Setting a Date!!! Are you kidding?

[Cyn&Alex 2]

So, please tell me how in the hell (please excuse my verbal irritation) I am supposed to set a date for a wedding and show evidence of wedding plans if I have no clue when he will be approved? Guess what, you can't plan anything with any venues and have the wedding you want without a date. They don't have floating dates, not here in America!!!!! Things are booked a year in advance for a reason. So if anyone can tell me how I am supposed to send evidence of wedding plans to show continuation of relationship, by all means, I am all for advice. I am currently still waiting on NOA2, 3 months out from NOA1 already. I just find that ridiculous. Plus it sucks that I can't have the wedding I would like due to this whole process. Should have done it the other way. Anyways. Would it be stupid to just set one and hope for the best and then be out of a deposit which is never cheap for these things? How are other couples fairing in this department? Plus I was wondering how soon or what process can he opt for/out of for a work visa?

[Inky 1,110]

Wedding plans are not proof of continuation of relationship.

Many people do not show any plans of wedding because its a really really bad idea to plan / book anything until you have the visa.

Continuous relationship proof is things like

Trips

Photos

Phone logs

Chat logs

Etc.

[Molly&James 0]

I'm not sure if other people have done this but here's my story.

Our interview is next week and we are banking on the fact that we will be approved because it's a very straight forward case. Even if he gets the visa in early July he won't move here until October anyway for work reasons so our wedding date is months past when we would get approved and within 90 days of when he plans on coming. I had a a venue in mind already and when we sent in our last packet for the embassy with the last bits of evidence I included e-mails to a facilities coordinator discussing plans about possible availability dates (because at the time we didn't have a set date or paid deposit) and that should work out just fine as evidence that there are wedding plans. If you put an announcement in the local paper of your engagement that would be great as well. Hope that helped! Good Luck!

[sabi 148]

I'm not sure if other people have done this but here's my story.

Our interview is next week and we are banking on the fact that we will be approved because it's a very straight forward case. Even if he gets the visa in early July he won't move here until October anyway for work reasons so our wedding date is months past when we would get approved and within 90 days of when he plans on coming. I had a a venue in mind already and when we sent in our last packet for the embassy with the last bits of evidence I included e-mails to a facilities coordinator discussing plans about possible availability dates (because at the time we didn't have a set date or paid deposit) and that should work out just fine as evidence that there are wedding plans. If you put an announcement in the local paper of your engagement that would be great as well. Hope that helped! Good Luck!

all this is your option, people have no wedding plans in place, only planning a civil ceremony and have no proof of organizing anything and they get their visas no problem. You have to proof you have a bona fide relationship, that's all.

To the OP: you can have whichever wedding you want and dream of! All you have to do is to get married within 3 months time so you can do it the way a lot of people do, civil ceremony (depending on a state one to few days organization time ) for the paper work purposes and then when it's all over, a proper reception there is always a way! and no , you don't need to show wedding plans, just a proof that you have an ongoing relationship through pictures, chats, emails, calls, visits etc..

[CarolAnn&Eddy 12]

well if you go off of the times you have to get married after approval, I would think there would be plenty of time. 6 months(if i understand correctly) to enter the US and another 90days to be married. That is close to 9 months if a person wanted to push it. As for us, we are waiting to do any planning because I have a feeling the minute he is approved he will want to come straight away, however, he may wait in Canada so that we have a bit of time to plan accordingly.

[LeftCoastLady 441]

well if you go off of the times you have to get married after approval, I would think there would be plenty of time. 6 months(if i understand correctly) to enter the US and another 90days to be married. That is close to 9 months if a person wanted to push it. As for us, we are waiting to do any planning because I have a feeling the minute he is approved he will want to come straight away, however, he may wait in Canada so that we have a bit of time to plan accordingly.

Exactly, if you want to have the wedding of your dreams, then there is definitely time to plan it. You don't have to come to the US immediately upon receipt of the visa. Either use that extra time to make plans, or opt for a smaller ceremony and do the big party/reception later.

[kate&javi 26]

Although we can't choose a wedding date, I've already been in contact with some of the vendors/venues (our reception will be at my parents' house) and told them our "potential dates" (like an entire two months, ha) and I looked at what dates they have available. When we have an interview date, I'll contact them again with what they have available to pick our wedding date. It's certainly possible to find places that you don't have to book 1 year in advance. I'm really flexible about our date and since my fiancé has 6 months to enter into the US, you can play around a little bit. (it also has helped me to do a lot of prep work for the wedding, as we are having a traditional wedding meaning not at the courthouse, so a lot of it I'm doing myself.)

