Living outside of the USA, and applying for visa from outside of the USA

[aaron2020 11,651]

Hello JFH,

Thanks for your super quick response.

1) She doesn't have any assets but her family has plenty. I believe they can sponsor us. But we will be having savings around 20k I'm not sure if that helps alone.

2) 6 months is pretty long time though but since we want to leave in summer of 2017 that's okay.

3) Being able to work immediately sounds amazing, however i'm not willing to wait for 12 months... Let's assume we got married in Turkey and applied for CR-1, can I live in the States with my wife, while our application takes place or do I have to be in Turkey? I actually don't mind staying home for 3 months since I'm a software programmer I can work anywhere.

1. Make sure that the US Embassy in Ankara accepts co-sponsors for the I-134 for the K-1 fiance visa. Some embassies will not accept a co-sponsor for the I-134. All embassies will accept a Joint Sponsor for the I-864 for the CR-1 spousal visa.

2. 6 months is on a good day. Being a male from a terrorist country means you will likely be put into Administrative Processing. You are unlikely to be here in 6 months.

3. Without an EAD, you can not work while inside the US. You can not come in on a K-1 and do any sort of work legally until you get your EAD. That's 90 days after you get marry and file to adjust status. While you may not mind staying at home for 3 months, the US Government will have a problem with you working illegally.

Neither me or my girl friend wants to wait that long. 12 -18 months is just a crazy talk

Well then K-1 seems to be most rationalist move in my situation.

One more question, where do we send the K-1 file?

12-18 months is the average.

Best of luck.

Edited December 28, 2016 by aaron2020

[Russ&Caro 1,549]

You've found the right forum. Visa Journey is unparalleled for finding information and advice to help you through the process.

I filed the original papers in my wife's case, and figured it would take around 6 months. I joined VJ a couple of months later and discovered it would take 12-18 months. In the end it took 13 months, exactly within the range that VJ said it would take. My advice:

1. Use the time before your desired date of immigration (summer 2017) well. That is, file immediately, whether it's K1 or CR1

2. Start thinking about less than perfect processing and how you would deal with immigration at a later date.

Good luck!

[David & Diana R 1,005]

crazy??! who's crazy? speak for yourself!

Hahahaha, finally someone with a sense of humor!! I love it!

[cyanmavi 101]

1. Make sure that the US Embassy in Ankara accepts co-sponsors for the I-134 for the K-1 fiance visa. Some embassies will not accept a co-sponsor for the I-134. All embassies will accept a Joint Sponsor for the I-864 for the CR-1 spousal visa.

2. 6 months is on a good day. Being a male from a terrorist country means you will likely be put into Administrative Processing. You are unlikely to be here in 6 months.

3. Without an EAD, you can not work while inside the US. You can not come in on a K-1 and do any sort of work legally until you get your EAD. That's 90 days after you get marry and file to adjust status. While you may not mind staying at home for 3 months, the US Government will have a problem with you working illegally.

12-18 months is the average.

Best of luck.

1- Ankara accepts co-sponsors for the I-134. Your fiancee still needs to submit her I-134 along with her tax return, so hopefully she filed her taxes while in Turkey.

2- Turkey is definitely not a "terrorist country" (and I think it is quite unfair to label any country that way), you will not necessarily be in AP for long if you have all your documents and your relationship is bona fide. I have observed a few "males" from Turkey get processed recently for K-1 and CR-1 visas, and the 6 month timeline for the K-1 is not unrealistic.

3- When you enter US with a K-1 visa, you cannot work until you get married, file for AOS (and EAD/AP concurrently) and receive your EAD, which is the work permit. It will take at least three months until you get your work permit, depending on when you get married and file for AOS.

I would advise you to look into direct consular filing (DCF). I think you need to be residing as a married couple in the country for at least six months before you can file, but it takes a very short time compared to CR-1 and K-1, somewhere between 1 and 3 months I think, someone more knowledgeable can correct me on that.

Edited December 28, 2016 by cyanmavi

[Eric & Idalia 56]

Hello JFH,

Thanks for your super quick response.

1) She doesn't have any assets but her family has plenty. I believe they can sponsor us. But we will be having savings around 20k I'm not sure if that helps alone.

2) 6 months is pretty long time though but since we want to leave in summer of 2017 that's okay.

3) Being able to work immediately sounds amazing, however i'm not willing to wait for 12 months... Let's assume we got married in Turkey and applied for CR-1, can I live in the States with my wife, while our application takes place or do I have to be in Turkey? I actually don't mind staying home for 3 months since I'm a software programmer I can work anywhere.

If she lives with you in Turkey you can file for CR1 as Direct Consular Filing (DCF). My husband was living with me in Mexico (he was a resident in Mexico) and my CR1 visa was going to take like 3 months. It took more time because I scheduled the interview for months later.

[Hypnos 6,576]

If she lives with you in Turkey you can file for CR1 as Direct Consular Filing (DCF).

No DCF in Turkey, as has already been mentioned.

For DCF to be available there needs to be a USCIS field office within the embassy in that foreign country.

You can find a list of such countries and offices here: https://www.uscis.gov/about-us/find-uscis-office/international-immigration-offices

Turkey isn't on it.

[Eric & Idalia 56]

No DCF in Turkey, as has already been mentioned.

For DCF to be available there needs to be a USCIS field office within the embassy in that foreign country.

You can find a list of such countries and offices here: https://www.uscis.gov/about-us/find-uscis-office/international-immigration-offices

Turkey isn't on it.

When I posted my comment there was not another comment mentioning DCF. Now I read it and my comment is in second page and there are other mentions. Glad that more people commented. Thanks for adding info to my comment.

Regards.

[NikLR 13,227]

~~moved to what visa do i need from K1 process and procedures~~

[sajan953 4]

CR1 does not usualy take 12-18months. It all depends on many things, but 10 months is more like it.

Unfortunetly no, Turkey does not have a USCIS office. You cannot DCF. 

CR1:

-10months

-Can work/study right away

-Can get your citizenship faster

-Cheaper fees

 

K1:

-6 months

-You dont get a SSN right away/cannot work

-Slower path to citizenship

-More expensive fees