Help please...last minute change

[MeenaBeena 0]

Hello everyone...

I am leaving to go to Morocco in 10 days. I was originally going to get married then, I started reading here how long it takes to get a spouse into the US. I sat and cried for 2 days. I have 4 children and they are very attached to him. They talk to him online and on the phone. They mail him things and such, so there is no way I can imagine making them wait that long. It is hard enough for me to wait that long much less children. That is when I noticed that if you apply for a K-1 it seems to take a lot less time then a K-3. Can you tell me if what I have read is true? Will it be a shorter time if we decide to go the way of K-1 instead? If we do, can you tell me is there anything I need to do while I am there. I feel so lost....as everything seems to be changing at the last minute. I am overwhelmed, scared and lost.

He lives in Casablanca and is a student. He has family there and two brothers here. So he has family both places. Do they consider this a risk when issuing a K-1? I live in Missouri. How do I tell what the time length is for the K-1 in my area?

Thank you for any help you can give me.

Dawnnette

[morocco4ever 63]

I believe you can cut a couple of months off with the K-1 rather than the K-3. You need to gather any and all evidence while you are there. Many pictures, you and him, with friends, with family. It is beneficial to have an engagement party. I don't know all of it since ours is for the now IR1 visa. Others can guide you more.

One thing I do want to address is his family that lives here in the US. When you file the I-129f petition it is vital that you address all of your red flags at this level. This would include his relatives living in the US. They are going to want to know what visa they are here with, if and when you have had contact, etc. Their main goal is to find out if these relatives arranged your marriage. You need to address this with the I-129f first so that the USCIS knows all of the facts and can approve with full knowledge. If you don't do this there is always the chance that the consulate will send it back to the USCIS to investigate it further. Letters of support from both his and your family is great.

Hopefully someone else has more info to help.

Good luck!

[Together4ever 1]

You may want to post your question in the K3 forum. I've noticed that K1 processing times have gotten longer and longer and the two types are pretty close to the same now in processing times. The K1 was created/intended to be quicker but that doesn't seem to be the case anymore. Like M4E stated, it may be a month or 2 shorter but it all depends on the processing. Sorry that's not a more positive note. Waiting is waiting. You do it because you have to and you learn to appreciate the little gifts that present themselves along the way... like the ability to build an incredibly strong foundation to your relationship based on trust and communication that you can foster during your waiting time. There's always a bit of a silver lining if you look.

[ya falaha! 0]

Ain't that the truth in regards to Cairo? The K1 and K3 seem to take pretty much the same amount of time.

I've noticed that K1 processing times have gotten longer and longer and the two types are pretty close to the same now in processing times. The K1 was created/intended to be quicker but that doesn't seem to be the case anymore.

[Sofiyya 1,687]

CR1/IR1 processing is catching up to K3, too.

I believe you can cut a couple of months off with the K-1 rather than the K-3. You need to gather any and all evidence while you are there. Many pictures, you and him, with friends, with family. It is beneficial to have an engagement party. I don't know all of it since ours is for the now IR1 visa. Others can guide you more.

One thing I do want to address is his family that lives here in the US. When you file the I-129f petition it is vital that you address all of your red flags at this level. This would include his relatives living in the US. They are going to want to know what visa they are here with, if and when you have had contact, etc. Their main goal is to find out if these relatives arranged your marriage. You need to address this with the I-129f first so that the USCIS knows all of the facts and can approve with full knowledge. If you don't do this there is always the chance that the consulate will send it back to the USCIS to investigate it further. Letters of support from both his and your family is great.

Hopefully someone else has more info to help.

Good luck!

You'll find info about red flags here.

Edited November 22, 2006 by szsz

[honeyblonde 0]

I was in the same boat as you when I came to VJ last year. I would suggest looking at the timelines for Morocco and seeing what the statistics are.

If you do decide to marry in Morocco, be prepared to be there for 3 to 5 weeks at least. It is a very long process and if you're just going to meet him for the first time, I wouldn't recommend it. It is better to use that time to get to know each other better than to be rushing around jumping through hoops to get married.

