I'm not quite sure where to start

[BradS 0]

Hi everyone! I found this forum through chance and decided to join to get as much help/information as possible.

I'm an Australian resident and I met my finacee (who lives in Los Angeles) at the end of January. We'd met previously through an online music community (I'm 23, she's 20 in 2 weeks, which I only say for completeness), and while talking extensively for 6 months we ended up falling in love, and the intentions of an overseas trip to LA to meet as friends turned solely into meeting the girl I was falling/had fell in love with. I was there for 2 weeks (the best of my life), and after the third day I knew she was the only one for me, and we discussed it and we both decided that we wanted to get married.

Now comes the tricky part - actually getting back there for good!

This is where I'm not sure of what to do. I've got a bachelor's degree majoring in Software Engineering, so this would allow me to find a job and apply for an E-3 nonimmigrant visa (basically it works as a H1-B but it's limited to Australians wanting to work in the US, stemming from the free trade agreement that the two countries share, information here http://www.dfat.gov.au/geo/us/e3_visa.html), which would then allow me to stay indefinitely by extending it every 2 years.

The thing is, my fiancee wants to finish her degree at UCLA before we get married, which will be in July 2008, and I don't want to apply for a K-1 as soon as possible and have to interfere with her education too much with the hassles of applications and interviews, but at the same time I don't want to spend any time away from her unnecessarily (even these past 2 months have been torture).

I guess the question is this: Is there a way to apply for the E-3 nonimmigrant Visa, get married while we're there, then somehow not have to leave the country - and still be able to work at the same time - and apply for residence on the grounds of marriage? I still have to save the money for the move (apartment, car, furniture, etc.), and find a job beforehand, so I'd be aiming with an E-3 visa to move there in about September/October.

It might be a difficult one to answer (or wishful thinking) but I just wanted to know if it were possible, or whether applying for a K-1 visa and waiting a bit longer now would be the best way to go.

Also, if we applied for a K-1 visa, would I be able to visit on the Visa Waiver Program?

Sorry if these are too difficult, but if anyone has any information that may help it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Edited April 1, 2007 by BradS

[sunset2005 0]

i dont have an answer for your question just some advice. I think i would talk to an immigration attorney so that you take the proper way to be with your fiance.

Hi everyone! I found this forum through chance and decided to join to get as much help/information as possible.

I'm an Australian resident and I met my finacee (who lives in Los Angeles) at the end of January. We'd met previously through an online music community (I'm 23, she's 20 in 2 weeks, which I only say for completeness), and while talking extensively for 6 months we ended up falling in love, and the intentions of an overseas trip to LA to meet as friends turned solely into meeting the girl I was falling/had fell in love with. I was there for 2 weeks (the best of my life), and after the third day I knew she was the only one for me, and we discussed it and we both decided that we wanted to get married.

Now comes the tricky part - actually getting back there for good!

This is where I'm not sure of what to do. I've got a bachelor's degree majoring in Software Engineering, so this would allow me to find a job and apply for an E-3 nonimmigrant visa (basically it works as a H1-B but it's limited to Australians wanting to work in the US, stemming from the free trade agreement that the two countries share, information here http://www.dfat.gov.au/geo/us/e3_visa.html), which would then allow me to stay indefinitely by extending it every 2 years.

The thing is, my fiancee wants to finish her degree at UCLA before we get married, which will be in July 2008, and I don't want to apply for a K-1 as soon as possible and have to interfere with her education too much with the hassles of applications and interviews, but at the same time I don't want to spend any time away from her unnecessarily (even these past 2 months have been torture).

I guess the question is this: Is there a way to apply for the E-3 nonimmigrant Visa, get married while we're there, then somehow not have to leave the country - and still be able to work at the same time - and apply for residence on the grounds of marriage? I still have to save the money for the move (apartment, car, furniture, etc.), and find a job beforehand, so I'd be aiming with an E-3 visa to move there in about September/October.

