K1 fiance visa denied because they think we secretly married, help!

[Mercedes428 1]

My situation is described in the email I sent to DOS of India below. Any help is greatly appreciated as too what to do next

Hello,

To whom it may concern, I am writing this email to inquire about the decision made in regards to my fiance's K1 visa application which took place today September 29th 2016 at 8:30 AM. After attending the interview he received a 221(g) notice that stated he was ineligible. The officer stated that he was not eligible for a fiance visa because she believes that we are married. The fact is that we are NOT married. She told him that he need to reapply under a spousal visa and that after applying we could have the case expedited. I currently cannot return to India as I have recently delivered a baby girl September 6 2016.

We both clearly state and stand by our truth that we are NOT married. There is no legal documentation in existence stating that we are. We did not sign any paperwork or obtain any type of marriage certificate stating that we are married. Therefore we cannot apply for a marriage visa because we do not have any type marriage certificate nor does one exist that solemnifies us as married. Our intention was for my Fiance to enter the US and then we could in fact marry in the US as presented by evidence that we had submitted.

The decision was made based on photographs that we ourselves submitted in which I am wearing the dress and jewelry typically used in a Hindu wedding. My intention in participating in cultural wear and traditions was to share in my fiance's culture as well as to allow his parents to participate in our engagement and future wedding. We allowed his family to say that we were a "married" couple for their own peace of mind and to protect the reputation in their small village in Himachel Pradesh, but we are not married. The officer told my fiance that she had proof and verified that we were married and refused to tell us which evidence she had. I understand and respect the system fully, but as I stated we are not married and there is no legal documentation that states otherwise.

Having said, according to the Hindu marriage act that would consider us as "married" we would have to meet the following requirements;

*Neither party has a spouse living at the time of marriage. -I currently was in the process of waiting for my divorce decree in order to apply for my fiance so legally I could not marry, and therefore chose not too, Instead we applied for the K1 Fiance Visa.

*We would have had to have been living together for a period of six months. -As proven by my passport I have not spent more than four months during my visit with my Fiance.

* The marriage act is between two Hindu participants. I was born a Christian and do not fall under Hindu religious law. My Fiance himself has also converted to Catholicism and also recognizes the Catholic religious ceremony as a binding marriage ceremony which we planned to have upon his arrival to the US as proven by an official document from my parish priest

I have included the following below;

1. A scan of the 221(g) notice letter he received during his interview.

2. A scan of the letter I received from my parish priest stating our intent to marry in a Catholic ceremony in accordance to our Religion.

3. A copy of my passport to verify that I was in the country less than 6 months following the celebration.

4. a scanned copy of our divorce decree stating that the date it officially went thru was after my last trip to India.

5. Photo of baby including date of birth.

After waiting 7 long months, this decision has left us completely heart broken. I spent the majority of my pregnancy alone and my fiance missed the delivery of his first daughter. Our hope was that this month we would soon be able to hold her and we could be reunited as a family. I cannot leave my daughter who is only about 20 days old to go sign a marriage certificate , we cannot apply for a marriage visa because we have no evidence of married because none exists, and we cannot reapply for another fiance visa because we have already been marked as not being engaged.

I am hoping that this error can be corrected and it can be clarified that we did in fact apply for the proper visa. I hope that we will not be forced to fully reapply and wait another 7 months before our family can come together. Please help me take the next steps so that my fiance can soon join me and our daughter. If there is any option or expedite available for us please let us know so that we can move forward and I can bring him home as quickly as possible.

Thank you very much for your consideration. We are very grateful for your time in reviewing our case. I am willing and capable of providing any other statements or proof needed to verify that we are NOT married and did apply for the proper visa category.

********

Since then we have collected 2 affidavits from oare ts stating that we are not married

And 2 court documents that verify that he is currently single and eligible to marry. There is no legal marriage certificate on file.

