# UK to USA questions



## MMJ6 (Apr 6, 2013)

Hi,
I posted a thread on these forums a few months ago and found it very helpful, so I'm back for more.

When I last posted, my fiancée and I had been planning for her to move over here to the UK with me, but since then our plans have changed. Now that I am preparing to move over to the USA, I have a few questions I thought I would pose to this board.

My first question is about the 6 month limit per year on time I can spend over there without a visa. Does this mean that I can spend 6 months per calendar year in the States or is it just 6 months in any 12 month period?

My other question is about the length of time it usually takes to receive a green card. I'll be marrying my fiancée soon after arriving to the US, then applying for a green card via Petition for Alien Relative. The issue here is that I have already spent 4 months in the US this calendar year and 5 months of the last 9 months over there. I would hate to marry my fiancée and then still have to leave the country while the green card is being processed. 

I realise it must vary a lot, but is there any estimation of how long I could be waiting for a reply? If it depends on the location, I will be staying in Chicago while I wait. If it depends on form, I'll be filling out Form I-485 while in the States, while my fiancée will be doing Form I-130. It would also be nice to hear from somebody that knows whether these forms are indeed the correct route for us to go, as we're basing this off information gathered from various sites and can always benefit from hearing from someone knowledgeable.

Thank you very much.


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## Crawford (Jan 23, 2011)

From what you post it looks like you intend to travel to the US, marry your fiancee and then do Adjustment of Status to remain in the US. 

That is considered illegal and in such circumstances when you do the AOS you will need to prove to the authorities that you did NOT have intent to enter the US and then marry and adjust status. 

If they don't believe you that's it - no appeal.

The options are:

Fly to the US, marry and then you return to the UK to apply for a spouse visa. The application takes anything from 6 to 9 months.

You apply now for a fiance visa; when you have the visa you fly to the States, get married AND THEN apply for Adjustment of Status to remain. Process takes about 6 to 9 months.

Marry outside of the US, and apply for spouse visa and you both return to the US.

In other words, you must have a relevant visa to remain in the US before you enter.


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## Crawford (Jan 23, 2011)

Just posting link to USCIS page for spouse and fiance visa information:

USCIS - Family of U.S. Citizens


...... and you can only spend 3 months (90 days) in the US without a visa if using the VWP. Its advisable to do up to three months in the country and then three months out of the country before returning.


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## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

VWP - allows up to 90 days of stay in the US without a visa. I have never seen guidance for in/out by an official source. General rule of thumb is 90 in/90 out. The amount of time you have spent in the US recently will probably set flags.

Adjustment of Status of a spontaneous marriage? Will USCIS see it is that is the question. You are entering the country with the intention of immigration. Remember - there is no recourse in case of a denial.

You can go the K1 or CR1 route. Six of one and half a dozen of the other. The average processing time is around 9 months give or take.


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## MMJ6 (Apr 6, 2013)

Crawford said:


> From what you post it looks like you intend to travel to the US, marry your fiancee and then do Adjustment of Status to remain in the US.
> 
> That is considered illegal and in such circumstances when you do the AOS you will need to prove to the authorities that you did NOT have intent to enter the US and then marry and adjust status.
> 
> ...



Thank you so much for helping, this whole thing is just so overcomplicated it's so easy to get lost. Obviously we're not prepared enough, it just seems that the more I learn about the process, the more questions I have.
I guess we're kind of back to the drawing board for now.
For your final option, I noticed you left out the time-frame of 6-9 months. Was that intentional?
If my fiancée flies here, marries me and flies home, can we proceed with the spouse visa without the minimum 6 month waiting time? If so, what is the waiting time?

Also, when I last visited the USA, I was there for more than 90 days.. The US border knew this as the return flight was pre-booked. Why was I not stopped or even told about the 90-day limit? I can't even remember where I got 6 months from..

EDIT: I just realised that your first option was also the spouse visa and the 6-9 month waiting time is included. Sorry for my confusion, this is the last thing my fiancée and I wanted to hear.


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## BBCWatcher (Dec 28, 2012)

The U.K. generally grants 6 month stay permission to U.S. citizens entering the U.K. for ordinary tourism and other short stay purposes, so that's probably where you got the 6 month idea from.

Get a K1 or CR1 visa, I agree. It'll take some number of months as mentioned, and that's how it goes I'm afraid.


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## MMJ6 (Apr 6, 2013)

BBCWatcher said:


> The U.K. generally grants 6 month stay permission to U.S. citizens entering the U.K. for ordinary tourism and other short stay purposes, so that's probably where you got the 6 month idea from.
> 
> Get a K1 or CR1 visa, I agree. It'll take some number of months as mentioned, and that's how it goes I'm afraid.


Ah that could very well be it. Being told that we have to wait for probably close to another year has been quite a blow, but we'll work through it..
Thanks for all your help.


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## Davis1 (Feb 20, 2009)

for a fiancee visa 
K1 Process Flowchart

US Citizen can apply for a special visa to allow a non-citizen (their fiancée) to enter the country in order to get married to a US citizen inside the US.

Once issued, the K1 visa will allow the non-citizen to enter the United States legally, for 90 days in order for the marriage ceremony to take place. Once you marry, the non-citizen can remain in the US and may apply for permanent residence. While USCIS processes the application, the non-citizen can remain in the US legally
The US citizen income must meet the require minimum to fulfill the affidavit of support
currently$19400 ..


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## tigtao (May 2, 2012)

My husband is a Brit and retired... I am an American citizen..we are considering a move to the US...can we apply for my husbands green card once we arrive in the US instead of applying in the Uk before we leave? My understanding is these applications are processed faster in the states...We will be selling our home here in the Uk and purchasing one there wondered if the proceeds of the sale can be considered his support?? Thank you!!


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## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

You can sponsor his Green Card from the US while he is handling his portion in the UK. Direct Consular Filing in the UK is the fastest option as long as you qualify for it. Yes, he can self sponsor his Affidavit of Support.


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## Sandgategirl (Oct 19, 2014)

*K1 visa and Affidavit support*

My US boyfriend is coming to stay with me in a week for 3+ months. We were planning to get engaged, apply for the fiancé visa, sell my house, move to Florida where he currently lives and is self employed, get married and use the money from my house sale to buy a house to fix up and live in and a couple to fix up and rent out for an income. Having seen the flow chart, I realise the timescales are going to be a little more challenging, so we'll have to work around that. 
My concern is the affidavit of support. As I said, my boyfriend is self employed and currently couldn't prove an income of $19,400. As I would be self sufficient and the two of us setting up a property development business, can the affidavit of support be worked around please?


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## BBCWatcher (Dec 28, 2012)

How much total household liquid savings do you have (between the two of you)? That's another way to meet the financial threshold. Those alternate rules state that you would need up to 5 years (5 times about $20K, or about $100K for a two person household) in assets that can be turned into spendable cash within 12 months without "undue hardship." Sometimes less is permitted, but that's a reasonable, safe, approvable minimum in these circumstances.

Another option is for your boyfriend to find an eligible co-sponsor, typically a parent, who is willing to cooperate.

Yet another option is for your boyfriend to seek to raise his annual income.


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## Sandgategirl (Oct 19, 2014)

Oh that's really helpful, thank you, we can easily cover that.

Thank you


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