reduce the wait time; however the K-3 now takes as long as the spouse/fiance visa itself, it costs money and therefore is pretty redundant.


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## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

Go to uscis.gov and read up on K3; especially on recourse if something with your petition does not go through as expected.


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