Working on a plan B, can someone confirm I'm correct

[CLMIKE 22]

At this time, my girlfriend and I are planning on filing the I-129F by the end of next week.

We plan on her coming to America and marrying here with the K-1 visa. But because my dad raised me as an engineer, I always try to come up with a back up plan.

If the K-1 is denied, the next plan would be for me to fly to the United Kingdom and marry her there, and then bring her back later on with a K-3 visa. The only issue with this plan on my side is after receiving my petition to marry is I'd have to first visit England, be in the country for 7 full days, apply for the certificate/petition to marry, wait about 15 days, and then marry. All of this was confirmed by them. Much research I've done ha ha.

So all and all I'm looking about 26 days total. So let's say four weeks vacation. I only get three weeks vacation a year, and my job has agreed that if needed, they'd work with me to be gone the 4 weeks in a row, as long as I started saving my vacation now that way I didn't come across as begging for more. Sure no problem. I love my job, it's a great job in engineering, so obviously I don't want to do anything there to be negative either.

But I also want to be able to use my vacation time to see my girlfriend in England as well once I know for sure the hard part of the K-1 process is complete. So here's where my question comes in at.

If my goal is to not visit my girlfriend until we believe we've moved on to the smooth sailing part, would the correct plan be as follows

Use no vacation until the K-1 visa petition is approved (receiving NA02 and no RFE). At that point...everything else is smooth sailing right and nothing should deny it if we follow all instructions? So if we receive NA02, I should not worry any more about hoarding vacation to try and marry her in England and use my vacation to visit her while we wait for the interview?

I'm sorry if it's a paranoid question, but a second opinion would mean a lot.

Thank's as always for being the best place of knowledge and friendly helpers who want to see you succeed and happy in your life with your international partners

[CLMIKE 22]

And just to make sure I'm perfectly clear...I don't expect the K-1 to be denied. No bad history, been in a relationship with her for 7 years with much evidence, it's just...I'm an Engineer, and an Eagle scout. Always be prepared.

[lost_at_sea 995]

Well, I guess it pays to have a backup plan, but the I-129f for K1 is a pretty good plan in the first place and if your fiancé is British and in the UK she's lucky - it's one of the most straight-forward embassies to deal with. One thing to clarify - getting the I-129f petition approved (NOA2) does not mean it's a sure thing - she can be denied at the embassy stage (the K1 application proper). Nothing is a sure thing in this process until the visa is in the passport and you've entered the USA!

If you got married, you'd be following this guide I-130 for CR-1: http://www.visajourney.com/content/i130guide1

The I-129f for K3 can only be applied for after filing the I-130 (as the receipt for that is needed): http://www.visajourney.com/content/k3guide

Most folks find the I-130 for CR-1 moves more swiftly than the K3 process these days. So, expect some folks to pop up warning you off bothering with that (the K3 that is - but you're not even starting that process, so whatevers).

About waiting to visit... It's going to be a long wait for the K1 to come through (maybe 6 - 12 months), so don't discount your need to visit. As *another* "back-up" plan, remember, she can still come to the US and marry you while visiting on the VWP. Or you could get married in another country. That's totally allowed. She can also come visit you in the mean time while the petition is pending - that's also no problem.

P.S. My husband is also an engineer and ex-Eagle scout. You sound a lot like him in the preparedness "know your options" sense.

Edited September 5, 2013 by lost_at_sea

[CLMIKE 22]

About waiting to visit... It's going to be a long wait for the K1 to come through (maybe 6 - 12 months), so don't discount your need to visit. As *another* "back-up" plan, remember, she can still come to the US and marry you while visiting on the VWP. Or you could get married in another country. That's totally allowed. She can also come visit you in the mean time while the petition is pending - that's also no problem.

Wish this was true, but sadly it is not in our case.

We tried to have her come over for a B-2 visa to spend 6 months together. They denied it due to "not enough strong ties to her home country.

By doing that...she no longer can ever visit on the VWP.

Edited September 5, 2013 by CLMIKE

[lost_at_sea 995]

Wish this was true, but sadly it is not in our case.

We tried to have her come over for a B-2 visa to spend 6 months together. They denied it due to "not enough strong ties to her home country.

By doing that...she no longer can ever visit on the VWP.

Oh no, I'm sorry to hear that.

Still, you could still marry in a 3rd country which she is able to visit (although the paperwork for that may be more onerous than that of the UK's wait time).

[CLMIKE 22]

That's true. It's an option.

I figure right now...I have 11 days of vacation. If the K-1 gets denied, it will take probably a year anyway to set up an England wedding since we'd have waited on the K-1, so I'd have accrued another 21 days so I'd have 31. If I only need 28 I should be ok.

