LONDON DCF

[Indian1 0]

MY USC fiancee is a long term UK resident . I am an Indian citizen.

1. If we get married in london with me as a visitor, will they let us file DCF in london?

2. If we get married in India or in US , will they let us file DCF in london?

[zyggy 9]

MY USC fiancee is a long term UK resident . I am an Indian citizen.

1. If we get married in london with me as a visitor, will they let us file DCF in london?

2. If we get married in India or in US , will they let us file DCF in london?

Are you a UK Resident as well?.. If not, then no, London will not take your case as you do not come under their consular jurisdiction...

In order to do DCF, you both must be a legal resident of the UK.

[Indian1 0]

I am not a UK resident. I am resident in India.

But the US embassy in London website does not mention any UK residency requirement for the beneficiary spouse. It only talks about the USC spouse being a UK resident.

MY USC fiancee is a long term UK resident . I am an Indian citizen.

1. If we get married in london with me as a visitor, will they let us file DCF in london?

2. If we get married in India or in US , will they let us file DCF in london?

Are you a UK Resident as well?.. If not, then no, London will not take your case as you do not come under their consular jurisdiction...

In order to do DCF, you both must be a legal resident of the UK.

[zyggy 9]

I am not a UK resident. I am resident in India.

But the US embassy in London website does not mention any UK residency requirement for the beneficiary spouse. It only talks about the USC spouse being a UK resident.

MY USC fiancee is a long term UK resident . I am an Indian citizen.

1. If we get married in london with me as a visitor, will they let us file DCF in london?

2. If we get married in India or in US , will they let us file DCF in london?

Are you a UK Resident as well?.. If not, then no, London will not take your case as you do not come under their consular jurisdiction...

In order to do DCF, you both must be a legal resident of the UK.

In order for you to use the London Consulate to get your visa, you must be able to be served by that consulate. London only serves those aliens who are resident in the UK in issuing Immigrant Visas. They do not serve those who are visitors to the UK...

Sorry, but your fiancee will have to file the I-130 in New Delhi (which has it's own residency requirement) in order for your visa to be issued in India or go through the process by filing in the US.

[Yodrak 7]

zyggy,

Interesting situation here - DCF in London isn't DCF, it's filing the petition with the USCIS' London office rather than with a domestic USCIS Service Center. The petitioner, as a long term resident of the UK, should fall under the jurisdiction of the London USCIS office and not a USCIS Service Center in the USA.

Consular jurisdiction may not be relevant until after the London USCIS has approved the petition and it's time to apply for the visa - in India.

Yodrak

MY USC fiancee is a long term UK resident . I am an Indian citizen.

1. If we get married in london with me as a visitor, will they let us file DCF in london?

2. If we get married in India or in US , will they let us file DCF in london?

Are you a UK Resident as well?.. If not, then no, London will not take your case as you do not come under their consular jurisdiction...

In order to do DCF, you both must be a legal resident of the UK.

Edited December 13, 2006 by Yodrak

[zyggy 9]

zyggy,

Interesting situation here - DCF in London isn't DCF, it's filing the petition with the USCIS' London office rather than with a domestic USCIS Service Center. The petitioner, as a long term resident of the UK, should fall under the jurisdiction of the London USCIS office and not a USCIS Service Center in the USA.

Consular jurisdiction may not be relevant until after the London USCIS has approved the petition and it's time to apply for the visa - in India.

Yodrak

MY USC fiancee is a long term UK resident . I am an Indian citizen.

1. If we get married in london with me as a visitor, will they let us file DCF in london?

2. If we get married in India or in US , will they let us file DCF in london?

Are you a UK Resident as well?.. If not, then no, London will not take your case as you do not come under their consular jurisdiction...

In order to do DCF, you both must be a legal resident of the UK.

From what I understand, London USCIS office is there to service the Consulates that fall under its jurisdiction... it's not there to serve the general public per se... but they do take the I-130's for London DCF Cases in lieu of the consulate.

Look at it this way... how would it be different if the OP's spouse lived in a country that did not have a USCIS Sub-Office in the Embassy... they would be told to file in the US.... the same case applies here...

But I was thinking.. once married, the OP's fiancee in the UK should be able to get derivative legal status for his spouse in the UK... after that is granted, they should be able to file for a DCF case in London..

Edited December 15, 2006 by zyggy

[Yodrak 7]

zyggy,

An I-130 petitioner needs to submit their petition to the USCIS location that serves their place of residence. Or, if there is none because their place of residence is overseas where there is no USCIS office, to the consulate that serves their place of residence in lieu of the USCIS.

This becomes something of a 'grey area' because some consulates (or overseas USCIS offices) are willing to accept I-130 processing for someone who is only temporarily resident - sometimes very temporarily! The UK used to be such a place, but the USCIS-London seems to be moving in the direction of the letter of the law and now requires that the petitioner be truly resident.

In any event, the petition and the visa application remain two different things, and where a visa petition should be submitted depends on where the petitioner resides. Similarly, where a visa application should be submitted depends on where the visa applicant resides. It seems that in this case it is appropriate for the petitioner to submit his petition to USCIS-London, since he seems to be a long time resident there and has no residence in the USA that would allow him to submit to one of the 4 domestic USCIS Service Centers. But that doesn't necessarily mean that the US consulate in London must accept the visa application for processing if the visa applicant is not resident in the UK.

Yodrak

From what I understand, London USCIS office is there to service the Consulates that fall under its jurisdiction... it's not there to serve the general public per se... but they do take the I-130's for London DCF Cases in lieu of the consulate.

Look at it this way... how would it be different if the OP's spouse lived in a country that did not have a USCIS Sub-Office in the Embassy... they would be told to file in the US.... the same case applies here...

But I was thinking.. once married, the OP's fiancee in the UK should be able to get derivative legal status for his spouse in the UK... after that is granted, they should be able to file for a DCF case in London..

Edited December 19, 2006 by Yodrak