[Cathi 5,755]

My situation is described in the email I sent to DOS of India below. Any help is greatly appreciated as too what to do next

Hello,

To whom it may concern, I am writing this email to inquire about the decision made in regards to my fiance's K1 visa application which took place today September 29th 2016 at 8:30 AM. After attending the interview he received a 221(g) notice that stated he was ineligible. The officer stated that he was not eligible for a fiance visa because she believes that we are married. The fact is that we are NOT married. She told him that he need to reapply under a spousal visa and that after applying we could have the case expedited. I currently cannot return to India as I have recently delivered a baby girl September 6 2016.

We both clearly state and stand by our truth that we are NOT married. There is no legal documentation in existence stating that we are. We did not sign any paperwork or obtain any type of marriage certificate stating that we are married. Therefore we cannot apply for a marriage visa because we do not have any type marriage certificate nor does one exist that solemnifies us as married. Our intention was for my Fiance to enter the US and then we could in fact marry in the US as presented by evidence that we had submitted.

The decision was made based on photographs that we ourselves submitted in which I am wearing the dress and jewelry typically used in a Hindu wedding. My intention in participating in cultural wear and traditions was to share in my fiance's culture as well as to allow his parents to participate in our engagement and future wedding. We allowed his family to say that we were a "married" couple for their own peace of mind and to protect the reputation in their small village in Himachel Pradesh, but we are not married. The officer told my fiance that she had proof and verified that we were married and refused to tell us which evidence she had. I understand and respect the system fully, but as I stated we are not married and there is no legal documentation that states otherwise.

Having said, according to the Hindu marriage act that would consider us as "married" we would have to meet the following requirements;

*Neither party has a spouse living at the time of marriage. -I currently was in the process of waiting for my divorce decree in order to apply for my fiance so legally I could not marry, and therefore chose not too, Instead we applied for the K1 Fiance Visa.

*We would have had to have been living together for a period of six months. -As proven by my passport I have not spent more than four months during my visit with my Fiance.

* The marriage act is between two Hindu participants. I was born a Christian and do not fall under Hindu religious law. My Fiance himself has also converted to Catholicism and also recognizes the Catholic religious ceremony as a binding marriage ceremony which we planned to have upon his arrival to the US as proven by an official document from my parish priest

I have included the following below;

1. A scan of the 221(g) notice letter he received during his interview.

2. A scan of the letter I received from my parish priest stating our intent to marry in a Catholic ceremony in accordance to our Religion.

3. A copy of my passport to verify that I was in the country less than 6 months following the celebration.

4. a scanned copy of our divorce decree stating that the date it officially went thru was after my last trip to India.

5. Photo of baby including date of birth.

After waiting 7 long months, this decision has left us completely heart broken. I spent the majority of my pregnancy alone and my fiance missed the delivery of his first daughter. Our hope was that this month we would soon be able to hold her and we could be reunited as a family. I cannot leave my daughter who is only about 20 days old to go sign a marriage certificate , we cannot apply for a marriage visa because we have no evidence of married because none exists, and we cannot reapply for another fiance visa because we have already been marked as not being engaged.

I am hoping that this error can be corrected and it can be clarified that we did in fact apply for the proper visa. I hope that we will not be forced to fully reapply and wait another 7 months before our family can come together. Please help me take the next steps so that my fiance can soon join me and our daughter. If there is any option or expedite available for us please let us know so that we can move forward and I can bring him home as quickly as possible.

Thank you very much for your consideration. We are very grateful for your time in reviewing our case. I am willing and capable of providing any other statements or proof needed to verify that we are NOT married and did apply for the proper visa category.

********

Since then we have collected 2 affidavits from oare ts stating that we are not married

And 2 court documents that verify that he is currently single and eligible to marry. There is no legal marriage certificate on file.

Did you apply for the visa BEFORE your divorce was final? If so you were denied based on the fact that you have to be free and clear to marry the day you sent the petition in.

