We want to know each other better before.

[feejo 0]

Hi, I live canada my Gf in Atlanta. We want to see each other more before the filing a K1. I know I can visit for 6 month and come back then file for K1 while I am here. Is there a possibility to apply for a B2 to go to know each other more or some sort of wedding preparation then after 6m file for a K1 in USA ans stay until I get my K1? What are the resuirement for B2 in that condition.

[feejo 0]

Or is it difficult to file K1 while I am away, maby some documents would be handy to carry with me.

[Chica Yeyé 41]

You can't apply for a K visa while in the US - a visa is an entry permit; in this case, a fiancee entry permit.

One option you have is, if you get the H visa and go down, and things work out; some folks just get married and file for Adjustment of Status; which would result in a CR-1 immigrant visa for you. Though this one is tricky, since you would have to prove you did not enter the US with intent to marry.

[Kathryn41 3,205]

You can certainly visit Atlanta, however you are not allowed to live in the US either as a visitor or as potential immigrant without the appropriate documentation (ie. visa). As a visitor to the US you have to be able to prove that you have strong ties still to Canada - a job, property mortgage or lease, commitment to a school, ongoing utility payments, financial resources etc. While Canadians are allowed to visit for 6 months at a time, if the border authorities even once think that you are living in the US rather than just a temporary visitor you will be barred from entering the US until you have the appropriate visa. Previous visits of long duration are one of the red flags. And you Never lie when asked by border authorities how long you were in the US - that also leads to a ban on entering.

If you and your fiancee decide to pursue a K-1, you can certainly be in the US when it is filed. The first part of the process is the I-129f petition which is filed by the US citizen and has to be approved first. Once that is approved the information for the K-1 visa is sent to the foreign fiancee's home country for processing. It cannot be processed within the US. There are also things that you will need to do in Canada to prepare for the K-1 (security checks, medical examination, obtaining long form birth certificate, passport, etc., sending information back to the Consulate) along with preparing immigration documents that are sent to you in Canada by the US Consulate. Then, when everything is ready you are scheduled for an interview at the Consulate where they decide if you get the K-1 or not. Interviews are held either in Montreal or Vancouver depending on where you live in Canada

It is a bad idea to try and make wedding preparations until you actually have the K-1 visa in hand. Many people have got burned by that, loosing their deposits when they had to cancel the arrangements and reschedule due to the time it took to process their visas.

Also, it is considered immigration fraud to use a visitor's visa to enter the US with the intent to stay and get married. That can lead to a lifetime ban. You are allowed to marry in the US, but then you must leave the US and return to Canada to obtain the appropriate visa (K-3 or CR-1/IR-1). If you had no intent of getting married when you entered the US but decided on the spur of the moment to get married, you can apply to 'stay' by filing for Adjustment of Status but you will have to prove to Immigration authorities that you had no intent of getting married when you entered the country, and you will not be allowed to leave and return to the US until you get either your Green Card or your 'advance parole' (permission to re-enter the US).

So, as much as all of us would have liked to stay with our partners while the immigration paperwork was being pursued, we had to settle for visiting and returning to Canada at appropriate times so as not to overstay our time in the US or to set up red flags with US authorities that we were not visiting but living in the US.

There are also tax implications if you are in the US for more than 6 months in a year. US taxes on residency and citizenship - and you don't have to be legally in the country to have IRS tax filing requirements.

There is a lot of good information contained in the guides at the top of the forum:-).

Edited April 10, 2008 by Kathryn41

[Chica Yeyé 41]

Cool - sorry to the OP for the wrong info - I didn't know you could file for a K-1 while in the US

[Kathryn41 3,205]

Well, technically the foreign fiancee can be visiting the US when the I-129f is filed but because a foreign address is required, the person can only be visiting, not living. So I guess it is like being physically present at the start of the process because that is all done by the US citizen partner anyway:-) and then returning to Canada to process the actual K-1 phase of the process.

[feejo 0]

We called the costum and told I want to stay for 8 monts, they say I must have great attachements. They also ask my name, my birth date. I will probably ban for life if I try to get in even for 6 months only, they might think I am a illegal imigrant, me a Canadian. They ask for a B2. But if I try a B2 and I get rejected, would I be able to get in for 6 months?

[Caladan 19]

You can't apply for a K visa while in the US - a visa is an entry permit; in this case, a fiancee entry permit.

One option you have is, if you get the H visa and go down, and things work out; some folks just get married and file for Adjustment of Status; which would result in a CR-1 immigrant visa for you. Though this one is tricky, since you would have to prove you did not enter the US with intent to marry.

H is dual-intent.

[Reba 2]

We called the costum and told I want to stay for 8 monts, they say I must have great attachements. They also ask my name, my birth date. I will probably ban for life if I try to get in even for 6 months only, they might think I am a illegal imigrant, me a Canadian. They ask for a B2. But if I try a B2 and I get rejected, would I be able to get in for 6 months?

You can only visit for 6 months anyhow, not 8.