K1 or marriage petition?

[Bobbi&Cameron 0]

Hello, i'm hoping to get some advice yesterday i spoke to an immigration lawyer over the phone about wanting to go forward with a k1 fiance visa and she recommended that we do a marriage petition instead?( which i think is the  I-130)  but i thought you already have to be married to file for that? she said they both take around the same time to file but didn't give a reason why in her opinion a marriage petition was the better option.

 

My fiance lives in Canada and i am in the united states, we're not yet married and want to make sure we go about doing everything the correct way.

 

any info would be greatly appreciated, thank you!

[geowrian 22,338]

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

 

The K-1 requires you both to be free to marry and takes 6-8 months to process currently. Once in the US, your fiance  will be unable to work or leave the country until she obtains Advance Parole (AP). She will need to marry you within 90 days of entry, then she can apply for AOS + AP + EAD. AP & EAD are free with AOS, and take about 90 days  for processing. AOS will likely take 10+ months, but her NOA1 acts as proof of legal status while it is processing. At the end of AOS, she will be a conditional resident and get a 2 year green card. After 2 years minus 90 days, she will need to file for ROC. After that, she will get a 10 year green card.

 

A CR-1 requires you to be married to each other and takes about 10-12+ months currently. Upon arrival in the US, she will have conditional resident status already, so no AOS is needed. ROC will still be needed after 2 years minus 90 days.

 

A CR-1 is simpler (no AOS required, no period of being unable to work or leave the US, etc.) and costs decently less as a result. It also takes several months longer than a K-1.

 

Edit: K-3 is obsolete...you don't need to consider that in the comparison linked above.

Edited March 4, 2017 by geowrian