Relationship between K-1, CR1, form I-751 and I-485

[Chidoriashi 0]

Hi, I would like to know a little more about the K-1 visa.

When my fiance comes to the US to get married, after we are married what is her status? is it CR1?

If so which of the two forms will be used? I know the I-751 can be used to remove the conditional status of the CR1 (if that is what her status will be), but I do not know how the I-485 fits into all this. Is the I-485 even necessary if we able to fill out the I-751 to get the 10 year green card?

Who is it that needs to file, or under what circumstances should the I-485 be filed?

Thanks in advance for any help.

[Calypso 464]

Hi, I would like to know a little more about the K-1 visa.

When my fiance comes to the US to get married, after we are married what is her status? is it CR1?

If so which of the two forms will be used? I know the I-751 can be used to remove the conditional status of the CR1 (if that is what her status will be), but I do not know how the I-485 fits into all this. Is the I-485 even necessary if we able to fill out the I-751 to get the 10 year green card?

Who is it that needs to file, or under what circumstances should the I-485 be filed?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Hello!

A CR-1 visa is what a foreign spouse should get to enter the U.S. as an immigrant. The foreign wife will have her two-year conditional green card with CR-1. The removal of conditions follows after two years, actually it should be filed within ninety days before two years come in full circle.

A K1 Visa is for a foreign fiance/fiancee. It's a nonimmigrant visa so once the foreign fiance/fiancee marries the U.S. citizen within ninety days after they arrive in the U.S., they have to file I-485 for adjustment of status to obtain a conditional green card that is valid for two years. What follows involves I-751 or removal of conditions to have the ten-year green card.

Edited March 10, 2010 by Calypso

[pushbrk 12,881]

Hi, I would like to know a little more about the K-1 visa.

When my fiance comes to the US to get married, after we are married what is her status? is it CR1?

If so which of the two forms will be used? I know the I-751 can be used to remove the conditional status of the CR1 (if that is what her status will be), but I do not know how the I-485 fits into all this. Is the I-485 even necessary if we able to fill out the I-751 to get the 10 year green card?

Who is it that needs to file, or under what circumstances should the I-485 be filed?

Thanks in advance for any help.

The K1 visa enables US Citizens to bring their foreign fiance(e)s to the USA in order accomplish a legal marriage in the USA followed by adjustment of Status to Legal Permanent Status. ( Green Card) The K2 visa allows unmarried children (under age 21) of the fiance(e) to move to the US as well.

K1 and K2 Visa Process Outline:

The K1 visa itself is only a single step in a procedure for obtaining permanent residency (a green card) based on a marriage to a US Citizen after entry. The steps involved in immigrating to the US via a K1 visa can be generally described as follows:

The US Citizen files the I-129F petition for the foreign fiance(e) with the USCIS. The I-129F is filed at a USCIS Service Center in the US (where you file depends on where you live). The petition phase is very straightforward. Approval timelines vary with each Service Center, with the processing times ranging anywhere from one to five or six months.

After the I-129F has been approved, the petition is sent to the Department of State's National Visa Center (NVC) where it is processed and forwarded to the correct Embassy or Consulate. The process of sending the approved I-129F from the Service Center (through the NVC) and arriving at the embassy takes about a month. The fiance(e) has 4 months from the time the I-129F was approved at the Service Center to obtain the K1 Visa at the US Consulate in the foreign country. This time period can be extended by a consular officer if required. The visa application process is generally similar in all countries, although each Consulate will vary a bit in their requirements.

Once you have the K1 Visa it is good for only one entry into the United States within 6 months of the issue date. A K2 Visa holder (child of K1 Visa holder) may enter up to one year after the K1, but a K2 Visa holder may not enter the U.S. prior to the K1.

Once in the United States, you have 90 days to get married.

Immediately after marriage, you must apply for an Adjustment of Status, Form I-485, to become a permanent resident. You may also apply for an Employment Authorization Document (EAD) to work (required until your I-485 is approved) and "advance parole" in case you want to travel outside the United States and re-enter before getting your green card (I-485 approval).

If your I-485 is approved prior to two years after you were married you will be issued a "Conditional" Permanent Resident status (green card) which is valid for only two years. If you are interviewed and approved greater than two years after you were married you will get a full normal Permanent Residency with no conditions valid for ten years. The time it takes to approve an I-485 depends on where you live and the nearest local USCIS office's processing timeline.

If you were given a "conditional permanent residency", 21 to 24 months from the date you were granted this status, you will have to apply to have the "Conditional" status removed; if approved you will get a full 10 year green card. If you had a full permanent residency status without conditions then this step is not required.

In three to five years, depending on circumstances, you can apply to become a US citizen (naturalization).

[payxibka 10,045]

Not a K-1 visa general discussion topic... moving thread

[Chidoriashi 0]

Thank you guys for all you help. That clears up everything for me. I was finding a lot of conflicting info but this seems to be the consensus. We have the option of just getting married now in Japan, and doing all the ceremonial stuff later in the US, so that seems to be the cheapest and quickest way of getting all this stuff out of the way. Thanks again.