I-130 and I-129

[meltow30 0]

Hello I am fairly new to this process and have some questions. I am from the US and have been in South Africa for two years in May - my boyfriend is South African. We are considering both the fiance visa and spousal visa.

Since I am in South Africa, if we get married here, we can file the petition in Johannesburg and it could take about 6 months. If we got married here we would do the ceremony at home affairs and once he was in a US do a more formal ceremony, etc. My questions regarding this is would my going back to the US once we filed the petition as I may need to for work. Does the application require photos of a wedding?

If we do the fiance petition I am hearing it takes 8 - 12 months. Can my boyfriend visit me on a tourist visa while we wait for the application to process? Would it screw up his application? I heard yes from someone. Also once he gets the visa, we get married, how long does it take to change the visa status so he can work and be "permanent". We are not looking to do citizenship at his point.

Thanks anyone for any feedback.

[Penguin_ie 5,997]

**** Moving from K3 to General Immigation forum as OP hasn;t decided on the type of visa they want to go for, triplicate postings removed ****

Forget the K3- if you decide to go for a spousal visa, it will be the CR-1, which leads to an immediate greencard upon entry to the USA (ie immediate ability to travel and work).

You don't need photos of the wedding, but one or two would be good- a legal wedding in front of the judge is fine, and a photo in front of the court house, at a dinner afterwards- nothing fancy. Many people have a quick legal wedding first, then the ceremony later.

He can visit during the visa process if he has a tourist visa. It is easier to get a tourist visa before the process is started than after. Once the K1 fiance visa is granted, he will have 6 months to use it, and then when he travels to the USA, you have 90 days to get married. Then you apply for AOS, which is more fees and forms, and takes several months.

In conclusion, I highly recommend the CR-1 route over the K1 route. It's cheaper and faster.

Edited March 4, 2012 by Penguin_ie

[meltow30 0]

Okay so like I suspected the Spousal Visa is the quicker way. The only reason we would do the fiance visa is because we wouldn't be taking this marriage step otherwise (if we didn't live in different countries). We have been together a year and just want to keep things the way they are but the idea of being apart a year is quite scary which is why the spousal visa sounds attractive.

Once our petition is accepted what sorts of financial documents do we need to show, i.e., bank account statements, etc.

Thanks!!

[Penguin_ie 5,997]

You need to show that you can financially support him- ie have a US based job that makes $19'000+ (assuming it's just the two of you with no other dependants/ kids), or sponsor on assets, or get a co-sponsor. This requirement is the same for the fiance or spousal visa.

You mention only wanting it for a year- does that mean you will only be in the USA a year and then plan to move back to South Africa? While you still can do the spousal visa, it is expensive and time consuming to do this for only a year's worth of living in the USA (if you guys live abroad afterwards, he will loose his greencard and need to re-apply if you two want to move back to the USA later), especially if you don't really want to get legally married. You may look into other options, such as a B2 tourist visa which allows him to visit you for up to 6 months, or a student visa.

[meltow30 0]

Ok. No we would be living in the US permanently. Maybe go back to SA in 4 - 5 years. I meant with the fiance visa the drawback is being apart for a year. That's why although we aren't 100% ready for marriage it seems the best way for us to be together and be able to live our lives together.

[Penguin_ie 5,997]

Yeah if you stay in the US 4-5 years, that should be enough for him to get citizenship, then you can move whereveer you want and always come back.

With the K1 you don't have to be apart, but most people are. Two options:

- You file from South Africa, and only move when he gets the visa. Required a co-sponsor in the USA.

- He gets a tourist visa and visits during the process (can;t work), and goes back to SA for the medical and interview. Of course, you'd still need to get married in the end, but it gives you another year or so before the wedding.