If it was final-

A letter from a parish priest about your intention to marry here in the states means nothing to USCIS or the consulate and will not change their decision. Just think for a minute and be logical. How would that priest know you did not marry in your fiance's home country? Answer: He doesn't. A scanned copy of your passport is not proof that you didn't marry. It just proves when you left the country. What does your baby's picture do to prove you're not married? The pictures you sent in traditional engagement/ marriage attire led then to believe you're married. There are literally hundreds of threads on this site from people just like you who were denied for the very same reason, and it is advised to never do anything that resembles a wedding party. It doesn't matter that there is no so called proof that you're married, there is also no proof you didn't. A court documents verifying he is single won't do any good as people get married all the time and never register their marriages.The burden of proof is on you, not them. And I agree, it's hard to prove you're not married. India is a high fraud country and you are paying for those who have gone before you and lied. Your only choice at this point is to go back and marry him and start over with an I-130 for a CR-1, they do not care that you just had a baby and that it will be difficult to travel back. Please don't shoot the messenger as I am only telling you what's true. Please keep us updated.

Edited October 10, 2016 by mimolicious

[O&GForever 387]

I am sorry this happened. I hate to say it, but your only option will be to marry and file for a spouse visa. Unfortunately you had a ceremony that the consulate interpreted as a wedding. Its happened to many people on this site. I know you don't consider yourself married and that this ceremony was important to your fiance's culture, but it ultimately cost you the visa. You fell into the situation where you appear to be too married for a K1, but not married enough for a CR1. I am sorry this isn't what you want to here, but I don't think there's any other option to get you fiancé here. Again, I am sorry.

[Mercedes428 1]

Did you apply for the visa BEFORE your divorce was final? If so you were denied based on the fact that you have to be free and clear to marry the day you sent the petition in.

If it was final-

A letter from a parish priest about your intention to marry here in the states means nothing to USCIS or the consulate and will not change their decision. Just think for a minute and be logical. How would that priest know you did not marry in your fiance's home country? Answer: He doesn't. A scanned copy of your passport is not proof that you didn't marry. It just proves when you left the country. What does your baby's picture do to prove you're not married? The pictures you sent in traditional engagement/ marriage attire led then to believe you're married. There are literally hundreds of threads on this site from people just like you who were denied for the very same reason, and it is advised to never do anything that resembles a wedding party. It doesn't matter that there is no so called proof that you're married, there is also no proof you didn't. The burden of proof is on you, not them.

1. No I waited till divorce decree was in hand.

2 everything I sent in came in as proof that there was no possible way I could have legally married him because I was not w. Him at the time, for example the passport. Yes logical thinking I left the country before my divorce decree was finalized meaning I could not have legally marrie .3 my case has a multiple affidavits from people in my church and how they have followed my situation and even know me and my fiance and our plans. Including that I was waiting to marry

4. We are collecting as much proof as we can, even proof that we have a daughter. It can't hurt.

From what I understand is that these forums are meant to help not to be criticized by people who troll those forums to feel superior , and even after hours and hours and hours of reading, no I never saw those forums otherwise maybe the outcome would have been different. That's why I'm here because there was information I was lacking and I'm doing what I can to amend that

[Mercedes428 1]

I am sorry this happened. I hate to say it, but your only option will be to marry and file for a spouse visa. Unfortunately you had a ceremony that the consulate interpreted as a wedding. Its happened to many people on this site. I know you don't consider yourself married and that this ceremony was important to your fiance's culture, but it ultimately cost you the visa. You fell into the situation where you appear to be too married for a K1, but not married enough for a CR1. I am sorry this isn't what you want to here, but I don't think there's any other option to get you fiancé here. Again, I am sorry.

In any other case I would have already flown back, I have a one month old now, and can't really take her to a substandard foreign country and can't leave her behind just yet. So we are stuck in limbo, not married but they don't believe us and can't go and marry him. Any suggestions :/ I got in contact with congressman I'm hoping it helps :'(

[Mercedes428 1]

Just a thought if spousal visas require a marriage certificate shouldn't the existence of one determine if a person is married or not? We obtained court documents similar to Phillipines CENOMAR stating that he is single and legally free to marry to prove that no certificate exists and we are not married. We also obtained notarized letters from his parents testifying that we aren't. They accept notarized letters to verify other types of evidence why not this?

