Getting married on April 11th in Indonesia, will we have time for her to return with me?

[Dusty B 0]

I just received I 129f approval on 1-28-2010. What are my chances she will have visa in time to return with me after we marry on april 11th? We will be going on honeymoon to Phuket etc., but i am scheduled to fly home on 4-23-2010.

[Old Dominion 26]

Very slim chance of that working out. What kind of visa are you petitioning for? If it is the K-1, fiance, then you can't marry until she is here. If you marry before that, the spousal visa is required (K-3) or CR-1.

[Dusty B 0]

I just received I 129f approval on 1-28-2010. What are my chances she will have visa in time to return with me after we marry on april 11th? We will be going on honeymoon to Phuket etc., but i am scheduled to fly home on 4-23-2010.

K1 visa. A person in my congressman's office told me that weddings in other country are not valid in the US and it would not pose a problem. I am just trying to give her what she wants which is a big catholic wedding at her cathedral in Jakarta and we plan to marry again here. Supposedly i will have the help of Genaro Ruiz who is in charge of Immigration for Representative Emmanuel Cleaver from Kansas City?

[Anh map 2,098]

The US recognizes marriages from anywhere. So you got bad information. Verify what constitutes a legal marriage in Indonesia. Don't get tripped up.

[kabhatti 2]

The US recognizes marriages from anywhere. So you got bad information. Verify what constitutes a legal marriage in Indonesia. Don't get tripped up.

Does that include religious marriage where nothing is filed with any government?

[Anh map 2,098]

Does that include religious marriage where nothing is filed with any government?

It would make sense to check with the local government where the marriage ceremony would take place.

Each embassy/consulate is familiar with local customs and procedures. So if a couple were to complete the steps that constitute a recognized marriage then a K1 beneficiary could have a problem at the interview.

[Dusty B 0]

The US recognizes marriages from anywhere. So you got bad information. Verify what constitutes a legal marriage in Indonesia. Don't get tripped up.

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[Dusty B 0]

K1 visa. A person in my congressman's office told me that weddings in other country are not valid in the US and it would not pose a problem. I am just trying to give her what she wants which is a big catholic wedding at her cathedral in Jakarta and we plan to marry again here. Supposedly i will have the help of Genaro Ruiz who is in charge of Immigration for Representative Emmanuel Cleaver from Kansas City?

[Dusty B 0]

The US recognizes marriages from anywhere. So you got bad information. Verify what constitutes a legal marriage in Indonesia. Don't get tripped up.

Was so happy on Thursday when 129f went all the way to decision made and approved! Now even more afraid of how everything will work out? No stopping the wheels in motion of wedding seeing over 1000 will attend so i guess just hope for the best that visa is approved before April 11th!

[mrsean 4]

u need to marry in usa by law for k1 visa good luck !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[HeatDeath 430]

Was so happy on Thursday when 129f went all the way to decision made and approved! Now even more afraid of how everything will work out? No stopping the wheels in motion of wedding seeing over 1000 will attend so i guess just hope for the best that visa is approved before April 11th!

Well, the good news is that, compared to a wedding with 1000 guests, the $455+$131 you spent on the fiance visa is absolutely peanuts. The bad news is that having a "religious, but non-legal" wedding ceremony is very risky, and makes the next several steps in your immigration process very uncertain.

A) if the visa is not issued prior to the ceremony, the IO at the consulate will require your fiancee to answer on a form "Are you currently married?" Depending on the very specific legal definitions of not just one, but two separate countries, she may very well be misrepresenting herself if she answers "no". Do NOT depend on the advice you received from the congressman's official: foreign weddings most certainly DO count in the US, and may do so even if they are not officially recorded by the local government. Without advise from lawyers expert in both US AND PI law, I would not risk answering no on that form after a wedding at which a thousand guests showed up.

B) Even if she manages to receive a visa, CBP will not let her in if she, in any way shape or form, represents herself as married. They can and will cancel her visa right there and then if they come to think that. K1 visas can only be used by single people, and the border officers WILL ask about her current marital status. All she would have to do is inadvertently describe one of her belongings as a "wedding present" and it would be all over.

