How do I answer their age difference question/s ?

[Romet 28]

Hi everybody,

We are makng our decision to go for the K1 visa this month but we do have many red flags in our story. One of them is that we have 16 years age difference. I (27) Egyptian am younger than her (43). We have been for one year and 2 months and she came for a visit 3 times and the last one was with her 2 kids ( a boy (4 yrs) and a girl (6 yrs) ) and they look pretty much like my kids although I don't have any yet. Now I see some cases has been declined or denied because of their age difference although its illegal but they do look for reasons and sometimes it doesn't make the case seem legit for them.

Now my question is how do I answer their questions about our age difference in a good convenient way?

Thanks in advance

ROMET

Edited October 8, 2014 by ROMET

[needsmorebutter 5]

Hey Romet,

I have no direct experience with the age difference question, but I would venture a guess that, by itself, it shouldn't be enough for a denial. In other words, if you are able to build a good case for a "bona fide" relationship with all of your other evidence, it shouldn't matter to them (after all, lots of couples out there have 10+ year age differences). If it were me, I would give the same answer that I would give to anybody else who asks - that it doesn't matter to us, and that it doesn't change the way I feel about my SO and so on. How do you/ would you answer that question if, say, your friends were to ask you?

My two cents is to beef up on all of your other evidence: photos of you guys together, photos of you with her kids, itineraries from her visits, correspondence, affidavits from people who know you both etc etc so that they have more positives to focus on in your case than negatives.

Good luck!

[David & Diana R 1,005]

Hi everybody,

We are makng our decision to go for the K1 visa this month but we do have many red flags in our story. One of them is that we have 16 years age difference. I (27) Egyptian am younger than her (43). We have been for one year and 2 months and she came for a visit 3 times and the last one was with her 2 kids ( a boy (4 yrs) and a girl (6 yrs) ) and they look pretty much like my kids although I don't have any yet. Now I see some cases has been declined or denied because of their age difference although its illegal but they do look for reasons and sometimes it doesn't make the case seem legit for them.

Now my question is how do I answer their questions about our age difference in a good convenient way?

Thanks in advance

ROMET

Simple answer: HONESTLY

[David & Diana R 1,005]

Hi everybody,

We are makng our decision to go for the K1 visa this month but we do have many red flags in our story. One of them is that we have 16 years age difference. I (27) Egyptian am younger than her (43). We have been for one year and 2 months and she came for a visit 3 times and the last one was with her 2 kids ( a boy (4 yrs) and a girl (6 yrs) ) and they look pretty much like my kids although I don't have any yet. Now I see some cases has been declined or denied because of their age difference although its illegal but they do look for reasons and sometimes it doesn't make the case seem legit for them.

Now my question is how do I answer their questions about our age difference in a good convenient way?

Thanks in advance

ROMET

Oh one more thing. The CO will NEVER admit that they are denying a petition based on gae difference. They just won't tell you why they are denying. And by the way. Talk about age difference I was 56 at the time of my spouses interview in Philippines and she was 20. We were not denied but then again I was present at her interview. The CO asked me more questions than my wife. But I believe my being there helped because the CO could see I was real. And I believe she could see that we were so in love. But in your case the female is older than the male. That is not so common, even in the Philippines. But much younger Filipino females ofter marry older Filipino men so it is accepted in their country. Is it accepted in yours? Good luck and God Bless you both.

David & Zoila

Edited October 8, 2014 by David & Zoila

[Shoot Em Straight 385]

Hi everybody,

We are makng our decision to go for the K1 visa this month but we do have many red flags in our story. One of them is that we have 16 years age difference. I (27) Egyptian am younger than her (43). We have been for one year and 2 months and she came for a visit 3 times and the last one was with her 2 kids ( a boy (4 yrs) and a girl (6 yrs) ) and they look pretty much like my kids although I don't have any yet. Now I see some cases has been declined or denied because of their age difference although its illegal but they do look for reasons and sometimes it doesn't make the case seem legit for them.

