To Obtain B1/B2 while waiting for K1 in Ukraine

[TatieM 0]

I belive my deisre is rather understandable for those couples who are at the beginning or in the middle of K1 process. It's incredible difficult to wait especially when you know that the assessment of the petition takes such a huge amount of time. I would like to try to obtain B1/B2 visa while K1 is pending and I would deeply appreciate any replies and experience of the ladies from Ukraine. Could you tell me if you applied for a tourist visa, what was the outcome of the interview, what sort of documents helped you to convice the officer to grant you a visa? what information you provided.? I reckon, there are a lot of people who have fiancees in Ukraine and this topic might be of a great help for those who are ready to try in order to spend some more precious moments with the beloved.

[Nick_Moscow 2]

For those of you around here who know me you know I'm beating a dead horse (where did that smiley go?), but I'll share my two cents anyway:

If the absence is making you more frustrated than it's making your heart grow fonder, you can go to Ukraine to be with your lady while the paperwork is processing! It's not really a ; just do the math!

OPTION ONE:

You fill out "temporary visa" paperwork for your lady to come to the US while the "permanent option" (fiance) visa paperwork processes:

1. Takes time, money, and maybe an interview to get the visa, and the visa has a higher likelihood of denial than the next option - you still must wait for this visa to be approved!

2. It looks like your lady will still have to return home before the "permanent option" visa can be approved: http://www.visajourney.com/content/i130guide2

3. You might be uprooting your lady from her life without a long enough courting period.

OPTION TWO:

You go to Ukraine to be with your lady while the "permanent option" (fiance, or more likely, spouse) visa paperwork processes

1. Costs you some time and money to get the visa if you stay longer than 90 days, very little likelihood that interview is required

2. Also very little likelihood that your visa will be denied

3. This visa should be processed much quicker than a corresponding US visa would take to process

4. If you stay fewer than ninety days, you don't even need a visa!

5. Your love possibly will grow stronger given that you'll see a side of your lady's life that you couldn't possibly replicate here in the US!

6. There also will be stronger connections made with your future in-laws, which has obvious benefits (fewer fights with wife, possibility of free babysitters in future, stronger marriage, etc.)

My opinion is biased since I went to Russia to live with and then marry my wife before bringing her to the US, but I hope you can at least consider an easy option that many think is impossible!

[SMR 368]

I belive my deisre is rather understandable for those couples who are at the beginning or in the middle of K1 process. It's incredible difficult to wait especially when you know that the assessment of the petition takes such a huge amount of time. I would like to try to obtain B1/B2 visa while K1 is pending and I would deeply appreciate any replies and experience of the ladies from Ukraine. Could you tell me if you applied for a tourist visa, what was the outcome of the interview, what sort of documents helped you to convice the officer to grant you a visa? what information you provided.? I reckon, there are a lot of people who have fiancees in Ukraine and this topic might be of a great help for those who are ready to try in order to spend some more precious moments with the beloved.

My wife visited while we were waiting for a K1. However, she already had the B visa before we applied for the K1. Actually, the whole series of events was as follows:

-We met in Russia while I was there for other reasons. This lasted for a couple years, although the level of contact varied.

-I went back to Russia to visit her after returning home.

-She came to the US to visit me a couple months later. This is also where she got her B visa. She was in the US for almost two months, during which time we got engaged.

-We applied for K-1.

-She went home while we waited.

-I came to visit her again.

-She came to visit me again. Here is where the story gets somewhat interesting and more to the point. While re-entering, they saw that she had been for a visit a couple months ago. They also asked about her ring and she stated that we were engaged and waiting for a K-1. They detained her for a couple hours and got me on the phone. They eventually gave her a 30 day I-94 and threatened that all hell would break loose if she overstayed it. She went back home after thirty days. Her K-1 interview was scheduled by this point.

-We got the K-1 without any particular difficulty at the interview.

-Married.

Visiting on a B visa while waiting for a K-1 is obviously not illegal. However, keep in mind that we didn't have to apply for the B visa while the K-1 was pending. They definitely gave us some ####### for entering at that time. On the other hand, at least part of the reason they gave for that ####### was that she had recently used the B visa (a couple months prior) and was using it again. It may be that the officer will be of a mind to deny the B visa if the K-1 visa is pending without considering much else. However, that shouldn't have any effect on the K-1 visa (provided no false statements are made in connection with the B application) so the only thing you have to lose is the application fee.

[Tnic 5]

Good luck with the B2. Kiev is getting VERY stingy with them. I just spent 2 hours standing outside waiting while she went through a 2 minute interview only to be denied. And the CO didn't even bother to look at the supporting docs she had, that they SAY you should bring along.

2 minutes looking at her monitor then NO.

And I also saw ALOT of UACs walking out passport in hand. Oh, and the new passback kiosk that probably cost us 500,00 bucks to include is no longer in use. I guess they're not collecting enough visa fees to pay the rent, but then it was the usual mob scene so maybe they just want to funnel the cash somewhere else?

[jft 12]

You might consider meeting in a third country she can travel to easily. A Schengen visa should not be too hard for her to get if you want to go to Europe or Mexico and many countries in the Caribbean either don't require visas or grant them easily. We're doing the expensive option where I am visiting or meeting her somewhere for a week or two every 3-4 months while we wait. Sure it's not cheap but it's worth it to keep the embers hot and to have some great adventures along the way.