Beneficiary Fiancé Working in Foreign Country

[James and Cynthia 70]

I am preparing to start the K-1 process with my fiancé by reading and collecting information. I am a US citizen living and working in the US. My fiancé is from the Philippines, however, she has been working in Taiwan for more than a year now. Her contract in Taiwan does not end until October of this year. We met about 1 1/2 years ago before she left to Taiwan when I went to the Philippines for a business trip. I plan to go back to the Philippines in late March for another business trip.

While I am in the Philippines, we are hoping she will be able to go back home so we can see each other once again. Before she leaves, we need to decide if she will be going home for a vacation and return to Taiwan to complete her contract, or if she should quit her job, paying a hefty fine for ending the contract, and go home permanently to start the visa process. If possible, she would like to finish her contract, avoiding the fine and continuing to help support herself and her family. However, we do not want to wait until October to start the visa process.

So here's my question: Can we start the visa process while she is still working in Taiwan by me filing the I-129F forms when I return from my trip in late March. After reading the time line it looks like it will take 2-3 wks to get NOA1, and then 3-5 months to get NOA2. This is a long time for her to be in the Philippines, most likely unemployed, when she could be continuing her job in Taiwan. Not only will this create more of a financial hardship for us and her family, but she is concerned about being too bored at home without a job to keep her busy or me to keep her company. If she can continue working in Taiwan, at what point in the time line will she have to return home and wait for the final approval? It would be great if she could wait until the US Embassy mails her the forms she needs to complete. However, I don't want anything like this to create problems or make things complicated.

I have searched for previous answers to something like this, but have been unable to find any information about the beneficiary working in a foreign country. There are several topics that discuss the petitioner working in a foreign country, but that's a completely different topic. Any help understanding what is required and the impacts of her staying in Taiwan would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[Calypso 464]

Hello Mr. Obie and welcome to VJ!

It's now early in the morning. Later this Thursday, some helpful people will surely give you a more detailed response.

Right now, I just want to remind you that one of the major causes of delay in the visa process is waiting for the police clearance. Whenever your fiancee steps in Taiwan for the last time, she has to make sure that she gets her police clearance before she leaves.

If she continues working in Taiwan, don't worry about when she'd have to return to the Philippines. Let's say you file the I-129F in late March or in April (definitely after your meeting with all the pictures and other evidence for the I-129F) and receive the NOA2 in June or July, you could decide to have the interview in November. The NOA2 is valid for four months. Just make sure, too, that she takes the medical exam a week or two before the interview. Even if the NOA2 expires, you could always do something to renew or extend it, whatever the right term is.

Hakuna matata.

God bless us all.

FAE

[James and Cynthia 70]

Hello Mr. Obie and welcome to VJ!

It's now early in the morning. Later this Thursday, some helpful people will surely give you a more detailed response.

Right now, I just want to remind you that one of the major causes of delay in the visa process is waiting for the police clearance. Whenever your fiancee steps in Taiwan for the last time, she has to make sure that she gets her police clearance before she leaves.

If she continues working in Taiwan, don't worry about when she'd have to return to the Philippines. Let's say you file the I-129F in late March or in April (definitely after your meeting with all the pictures and other evidence for the I-129F) and receive the NOA2 in June or July, you could decide to have the interview in November. The NOA2 is valid for four months. Just make sure, too, that she takes the medical exam a week or two before the interview. Even if the NOA2 expires, you could always do something to renew or extend it, whatever the right term is.

Hakuna matata.

God bless us all.

FAE

Thanks for the information about getting the police clearance before she leaves Taiwan for the last time. It is good to hear that she can stay there until before her interview. More about the police clearance though. She also worked in another foreign country before Taiwan. Does she need police clearance from there too? She was there about 8 months. How can she go about getting such information? Thanks.

[wenxhua 0]

Thanks for the information about getting the police clearance before she leaves Taiwan for the last time. It is good to hear that she can stay there until before her interview. More about the police clearance though. She also worked in another foreign country before Taiwan. Does she need police clearance from there too? She was there about 8 months. How can she go about getting such information? Thanks.

Hey, wanna just let you know I am working in foreign country, gonna marry to a US citizen as well. It is not a problem, as advised earlier, just make sure she got the police certificate before she leaves.

Go check packet 3 for K1 visa on the US embassy website, there is specific guideline on if a policy certificate is needed, depending on when and how long.

For policy certificate, I searched it in my own language, it came up a website with different way to obtain police certificate for different countries, some super easy, some super complicated. So, my advice is to ask your future wife to check in her own home language.

Hope this helps,

[Darnell 8,479]

Is possible to delay the interview until she is through with contract in Taiwan.

I understand is also possible to have the interview IN Taiwan - it depends on how you handle the intitial filing of the I-129F.

[Darnell 8,479]

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she can request to get the police certificate, usually through the CONTRACT OFFICE that hired her - an HR person there can assist her to get that clearance, directly with the police office in that country that handles it. Might take some extra paperwork and monies, but is always better to handle it that way, instead of going to that country again, just to get a police certificate.