Now my question is how do I answer their questions about our age difference in a good convenient way?

Thanks in advance

ROMET

As D & Z said....honestly.

Definately not like the highlighted comment you posted.

Good Luck

[Boiler 45,525]

The issue you have to deal with is if your relationship is culturally normal. That it would exist without the prospect of a GC.

[Romet 28]

Thanks everyone but I'm still looking for some more tips to convince the CO that our relationship is legit. I didn't say I'm not gonna be honest but there must be other elements to talk about other than "love".. In the Middle east our case is NOT common but It happens. How can I convince the CO that age doesnt really matter to me!

As D & Z said....honestly.

Definately not like the highlighted comment you posted.

Good Luck

What's wrong with what I posted?!" Her kids look pretty much like my kids"...Like they can be easily my kids I think that's a good thing!

[Boiler 45,525]

Your case is pretty common on VJ , I would look to see how other MENA beneficiaries have dealt with the issue.

[visaqueries 111]

I am a little over 11 years older than my now husband. We had that red flag, along with others...different religions, he was previously married to an Australian...The interviewing officer was very, very tough on my husband (I posted a review of his experience), but there really was not much brought up regarding our age difference. My husband called me a "girl" once, and the officer said, "She's not a girl. She's a woman," but that would be the only comment really. My husband's English is great, and he had no trouble understanding or answering the officer, and I think that helped. In the end, the officer did not doubt our relationship at all. He ended up thinking we had already been married (we had not). The application was approved and visa issued less than 2 months after the interview.

So, my suggestion would be to prove, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that you two know each other well. I'm sure that was what convinced the officer for us...my husband really knew who I was, and he was able to express it.

[Shoot Em Straight 385]

Good thing for future family portraits.

But has squat to do with proving you both have a bona fide relationship in a C.O.'s mind.

To answer your question.....Nothing wrong with you getting tickled over "looking" like you could have fathered her kids but It will not weigh in on why you posted on VJ.

As Boiler suggested...keep reading in MENA of how we all handled the red flags.

Also if you have not already done so.... have your SO come on VJ and read past journeys with you. It can be done.

[tru_loves_journey 117]

18 year age difference here No problems at the interview age wasn't even mentioned. I would say make sure you are prepared for the hard questions, they're some tough CO's to deal with. Go prepared! Good Luck

[Romet 28]

Thank you all for sharing your experiences. I've read some stories here on VJ about people that have had the same age difference and most of them said it wasn't mentioned in the interview but like you all said to be prepared for everything. What would you answer if the CO asked you "why didn't you marry an Egyptian girl in your age" ?. Love is not always convenient for them!

[Ismael&Blair 66]

Thank you all for sharing your experiences. I've read some stories here on VJ about people that have had the same age difference and most of them said it wasn't mentioned in the interview but like you all said to be prepared for everything. What would you answer if the CO asked you "why didn't you marry an Egyptian girl in your age" ?. Love is not always convenient for them!

First of all, I want to say that age difference is not a Red Flag issue (My Moroccan husband and I (US Citizen) are 18 years apart and I being the older one) but for you asking for standard answers on how to answer questions for the interview will be a Red Flag.

I remembered when I started the process and I called the Customer Service number to ask for clarification on what to submit with the petition. The person didn't tell me exactly what I can submit. She told me to submit what "I FELT THAT WILL BEST SHOW PROOF OF OUR ONGOING RELATIONSHIP".

And for you to ask for "boiler plate answers" (other people's answers) here on VJ already shows me personally that you may not know your fiance well enough to know why you want to marry her instead of marrying an Egyptian girl your age. ONLY YOU WILL KNOW THE ANSWER WHY YOU WANT TO MARRY YOUR FIANCE.

So my sincere answer for you is that you communicate with your fiance and you both should come up with the answers that fit both of your relationship. Ultimately, it doesn't matter what other couples' answers are but your relationship answers.

