I-130 vs K3 waiting times

[mrsbrook 4]

Hi all

I'm brand new to this forum. So glad to have found it as the sheer volume of information is overwhelming. Please bear with me as I familiarise myself with this forum.

My husband is a USC and returned to the US from South Africa, where he has been living for most of his life, on 26 March. I'm still here. It took me three months just to gather the documentation needed to fie the I-130 - our government departments are painfully slow at producing unabridged marriage and birth certificates.

We finally managed to file the I-130 on 30 June, and are still awaiting our NOA1. My attorney has advised me that it could take up to a month from the time we posted the documents until the time we receive the NOA1 - is this true?

Under advisement from our US-based immigration attorney, we are now preparing to also file the I-129 for the K-3, which we hope to have filed by the end of next week. Of course, it was our hope that we would 'cover our bases' by applying for both the CR1 and the K3, and then just go with the one that came through quicker.

I'm disheartened to read all the comments on other threads about the K-3 being 'obsolete' - please can someone fill me in on this? We don't care about the money - we just want to be together, and this separation is awful beyond words. I'm not sure how to insert my timeline in here, but it's really short at this point

I just want to know - how much longer are we looking at here until I can enter the US? Three months feels like 10 years already

Thank you

[mrsbrook 4]

We just received our NOA1 - three days after we posted off the I-130. Wow, that's fast, by any standards! Have renewed hope for the rest of the process going quickly now

[chogagne 0]

So glad to hear that you got your NOA1 already! We filed for ours at Chicago on the 8th July, and are still awaiting to hear back...the time apart really hurts

[mrsbrook 4]

So glad to hear that you got your NOA1 already! We filed for ours at Chicago on the 8th July, and are still awaiting to hear back...the time apart really hurts

I hear you! I haven't seen my husband for more than three months now, and from what I can gather, it might be another 6-9 months (or more) before I get there. Our attorney is also going to file a K3 application next week, the idea being to see which one comes through first! I've heard conflicting stories about the K3 (about it being essentially obsolete), but hope springs eternal. We want to cover all our bases!

[Llamallove 1]

I hear you! I haven't seen my husband for more than three months now, and from what I can gather, it might be another 6-9 months (or more) before I get there. Our attorney is also going to file a K3 application next week, the idea being to see which one comes through first! I've heard conflicting stories about the K3 (about it being essentially obsolete), but hope springs eternal. We want to cover all our bases!

Can you not visit him while the K3 is processing?

[chogagne 0]

Can you not visit him while the K3 is processing?

I'm in the same boat, and have been informed that it would be fine for visits, whilst waiting for the pending visa...as long as the stay does not go beyond the entitlement. For example, I'd be travelling from UK to US, and each visit allows for a maximum of 90 days under the ESTA rules - but if you stay for the full 90 days, you won't be able to enter the US again for the next 6 months. Not sure how this fares with visa applications, so I'd recommend not risking the full duration

[NikLR 13,227]

At USCIS the I-130 and the I-129F are joined together and adjudicated together. Rarely do you see the I-129F approved before the I-130. On occasion the I-129F gets to the NVC faster but an embassy or consulate can also cancel the K3 path if it does. Historically K3 go through 0.03% of the time.