No idea how to start, what visa/petition is correct

[archiveof 0]

Hi there,

my wife and I got married in April in the UK, we have tried living here for a year or so but ultimately made the decision to move back to US.

Being a UK citizen (and my wife is a US citizen) I don't know where to start with the process,

Are we able to move back and apply for the visa/green card while over there? Should it be done over here and then wait for a decision?

What is the normal route to take? I really dont know where to start

[Cathi 5,777]

As the US citizen your wife needs to petition for you, have her follow the guides at the top of the page. She will need to file an I-130 for a CR-1 visa.

Edited October 18, 2016 by mimolicious

[millefleur 5,047]

Hi there! If the USC is living in the UK, you can do Direct Consular Filing (DCF) and it's much, much faster than doing he traditional via-mail way.

You cannot just come over on the VWP/vistor visa and adjust status. That would be considered immigration fraud.

Your options are: your wife moves back to the US and file the I-130 for you, this is slow and takes usually about one year. Or if she can prove that she is resident in the UK, apply directly at the Embassy and do it while residing in the UK, takes a couple months and less than a year, some people even get the whole thing done in as little as three months.

The only thing with DCF is that the USC has to prove "intent to domicile/proof of domicile" in the US, meaning that your wife is either already domiciled in the US as her home or she is planning to return to live there. The forums here have tons of information about that and for most people it's a pretty painless, simple process of gathering the right documents.

Edited October 18, 2016 by millefleur

[Georgia16 2,858]

Are your wife still living in UK with you? Because UK have DCF which if faster then normal CR-1 visa.

http://www.visajourney.com/content/dcf

http://www.visajourney.com/content/i130guide1

[archiveof 0]

Are your wife still living in UK with you? Because UK have DCF which if faster then normal CR-1 visa.

http://www.visajourney.com/content/dcf

http://www.visajourney.com/content/i130guide1

We are both still living in the UK, the DCF seems like it may be the fastest option to do. I'll have a look into that for sure.

Thanks for all the kind replies! I just didnt have a clue where to start. So it's definitely not recommended to go over and adjust status from VWP

[Georgia16 2,858]

We are both still living in the UK, the DCF seems like it may be the fastest option to do. I'll have a look into that for sure.

Thanks for all the kind replies! I just didnt have a clue where to start. So it's definitely not recommended to go over and adjust status from VWP

No that would be fraud.

Do the DCF it's available for you in that country and will go fast and everything will be done the right way.

[archiveof 0]

Are we able to file for the I130 via DCF and then file for a K3 visa? would that speed up the process?

[Georgia16 2,858]

Are we able to file for the I130 via DCF and then file for a K3 visa? would that speed up the process?

No why would you do that?

[archiveof 0]

I just thought that the K3 visa would allow entry into the US quicker. Basically I want to limit the amount of time that my wife and I are apart.

[Georgia16 2,858]

I just thought that the K3 visa would allow entry into the US quicker. Basically I want to limit the amount of time that my wife and I are apart.

Okay you need to read everything.

You are both living in the UK the DCF is the fastest process and she gets a GC right away and can work and travel right away.

You guys live together in the UK and that's why you can do DCF. Is you live apart then you have to do the CR-1/IR-1 which take a year to get.

[archiveof 0]

Okay you need to read everything.

You are both living in the UK the DCF is the fastest process and she gets a GC right away and can work and travel right away.

You guys live together in the UK and that's why you can do DCF. Is you live apart then you have to do the CR-1/IR-1 which take a year to get.

Sorry, I just read that the DCF process can still take a few months so thought that the K3 visa was there to allow the non US person non immigration status for a couple of years while the DCF i130 is processing

[millefleur 5,047]

Sorry, I just read that the DCF process can still take a few months so thought that the K3 visa was there to allow the non US person non immigration status for a couple of years while the DCF i130 is processing

K-3 is now obsolete and basically a dead end. Yes, it still exists technically but it is rarely ever issued. I'm also living abroad and planning to start the DCF process soon, Believe me, if K-3 were faster, we would be doing it, too.

You basically have the DCF option or the traditional CR-1/IR-1 as stated above in the thread. The I-130 doesn't take a couple of years anymore, it's outdated information. Hence why the K-3 is no longer issued.

[Boiler 45,868]

K3 if issued would take a year.

[JFH 12,191]

*~*~*moved from "bringing family members of USCs" to "DCF" as this is the best option fir the OP*~*~*

[JFH 12,191]

Welcome to the forum, OP.

The K-3 was introduced as an alternative when spousal visas were taking upwards of two years to process. Now that the spousal visa process is about a year (same as K-3, give or take), the need for the K-3 visa has as good as died off. Looking at timelines of people doing DCF in London you can expect the whole process to take between 3 and 5 months (holidays and embassy workloads permitting). Compare that with the 12-month process that non-DCF cases have to endure and you'd be crackers not to do DCF if the option is there. I wish we were able to do it.

It is also a smoother process in that you deal only with the embassy in London. No mailing back and forth to various places in the US like we have to do.