How To Get a Fiance Visa

Bringing your fiancé to the United States involves an intricate legal process that can feel overwhelming for many couples. To navigate this journey successfully, you must understand the timeline, requirements, and potential challenges that could impact your future together.

If you are planning to bring your fiancé(e) to the U.S. or have questions about the K-1 visa application, an immigration attorney can help you. They can guide you through each step and prepare a strong application to avoid common issues. An immigration attorney can also help you address any complications that may arise during the application process.

This article gives an overview of the intricate process of K-1 visa application. It offers clarity and guidance during this important milestone.

What Is a Fiance Visa?

A K-1 visa or fiance visa is a nonimmigrant visa that allows foreign nationals, the fiance of a U.S. citizen, to come to the United States to get married. The marriage should occur within 90 days of arrival in the United States. After marriage, the foreign national spouse may apply for status adjustment from nonimmigrant to lawful permanent resident.

Who is Eligible to Get a K-1 Visa?

To bring your loved one to the United States with a fiancé visa, specific criteria need to be met, which include the following:

• You must be a U.S. Citizen
• You and your fiance should genuinely intend to enter a bona fide marriage within 90 days of arrival in the U.S. with a K-1 nonimmigrant visa.
• You and your fiance should be eligible to marry each other under the laws of the United States. This includes termination of previous marriages through annulment, death, or divorce.
• You and your fiance should have met each other face to face at least once within the last two years before filing for the fiance visa petition. But, exceptions may apply when an in-person meeting is against the customs, foreign culture, or social practice of your fiancé. Another exception is if an in-person meeting would cause the U.S. citizen petitioner extreme hardship.

What Steps Should I Follow to Bring My Fiance to the U.S.?

Bringing your fiance to the United States involves various government agencies. This includes U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the U.S. Department of State (DOS), and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). U.S. government agencies may conduct background and security checks on you and your fiance during the visa application process. This check may include looking at databases for criminal history, national security threats, and other information. They use your and your fiance's name, fingerprints, or other biometric data to conduct these checks.

The following is a summary of the steps that may take place when you process your fiance visa application:

Step 1 — Filing a petition for fiance visa through the USCIS

• You must file a Petition for Alien Fiance Visa (Form I-129F). The Form I-129F contains instructions on what you have to fill out and how to complete the form successfully. The form serves as a request for the USCIS to acknowledge the relationship between you and your fiance.
• The USCIS will review the petition and the documents you submitted. If it requires more documentation or information, it may mail you a request for further evidence.
• The USCIS will approve your petition and acknowledge the fiance relationship if you meet the eligibility requirements. If the USCIS denies your petition, it will notify you of their reason for denial.
• The USCIS will send an approval of the petition to the DOS National Visa Center (NVC).

Once your visa application gets approved, it moves to the State Department.

Step 2 — Visa application with the DOS

• The approved fiance visa petition gets forwarded by the NVC to the U.S. embassy or U.S. consulate, where your fiance will apply for their K-1 visa. In general, the U.S. embassy or U.S. consulate will be the place where your foreign national fiance currently lives.
• The U.S. embassy notifies you and your fiance on the date of your fiance's scheduled visa interview.
• Your fiance should apply for the nonimmigrant K-1 visa. During the visa interview, your fiance should bring all the forms and documentation relevant to the interview.
• The DOS consular officer assesses your qualification for a K-1 nonimmigrant visa.

At this point, your fiance can come to the United States.

Step 3 — Inspection by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials

If the DOS approves your K-1 nonimmigrant visa, your fiance may now travel to the United States. They can seek admission at any U.S. port of entry during the validity of their K-1 visa. Note that the K-1 visa does not guarantee admission into the country. At the port of entry, a CBP officer makes the final decision about their admission into the United States.

Step 4 — Marriage within 90 days

Upon arrival of your fiance with a K-1 nonimmigrant visa, you and your fiance have 90 days to marry.

Step 5 — Adjustment of status

After entering into marriage, your spouse may now apply for adjustment of status from nonimmigrant to lawful permanent resident or green card holder. You can apply for Adjustment of status by filing an Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status (Form I-485).

The USCIS will review your application and the documents you submitted. If necessary, the USCIS may request more documentation or evidence from your spouse. You and your spouse will then get asked to appear for an interview with an immigration officer.

If USCIS approves your Form I-485 and you have been married for less than two years, they will grant your spouse conditional permanent resident status for two years. You can remove these conditions by filing a Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence (Form I-751) within 90 days before your fiance's current permanent resident status expires.

For more information about green cards and the green card process, do's and don'ts, read these articles by FindLaw.

Documents Required for the K-1 Visa Application

There are several documents you need to provide in the multi-step application process. When you initially file the Form 1-129F, you need to provide the following supplemental documents:

• Proof that you are a U.S. citizen (U.S. passport or birth certificate should suffice)
• Proof that you and your fiance have seen each other within two years of applying (photos, flight itineraries, etc.)
• Proof that your relationship is legitimate. You can do this with an affidavit of support, photos, and affidavits from your friends or family.
• One passport photo of you and one of your fiance
• Proof that you have sufficient income to support your fiance
• A copy of your fiance's passport
• $675 for the cost of the fiance visa

You should include the names of your fiance's children and their related information on the Form I-129F Petition for Alien Fiance.

Are My Fiance's Children Eligible to Come to the U.S.?

Your fiance's unmarried children under 21 can come to the U.S. with a K-2 nonimmigrant visa. You should include the names of your fiance's children on the Form I-129F Petition for Alien Fiance. To be eligible for a K-2 nonimmigrant visa, the children should remain unmarried, be under 21, and travel with your fiance or later. But they can't come to the U.S. before your fiance does.

Your fiance's children, who are admitted as K-2 nonimmigrants, may also apply for adjustment of status after you and your fiance get married within the 90-day period of admission into the United States. Adjusting the status of your fiance's children is done by filing Form I-485 with the USCIS. But the children should stay unmarried to be eligible for a green card or lawful permanent resident (LPR). The children should also apply at the same time as your fiance.

What Happens if You and Your Fiance Fail to Marry Within 90 Days?

The K-1 and K-2 visas automatically expire 90 days after arrival in the U.S. If you and your fiance fail to get married within this period, your fiance and their children should leave the United States. If they don't leave, they will be violating U.S. immigration laws, which could result in removal or deportation and affect their eligibility for future immigration benefits.

Understanding Immigration Marriage Fraud

The United States considers marriage fraud a federal crime. Committing this crime could result in serious consequences and criminal penalties. The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) conducts marriage fraud investigations. The following are the types of marriage frauds:

• A U.S. citizen was paid and asked to marry a foreign national already living in the United States.
• "Mail-order" marriage is when either the foreign national or the U.S. Citizen knows the marriage is fraudulent.
• A foreign national defrauded a U.S. citizen who genuinely believed that the marriage was bona fide.

A person can be charged with marriage fraud if they enter into the marriage to go around the rules of U.S. immigration laws. This felony carries jail time of up to five years and a fine of up to $250,000. These fines and penalties apply to U.S. citizens and foreign nationals who committed marriage fraud.

Seek Legal Help From an Immigration Attorney

Understanding the intricate rules of the U.S. visa process is challenging. That is when an immigration attorney can be a great help in making the journey more seamless and manageable. With their knowledge of U.S. immigration laws and K-1 fiance visa applications, they can guide you through understanding the intricacies that could affect your case. Immigration attorneys can also help you with the adjustment of immigration status. Contact an immigration law attorney near you for personalized legal advice.