[Mercedes428 1]

Did you apply for the visa BEFORE your divorce was final? If so you were denied based on the fact that you have to be free and clear to marry the day you sent the petition in.

If it was final-

A letter from a parish priest about your intention to marry here in the states means nothing to USCIS or the consulate and will not change their decision. Just think for a minute and be logical. How would that priest know you did not marry in your fiance's home country? Answer: He doesn't. A scanned copy of your passport is not proof that you didn't marry. It just proves when you left the country. What does your baby's picture do to prove you're not married? The pictures you sent in traditional engagement/ marriage attire led then to believe you're married. There are literally hundreds of threads on this site from people just like you who were denied for the very same reason, and it is advised to never do anything that resembles a wedding party. It doesn't matter that there is no so called proof that you're married, there is also no proof you didn't. A court documents verifying he is single won't do any good as people get married all the time and never register their marriages.The burden of proof is on you, not them. And I agree, it's hard to prove you're not married. India is a high fraud country and you are paying for those who have gone before you and lied. Your only choice at this point is to go back and marry him and start over with an I-130 for a CR-1, they do not care that you just had a baby and that it will be difficult to travel back. Please don't shoot the messenger as I am only telling you what's true. Please keep us updated.

Thank you I appreciate your clarification, we are in limbo now will keep updating as I go along if it doesn't help me maybe it will help the next couple. I will submit as much as I can regardless I can't leave just yet to go marry him so its something to do when there is nothing we can do.

[Mercedes428 1]

A second thought, the officer told him to apply spousal visa and expedite it, from what I know in our case there is no way to expedite it why would they tell him that?

[EM_Vandaveer 2,408]

You really have no choice at this point but to go back to India, legally marry and file for a spousal visa. This situation occurs often. In the CO's eyes, you are too married for a K-1, not married enough for CR-1 (yet).

You will not be able to change the CO's mind. I'm really sorry you have to go through this, but the sooner you accept the only solution (marry and file for CR-1), the sooner you can be together.

[Mercedes428 1]

You really have no choice at this point but to go back to India, legally marry and file for a spousal visa. This situation occurs often. In the CO's eyes, you are too married for a K-1, not married enough for CR-1 (yet).

You will not be able to change the CO's mind. I'm really sorry you have to go through this, but the sooner you accept the only solution (marry and file for CR-1), the sooner you can be together.

I'm starting to see that. I'm trying to figure how fast I can sign marry and come back. I can't take my newborn. thank you Edited October 10, 2016 by Mercedes428

[Michael and Ganna 104]

Sometimes it is easier to go with the flow.....If they say you are married then show them you are married. There are some things that can speed up the CR-1 process. We did not use them because we have been lucky and always are together.

1. File abroad from your spouses country......in our case it would have saved 5 months. Take everything you will need to file with you to India

2. Start working on form 864 Affidavit of Support.....For us after we submitted paperwork, our case was at NVC 30 days....interview date was very fast.

It is not our target to rush to USA so we took our time, enjoyed life and traveled a little. Our timeline doesn't reflect the real time to CR-1

[soulstriker 274]

yupp many get denied for some of those reasons alone , dont see how u couldnt find them , cr1 def the way to go whenever you can apply

[superwifey0229 1]

I'm so sorry this happen to you, i know the waiting times kills and denial would hurt more. i just don't understand why they ask for original documents like certificate of no marriage and still doubt that someone is married. Just stay strong and u guys will be together. Congratulations on your newborn tho,

[Boiler 45,532]

You do not have to get married in India, CR1 does take longer than a K1 but has other benefits.

[Kastrs 723]

I'm so sorry this happen to you, i know the waiting times kills and denial would hurt more. i just don't understand why they ask for original documents like certificate of no marriage and still doubt that someone is married. Just stay strong and u guys will be together. Congratulations on your newborn tho,

CENOMAR is specific to the Phillipines, most countries do not have such a document