Fiancée of US citizen wishes to enter on F-1 Student Visa: Is this allowed?

[Inactive 0]

Very trick situation, but this is a great forum for advice: Somebody please help!

I am a US citizen and a college professor. I met my fiancée in Europe and she would like to move and start her career here. She has been accepted to an MA program at another university in my town, and they are ready to give her the I-20 form needed to processes the F-1 Student Visa. However, I will be paying the fees out of pocket for the first semester (she will have a full fellowship starting next fall), but in order to get in-state tuition fees in Tennessee we need to be married. So we would like to get a civil marriage before the start of the semester and save the religious ceremony for the summer. BUT, is getting married immediately after entering on an F-1 visa not a breaking of the commitment to not have any intent to immigrate? For a variety of reasons, we do want to start this coming semester, rather than wait until next fall. And she is going to apply to change her status to Green Card eventually so that she can work too.

Any tips on what we are allowed? What we should not do? How best to proceed?

Thanks!

[canadian_wife 1,826]

So it sounds like you are using the F-1 visa to get her to the US to immigrate, which is visa fraud. It carries a lifetime ban.

Your way of going about this seems really tricky and slighly dishonest. I wouldn't pursue it. If your goal is to have her get her green card, then file now for a fiance visa. but it looks like she won't be starting in the fall for school

goog luck

[jaycali 415]

Canadian wife is correct.

There is no law against your fiancee going to school in the US on an F-1 visa. You could be married and it still wouldn't matter legally.

The problem as you state, arises from the fact that an F-1 visa is a non-immigrant visa; To obtain it, you must have non-immigrant intent at the time of application and arrival in the US.

[Inactive 0]

Thanks! I certainly appreciate the severity of the law, and we have absolutely no intention of committing visa fraud in any way. On the contrary, I'm trying to find out what is the legal method of making two separate and perfectly legally situations come into being: being engaged to a US citizen on the one hand, and entering on an F-1 visa on the other. If there is no happy remedy then we will have to revise our plans, but since there is nothing illegal about either of the situations I am perplexed that there is not an easier solution. From the last comment, however, I gather that being engaged/married and intending to immigrate are two separate matters. My fiancée could, hypothetically speaking, get married on an F-1 visa and not go through the process of immigration, correct? Not in fact impossible, if we were to both take up employment in Europe. Any further thoughts or caveats? This is all very helpful.

[canadian_wife 1,826]

An F-1 is a non-immigrant visa. To be granted one she MUST prove she does not intend to immigrate to the US. Clearly she does.

It will be difficult for her to be granted a non-immigrant visa when engaged to a USC since there is already a presumption of immigrant intent, even more so if she is married to a USC

It is not up to the consulate to prove that she will immigrate, it is up to your fiance that she won't. THey will automatically assume that she will and from your posts, rightfully so.

File for an immigrant visa, stop trying to play the system

good luck

[Inactive 0]

I hear what you are saying, though please no need to be so accusatorial. If I understand what you are saying, then it is NOT possible to apply for an immigrant visa AND come in and study on an F-1 visa at the same time, right? If it is one or the other, then that would seriously disrupt our plans, given that the fiancée visa takes months.

[canadian_wife 1,826]

An F-1 is a non immigrant visa. It is for people who intend to study and leave. Your fiance does not qualify

You clearly have a plan in mind, if you don't mind violating immigration rules and running the possibility of a lifetime ban then please follow it through. I'm a rule follower and would not dream of damaging my future in the US with my husband trying for a shortcut

To answer your question, please read my other post. She must prove she does not intend to immigrate. I had to when I applied for my F-1, why would she be any different. She has plans of immigrating and you clearly said that is your intention. Since that is the case, then defer her start date and file for an immigrant visa

good luck

[Inactive 0]

This is all sound advice, I agree. And to be safe we will probably do that. As a follow up do you (or anyone else) know if it is permissible to enter and exit the US on a tourist visa waiver while the immigrant visa is being processed? And is it possible to begin studying (say in September) even if the immigrant visa has not been finalized. The state dep't website says it is impossible to predict how long the process will take. I do appreciate all the advice.