I still think I will hold off and wait until I at least get the NAO2 before I plan a travel.

[lost_at_sea 995]

That's true. It's an option.

I figure right now...I have 11 days of vacation. If the K-1 gets denied, it will take probably a year anyway to set up an England wedding since we'd have waited on the K-1, so I'd have accrued another 21 days so I'd have 31. If I only need 28 I should be ok.

I still think I will hold off and wait until I at least get the NAO2 before I plan a travel.

You got me curious... apparently there's a guide for the best places to marry abroad - who knew: http://www.101honeymoons.co.uk/getting-married-abroad/

Anyway - fair enough. I think you're being over-cautious. You've had a 7 year relationship, no doubt tons of good evidence, she's interviewing in the UK (one of the easiest embassies - have a read of the interview reviews to get a feel for how straight-forward it is)... you're probably textbook.

If you want help - do a new post with what you're putting in your I-129f package before you mail it out, and folks on here should help point out anything that may be missing.

[CLMIKE 22]

Anyway - fair enough. I think you're being over-cautious. You've had a 7 year relationship, no doubt tons of good evidence, she's interviewing in the UK (one of the easiest embassies - have a read of the interview reviews to get a feel for how straight-forward it is)... you're probably textbook.

If you want help - do a new post with what you're putting in your I-129f package before you mail it out, and folks on here should help point out anything that may be missing.

Oh I plan on doing both. I guess I just have that inner fear because in my head, as I was for sure thinking the B-2 visa would have been a for sure thing. But after reading online later, they've been more strict on that if you mention a boyfriend/girlfriend/fiancee because they fear you're coming over to stay illegally and tend to automatically decline.

And of course had I known the VWP would no longer be an option if a B-2 was denied...I'd have not done that either.

At least I'm not as paranoid as my girlfriend...she's afraid the same lady who denied her B-2 is going to be there when she does her K-1 interview

[lost_at_sea 995]

Oh I plan on doing both. I guess I just have that inner fear because in my head, as I was for sure thinking the B-2 visa would have been a for sure thing. But after reading online later, they've been more strict on that if you mention a boyfriend/girlfriend/fiancee because they fear you're coming over to stay illegally and tend to automatically decline.

And of course had I known the VWP would no longer be an option if a B-2 was denied...I'd have not done that either.

At least I'm not as paranoid as my girlfriend...she's afraid the same lady who denied her B-2 is going to be there when she does her K-1 interview

Hah! Well, I don't know how true that is. If she can recall the description of the lady, she can try and find a reference to her in the embassy interview reviews. There's a few infamous faces that get mentioned over and over. http://www.visajourney.com/reviews/index.php?cnty=United%20Kingdom

The B2 denial should have no effect on her K1 interview.

B2s are regularly denied in VWP countries because they're like "Well, what's wrong with the 90 days you get with the VWP? You must want to stay there!" sort of logic. Wish they just didn't let folks even try to go for B2 if they have a valid WVP status still... would prevent this sort of mishap. Oh well, too late now! Onwards and upwards.

Edited September 5, 2013 by lost_at_sea

[lost_at_sea 995]

Oh - quick tip (just found your other thread) - update your profile information a bit so you're flagged as a UK case. That way your threads'll show up in the UK portal and folks from our region are more likely to spot your topics and respond to them. The UK crowd on here is pretty solid.

http://www.visajourney.com/portals/index.php?country=United+Kingdom

[CLMIKE 22]

Does how you did below show up by doing a timeline or what?

• Filed for:IR-1/CR-1 Visa (DCF)
• Filing Location:Local Office
• Local Office:San Francisco
• Country:United Kingdom
  

[lost_at_sea 995]

Does how you did below show up by doing a timeline or what?

• Filed for:IR-1/CR-1 Visa (DCF)
• Filing Location:Local Office
• Local Office:San Francisco
• Country:United Kingdom

  

You want to fill out a bit of your bio info here (Immigration info section): http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?app=core&module=usercp&tab=core

[CaizLurol 36]

And just to make sure I'm perfectly clear...I don't expect the K-1 to be denied. No bad history, been in a relationship with her for 7 years with much evidence, it's just...I'm an Engineer, and an Eagle scout. Always be prepared.

Cross that bridge when you get there. Do the K-1 first and if that fails, then worry about the rest.

No sense in worrying about what could happen if it isn't necessary... whether you're an engineer or not... This is coming from a scientist.

[Cathi 5,748]

K-3 is no longer an option, they haven't been issued since 2010. So you will need a back up plan to your back up plan

[baron555 934]

If your K-1 is denied, becoming married does alleviate the reason it was denied. You could be denied again.