K3 help - cannot apply in country where marriage took place

[Tortoise&Hare 1]

Hi guys I'm trying to find out info on applying for a K3 - my husband is in the U.S, I am in South Africa and we got married in the U.K. So since we can't apply through the country that we were married in, does anybody know if it will be acceptable through the U.S. Consulate in South Africa? Any help or advice would be much appreciated.

[Penguin_ie 5,993]

Is there any specific reason you are trying to get the K3?

The CR-1 is superior in almost all cases and you can interview for it in any country you are legally resident in.

[jaycali 415]

The K3 is obsolete. You'll have to apply for a CR-1. Here's the process:

1. Your husband files an I-130 with USCIS in the US.

2. Once approved, your approved I-130 petition is forwarded to the National Visa Center (NVC) .

3. Your husband sends an I-864 affidavit of support, and you send an application for immigrant visa, DS-230 to NVC.

4. NVC reviews everything, and forwards it to the US embassy in (Pretoria?). NVC schedules you for a visa interview.

5. You go the interview and get interviewed for a CR-1 immigrant visa.

6. Once approved, you can enter the US. Once you enter, your CR-1 visa gives you conditional permanent resident status for two years.

7. After 21 months, you and your husband file I-751 petition to lift conditions on residency.

8. Conditions are lifted, you are now a permanent resident with no restrictions.

IF you have been married for two years + when you enter the US, this is an IR-1 visa and not CR-1, no two year conditional residency applies.

[Tortoise&Hare 1]

We filed the I-130 and wanted to file K3 in hopes of being re-united sooner. I didn't see anywhere on the information given on the USCIS website that the K3 was obsolete :S

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

K-3 has been virtually unobtainable since 2010ish?

Edited November 3, 2013 by Harpa Timsah

[jaycali 415]

We filed the I-130 and wanted to file K3 in hopes of being re-united sooner. I didn't see anywhere on the information given on the USCIS website that the K3 was obsolete :S

It's not obsolete on paper. It's de facto obsolete. The K-3 was designed for a time when I-130 petitions took years to process, and rather shorten the time of separation to the time it took to process an I-129f (for K-1 fiance visas) and then allow for adjustment of status in the US once the I-130 was done processing. Processing times for the I-130 have decreased drastically since the mid 2000s and are now roughly the same as for the I-129f. When the I-130 and I-129f are filed concurrently, they are most often processed simultaneously, and both petitions are forwarded to the NVC. The NVC doesn't need both petitions and will just administratively close the inferior visa (K-3) and process the CR-1. It doesn't hurt to file the I-129f with the I-130.. It just doesn't do much good either.

Edited November 3, 2013 by jaycali

[NikLR 13,227]

We filed the I-130 and wanted to file K3 in hopes of being re-united sooner. I didn't see anywhere on the information given on the USCIS website that the K3 was obsolete :S

You will not find that information on the USCIS website because they do not grant visas. The National Visa Center, which is part of the Department of State (the USCIS is part of the Department of Homeland Security), is who grants visas.

http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/types/types_2993.html#4

[Tortoise&Hare 1]

You will not find that information on the USCIS website because they do not grant visas. The National Visa Center, which is part of the Department of State (the USCIS is part of the Department of Homeland Security), is who grants visas.

http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/types/types_2993.html#4

Yes, I am aware of that. What I meant was will the consulate in South Africa grant a K3 in this circumstance. Forgive my poor choice of wording.

[Penguin_ie 5,993]

They cannot grant you a K3, for the reasons stated in your first post.

[jaycali 415]

Hi guys I'm trying to find out info on applying for a K3 - my husband is in the U.S, I am in South Africa and we got married in the U.K. So since we can't apply through the country that we were married in, does anybody know if it will be acceptable through the U.S. Consulate in South Africa? Any help or advice would be much appreciated.

