The fiancé(e) visa is for U.S. citizens with a fiancé(e) overseas, who the U.S. citizen intends to marry in the U.S. The K-1 visa lets the fiancé(e) travel to the U.S., where the U.S. citizen and fiancé(e) must marry within 90 days of the fiancé(e)’s arrival.
Why a Fiancé(e) Lawyer
- Completing the Fiancé(e) Visa Petition and Immigrant Visa Application;
- Submission of a complete packet with all supporting affidavits, evidence, and proof of the relationship; and
- Green Card Application support once the U.S. Citizen and fiancé(e) are married.
We Offer a Broad Range of Immigration Services
Contact us for an assessment with our fiancé(e) visa lawyer. We are happy to help you obtain the visa that best suits your business and career goals.
Requirements for Fiancé(e) Visa Application
Petitioner must be an U.S. Citizen. The U.S. Citizen and fiancé(e) are both legally free to marry. They intend to marry one another within 90 days of the fiancé(e)’s entering the United States on a K-1 nonimmigrant visa. U.S. Citizen and fiancé(e) must have met each other at least once within the 2 years before the U.S. Citizen files the petition, unless they were unable to because 1) meeting would violate strict and long established cultural, social, or religious practice; or 2) result in extreme hardship to the U.S. Citizen.
Benefits of Fiancé(e) Visa
- Don’t have to wait to get married to bring loved one with a fiancé(e) visa to the U.S. and be together;
- Can get married in the U.S.; and
- After getting married, your now-spouse can now apply for a Green Card, and they can work while the Green Card application is pending.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Yes. This is an option only available for the fiancé(e)s of U.S. Citizens.
Your fiancé(e) will need to provide documentation to prove your relationship in addition to identification documents.
You must marry within 90 days of your fiancé(e)’s arrival. After this time the K-1 visa will automatically expire.
Your fiancé(e)’s visa or K1 visa will let them stay in the country for a maximum of 6 months. If they stay beyond the 6 months, they will start accruing unlawful presence, and if they do not leave within a certain time, they may be banned from reentering the U.S. for 3 or 10 years.
After getting married, your now-spouse can now apply for lawful permanent resident (LPR) status. This process is called Adjustment of Status, which is the application to get a Green Card. Your now-spouse will also be eligible for a work permit with the filing of the Adjustment of Status application.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
No. You can petition for your spouse if you are a Permanent Resident (Green Card holder) or a U.S. Citizen.
As a U.S. Citizen, your spouse is considered an immediate relative. If they are in the U.S., as soon as the spouse petition is approved, they can adjust their status and get a Green Card. If they are outside the U.S., as soon as the spouse petition is approved, they can apply for a visa, come to the U.S., and get a Green Card. Additionally, as a U.S. Citizen, if your spouse is in the U.S., instead of waiting for the spouse petition to get approved first and then applying for the Green Card, you can file both petitions concurrently. You can also file for a work permit and a travel permit.
If you are a Permanent Resident, and your spouse is in the U.S., you will need to wait for the spouse petition to be approved before you can file for the Green Card application. You will also not be able to apply for a work permit until the spouse petition is approved and you file the Green Card application. If your spouse is outside of the U.S., your spouse will need to wait until a visa becomes available to them (their priority date becomes current) even if the spouse petition gets approved before that. They cannot apply for a visa until their priority date becomes current. The wait period is much longer if you are a Permanent Resident instead of an U.S. Citizen.
If you become a U.S. Citizen while the spouse petition is pending, you can update your application and the spouse petition will be processed as application of a U.S. Citizen instead of a Permanent Resident. This means you will not have to wait for a visa to become available (priority date to be current) if your spouse is outside the U.S., and you will be able to apply for a visa as soon as the petition is approved. If your spouse is in the U.S., you will be able to apply to adjust your spouse’s status to get a Green Card as soon as possible.
You can petition for your unmarried minor children and stepchildren (under the age of 18 at the time of your marriage to their parents) at the same time as you petition for your spouse.
If you are an U.S. Citizen, you can file a work authorization application for your spouse at the same time that you file an adjustment of status application to get the Green Card. This will allow your spouse to work while the spouse petition is pending.
If you are a Permanent Resident, you cannot file a work authorization application for your spouse and your spouse cannot work while the spouse petition is pending. Once the spouse petition gets approved and an adjustment of status application is filed, your spouse can file a work authorization application.
If you are an U.S. Citizen, you can file a travel permit application for your spouse at the same time that you file an adjustment of status application to get the Green Card. This will allow your spouse to travel while the spouse petition is pending.
If you are a Permanent Resident, and you do not have an adjustment of status application pending, you cannot apply for a travel permit until you become eligible and apply for adjustment of status.
If you get divorced, and you no longer want to petition for your spouse, you can withdraw your petition.
If your spouse petitioned for you and then you separated or divorced due to abuse, you may still be eligible to adjust your status and obtain a Green Card through a VAWA (Violence Against Women’s Act) Petition.
You may be eligible to adjust your status through a widower petition.