Marriage: K1 Vs Visa Waiver

[helpme2013 0]

Hello.

I am Seeking help on the topic of getting married in the US on a Visa Waiver Vs Getting the K1 Fiance Visa.

My History with my Fiancee and the US

I am from the UK. I met my girlfriend about 16 months ago in the US while working though OPT as an extension of an F1 Student Visa. So I was in the US for almost 6 years (minus visits back to the UK). My F1 OPT time ran out and I returned home to the UK.

I then went back over to the US through the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) by getting an ESTA a month later. I stayed for the full 90 days to spend further time with her and then returned to the UK again.

I've been back in the UK for about 4 months now but she did visit for a few weeks in October. We have both decided that we want to get married and for me to live over there with her.

Having done a lot of research on the topic, it is still tough to really get all the answers that I need based on my particular set of circumstances.

K1 Visa Option

Current waiting times for a K1 Visa are 5-9 months, which is a long time to wait to be with each other. I have researched that it is possible to visit her during this period while the application is pending but I would have to keep strong ties to my home country (ie my job). This doesn't allow me to go over there confidently for anything more than a few weeks. If I was to go over for longer (chancing it of even getting into the country) I would have to quit my job and leave myself in a tricky financial situation especially since I will have to wait an additional 2-3 months for employment authorization (EAD) upon marrying and filing I-765 with I-485 for Adjustment of Status (AOS). There isn't even a guarantee that the K1 visa is accepted and it could be time wasted for nothing. My research tells me that because of our age difference (she is 12 years older than me although she doesn't seem it) it could raise an eyebrow of any inspecting officer. And then obviously we would have to go through another interview with the I-485 AOS process.

Although this is the recommended way of doing it I'm not exactly sure if its worth it based on the Visa waiver possibility.

VWP Visa Option

I understand that you are not supposed to enter the US with intent to marry on a non-immigrant visa but a lot of people get away with it. I know it is a risk, However, I have read about the 60 day rule and supposedly after those first 60 days the suspicion of intent to marry is almost but not totally removed. I am not worried about our marriage as being deemed illegitimate as it would be a completely genuine marriage. However, due to our situation, I feel that proving there was not an intent to marry could be difficult. This method would be a lot quicker, cheaper, and easier but I'm not sure just how risky it is.

My questions are:

How does one prove non intent? Does my past of going back and forth effect me claiming non-intent? How probing are the questions at the I-485 AOS interview about preconceived intent? Does waiting the 60 days remove any risk?

Any advice, personal experiences shared, or links are much appreciated.

Thank you.

[lost_at_sea 995]

Marrying on a VWP, with the intent to do so (which you have) is visa fraud.

I mean, you have to ask yourself - is it worth the risk? If they decide you were planning it, you risk being barred (I'm sure I came across someone saying it could be for as long as 10 years, but don't quote me on that number) and then what would you do? Could she move to be with you? Would you have to move to a different country together?

Technically, yeah, you can do it, you can play the odds... Personally, I wouldn't want to risk not being able to go there at all (hence the K1 petition).

If you're worried about a k1 not going through - get some professional advice. The age difference shouldn't matter, though, they care about 2 things: is the relationship real and can the american partner support the foreigner (financially)? That's it.

[Penguin_ie 5,996]

**** Closing topic as it asks about visa fraud (entering on the VWP with intent to stay). This is against our TOS: http://www.visajourney.com/content/terms ****