Living with foriegn partner overseas, but plan to go back to the US in a year or so.. what should we do?...

[baberahamlincln 0]

Hello,

I have looked at the USCIS website but not entirely clear on some things, if anyone can give me some insight I would very much appreciate it!

I am a US citizen living in New Zealand with my partner who has both New Zealand and UK citizenship. Our partnership has been recognised by the NZ government and he sponsored me for residence, and in about 1 year I will have PR status here in New Zealand.

We are thinking of possibly relocating to the USA in a year or two and I am investing our options for him to work and live in the US.

1.) Can I apply for a visa for him while we are both still living overseas, or do you need to have your primary residence in the US? (I know you do for the IR1/CR1, I'm not clear about the K-3?)

2.) Do we need to have a marriage/civil union? If NZ has recognised our partnership will that be sufficient evidence of common-law marriage (I really hate the US terminology on these matters! So archaic!)

3.) If we need to have a civil union where would be the place to do it, NZ or the USA? I was thinking of having a civil union in Samoa, half way between the US and NZ which would make it easier for family to attend. But I guess we could always have an official ceremony in either the US or NZ and then a second one/reception in Samoa.

4.) Which visa should we apply for?

5.) Should I just chillax and worry about it if we do ever decide to go back to the US?

Thank you in advance for any advice or insights you may have!

Cheers,

Nicole

[Boiler 45,557]

1. Yes

2. Marriage

3. Your choice

4. CR1/IR1

5. Probably, but I would look to get it going a year before any likely move, you can slow things down, speeding them up is tricky.

[awaywego 28]

1. You can continue to live with your partner overseas during the visa process so long as you return to the US no later than the date he enters. (With the IR-1/CR-1 process, at least, this is addressed at the NVC stage. This NVC wiki has more information on "domicile" for those of us living abroad.)

2. The only partnership that USCIS recognizes for family-based visas is legal marriage. This means that the couple either intends to marry (K-1) or is already married (IR-1/CR-1). Civil unions are not recognized for this purpose.

3. If you do IR-1/CR-1 (spouse), you can marry anywhere you would like, so long as the marriage is legal and valid. If you do K-1 (fiancé), you would marry in the US within 90 days of entry.

4. It sounds as though you are most interested in marrying in Samoa then applying based on marriage. This would be IR-1/CR-1, as K-3 is basically never seen. You can find more information on each visa type in the "Guides" section linked at the top of the page.

5. It doesn't hurt to know what your options are, what the process would be to move to the US, how long it would take, and the like. What you and your partner do with that information is up to the two of you.