[K-1] Need help. Immigrating from a country where being gay is illegal.

[rougetomato 0]

Hi all.

 

I need your advise - my partner (who is a very handsome cuban guy from FL ) and I have been in an on-again, off-again kind of relationship since 2006, and this new year, we've decided that we'd like to tie the knot. 

 

The issue is I'm coming from a (developed) middle eastern country where being gay is a crime (and punishable by death - yeah it sucks i know). He's coming to visit me this May (for that 2 month rule) and we'd start from there. 

 

2 things that bother me:

 

- Can we apply for a K-1 visa for a same sex marriage bearing in mind that being gay is a crime in the country I'm applying from?

 

- We've known each other for more than 10 years but we didn't bother saving transcripts of texts, photos etc (we're not a selfie kind of guys, and chat histories get lost when you change your phone). Its just that we didn't know we would need it in the future. How do we go about this?

 

TIA

[Scandi 4,189]

You can apply for a K-1 if your fiancé is an American citizen. The process will go through USCIS, NVC and the American embassy - all gay friendly.

 

I'd suggest you meet again before sending the i-129f petition and gather as much documentation of bonafide relationship as you possibly can. The embassy in your country is probably a tough one so you'll need a lot of proof. Too bad you didn't save anything from before.

[Art786 275]

On 2/27/2017 at 0:53 AM, rougetomato said:

Hi all.

 

I need your advise - my partner (who is a very handsome cuban guy from FL ) and I have been in an on-again, off-again kind of relationship since 2006, and this new year, we've decided that we'd like to tie the knot. 

 

The issue is I'm coming from a (developed) middle eastern country where being gay is a crime (and punishable by death - yeah it sucks i know). He's coming to visit me this May (for that 2 month rule) and we'd start from there. 

 

2 things that bother me:

 

- Can we apply for a K-1 visa for a same sex marriage bearing in mind that being gay is a crime in the country I'm applying from?

 

- We've known each other for more than 10 years but we didn't bother saving transcripts of texts, photos etc (we're not a selfie kind of guys, and chat histories get lost when you change your phone). Its just that we didn't know we would need it in the future. How do we go about this?

 

TIA

 

Dont get in trouble when he's visiting you ! think also where he's from in USA  gay marriage must be legal not all states have legalize it ,so  let him find out about this. US embassy ground is considered USA .So if you go for interview you have nothing to be afraid off. Good luck . There was few gay capoles in November forum try to contact them .  

[antoineD 36]

On 3/5/2017 at 11:27 AM, Art786 said:

Dont get in trouble when he's visiting you ! think also where he's from in USA  gay marriage must be legal not all states have legalize it ,so  let him find out about this. US embassy ground is considered USA .So if you go for interview you have nothing to be afraid off. Good luck . There was few gay capoles in November forum try to contact them .  

Pretty sure gay marriage at the national level has been settled by Obergefell v. Hodges in 2015. There's parity in all immigration matters now.

[SparklePony 238]

Look into what constitutes good evidence of relationship for USCIS and your embassy (usually boarding passes, receipts of hotel and restaurants, stuff like that). Do as much homework and studying on the process as you can. And yes, make sure your partner is eligible to file!

[TomEn 90]

Hey there

 

we are a gay couple and I am from India where being gay is a crime. While attending the consulate interview, after they state that your visa is approved, request the consular to only put the first initial of your fiance along with his last name. This iis what was told to me by the CO who interviewd me. He said that he understood how difficult it was in india (since it was punishable by 20 years in jail) so he did that for me. I also know few other gay couples who immigrated from their country where it was illegal with the same process of Firts Initial and Last name.

 

This gives you a lot of leeway at the immigration check at the terminals in your country.

 

Also, It is legal to marry a same-sex person in all 50 states of the United states as long as the one applying for you is a citizen of the USA/

 

So even before you could get there, you need to satrt working on collecting eveidence. Even if yo dont have any from the past, start saving the ones from now on. become the selfie people when he visits. it doesnt really have to be pictures where you are making out or holding hands or PDA, it could just be the two of you in various places around the UAE or whereveer you both are gonna be visiting. If you can get him in a family picture that would be even great. So start COLLECTING the evidence.

 

Good luck.

 

PS: if you need any more help, feel free to email me here.