Same Sex Marriage Forum

[JohnR! 5,495]

Which again is about 14 countries so far.

For a marriage visa or DCF they have to be married.

You only need to be married in one of them. So you can choose any of the 14, including the US.

For a marriage visa or DCF they have to be married.

Yes, otherwise calling it a marriage visa would be somewhat of a misnomer, would it not?

Edited August 5, 2013 by Gegel

[Karee 4,190]

You only need to be married on one of them. So you can choose any of the 14, including the US.

What if you can't get a visa to any of the 14 where it's allowed? Which if you look at the map, most of them are not easy places to get visas from places like Thailand or the Philippines.

[JohnR! 5,495]

What if you can't get a visa to any of the 14 where it's allowed? Which if you look at the map, most of them are not easy places to get visas from places like Thailand or the Philippines.

If you can't get a visa, the K-1 route would be the best option, like any other couple.

[Karee 4,190]

You only need to be married in one of them. So you can choose any of the 14, including the US.

Yes, otherwise calling it a marriage visa would be somewhat of a misnomer, would it not?

Let me break it down for you since you aren't getting it. I'll use Thailand as an example.

I can go there and get married to a Thai if we are the opposite sex. This immidiately qualifies me and my spouse to apply for a CR-1 visa or DCF if I meet the residency requirement. I can't go there and get married if we are the same sex. Also, my Thai same sex partner can not get a visa to any of the 14 countries where same sex marriage is allowed, which is a very common thing for anyone from Thailand. That leaves me one option. The fiance visa. So it is different.

[JohnR! 5,495]

Let me break it down for you since you aren't getting it. I'll use Thailand as an example.

I can go there and get married to a Thai if we are the opposite sex. This immidiately qualifies me and my spouse to apply for a CR-1 visa or DCF if I meet the residency requirement. I can't go there and get married if we are the same sex. Also, my Thai same sex partner can not get a visa to any of the 14 countries where same sex marriage is allowed, which is a very common thing for anyone from Thailand. That leaves me one option. The fiance visa. So it is different.

In that case you should propose a new forum for K-1 visas who can't go the IR/CR route, to include those who don't meet residency requirements. In that sense, they are no different than any other couple. The scenario you depict is not exclusive to same-sex couples.

Edited August 5, 2013 by Gegel

[Karee 4,190]

If you can't get a visa, the K-1 route would be the best option, like any other couple.

So then you agree that I can't go DCF or go the CR-1/IR-1 route like any other couple? Which is the whole point of this conversation.

[JohnR! 5,495]

So then you agree that I can't go DCF or go the CR-1/IR-1 route like any other couple? Which is the whole point of this conversation.

In this case, your initial premise for a separate forum for same-sex couples does not apply because there are many other couples in the same situation. Ergo, you might want to reconsider and request the creation of a forum for couples who can't qualify for DCF and must go the K-1 route.

Edited August 5, 2013 by Gegel

[Karee 4,190]

In this case, your initial premise for a separate forum for same-sex couples does not apply because there are many other couples in the same situation. Ergo, you might want to reconsider and request the creation of a forum for couples who can't qualify for DCF and must go the K-1 route.

Still not getting it I see. Look at the world map I posted. Only 17 countries allow same sex marriage. All of them allow opposite sex marriage. That's the difference.

[JohnR! 5,495]

Still not getting it I see. Look at the world map I posted. Only 17 countries allow same sex marriage. All of them allow opposite sex marriage. That's the difference.

Not entirely true. Divorces/divorcees can't get married in some countries. In some countries only residents or citizens can get married. In certain countries you can only get married within your faith. In some countries you can only get married within your clan.

However, in the context of these forums, in the context of immigration and the USCIS none of that makes any difference.

[KayDeeCee 4,893]

Wow, so many pages about what countries allow SSM. I still do not see how that justifies them needing a separate forum. Either married or going for a K-1, they will follow the exact same guides and fill out the exact same forms as hetero couples. First cousins can only marry in certain countries and states too. They fill out the same forms and marry where they are legally able to. Not all countries even have DCF as an option anymore, so I am not sure why it matters if they live in a country where DCF or a CR-1 is not an option. It is not an option for some hetero couples either. They can go for the K-1 then, if there is no other option available to them. If they are trying to decide which route they should take, they could post in the new forum, What Visa Do I Need.

[NikLR 13,227]

Wow, so many pages about what countries allow SSM. I still do not see how that justifies them needing a separate forum. Either married or going for a K-1, they will follow the exact same guides and fill out the exact same forms as hetero couples. First cousins can only marry in certain countries and states too. They fill out the same forms and marry where they are legally able to. Not all countries even have DCF as an option anymore, so I am not sure why it matters if they live in a country where DCF or a CR-1 is not an option. It is not an option for some hetero couples either. They can go for the K-1 then, if there is no other option available to them. If they are trying to decide which route they should take, they could post in the new forum, What Visa Do I Need.

<QFT>

I agree with this!!

[Kathryn41 3,205]

The forums discuss the processes needed for immigration. If the process is the same for same sex couples then there is no need for separate forums to discuss their immigration journeys. If same sex couples had to go through a different process than heterosexual couples, then having a separate forum to discuss the different process would make sense. They don't, so it doesn't.

[GandD 5,966]

Why don't you guys let the single sex couples tell you what they want.

[TicoLover 17]

If nothing else, there needs to be a same-sex forum to post all the information specifically addressing same-sex marriage coming out of DOS. It's currently being posted under General and is hard to find without doing a Google search. I think it's clear that there is a group of specific directives coming out that would best be grouped under a Same-sex marriage forum. And besides that there is a very unique situation in the same-sex community that are now allowed to petition for their spouse after being together or being separated for years or decades. Can you imagine as an opposite sex couple that the US government had said to you years or decades ago that you would not be able to petition for immigration for the person you love and want to marry until June 26, 2013, except we didn't even have the benefit of knowing if this would happen in our lifetime. This has created a tremendous hardship for same-sex binational couples and has required some to be very creative. There are an estimated 36000 same-sex binational couples in the US, many of whom have faced deportation because they either overstayed their visa or entered the US illegally to be together. I know of several couples who decided to move to the foreign national's country rather than stay in the US. Some even immigrated to Canada to be able to live together in a country that did not discriminate. So, now many of these couples will be returning to the US with histories and stories very distinct from opposite-sex couples. For example: Did your sister ever marry your partner so that he could come to the US to live with you? Did you ever apply for a student or tourist visa to be able to be with the one you love and want to marry because you couldn't apply for a fiancé visa? There are a lot of issues that same-sex couples are going to have to explain to immigration that has never come up in an opposite sex case. There needs to be a forum to discuss these very unique situations.

[Bayareaguy 156]

And there you go.