Introducing Myself... & asking a few questions!

[monyfer 27]

Hello Everyone!

I found this site a couple years ago but haven´t posted...until now! I am at an exciting crossroads in my life. I am a US Citizen and have been dating my boyfriend Fer (a Mexican citizen) for close to three years. We have known each other for almost ten years, though! We first met when I was an exchange student to his little town in Mexico. We stayed friends for a long time and eventually it developed into more. We did long distance for two and a half years, each one visiting the other every few months, and then I moved to Mexico to be with him about four months ago.

However, I would like to move back to the US this spring, and Fer and I both very much want him to come back with me. We are currently exploring which visa option is best. I, personally, would like for us to get married ASAP and go that route. However, Fer wants to make sure he can actually get a job and provide for me in the states, and does not feel ready to get married for another year or two years. He is well educated and speaks fluent English. Options we are considering are as follows:

- Student Visa (Fer can go to grad school. However, the downside of this are the enormous costs and the fact that he would not be able to get any US student loans. He would also be unable to work on this kind of visa, as I understand it, or else, very limited).

- TN (NAFTA) visa. I am not sure just how easy or hard this is to get, but I know it is significantly easier than any other type of work visa since it is a special visa only for Canadians and Mexicans. Fer´s undergrad degree is in engineering (an approved profession on the NAFTA list) but his work experience is in sales and would make him most eligible for a sales job (not on the NAFTA list).

- If we DO decide to go the fiance or marriage route: which is easier? I have ready that the fiance visa can take about a year to get approved, so if that were the case, it might work out more for his get married in a year plan.....but I know that is not sure. He wants to come work for a year and then get married, not get married right away then work.

I am not sure which of these visas allow you to get a drivers license, loans, buy property like car, house, etc..

Any advice would be soooo appreciated

Thanks everyone!

[TyandAllie 17]

I can't answer your questions, but hello, and good luck in your journey!

[Amyyduck 20]

Hello Everyone!

Hi and welcome!

I found this site a couple years ago but haven´t posted...until now! I am at an exciting crossroads in my life. I am a US Citizen and have been dating my boyfriend Fer (a Mexican citizen) for close to three years. We have known each other for almost ten years, though! We first met when I was an exchange student to his little town in Mexico. We stayed friends for a long time and eventually it developed into more. We did long distance for two and a half years, each one visiting the other every few months, and then I moved to Mexico to be with him about four months ago.

However, I would like to move back to the US this spring, and Fer and I both very much want him to come back with me. We are currently exploring which visa option is best. I, personally, would like for us to get married ASAP and go that route. However, Fer wants to make sure he can actually get a job and provide for me in the states, and does not feel ready to get married for another year or two years. He is well educated and speaks fluent English. Options we are considering are as follows:

- Student Visa (Fer can go to grad school. However, the downside of this are the enormous costs and the fact that he would not be able to get any US student loans. He would also be unable to work on this kind of visa, as I understand it, or else, very limited). I don't have a lot of experience with this one, but I was under the impression that to get one you have to be able to prove intent to return to your home country, which, in this case, might be difficult seeing as he's not really intending to go back to Mexico. I'm not sure how heavily they weight your proof of intent, but something to consider nonetheless.

- TN (NAFTA) visa. I am not sure just how easy or hard this is to get, but I know it is significantly easier than any other type of work visa since it is a special visa only for Canadians and Mexicans. Fer´s undergrad degree is in engineering (an approved profession on the NAFTA list) but his work experience is in sales and would make him most eligible for a sales job (not on the NAFTA list). I've never heard of this so I can't offer you any advice, sorry.

- If we DO decide to go the fiance or marriage route: which is easier? I have ready that the fiance visa can take about a year to get approved, so if that were the case, it might work out more for his get married in a year plan.....but I know that is not sure. He wants to come work for a year and then get married, not get married right away then work. So you have a couple options here, actually.

Option 1: File a K-1, which usually takes anywhere from 6-9 months on average. He'll have 6 months to use the visa once it's issued, and then 90 days after he enters the US to marry you. But then you have to go through AOS which takes more time, paperwork and money and your Fiance wouldn't have work authorization right away.

Option 2: Get married in Mexico and then wait 2 months. If you've been living there (legally, with an appropriate visa/immigration status) for 6 months or more, I believe you'd be eligible to file DCF, which is a spousal visa that allows you to then move to the US with your (then) husband and he would automatically be a Permanent Resident with a green card, work authorization and the whole shebang. This is the quickest option, as it usually takes only around 3 months. Double check with the embassy in Mexico that they offer this filing and that you would qualify.

Option 3: IR1/CR1. Get married, then file. You won't have to wait the 2 months to make the residency requirement as you would for DCF but this visa takes a lot longer. On average it takes around 9 months to a year. Your (then) husband would be able to enter the US as a legal permanent resident, with a green card and work authorization just like with the DCF.

I am not sure which of these visas allow you to get a drivers license, loans, buy property like car, house, etc..

Any of these visas will allow your fiance to get a SSN upon entering the country. With the K-1 he'd have to wait like two weeks after he entered. With the others he would automatically be a legal permanent resident so he could get it right away. Getting a drivers license would be easy with just the SSN. To get a loan and/or buy property you need to have good credit, and to establish good credit takes time and effort. It might be difficult for him to do that but LEGALLY he could get a loan or buy whatever he wanted.

Any advice would be soooo appreciated

Also consider that if he wants to go back to school, out of state tuition fees can be extremely expensive compared to in-state. If he waits until he's a permanent resident and has fulfilled the residency requirement of the university (usually around 6 months to a year) you'll be able to save a ton of money!

Here is a link to the visa comparison page so you can get more information on which visa might be right for you. http://www.visajourney.com/content/compare Note a few things: One, that this page doesn't contain information about student visas or TN/NAFTA so you'll have to look elsewhere for that. And, two, the K3 visa is no longer an option. The information is only still listed for those who are already in process. No more K3 petitions will be accepted.

So that was a LOT of information, hopefully I haven't just confused you further! Good luck with your journey, whichever path you choose!

Thanks everyone!

[monyfer 27]

Thanks for your detailed advice, Amy! And for telling me K3s no longer exist.

I understand about not having dual intents. The CR1 visa seems like the best bet for us, since he could work right away on it, or even the fiance visa, but again, marriage is such an important decision and I do not want for either of us to feel rushed or pressured into it because of immigration. Ideally, he would come on a the NAFTA visa, and if we still feel the same way in six months or a year, get married and change status. But things do not always work out how you want and sometimes certain situations require us to speed up things we would traditionally prefer to wait to happen...and it would be great for him to have all the US bennies soon after arriving like resident status for student loans, shall he choose to study later on down the line.

We have lots of decisions to make so I am sure you will hear more from me on the boards...thanks!

[Amyyduck 20]

Thanks for your detailed advice, Amy! And for telling me K3s no longer exist.

I understand about not having dual intents. The CR1 visa seems like the best bet for us, since he could work right away on it, or even the fiance visa, but again, marriage is such an important decision and I do not want for either of us to feel rushed or pressured into it because of immigration. Ideally, he would come on a the NAFTA visa, and if we still feel the same way in six months or a year, get married and change status. But things do not always work out how you want and sometimes certain situations require us to speed up things we would traditionally prefer to wait to happen...and it would be great for him to have all the US bennies soon after arriving like resident status for student loans, shall he choose to study later on down the line.

We have lots of decisions to make so I am sure you will hear more from me on the boards...thanks!

No problem! It's been a slow day at work