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Bees planning to reunite with FI via a K1 visa.... how many of you out there??
Please join me so we can support each other in this super stressing process!!
Here!! We just started the process and got the NOA1 last week. In which part of the process are you?
@cherryblossombee: Hi!! Well we are just starting getting everything we're going to need to send the I-129F. I have to say that Im overwhelmed by the amount of steps and everything you need!!
This is going to drive me crazy! This I know for certain. But its totally worth it. I'll do anything to finally be able to be with my fiance :)
Absolutely, that's what I think! I'm not even engaged yet but we already went ring shopping and my BF wanted to start with the process asap since it takes forever!
Where are you from and where are you going to live? I'm from Mexico and living over here, met my BF while studying in the US, and have been apart for 1 year that has felt like 20. Still don't know where we will live in the US since it depends on what happens with his job and where would I get a good job myself.
Im From Dominican Republic (DR) and FI lives in Long Island. He have been together for 2 years and 8 months (or 2.6 years as he likes to say!). Got enganged 8 months ago on our second anniversary.
We are going to start now since I need time to finish college. It supposedly takes 6-8 months so hopefully by the time I graduate we'll have the interview and have our visa approved so I can go home with him! *Praying for that*
*BTW Congrats on your NOA1* That's one step ahead! :)
Congrats on your engagement! And good luck with the process, we'll be in touch to try to figure it out!
Btw what are you guys planning on doing regarding the wedding? We tought since we can not control the time in which the visa will be ready, we will probably wait and get married legally and have a nice reception later when we know for sure that I'll be in the country!
OMG! Thank heaven for you! LOL.
I've been trying someone in the same situation as me! All the bees seem to be planning just fine even though they're far far away. We are kind of waiting to set on a date, because as you said we dont know when exactly the visa will be ready.
Yes, we will probably do the same. If we do decide to have a reception I guess we'll wait at least 2 months after my entry so we can have a little time to plan an express wedding. But if we cant do that, then we will just make it legal and then have a reception so our relatives and friends can attend (Thinking about a post wedding celebration or something). Does that make sense?? I dont know what to do/think at this point!!
We just finished going through the K1 process. It wasn't too difficult, but it took forever! After I came back to the US we went down to the courthouse and got married right away so I could start the change of status paperwork and could start looking for work. We're having a bigger reception in a few months. Good luck those of you who are waiting on the paperwork to come through!
Look people seem to have a lot of opinions about the topic, but I guess for us it was clear since we have a bunch of friends that have made their marriage legal and looked at it like one more step of the "visa process", actually some of them didn't even share the news with most people, and went about it like they were not married yet until the day of the religious ceremony and the reception.
I feel very confortable doing that, and I think that in my mind I would be "just engaged" until the day of the proper wedding; but some friends and relatives have expressed their concerned that "my wedding won't be real" :S It doesn't change anything for me except maybe that I might keep it as a secret to most people (except family) so they still feel like it's a real wedding haha
@water: Oh yay! Congrats! Glad to hear that!
Any advice for us? What's your story? Where are u from and how long did it take??
My fiance sent out the I-129 in August 2009 and it was approved in late November. I received notification from the US embassy in India in December 2009. Unfortunately, it took me forever to get the police clearances etc. because I didn't know the procedures and dealing with bureaucracy is a pain! I was working long hours and couldn't take much time off to run around to various government offices. So I would suggest, depending on the bureaucracy in your country, that it is good to get started on collecting the documentation for your embassy interview. It took the embassy a month to give me an interview date, and then I flew back to the US a couple of weeks after that. The interview itself was really straightforward and short.
I really want to start working now that I am back, so it was an easy choice for us to get married right away and get the ball rolling on my permanent residency etc. We're having a ceremony/reception here in August, and another one in India in December...so we'll have three anniversary dates to choose from :) But I think the courthouse date is the one we'll celebrate since we wrote our vows for that ceremony!
Let me know if you have any specific questions about the K1 process!
Ahhh bureaucracy!! Tell me about it! Hopefully that won't be much of a problem for me. But the fees omigod! I wanted to have a lawyer to handle our case but it just way too much money considering that I need to pay a lot of money here at the embassy. And it usually takes from 1 to 2 and half months for the embassy to give you an interview date.
Argh!! I hope it doesnt take too long!
Oh BTW We're also a reception in my country after we finish AOS and everything else, so we'll have 2 or 3 anniversary dates too :)
Congrats!!
MrsFernandez, I know what you mean about the fees! The AOS is another $1,000! Unless there is something unusual about your case or your English is not very good (obviously not the case with you), you don't really need the added expense of a lawyer. Just read all the instructions slowly and carefully.
Here's one tip I thought of: the medical exam that your embassy will have you take is not necessarily as extensive as the one you will have to submit when you adjust status. The difference lies in the vaccination requirements --- you need to show proof of vaccination for permanent residency but not for the K1 (at least for India). It is generally much cheaper and easier to get the vaccinations in your home country, or get proof of vaccination if your family doctor is there, so I would suggest getting this done before you come to the US. Talk to the doctor the embassy sends you to, to find out which vaccinations you need (it varies by age group, and perhaps also by country, I'm not sure).