Also, I think it probably looks better to immigration if you get engaged for a while first, then marry. People who go get married the first time they meet, in my opinion, are putting up an unneccessary red flag. That just isn't normal here, and it looks suspicious. It may be normal in his society, but immigration knows you're not from Morocco so you should find it unusual. That said, the K1 would be the route to take to prevent that flag.

Just my two cents. Definitely study the timelines first and go from there.

Liz

[peezey 0]

As is mentioned, you need to consider all red flags, and marrying the first time you meet can be considered one. Other things that have been brought up here in the past are age differences, language differences, how long/short you've known each other, how many times you've met in person.

If you don't mind me asking, how is it your kids could be so attached to someone online? I'm sure they like him, but I wouldn't worry too much about their attachment to a person they've never met.

As honeyblonde stated, getting married in Morocco takes weeks, how long are you planning to stay?

If he's a student, will he be able to finish his studies in the next 12-18 months should you be approved that quickly and he needs to move here?

[othman and lavon 0]

We got married the first time I went there. Yes, we did all the running around to get it all done for us to get married. It took us about 2 weeks to get everything done to get the approval to get married. It was worth it to us since we had already known each other for soooo long. The consular officer said to Othman that is good that we knew each other for a year. See it was not a red flag for us to get married when I went there since we had already been talking online for a year. I think the ones who meet too soon should not get married since that could be a red flag.

For us, K-3 was definitely the way to go since it only took us from July 5 when I sent the fom off to Nov 19th when he got here in Texas. But, I do know it is very rare for a person to get so lucky since I read the timelines for all types of visas.

For those without a timeline please fill one out. Good luck Meenabeena

Lavon and Othman

[Sofiyya 1,687]

We got married in Sale/Rabat in about 9 business days. I was there for about two weeks altogether. But the girls are right; it can take a while too. My husband had plotted everythign out beforehand, had a list of documents needed, knew alot of the right people, and got a lawyer to push a stubborn judge for approval at the last minute. The time you take and what's required can vary from location to location. Also, yes, it does matter how long you've known each other (among other things) as to how the consulate gages the validity of your relationship. My husband and I were together for about 4 years before meeting IRL. They seem to like a longer relationship better.

Edited November 23, 2006 by szsz

[honeyblonde 0]

If you do decide to marry there, be sure to take all of the right documents. My husband and I were planning at first to marry, and when he checked he found out I needed a document from the courthouse that my last divorce had never been contested. I didn't even know such a document existed, but was able to get it for about $2. I also got a police report on myself ($20 here) and then they asked why my last name didn't match my birth certificate (I kept my kids dad's name). They wanted me to go get my birth certificate changed and couldn't understand that such a thing wasn't possible here. While I was trying to get all of these documents together I found VJ and found out that K1 was a much safer way (at that time) so we decided that would be much better for us.

Whatever you decide, just make sure you're prepared.

I also took the K1 documents with me already completed, so Abdel could sign his forms in person and save me having to send them later and wait to get them back and pay the expense of him having to send them to me fed ex.

[morocco4ever 63]

We got married in Sale/Rabat in about 9 business days. I was there for about two weeks altogether. But the girls are right; it can take a while too. My husband had plotted everythign out beforehand, had a list of documents needed, knew alot of the right people, and got a lawyer to push a stubborn judge for approval at the last minute. The time you take and what's required can vary from location to location. Also, yes, it does matter how long you've known each other (among other things) as to how the consulate gages the validity of your relationship. My husband and I were together for about 4 years before meeting IRL. They seem to like a longer relationship better.

If I remember correctly, you got the name of the lawyer from my husband. He helped us and is very good and very personable. Knows all the right people.

[Sofiyya 1,687]

If I remember correctly, you got the name of the lawyer from my husband. He helped us and is very good and very personable. Knows all the right people.

Well, I wasn't aware of that, sis. I never asked how my husband knew of him, but I'm not surprised about that. The lawyer was an excellent choice and gave us his all. My hats off to your husband, for passing him on to us! He was a life saver! And you're not a bad resource either.