[jaycali 415]

This is all sound advice, I agree. And to be safe we will probably do that. As a follow up do you (or anyone else) know if it is permissible to enter and exit the US on a tourist visa waiver while the immigrant visa is being processed? And is it possible to begin studying (say in September) even if the immigrant visa has not been finalized. The state dep't website says it is impossible to predict how long the process will take. I do appreciate all the advice.

Yes, it's fully possible to visit on the visa waiver program during the immigration process. I did, four times, no problems. There is absolutely no law against it. They may scrutinize her a bit more than usual if they find out she's engaged/married to a US citizen though. Basically because they don't want her to come as a "tourist", and then all of a sudden have a "mind change" and stay. So it would be advisable that she carry with her some sort of evidence of ties to Lithuania. Employer letter, apt lease, car registration, school record.. You name it. Anything that'll show she has something to return to before she comes over for good. Just in case. (She does not have to volunteer any information she is not asked for specifically. However, if asked, she cannot lie). During one of my 4 entries, I was never even asked.. The marriage and pending immigrant visa process never came up!

As for a September start date - Nothing is guaranteed in immigration, but if you start now, you have a fairly good shot!

Edited November 26, 2012 by Jay Jay

[canadian_wife 1,826]

As for studying under a tourist visa, that is up to the school. Appropriate fees will apply, please contact the international admissions officer to clarify

good luck

[velrich 50]

Very trick situation, but this is a great forum for advice: Somebody please help!

I am a US citizen and a college professor. I met my fiancée in Europe and she would like to move and start her career here. She has been accepted to an MA program at another university in my town, and they are ready to give her the I-20 form needed to processes the F-1 Student Visa. However, I will be paying the fees out of pocket for the first semester (she will have a full fellowship starting next fall), but in order to get in-state tuition fees in Tennessee we need to be married. So we would like to get a civil marriage before the start of the semester and save the religious ceremony for the summer. BUT, is getting married immediately after entering on an F-1 visa not a breaking of the commitment to not have any intent to immigrate? For a variety of reasons, we do want to start this coming semester, rather than wait until next fall. And she is going to apply to change her status to Green Card eventually so that she can work too.

Any tips on what we are allowed? What we should not do? How best to proceed?

Thanks!

There is nothing wrong with entering the US and getting married at anytime after that even if she enters on the F-1 Visa as long as you do not have the intention to file for Adjustment of Status while she is here.

She can stay and study while you file the I-130 for her as long as she does not overstay the visa that she entered on and will go back to her country to do her interview.

Edited November 26, 2012 by velrich

[jaycali 415]

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Edited November 26, 2012 by Jay Jay

[Harsh_77 718]

Chances of getting a student visa while you are engaged are very slim.

Unless you are not planning to disclose that at the time of application of student visa.

I am not sure why your situation is tricky – you cannot have all the doors open for you either you pay the tuition out of pocket or wait until her K1 (fiancé) or CR1 (spouse) visa is approved and she enter the US and she pays the appropriate tuition at that time.

[Darnell 8,479]

To get 'local resident tuition rates' goes against the entire concept of being a foreign student.

Want her here for her school? Have her follow through with the F-1 visa, pay the international student rates .

[Inactive 0]

Thanks everyone. The in-state tuition is at the university's discretion, not immigration. That said, it is becoming clear that this is not the way to go because getting married on an F-1 is a violation of the visa. I get that now.

But what if the marriage in the US idea is scrapped entirely, and put off until some distant date AFTER the completion of the degree? Some are suggesting that we would not get the approval of the F-1 because an engagement presupposes the intent to marry/immigrate and that the burden of proof lies on us. Others are suggesting that there is no legal conflict between getting the student visa and being engaged. Is this in fact a murky area, or am I missing something?

Does anyone have experience coming in on an F-1 visa if your American fiancée is supporting you financially? We're not trying to hide anything, but we don't want to simply defer the start of a program and go through the lengthy petition + wait process of an immigrant visa (and possibly miss the fall semester too) if the opportunity to start a degree sooner can be realized in accordance with the law. We may well have to defer the program and immigrate first, but I'd like to thoroughly exhaust all the alternative possibilities first.