It might be a difficult one to answer (or wishful thinking) but I just wanted to know if it were possible, or whether applying for a K-1 visa and waiting a bit longer now would be the best way to go.

Also, if we applied for a K-1 visa, would I be able to visit on the Visa Waiver Program?

Sorry if these are too difficult, but if anyone has any information that may help it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

[~Chad~ 0]

Welcome to VJ Brad. The only visa I'm familiar with is the k-1. Good luck with whatever you decide

[Chica Yeyé 41]

i dont have an answer for your question just some advice. I think i would talk to an immigration attorney so that you take the proper way to be with your fiance.

I think this is the best advise - consult a professional - though a lot of folks in here may be also able to give you some tips!

[me_4_musa 1]

Welcome to VJ and good luck with the decision you do make!

[BradS 0]

Thanks for the welcome, and I'm taking the advice of contacting an attorney to help with the process and to ask questions about the best way to get back.

I'll be sure to keep everyone updated on the whole process!

[Dan J 277]

Alot of questions.

H1B is a dual intent visa. But with H1B you can enter the country to work and immigrate. All you would need to do with that visa is file AOS once in the country and married. It doesn't look like the E-3 is similar in that regard. You can marry on a other types of visas and then file for AOS provided that was not the intent upon entering. But it is up to the USCIS to prove that you had intended to marry and then stay.

You wont be able to file k-3 or cr-1/ir-1 until after you have already gotten married. It doesn't matter where you get married, just as long as its considered legal where it was performed.

With K-1 and K-3 you wont be able to work upon entry. You need to file for EAD with AOS petition. Takes 3-6 months, valid for a year, but you should have a green card by then. Cr-1/Ir-1 is the only visa marriage visa that allows work upon entry.

If k-1 is being processed, you would be able to visit on tourist visa or VWP if you can prove a non-immigration intent. You need to show that you have ties to your home country. Otherwise they may send you back at the PoE.

You could get an E-3, marry and file for AOS. But you may be getting into grey territory, you may get questioned on intent and run into problems or you may not. You could file for a K-1 now or in a couple of months, and have it by the time your fiancee is done with school. Its valid for 6 months after its granted, so check the timelines. If working upon entry is important, you could get married now and take the CR-1/IR-1 path, it tends to take a little longer to process though, starting sooner the better. You don't need to have a big wedding to get started have a civil wedding now, and a big family wedding later when the paperwork is behind you.

Its up to you, might be other options that I'm not aware of, so do your research.

[Nagishkaw 510]

BradS,

I just wanted to say welcome to VJ !

[BradS 0]

Alot of questions.

H1B is a dual intent visa. But with H1B you can enter the country to work and immigrate. All you would need to do with that visa is file AOS once in the country and married. It doesn't look like the E-3 is similar in that regard. You can marry on a other types of visas and then file for AOS provided that was not the intent upon entering. But it is up to the USCIS to prove that you had intended to marry and then stay.

You wont be able to file k-3 or cr-1/ir-1 until after you have already gotten married. It doesn't matter where you get married, just as long as its considered legal where it was performed.

With K-1 and K-3 you wont be able to work upon entry. You need to file for EAD with AOS petition. Takes 3-6 months, valid for a year, but you should have a green card by then. Cr-1/Ir-1 is the only visa marriage visa that allows work upon entry.

If k-1 is being processed, you would be able to visit on tourist visa or VWP if you can prove a non-immigration intent. You need to show that you have ties to your home country. Otherwise they may send you back at the PoE.

You could get an E-3, marry and file for AOS. But you may be getting into grey territory, you may get questioned on intent and run into problems or you may not. You could file for a K-1 now or in a couple of months, and have it by the time your fiancee is done with school. Its valid for 6 months after its granted, so check the timelines. If working upon entry is important, you could get married now and take the CR-1/IR-1 path, it tends to take a little longer to process though, starting sooner the better. You don't need to have a big wedding to get started have a civil wedding now, and a big family wedding later when the paperwork is behind you.

Its up to you, might be other options that I'm not aware of, so do your research.

