Switching to a CR1 from a K1

[Feiticera 0]

Hi guys,

My fiance and I filed our K1 visa application back in December, for me to come to the US from the UK.

Our situation has changed though, and we are now considering that maybe a CR1 visa would be a better option. The reason for this is that she has been accepted for a Masters course in the UK, so she will be here for a year. Our reasoning is that during that year I can apply for the slower CR1 (which wouldnt matter because we would be together anyway) and then when it is ready I can return with my green card already instead of arriving and being unable to work.

Obviously for the K1 we are currently engaged, but we are now thinking of planning a quick wedding and switching to a CR1 afterwards.

Is there any small details we should be aware of? I have read through and I think it works for us, but for example could being out of the country studying here for a year affect the application?

Many thanks,

Owen

[stevie b 141]

Hi guys,

My fiance and I filed our K1 visa application back in December, for me to come to the US from the UK.

Our situation has changed though, and we are now considering that maybe a CR1 visa would be a better option. The reason for this is that she has been accepted for a Masters course in the UK, so she will be here for a year. Our reasoning is that during that year I can apply for the slower CR1 (which wouldnt matter because we would be together anyway) and then when it is ready I can return with my green card already instead of arriving and being unable to work.

Obviously for the K1 we are currently engaged, but we are now thinking of planning a quick wedding and switching to a CR1 afterwards.

Is there any small details we should be aware of? I have read through and I think it works for us, but for example could being out of the country studying here for a year affect the application?

Many thanks,

Owen

You can go either way.. there are ways to delay the process through various stages after approval to get to the year mark... totally up to you

[Anna Grant 169]

What may be worth investigating is DCF - see here - http://www.visajourney.com/content/dcf as your current fiancée will be in the UK for over 6 months.

I don't know a great deal about this route as it was never an option for me but it jumped out to me as a possibility because of the time she will be in the UK.

People who are far more knowledgeable about this option will be along shortly to give you more experienced advice :-)

[Feiticera 0]

Fair enough, so we could delay our current K1 enough that we could have it ready by the time we are done in the UK.

I just figured that the CR1 seems a more 'solid' visa, and allowing me to work straight away would save us some cash. Also I am correct in thinking it makes the proof of financial solvency, the affidavit of support bit, a little easier to do (at present we struggle with that because I am the earner and she is a student). We can get a sponsor ofc, but i figured this just might make it more simple.

[Darnell 8,478]

so, ditch the k-1 and file for the CR-1 after getting married in the UK.

You have 2 paths to choose from, for a CR-1, DCF or 'regular' processing, so that's a plus.

That's my 2 cents - with that and another 8 pounds sterling, you can get a decent curry.

[lost_at_sea 995]

What may be worth investigating is DCF - see here - http://www.visajourney.com/content/dcf as your current fiancée will be in the UK for over 6 months.

I don't know a great deal about this route as it was never an option for me but it jumped out to me as a possibility because of the time she will be in the UK.

People who are far more knowledgeable about this option will be along shortly to give you more experienced advice :-)

Once upon a time, students were not eligible for DCF (tourists and students were in the exclusion group). These days, the DCF route appears to be for *anyone* who is not a tourist and is legally residing in the UK.

If the OP wants to do DCF, it would be worth an email to the embassy to see if it is indeed the case that students are now eligible from 6 months of residency.

DCF is considerably faster than the regular I-130 route, as it doesn't have to go off to a processing centre in the USA (our petition was approved today after only 21 days, all from within the UK, where as those processing from outside are waiting many months for the same stage).

http://london.usembassy.gov/dhs/uscis/i130filing.html (The DCF info, note lack of mention about students, just requiring residency)

Email address to ask (I had a response within a couple hours from this address): USCIS.London@uscis.dhs.gov

[stevie b 141]

Fair enough, so we could delay our current K1 enough that we could have it ready by the time we are done in the UK.

I just figured that the CR1 seems a more 'solid' visa, and allowing me to work straight away would save us some cash. Also I am correct in thinking it makes the proof of financial solvency, the affidavit of support bit, a little easier to do (at present we struggle with that because I am the earner and she is a student). We can get a sponsor ofc, but i figured this just might make it more simple.

the cr-1 is more solid in the way that you described it

the affidavit of support will end up being the same in the end.. it is the 134 for the embassy interview and then when adjusting status in the states it will require the 864

I think you can stall at the point it gets to the embassy for up to a year... maybe someone will chime in on that

[NikLR 13,227]

For a CR1 you can stall at the NVC for up to a year at each stage they need something. Do not stall at the embassy stage, that means your interview has been booked.

Personally I am very glad we did the CR1 route vs the K1.

DCF should probably be done only when you're about to go home (the few months before that) and is a whole can of worms not covered in this forum. But there's a wonderful dedicated forum for it.