E3 visa if you have immediate family in the USA

[riventree 0]

Hi all...

 

I have been living in the US for nearly two years. First I was on a J1 visa; now I am on an E3 visa, the Australian-only employer-sponsored visa.

 

Since I got my E3 visa, I've become engaged to my US boyfriend, who I've been with for five years or so, some of which was long obviously distance.

 

The situation is this:

1. My boyfriend is in graduate school. He won't finish his course for another year after my current E3 visa expires. 

2. Our long-term plan is to move back to Australia together when he finishes studying. Given that, it seems pointless to go through all the stress and cost of getting married so I can get a US green card for 12ish months (so that we don't have to go back to long distance).

3. However, the E3 visa is a nonimmigrant visa, and the paperwork specifically asks if you have immediate family in the US, including a fiancé, so I don't know if I'll be eligible to renew it if I have to declare I am actually engaged to an American.

 

Has anyone experienced (or even heard of) someone getting an E3 visa approved when they have immediate family/a fiancé who is a US citizen?

 

I feel like it's unlikely they'll renew my work visa if they know I am engaged to an American, even if we don't plan to stay in America. Maybe they'd accept it if we showed we had started paperwork for him to emigrate to Australia instead? I'm looking for an immigration lawyer to consult over this, but I feel like they'll also just say it's a risk.

 

We hate the idea of doing long distance again for another year, but, as I said above, if it's going to cost thousands to move him to Australia (residency for a partner/spouse in Oz is about US$5000), it seems a waste of money (in fees and lawyer fees) to also apply for US residency when I only want to live here another year or so. The kicker, of course, is that I have to exit the US to renew my E3 visa, and if they don't renew it because of our engagement, I am stuck outside the US again anyway.

 

Darn international love and all its complications! Anyway, if anyone has ever heard of someone getting the E3 while they do also have family in the US, I'd love to hear about it. Thanks for your time!

[riventree 0]

Hi, Dee elle,

 

Thanks for your reply!

 

Actually, the E3 visa doesn't cost my employer anything if I renew outside the US, so they are pretty happy about it (I pay the visa fees upon application/renewal, and they're much less than residency applications or the likes of the H1B). Yes, I'm not sure if I'd be able to retain my right to work and job during the adjustment of status process, which is also a big problem since I need my job! I think maybe I could submit I-765? But I'm not sure if that applies on the E3.