Arriving soon in Denver! What should I do first?

[Tina and Johan 206]

So, K-1 visa approved and flights booked. YAY!! Can't wait to see my dearest..

Arriving in Denver on 27th June. Going to take a much needed breather with soon-to-be-hubby for a few days and then want to get hitched asap.

Any ideas what the processes are like in Denver?

What do I do first, get SSN and then get married? or get married and then get SSN? Getting married in court, FYI.

Any advice on how and when to file for Driver's License would also be much appreciated.

Just a note: I am not changing my last name. Even so, if you have any info about name changing process please reply, might be useful for someone else reading this topic.

Also, for AOS, how soon can I file after getting married?

Thanks in advance.

~K

Woohoo!!! congratulations!!! I see you have the most important thing prioritized. I'm so happy for you!

Tina

[Dave&Roza 748]

We got married eight days after arrival at the Jefferson County Courthouse. Some counties do have a minimum number of days the Marriage License must be valid for so might want to check on that. Got married and went up to record the Marriage Certificate and received 6 certified copies right then and there. Went a couple of weeks later to get her SSN as she was also not changing her last name. Never mentioned she was married. Did not receive SSC due to USPS not delivering mail addressed to her because she was not on the mailbox. Went back to the SSA to get her SSN printed out and to have the card mailed to their office. Picked card up. Found a Civil Surgeon to finish the medical--cost of about $180. Completed AOS package and mailed it off. Once she received her GC she began preparing for the written test. Passed written test and received a 3 year Learner's Permit. Still practicing to drive. You can get a CO DL with the following proof of ID.

Good luck,

Dave

[Possiblymaybe 371]

i didn't read all of the replies, but this was our situation with a K1 in Denver:

- Social Security card about a week after arriving with passport and printed I-94

- Married (We received the Marriage License about a week before marrying. We turned in the signed marriage license ourselves to the courthouse. They provided certified copies immediately)

- Applied for AOS, EAD and AP. Only included a copy of DS3025 for medical stuff

- With the EAD (which took about 2 months to receive) and his passport, he took the written test for the driving permit. We used his NOA from the AOS for proof of mailing address. You can also get a drivers license with the EAD, but I'm not sure if you can get one before then. We waited until after he received the green card to get the driving license.

Keep in mind for Denver, the USCIS field office is EXTREMELY slow. We did not have our AOS interview until 8 months after applying! I'm telling you this to make sure you apply for EAD and AP. They are free when you file them with the AOS. During the AOS interview, we were informed that he would need to get another shot before we could be approved. From the USCIS website we found a civil surgeon that is right across the street from the USCIS office. They were able to get him in the same day, give him the shot and do the paperwork, and we returned it just a couple of hours after our interview. We were approved the next day. This doctor was great because they only charged for the shot, and not the full medical. All of the others we called said they would charge for the full medical.

This is where we went:

• Dr. Benjamin Schnurr, South Denver Primary Care, PC
  8200 East Belleview Avenue, Suite 418C, Greenwood Village, CO 80111
  (303) 835-9915

I hope that was helpful. Best of luck to you, and welcome to Denver!

[Possiblymaybe 371]

Oh, a couple more things about marriages in Colorado:

- You don't need a Social security number to get married. You just sign an affidavit saying you don't have one.

- In Colorado, you can choose to do a civil marriage (the court), religious ceremony (mosque or church), or neither (self solemnization). You chose which option you want when you get the Marriage License. The last option is cool because it means that you guys can hike up to the top of a mountain and just declare yourselves married if you want. Just a thought

If you want to go the court route, I believe you can get it all taken care of in one trip (license, marriage, and receiving certified copies)

[NikLR 13,227]

In Colorado you need an EAD and ssn to get a driver's license. You also need proof of residency such as a bank statement or utility bill. You can look up the requirements online and book and appointment at the DMV too (saves you 3-4 hours of waiting by making an appointment fyi). You need to go to special Driver's license DMVs. Regular ones just do car registration.

[raven52 233]

Do not wait until AFTER you are married to get ssn number, we did, and caused extreme grief.,,.,.,my opinion, you cominng here on K-1 visa, you will have MANY problems if you do not change your last name to your to be hubby's,.,.,.,just my opinion!

[nadia&sameer 12]

Regarding immunizations, it may be cheaper and easier to get them done in your home country. They just need to be on a form from the dr.'s office or pharmacy showing your full name, dob and we had them put his passport number on the form. We then took it to a local civil surgeon and paid $25 to have everything transcribed onto the I-693. As other posters stated, you just have to search for a civil surgeon that will just do the transcription if you've had your medical already done in the last year.