Good luck!
@water: Oh thank you very much! Vaccinations are optional for k1 visas but they recommend you do it before you enter the US. Thanks for the advice, I will keep that in mind! I would only pay another $119.
@cherryblossombee: Why hadn't I seen this post?? W/e
I know what you mean, I understand. For me that day that we get married is going to be our special day, even if we just go to the courthouse "to make it legal". That's going to be the day we got married forever.... our anniversary :)
Do u know what I mean?? Like it doesnt matter if its part of the visa process ( I mean, it is) but it doesnt have to feel different or less special because of that.
Ok I have questions now. I've been using visajourney.com and posts on the hive as a resource to get information. But I still wanna ask... what do we need for the first package? What do I have to send to my FI??
And... about the letter of intent... how do I do that?
So, if Im not wrong this is what goes in the first packet:
- Payment in the amount of $ 455
- I-129F
- I-129F Supplement: Part B, Question 18, explanation of meeting in person
- G-325A and passport style photo (Petitioner)
- G-325A and passport style photo (Beneficiary)
- Copy of Naturalization Certificate (Petitioner) or BC or Passport pages copies
- Letter certifying intent to marry (Petitioner and Beneficiary)
- Proof of having met in person in the past two years (passport stamps, tickets,purchase receipts,engagement ring receipt,boarding pass, money remitances,pictures. etc)
- Proof of ongoing relationship (skype calls and chat logs,cards, mails,etc)
And other forms like I-134 will be needed later. Is that correct ladies??
My FI and I in probably 2/3 of the way throught the k-1 visa process... just got notice that our case has been forwarded from the National Visa Center to the Consulate in Oslo!! Hopefully we'll have the visa in 4-6 weeks... we better... I was starting to get nervous because our wedding is planned for September 16 in the States, but now that all we have left to do is the interview stuff, I think we're gonna make it. It is kind of risky, but we're on a time schedule with career stuff too so we didn't really have a choice. I would rather have a small wedding and big informal family reception a few days later than have to make it legal at the courthouse and wait to have a "real" wedding until we could find the time to do it later!
@MissHay: Good Luck with the interview!!! :)
We just went through the K1 process and it took us 11 months. 0719 to 05\27\10. You are really lucky if it takes less time but that 11 months was without a single bump in the road. All our papers where in order in just took us forever to have an interview. It took us 5 months to have an interview after our case got to the consulate in January.That is why they asked you not to plan anything in the meantime. Best of luck to all of you!!
@The immigrant bride: Oh I really hope it doesnt take 11 eleven months!!! What I've seen so far is that the latest cases ( DR-US) are taking between 6 and 8 months. We're hoping to be on the 6 months groups :)
@The immigrant bride: Hey! Do you mind if I ask what country you were dealing with? From what I've heard, the country makes a HUGE difference in the processing time when it comes to Consulates. Norway is apparently really quick because it's a highly developed country and there are so few visa applications pending at any given time... but places like the Phillipines and Russia take FOREVER because of the massive caseload. And then places like Ecuador, Nigeria, etc take forever because of all the corruption and fraud.
All in all, we've decided that if the visa doesn't come in time, we'll just travel back to the US and have the ceremony and reception, but not actually get married legally... we'll just have the party, and he'll fly back to Norway when they offer him an interview. He's eligible to be in the US for up to 90 days on vacation, even while his visa is processing, he's just not eligible to work or actually legally marry me... yet :)
Our case was filed with the USCIS on April 8, so that fact that we're already this far is pretty impressive!!
Yes, I believe it depends on the country. Im from Dominican Republic :) .... I think it doesn't take too long in my country considering the great amount of cases they have to process. It could take as long as 1 year or maybe a few months if you're lucky. Sometimes it might take 2 or 3 months for the consulate to give an interview.
I guess patience is key! :) Good luck angain!
@MissHay I'm from Canada. Be really careful with the wedding. We thought about doing the same thing and were advised not to do it.
When you receive your visa you get an explanatory sheet that explains to you what the next steps are and the first thing it says is " You can now start planning your wedding". I know it is exciting to plan a wedding and you probably have a lot of things done already but it's not really worth the chance of having to start over with the visa process.
Best of luck!
@The immigrant bride: Ugh, I just got that news elsewhere too... luckily, we were planning on having a low-key event with just our immediate family, then an all-family party two days later. We're currently waiting for our interview date, so hopes are high... but I've decided that if we don't get the visa in time, it'll just be a family vacation for all his relatives, and we can make the "wedding reception" into a simple "engagement party." Sort of a meet and greet for both sides of the family. We'd have to just make it legal at the courthouse at a later date, and probably throw the real wedding next summer instead. I really hope we don't have to!!
Tons of evidence!!! What do u think "solid evidence" mean exactly?
I was told that if our package is too big they wont look at it right away and that they just "look" at everything that you send in as proof of your relationship. Is this true?
