Visa Expires in 1 Week - Enough time to Get Married and File Petition?

[Rach 0]

Hi all,

My name is Rach from Hong Kong. I am currently traveling in the United States to visit my long distance boyfriend whom I have been dating for the past three years (I visited him 3-4 times every year). We finally decided we want to spend the rest of our lives with each other. However, my visa is expiring on April 9, 2008. So my questions are:

1. Can we marry in the US now? Do we have enough time to do that?

2. Hypothetically that we are ready to file K3 petition tomorrow, what kind of proof do I need to provide and prove that I filed my petition before my visa expires/ and that I did not overstay?

We truly love each other and want to be with each other as soon as we can but more importantly, we want to follow the rules.

I would greatly appreciate your kind inputs!

Thanks,

Rach

[Aaron8498 0]

I'm pretty sure if you're applying for a K3 you can't stay in the US. You could get married, and then go back to Hong Kong and file the K3 petition and wait for it to be approved before you could come back. But I guess I could be wrong.

Hi all,

My name is Rach from Hong Kong. I am currently traveling in the United States to visit my long distance boyfriend whom I have been dating for the past three years (I visited him 3-4 times every year). We finally decided we want to spend the rest of our lives with each other. However, my visa is expiring on April 9, 2008. So my questions are:

1. Can we marry in the US now? Do we have enough time to do that?

2. Hypothetically that we are ready to file K3 petition tomorrow, what kind of proof do I need to provide and prove that I filed my petition before my visa expires/ and that I did not overstay?

We truly love each other and want to be with each other as soon as we can but more importantly, we want to follow the rules.

I would greatly appreciate your kind inputs!

Thanks,

Rach

[Rach 0]

Hi all,

Sorry for the confusion! I meant the adjustment of status I-485 instead of K3. Thanks!

Rach

[pushbrk 13,167]

Hi all,

My name is Rach from Hong Kong. I am currently traveling in the United States to visit my long distance boyfriend whom I have been dating for the past three years (I visited him 3-4 times every year). We finally decided we want to spend the rest of our lives with each other. However, my visa is expiring on April 9, 2008. So my questions are:

1. Can we marry in the US now? Do we have enough time to do that?

2. Hypothetically that we are ready to file K3 petition tomorrow, what kind of proof do I need to provide and prove that I filed my petition before my visa expires/ and that I did not overstay?

We truly love each other and want to be with each other as soon as we can but more importantly, we want to follow the rules.

I would greatly appreciate your kind inputs!

Thanks,

Rach

K3 is a visa. Visas are used to enter countries. You must leave before the expiration of your I-94, which may or may not be the same day as your visa expires. Many visas are for multiple entries with maximum stays. You don't say what kind of visa you have.

With that basic understanding, unless you NEED to return to Hong Kong, you don't need a visa. You can simply marry here in the USA and file to adjust status to permanent resident. This is based on the scenario where your decision to marry happened after you were already in the US.

If you need to return to Hong Kong in the next three or four months then you may want to marry before you leave and then file petition(s) for a spouse visa. You must be married first, to file for spouse visa.

If you file to adjust status, you will need either the ajustment completed or advanced parole to re-enter the US, so you'll need to stay here until you have one of those.

If you marry a US Citizen and stay here until you adjust status, any overstay will be forgiven.

How long it takes to get a marriage license and marry depends on the laws of the local area where you intend to marry but usually it can be accomplished in a matter of days. In Nevada, it can be done in an hour or two and many other places, the same day. Check your local regulations.