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

Ironically, there are some consulates that actually do expect a K1 to have made concrete wedding plans, even though they strongly advise you not to make any plans. The consulate in Saigon is one of them. More than a few K1 visa applicants have been denied there because they could not give the consular officer details about their wedding plans. Answers like "We're getting married at the court house" aren't sufficient for them. They want the name of a specific venue where the wedding will take place, or more specifically where the wedding reception will take place, and they actually look the place up on the internet to confirm that it exists and that it's an appropriate venue for a wedding reception.

My presumption is that their thinking is this is a subject a sincere couple would have discussed at length, along with detailed plans. A couple who didn't have any concrete plans beyond obtaining the visa probably were not genuine, and were thinking of the visa itself as being the ultimate objective rather than a relationship after getting the visa.

Anyway, this isn't a subject I've heard of being an issue at most low stress consulates, including most consulates in Europe. But, for anyone reading this who is going through one of the more difficult consulates, including those in Southeast Asia, your fiancee should have an answer to the question "What are your wedding plans?", and the answer should be detailed.

[Mogambi 96]

We have no definite wedding plans, and didn't by the time of the interview. That is not a deal-breaker. We were prepared to tell them the same thing you are saying 'how could we have made any plans since we don't yet have the Visa'. We have a ballpark idea of what we want to do (small wedding) and told them my fiance plans to come here in July. But that was about the extent of our 'plans' as we told them.

So don't worry about that. You CAN talk about 'where' you are thinking about getting married, give them a pallbark idea (if you've had that discussion), and talk in general timeframes. But yeah, tell them what you're saying here, they'll understand that.

[Cyn&Alex 2]

Thanks everyone, had a little bit of a mental break there. This whole process of waiting is driving me crazy. I understood that from the beginning. Just trying to deal with family and work planning. I work in a hospital, if that helps anyone understand my craziness due to scheduling (we have to have our vacay time in 6 months in advance). Just wanted to know if there was anything I may be missing that may help with this whole planning process. I just read that it was good to have these things set and copies of them provided during interview. Just at my wits end, b/c all the venues I have spoken to are booked up completely for the entire fall schedule. As soon as we are approved he will be coming here and we want to get married this year. I actually was going to have the ceremony and reception separate. Eh, once again all about the waiting game.

[sn530 27]

This situation does really suck the excitement of a wedding right out. Traditionally in our culture the wedding is held in the city that the bride is from. In my case thats going to have to wait till we get married here in USA and then we plan on flying back to her hometown to have the wedding. As for setting dates, you can take your chances and hope things work out, but lately things have been a bit slow so set your date 3 months out from anticipated date of getting the visa and hope there is no AP.

good luck!

[actob99 156]

Thanks everyone, had a little bit of a mental break there. This whole process of waiting is driving me crazy. I understood that from the beginning. Just trying to deal with family and work planning. I work in a hospital, if that helps anyone understand my craziness due to scheduling (we have to have our vacay time in 6 months in advance). Just wanted to know if there was anything I may be missing that may help with this whole planning process. I just read that it was good to have these things set and copies of them provided during interview. Just at my wits end, b/c all the venues I have spoken to are booked up completely for the entire fall schedule. As soon as we are approved he will be coming here and we want to get married this year. I actually was going to have the ceremony and reception separate. Eh, once again all about the waiting game.

No worries,, just tell them like you just described and all will be good. We haven't made any plans also.. We will tell them we are getting married in Vegas or justice of the peace(I know so romantic),,, but then we will return to the Philippines maybe after 6 months and get married with family and friends with a big reception.

[Diana and Chris 25]

Like stated above: It highly depends on the consular office if they care or not for specific wedding plans. They are not all the same. You should read your country's reviews.

[Therealworld 90]

You dont have to show proof of wedding plans. Just proof of ongoing relationship. Why make wedding plans when there is no guarantee that they will even get approved to come to the states. This is plain common sense.

[paz 11]

Gia sas komsu.

I had my visa interview on Thursday. I was crazy about having as much proof of relationship as I can. I had photos, emails, google talk history, facebook chat history, boarding passes, museum tickets, a scrap book she made for me, letters we sent to each other, greeting cards, vonage call history and couple other things as a proof of relationship. I spent hours gathering them together. They were in a folder organized by my OCD skills.

I was in the US Embassy Ankara, as I was walking in, there was this lady who was getting required documentation for the visa. She wanted proof of relationship. I gave her the folder. She tells me she can't accept them all and I can give her only a couple things and it'll be enough. I was like

I gave her couple letters I randomly picked out of the folder, some photos and call history. That was it. Still got approved.

Trust me they don't need evidence of wedding plans. Although she asked me where we were planning to get married. That was it.

Hope this answer was helpful. Have a great day..