@MrsFernandez : I hired a lawyer for our k-1 case because I was so busy at the time we wanted to submit that I couldn't fathom doing it myself! Our immigration specialist attorney asked for:
-no more than 15 pages of evidence of emails/phone records/written proof (I had 4 pages of Skype records, 10 emails between us, and an email from his dad saying how happy he was that we were keeping in touch)
-4 pictures of the two of us together in different settings (we went with pictures in a park, at my house, at a a restaurant, and a bar),
-and the affidavit of sincere relationship. I wrote a full page describing how we met, became friends, started our relationship, broke up when i left the country, and how we decided to get back together and become engaged!
Hope that helps. :)
I want a lawyer!! I dont trust FI with assembling the package lol! We have TONS of pictures, emails, skype conversations, receipts. Tons of everything! but still it makes me nervous and I want a lawyer to do it for us. So expensive though!!
Wow - what a great thread! My fiance and I have been in the process for about 9 months now. We had the K1 approved, and finally (2 days ago) filed for the Adjustment of Status (with a $1,000 price tag! whew!). We haven't used a lawyer, but have hit lots and lots of roadblocks. Our saving grace has been www.visajourney.com - it has seriously saved us!!
Evidence - we had a page with lots of pictures on it; copies of our passports showing visits, etc... The letter of intent is just something you draft up to say 'Yes, I love him and want to marry him'... You actually have to do another one after the petition is approved, since so much time has passed, saying you STILL want to marry. The whole process is ridiculous, but I think it will make us appreciate it that much more.
We had someone sign the marriage certificate at a tiny ceremony and are not telling our guests about it. Our real wedding is in 7 months, hopefully after everything is totally done (should be about 3 months). For us, all emphasis is on the wedding we want it to be on, and are calling each other 'fiances' until that day!
@MissHay: BTW, do you know how to export skype records? or did you just copy and paste them in a word doc??? Maybe screen shots so you can see all the little details??
@MrsFernandez : I found out that hard way that it is essentially impossible to export Skype call records! hahaha... I just did screen shots, inserted them into a Word document, resized the .jpg so the text looked at little bigger. Easy as pie!
Also, I looked for a lawyer daily for a solid 2 weeks... we both just finished grad school, and $$ is pretty tight, but I found an immigration firm that is accredited and legitimate and all that. They've been really helpful and totally thorough, and the pricetag wasn't TOO bad... they let me do a payment plan with no interest, and are really friendly! I normally wouldn't advertise in a comment, but I feel like it's ok because it might help someone else! :)
Allan S. Lolly & Assoc.
http://www.1-800-usa-immigration.com/
So I have happy news!
As of Monday the FI visa was approved! It took from May 3 -July 12. Not too bad. Now for the appointment and such at the embassy. And for those of you stressing about having enough documentation, relax. I included the very minimum: a couple of B&W photos printed from my computer on normal paper, letters from each of us saying we were planning on getting married, and the application and that is it!
No request for evidence, no interviews, no nothing, straight from in process to approved.
Happy dance is occurring tonight.....!!!!!!
@oboist: Yay! That's great!!!!
Congrats!!! :)
Ok Bees, I'll have to apologize. Im gonna be asking a lot of things here because this is just freaking me out! I cant relax! I just cant.
So I have another question: Do we need to translate letters and emails too? FI speaks perfect spanish and we communicate both in Englis and spanish. I dont want to do that! Is it necessary??
And yeah, i know... Paranoia! It has me!! 
Bees dont want to help me??? 
Please ladies!!!
We didn't translate anything. You will likely have to translate things during the Adjustment of Status part (depending), but I wouldn't worry too much about it.
@oboist: Hahaha!! Relax!! Only the evidence of having met in person is more than 40 pages!!!!
Ladies, I need help!
I've been told to get an interview date for our Consulate, we have to send all our documents and copies of things at the same time (minus the I-134). We're waiting on some forms from our lawyer in the US, and a police clearance from another foreign country FI lived in for 2 years, and that's going to take another week or two to get to us here in Norway. Then we'll have to send it to Oslo, and wait for them to open it. So we probably won't know when FI's interview is for another 3 weeks at least! And it takes time to schedule these things as well... Norway is apparently pretty fast, and can give interviews about 3 weeks after they receive the packages... but that's 6 WEEKS from now!!!
Is there ANYTHING we can do to get the interview date faster?? I've heard of other people sending just the Applicant Readiness form and the DS-230, and carrying in the rest to the interview.
I'm just freaking out, because it's already the end of July and I've got professional obligations back in the States in mid-September. Plus, if we don't make it back by early September, we'll miss out on any chance of throwing together a wedding that our families can attend... I'm relocating from the Midwest to NYC for work, and that means FI and I would have to get married at the courthouse in NYC with no family. :(
Any input???
i think the only way to get an interview date is if YOU get everything you need and send it to the consulate. I dont know about sending some things first and then bringing the rest to the interview and ask a professional or simply call the consulate and ask them if its ok to do that.
Good Luck!!!! :)
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