C) Even if she manages to enter the country, the legality of the wedding ceremony and the issue of possible misrepresentation to both the consular officers and the border officers will almost certainly be rehashed and reexamined at the AOS interview, should you be unlucky enough to get one.

D) Assuming her AOS is approved, the timing of the wedding is unlikely to be an issue at any potential Lifting of Conditions interview, but it could be. The issues may also possibly get reexamined at any possible future naturalization interview.

My point is, if material misrepresentation (the intentional hiding, avoiding mentioning, or outright lying about a fact that, if known, would certainly affect approval of an immigration application) occurs at any step in the immigration process, it can resurface at later steps, like a cancer relapse, destroying all of the progress you had made to that date. Frankly, you're best off if it gets discovered early. The earlier you're discovered, the easier it is (by far!) to deal with the consequences. Mr. Ruiz will not be able to help you if your fiancee is found to have engaged in material misrepresentation. Most mistakes an immigrant makes can be corrected, but there are three absolute showstoppers: entering without inspection, representing yourself fraudulently as a US citizen, and material misrepresentation during the application process.

If I found myself in your position, I would probably proceed with the wedding, but I would abandon the K-1 application, resign myself immediately to a significant period of separation after the wedding, and begin the process of applying for a CR-1 spousal visa. Your future married life is too important to risk. You've made a mistake, but you can easily recover with a minor change in plans - switching to a CR1 spousal visa. No real damage has yet been done, only a prolonged period of separation - but if you attempt to stick stubbornly to the plan of using a K-1 visa after a wedding ceremony which most of the guests will certainly think is legal, you will cause you or your fiancee to take steps which could seriously compromise her ability to ever come to the US. Don't risk it!

[sachinky 464]

A K-1 entree MUST be unmarried at the time of her entry into the U.S. The sole purpose of the K-1 is let your fiancee enter the U.S. and then marry you--her USC petitioner--within 90 days.

[Martyshk 137]

Case and point here - do not lie to U.S. Government.

I'm pretty sure officials would be irked by you guys having a church ceremony with 1000 people and the fact that she (will have to, if she wants to get a visa, or AOS approved) is stating she's still single.

Don't get yourself into these troubles NOW! You are so close!!!

[Lia792 5]

This is what the US Embassy in Jakarta says:

Marriage in Indonesia requires a religious ceremony. Indonesian law requires that both parties must be of the same religion and the marriage must conform to the laws of the countries of the parties involved. Four religions are recognized in Indonesia: Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Christianity (Catholic/Protestant). Depending on the type of religious marriage ceremony, there are different requirements to make a marriage in Indonesia legally valid.

If your fiancé is Muslim, the ceremony must be held at the local Office of Religious Affairs (Kantor Urusan Agama (KUA)). The KUA will issue a Marriage Book (Buku Nikah), which is evidence of a legally valid marriage with a Muslim. A Muslim marriage ceremony does not need Civil Registration (Catatan Sipil).

Other religious ceremonies require Civil Registration. If you are a Christian, Buddhist, or Hindu you must hold the religious ceremony first, then record the marriage with the Civil Registry Office (Dinas Kependudukan or Kantor Catatan Sipil). The Civil Registry will issue a Marriage Certificate (Akte Perkawinan or Surat Nikah), which is evidence of a legally valid marriage with a non-Muslim.

Both religious and civil documentary requirements may vary from district to district. Contact the office where your marriage will take place or be registered for more information.

Please get extra official records of your marriage. There is no central repository of civil actions, including marriages, in Indonesia. So it may be impossible to obtain an official record of your marriage in the future. The U.S. government has no record of marriages that occur outside of the U.S.

Indonesian authorities require all non-Indonesian citizens to obtain a Certificate of No Impediment to Marriage from their embassy prior to marriage in Indonesia. Download the form and instructions here.

To bring your spouse to the U.S. you must first file an Immigrant Petition (I-130) for him/her as soon as possible. Please see our Immigrant Visa web page

http://www.usembassyjakarta.org/consular/acs_marriage.html

[Teffah 5]

I know in Morocco, you can have a religious wedding, which is not reported to the governemnt. It is not seen as legal until you do report it.