I hope this comment makes sense. There is NO ONE CORRECT ANSWER. The Consulate are pretty good to figure out if one's relationship is forthcoming. I think the best thing is to read the consulate interview reviews and start from there. But good luck and best wishes. Keep us posted.

Edited October 11, 2014 by Ismael&Blair

[Romet 28]

Hello Ismael&Blair,

My fiancée wanted to make sure our all our paper work was in order (so to not have any delays) and spoke to a service that assists with K-1 visa applications. Upon telling our “story” the representative told her we had a few red flags. Our AGE difference was one of them.

After reading the consulate reviews and different posts on VJ is actually what MADE me concerned because I read a review about someone being denied SPECIFICALLY because of the age difference. With that being said, there were other posts saying they don’t really give reasons why they are denied, but we want to make sure we’re prepared for any and all that will be asked.

It isn’t about “boiler plate answers” is about having information and knowledge from other people’s experiences and perspective who HAVE gone through the process and can give us insight about it. We are newbies to the K-1 visa PROCESS not to each other. When many of you first started you own process, I’m sure you noticed there is a plethora of information out there and it can get very confusing.

I made a comment that my fiancée’s kids could be mine (look like me) and I was told that doesn’t matter. I wasn’t really saying I would tell the CO that her kids look like me, I was just making a personal comment on here. You said (Ismael&Blair) “shows me personally that you may not know your fiance well enough to know why you want to marry her instead of marrying an Egyptian girl your age” which is completely untrue. Age is really NOT a factor for my fiancée and I. Furthermore, I know my fiancée very well and look forward to spending the rest of our lives getting to know her more every single day. All we are trying to do with this question and on this forum is GAIN knowledge and information about the interview process to HELP US get to married and be a family as soon as possible.

Ultimately for US, it IS about our love and commitment to each other and making our family whole.

I’m sure you know how frustrating it is to not be able to be with the person you love more in the world because of bureaucracy.

Thank you and we very much appreciate your’s and everyone commenting or answering our questions.

We’ll definitely keep you posted. J

First of all, I want to say that age difference is not a Red Flag issue (My Moroccan husband and I (US Citizen) are 18 years apart and I being the older one) but for you asking for standard answers on how to answer questions for the interview will be a Red Flag.

I remembered when I started the process and I called the Customer Service number to ask for clarification on what to submit with the petition. The person didn't tell me exactly what I can submit. She told me to submit what "I FELT THAT WILL BEST SHOW PROOF OF OUR ONGOING RELATIONSHIP".

And for you to ask for "boiler plate answers" (other people's answers) here on VJ already shows me personally that you may not know your fiance well enough to know why you want to marry her instead of marrying an Egyptian girl your age. ONLY YOU WILL KNOW THE ANSWER WHY YOU WANT TO MARRY YOUR FIANCE.

So my sincere answer for you is that you communicate with your fiance and you both should come up with the answers that fit both of your relationship. Ultimately, it doesn't matter what other couples' answers are but your relationship answers.

I hope this comment makes sense. There is NO ONE CORRECT ANSWER. The Consulate are pretty good to figure out if one's relationship is forthcoming. I think the best thing is to read the consulate interview reviews and start from there. But good luck and best wishes. Keep us posted.

[mymarriagejourney 113]

My husband and I have a 20 year age difference. It was not mentioned in our interview. However, they have other ways of addressing the age issue without asking directly....in other words, they will perhaps ask more questions than they would of a similar-age couple to try to figure out if it is a valid relationship.

Our situation is a little different, because my husband was already in the US for a year on a valid visa (with many more years left on the visa and no "need" to enter a fraud marriage) and we lived together during that year. And, I had been to Jordan several times and spent time with his parents and siblings and extended family. During our removal of conditions on his 2 year green card, we sent photos of his parents' visit to the US to stay with us for a month. I think these factors made a difference, because family acceptance is a big part of the culture in your region.

Hopefully, your fiancé has had interaction with your family on those multiple visits, and you have photos documenting their acceptance of her and her children. I believe this is a big signal to immigration that the relationship is legitimate when age differences may be culturally unusual.