Help! US citizen marrying an Irish citizen, what do we do?

[nikkioooo 0]

ok, so! change of plan for us then! thinking of just going for the K1! he has flights booked in June, you think there would be anyway that he could still come here legally by then? How long does the K1 take? how much would it cost and what would I have to do?

[nikkioooo 0]

ok, so! change of plan for us then! thinking of just going for the K1! he has flights booked in June, you think there would be anyway that he could still come here legally by then? How long does the K1 take? how much would it cost and what would I have to do?

[Penguin_ie 5,997]

He could come here legally in June to visit (90 days on the visa waiver program), but he could not stay. The K1 will take about 7-10 months from the day you file the petition to interview, assuming no problems along the way.

There is a useful guide with step-by-step instructions on the K1 here: http://www.visajourney.com/content/k1guide

Edited April 6, 2011 by Penguin_ie

[nikkioooo 0]

He could come here legally in June to visit (90 days on the visa waiver program), but he could not stay. The K1 will take about 7-10 months from the day you file the petition to interview, assuming no problems along the way.

There is a useful guide with step-by-step instructions on the K1 here: http://www.visajourney.com/content/k1guide

Thanks

[nikkioooo 0]

If he comes here on the J1 and I apply for the K1 sometime this week...when he gets here in June, and we get married before the 90 days is up...can he still stay in the US while everything is being processed? then what would we have to do after we were married? also anyone know how much the K1 will cost?

[slangofoil 50]

You do not get married while you're waiting for a K-1. A K-1 is for FIANCES to enter the country, THEN marry their petitioner and adjust status. Ain't a chance in hades he'd have the K-1 by June.

For a K-1, first you submit a petition to prove you both meet the preliminary requirements for him to apply for the visa. The petition will take 3-6 months to be approved. Then he applies for the visa in Ireland, with a host of other things he needs to do such as get a police check and medical exam. THEN he comes, you get married within 90 days, and then go through another 3-6 month process of getting him the green card.

Personally, I'd have him come on the J-1, get married ASAP, then start the I-130 spousal petition, which after approved, gives him the ability to apply for a CR-1 visa in Ireland. You can be together for the duration of his J-1, but he'll have to go home after that. That's a 8ish month process these days I think.

Aside from those options, having him come on a J-1 with the intent of staying forever, is visa fraud. So get that thought out of your head.

*edited to fix typo*

Edited April 6, 2011 by slangofoil

[Anh map 2,098]

The other possible fly in your ointment is that he's entering on a non-immigrant visa (J1) with all of his worldly possessions. A CBP officer may (and I want to emphasize MAY) question why he was bringing a lot of belonging for a summer work gig. So just keep that in mind as he prepares. It would be disappointing if he was denied entry and sent back home.

[nikkioooo 0]

The other possible fly in your ointment is that he's entering on a non-immigrant visa (J1) with all of his worldly possessions. A CBP officer may (and I want to emphasize MAY) question why he was bringing a lot of belonging for a summer work gig. So just keep that in mind as he prepares. It would be disappointing if he was denied entry and sent back home.

totally, I don't think he will be bringing much though so no worries on that.

so theres a very low chance of being able to change the J1 waiver status while hes here?? is it worth a shot or would it look suspicious somehow and maybe affect chances of further visa applications? Because thats the last thing we want.. We really had in our heads hed be able to stay after we got married but thats starting to look unlikey and is affecting our plans.

[nikkioooo 0]

is the I-130 / CR visa a tough exspensive route? Because hes leaving a job to come in June...will be looking for a job here in June, then returning to Ireland without employment, so its just a different way to what we had planned and want know as much about it as possible so we dont mess it up! thanks btw

[Penguin_ie 5,997]

CR-1 is cheaper than K1, and probably marginally easier. BUT it takes longer (mostly because you'd need to get married before applying, whereas you can start the K1 now). He can look for a job while on the J1 or VWP, but I doubt anyone would hire him because they do not know when he can start work (this incidentally would be the same if he did Adjustment of Status from a J1, as it takes anything from 3-6 months or more). If him working when he gets here is important, the CR-1 is the way to go- he can work the day he gets to the USA if he can find a job.

[nikkioooo 0]

nks for all the help, we're lucky we enquired about this before we jumped striaght into it! One last question sorry! Approximatley how long will the CR1 process take after he returns from the J1?

[slangofoil 50]

totally, I don't think he will be bringing much though so no worries on that.

so theres a very low chance of being able to change the J1 waiver status while hes here?? is it worth a shot or would it look suspicious somehow and maybe affect chances of further visa applications? Because thats the last thing we want.. We really had in our heads hed be able to stay after we got married but thats starting to look unlikey and is affecting our plans.

It's not a matter of being "worth a shot" or not. It's visa fraud, and no one on VJ will advise you and your boyfriend to commit visa fraud. Do many people get away with that kind of thing? Sure, but that doesn't make it right. Immigration is, by nature, a tough and expensive process. You have to educate yourself about these kinds of things before making life-changing plans. I'm not trying to harangue you here, but seriously, for your own benefit and sanity, take a step back and do some research - then choose the best option, not the fastest/cheapest/worth-a-shot option.

And yeah, he'd have slim chances of getting a decent job here when his work auth would only be for 4 months. Even if you DID try to adjust his status after he came, he'd have to stop working between the time his J-1 expired and the time he got approved for an employment authorization document. That could be a few months.

[Penguin_ie 5,997]

You can start the CR-1 the day after you are married, ie while he is still in the USA. If there are no problems, it should take about 7-10 months from the day you send off the papers to interview, so if you still are going ahead with the July wedding, he should be immigrating sometime in early spring 2012 (he can come visit you for Christmas on the Visa Waiver).

[nikkioooo 0]

It's not a matter of being "worth a shot" or not. It's visa fraud, and no one on VJ will advise you and your boyfriend to commit visa fraud. Do many people get away with that kind of thing? Sure, but that doesn't make it right. Immigration is, by nature, a tough and expensive process. You have to educate yourself about these kinds of things before making life-changing plans. I'm not trying to harangue you here, but seriously, for your own benefit and sanity, take a step back and do some research - then choose the best option, not the fastest/cheapest/worth-a-shot option.

And yeah, he'd have slim chances of getting a decent job here when his work auth would only be for 4 months. Even if you DID try to adjust his status after he came, he'd have to stop working between the time his J-1 expired and the time he got approved for an employment authorization document. That could be a few months.

we're not trying to "work the system" All were trying to do is be together which i'm sure that you understand. All I was trying to figure out was what we'd have to do after the 4 months is over so we can make that happen. Yeah, we should have done our research earlier, but were doing it now so there's no reason to get testy about it, thank for the info though

You can start the CR-1 the day after you are married, ie while he is still in the USA. If there are no problems, it should take about 7-10 months from the day you send off the papers to interview, so if you still are going ahead with the July wedding, he should be immigrating sometime in early spring 2012 (he can come visit you for Christmas on the Visa Waiver).

Alright perfect, thank you soooo much for your help! sounds like that's gonna be the best route for us

[Penguin_ie 5,997]

We are here to help!

Now that you have decided on the CR-1, be sure to read the CR-1 Guide here: http://www.visajourney.com/content/i130guide1 and you may want to have a read through the CR-1 forum and if you have further questions, post a new topic there:

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/forum/110-ir-1-cr-1-spouse-visa-process-procedures/