Thanks for the help, this is basically what I was thinking with the grey area of getting the E-3 and then filing for AOS. In lookin at the E-3 it said that you have to prove that you don't intend to stay in the US, so I'd rather not have to pretend that I was there for work and then just happened to meet her (beyond the legal implications of lying, I just couldn't do it personally).

About the civil wedding - She's Catholic and marriage is an important part of it (so is the wedding), so we'd be wanting to use the K-1 rather than the other options. It will be hard not being able to work, but I'll be sure to try and figure out the way to get the EAD as quickly as possible and live off of savings in the meantime. My family is in a position to be able to easily support me financially if worse comes to worst, so the idea of an extended honeymoon wouldn't be such a horrible thing to live with, haha. The only thing now is finding out if she has to be 21 before she can file the petition, or if it's OK as long as she's 21 by the time I go for the interview (basically I don't want it delayed more than possible).

I've contacted John F. Roth & Associates with my questions and so far they appear to be an excellent choice. Does anyone have any experience with this particular firm? I did get the link from this website ( http://www.arctec.com/ ) so it can't be all that bad.

Again, thanks for the help Dan, and thanks to everyone for the welcome!

[Dan J 277]

She could file if she was 16, but you would definetly raise some eyebrows. Since she is over 18 there is nothing to worry about.

[BradS 0]

She could file if she was 16, but you would definetly raise some eyebrows. Since she is over 18 there is nothing to worry about.

Excellent news. Thanks!

[meauxna 15]

About the civil wedding - She's Catholic and marriage is an important part of it (so is the wedding), so we'd be wanting to use the K-1 rather than the other options.

Since you've identified this as important, you may want to do some more looking into how you will make this work. The Church has some specific pre-marriage rules that don't fit perfectly well with the terms of the US Gov't.

User Caladan here at VJ has most recently faced the issue; maybe some of her posts will be useful to you.

[mendeleev 68]

You mention that your fiance is a student at UCLA. It is possible that she doesn't earn 125% of the poverty level for a family of two. That being the case, I think she would need to find a sponsor for you -- even if the plan is for you to get work and support her while she finishes college.

If the two of you are reasonably detail oriented -- and one of you two (probably you) is willing and able to become the expert in moving the documents through the system -- the bureaucratic aspect of the process needn't be a big distraction from her studies at UCLA.

[Niels Bohr 72]

I remembered my freshman year in college. I made about $20,787 for my gross annual income. It's possible.

[BradS 0]

About the civil wedding - She's Catholic and marriage is an important part of it (so is the wedding), so we'd be wanting to use the K-1 rather than the other options.

Since you've identified this as important, you may want to do some more looking into how you will make this work. The Church has some specific pre-marriage rules that don't fit perfectly well with the terms of the US Gov't.

User Caladan here at VJ has most recently faced the issue; maybe some of her posts will be useful to you.

I just found what you were referring to ( http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=52945 ) and it seems like her case is not so much a Catholic one as it is a specific parish/priest not being willing to accommodate the circumstances. My fiancee and her family have strong ties with the church so they will be a help rather than a hindrance. It won't be easy, but this never was about ease.

You mention that your fiance is a student at UCLA. It is possible that she doesn't earn 125% of the poverty level for a family of two. That being the case, I think she would need to find a sponsor for you -- even if the plan is for you to get work and support her while she finishes college.

If the two of you are reasonably detail oriented -- and one of you two (probably you) is willing and able to become the expert in moving the documents through the system -- the bureaucratic aspect of the process needn't be a big distraction from her studies at UCLA.

She isn't earning anything, but I'm going to ask her father to co-sponsor me.

Through the attorney/s that I'm going to hire it's going to be a matter of supplying the right information and then having them focus on the more technical/bureaucratic side of things, and informing me of the process and basically preparing me for the whole process. I'll be doing the majority of the grunt work so all that Kat has to do is gather/supply information and any other small things that need to be done on her side.

Thanks for the help everyone!

Edited April 3, 2007 by BradS