It's not obsolete on paper. It's de facto obsolete. The K-3 was designed for a time when I-130 petitions took years to process, and rather shorten the time of separation to the time it took to process an I-129f (for K-1 fiance visas) and then allow for adjustment of status in the US once the I-130 was done processing. Processing times for the I-130 have decreased drastically since the mid 2000s and are now roughly the same as for the I-129f. When the I-130 and I-129f are filed concurrently, they are most often processed simultaneously, and both petitions are forwarded to the NVC. The NVC doesn't need both petitions and will just administratively close the inferior visa (K-3) and process the CR-1. It doesn't hurt to file the I-129f with the I-130.. It just doesn't do much good either.

Yes, I am aware of that. What I meant was will the consulate in South Africa grant a K3 in this circumstance. Forgive my poor choice of wording.

There will be no K-3. You will be going the CR-1/IR-1 route.

If you are a South African citizen and reside in South Africa, you will be going through the consulate in South Africa, regardless of where the marriage took place.

Do not forget that an I-130 has to be filed by your husband with the USCIS and approved before any visa application is made.

The only way that this entire process can be done directly with the consulate is if 1. Your husband resides in South Africa, and has resided there for six months+, and 2. The embassy/consulate there has a USCIS office. This is called direct consular filing (DCF).

Edited November 3, 2013 by jaycali

[NikLR 13,227]

Yes, I am aware of that. What I meant was will the consulate in South Africa grant a K3 in this circumstance. Forgive my poor choice of wording.

No they cannot because you are not living where the marriage took place. Your only choice is pursue a CR1 visa.

[En-oh-eh-to now 147]

No they cannot because you are not living where the marriage took place. Your only choice is pursue a CR1 visa.

Is this true? You must be a resident of the place where the marriage took place to apply for a K-3? I thought that K-3 is not based on residence, but rather on location of the marriage. In our case, we are both free to travel to the country where our marriage took place, but we're residents elsewhere.

[Blueberry Pancake 311]

Is this true? You must be a resident of the place where the marriage took place to apply for a K-3? I thought that K-3 is not based on residence, but rather on location of the marriage. In our case, we are both free to travel to the country where our marriage took place, but we're residents elsewhere.

From http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/types/types_2993.html#22

NVC will then send the I-129F petition to the U.S. Embassy or Consulate in the country where the marriage took place. If the marriage took place in the United States, the NVC will send the petition to the U.S. Embassy or Consulate that issues visas in the foreign-citizen spouse’s country of nationality. If the marriage took place in a country that does not have a U.S. Embassy, or the Embassy or Consulate does not issue visas, the NVC will send the petition to the U.S. Embassy or Consulate that normally processes visas for citizens of that country. For example, if the marriage took place in Iran where the U.S. does not have an Embassy or Consulate, the petition would be sent to Turkey.

I've seen it before, but I thought.. well, I don't know what I thought. That it was a mistake maybe.

So, this would be a lot of hassle for people who had destination weddings (me).

[NikLR 13,227]

Is this true? You must be a resident of the place where the marriage took place to apply for a K-3? I thought that K-3 is not based on residence, but rather on location of the marriage. In our case, we are both free to travel to the country where our marriage took place, but we're residents elsewhere.

as quoted you'd need to be able to interview in the country the marriage took place. If you don't live there, you are not a resident and don't qualify to have an interview there. That is my understanding. You may wish to call the NVC and clarify.

[jaycali 415]

No they cannot because you are not living where the marriage took place. Your only choice is pursue a CR1 visa.

as quoted you'd need to be able to interview in the country the marriage took place. If you don't live there, you are not a resident and don't qualify to have an interview there. That is my understanding. You may wish to call the NVC and clarify.

Just to clarify, this is not true.

What visa to apply for has absolutely nothing to do with what country you got married in. The country of marriage is irrelevant to any visa application. What matters is that the marriage is legal by US federal law. Nothing else matters.

They could have been married in the UK, Cambodia, Fiji, the US or South Africa. If she is a South African citizen, residing in South Africa, she will interview for a CR-1/IR-1 visa in South Africa. Period.

Also, see my post above on the K-3 visa. It is de facto obsolete, and no longer a viable option regardless of where the marriage took place. If a couple is married, the only viable route today is I-130 - CR-1/IR-1.

Edited November 5, 2013 by jaycali