Moving to Foreign Spouse's Home Country after K1 Visa

[Emmy Jane 0]

Pretty new to the visa/immigration world, so please bear with me!

 

I'm a US citizen, and am currently working through the K1/Fiance Visa process so that my Spanish fiance can be with me in the USA. My question is, once we have all of that done, and we are legally married, he will apply for his residency via Form I-485. After we've been married for 2 years, I know we can apply for the removal of conditions on his green card (if someone could explain that to me, it'd be great!) and then I'm assuming he'd get the 10 year green card?

 

Anyhow, I've also read that green card holders have to be careful to not loose their residency by traveling outside of the US for an extended period time/abandoning. My question is, if we both wanted to move to Spain for a few years to live/work there (after we've been married for 2 years) how does that work? There HAVE to be people who do this - if spouses are from different countries, it kind of makes sense that they'd maybe want to live a few years here and there for family, culture, etc. 

 

If this question has been asked before please feel free to redirect me. I'm just not even sure how to Google this question! Many thanks!

[Roel 7,192]

Wait until your spouse gets a citizenship and then move. It's safer. Plus a green card is not for living and working in other countries. It's for living in the US. 

[Crazy Cat 41,891]

47 minutes ago, Emmy Jane said:

if spouses are from different countries, it kind of makes sense that they'd maybe want to live a few years here and there for family, culture, etc. 

It doesn't work like that.  You really need to read the requirements to maintain US residency. ..But You can do that freely after both are US citiens.

Edited October 26, 2017 by missileman

[GreatDane 366]

58 minutes ago, Emmy Jane said:

Pretty new to the visa/immigration world, so please bear with me!

 

I'm a US citizen, and am currently working through the K1/Fiance Visa process so that my Spanish fiance can be with me in the USA. My question is, once we have all of that done, and we are legally married, he will apply for his residency via Form I-485. After we've been married for 2 years, I know we can apply for the removal of conditions on his green card (if someone could explain that to me, it'd be great!) and then I'm assuming he'd get the 10 year green card?

 

Anyhow, I've also read that green card holders have to be careful to not loose their residency by traveling outside of the US for an extended period time/abandoning. My question is, if we both wanted to move to Spain for a few years to live/work there (after we've been married for 2 years) how does that work? There HAVE to be people who do this - if spouses are from different countries, it kind of makes sense that they'd maybe want to live a few years here and there for family, culture, etc. 

 

If this question has been asked before please feel free to redirect me. I'm just not even sure how to Google this question! Many thanks!

The only way for it to happen is to commit to the immigration process - it is both expensive and long. After a K1, you will file i485 and two years after you RECEIVE the green card (not two years from entry or marriage) you remove conditions. Current visa removal is taking 18+ months. Three years from your green card date you can apply for citizenship. Only after your spouse has citizenship can you even entertain the idea of moving abroad. At any time in the process you are outside the US for more than six months of any 12 month period, your GC can be considered abandoned and you will have to start from scratch. 

[Unlockable 7,314]

Another vote for just waiting until he becomes a US citizen. Here is why. If you look at current timelines removal of conditions are taking up to 1 year before the immigrant gets their 10 year green card. At that time they will have reach eligibility to apply for naturalization based on 3 years married to a US citizen.

 

Also, bounce around from country to country is not the norm. Mainly it is for people who are retired and/or have dual citizenship (dual citizenship is another reason to wait it out). 

 

What are the residency requirement for you to live in Spain? Will your fiance have to petition for you after you are married? 

[GreatDane 366]

We filed for a K1 in 2013 and are both in ROC and have filed for citizenship. Best case, we're thinking it will be finalized in April next year. That's the type of timeline you're looking at.

[geowrian 22,337]

Option 1: Re-entry permit. The details were explained above already. However, this is for temporary travel abroad...if CBP believe you have actually abandoned US residence, then they will move to revoke LPR status when you try to enter again. In your case, it sounds like you do plan to actually abandon residency.

Drawbacks: Must be in the US to file for the re entry permit, and for biometrics. Max 2 years, and can be renewed once. No guarantees on re-entry. Ineligible for naturalization for 4 years + 1 day upon return (very few exceptions).

 

Option 2: Stay in the US until you can naturalize under the 3 year rule. Once you're a USC, you can be outside the US as long as you want.

Drawbacks: Need to be an LPR for at least 3 years first, remain married to your spouse, and then need to wait for processing (which can take 6-12 months). Requires maintaining a "good moral character" standard, which may delay eligibility even for "minor" offenses.

 

Option 3: When you decide to return to the US, and have already abandoned your green card, apply for an IR-1 visa.

Drawbacks: More paperwork + fees (~$1200 filing to green card currently). Another interview. Processing time.

 

=====

Option 2 seems like the best course long-term IMO.

Edited October 26, 2017 by geowrian

[Emmy Jane 0]

Thanks for all of your help in clearing this up and providing answers! Much to consider for us.

[N-o-l-a 7,167]

6 hours ago, GreatDane said:

We filed for a K1 in 2013 and are both in ROC and have filed for citizenship. Best case, we're thinking it will be finalized in April next year. That's the type of timeline you're looking at.

 

That seems like a long process.  We filed 6 months before you for a CR1 (actually technically 2 months) and will be applying for citizenship under the 5 year rule coming up.  We didn't really want to deal with the intrusion into our finances and lives yet again.  I guess we lucked out that ROC was quick for us too.  Citizenship will be anywhere from 6 -13 months depending on whether we get an interview in Fargo or Minneapolis.  That is frustrating.

 

Another option for OP is to file for an IR1 when abroad (after abandoning that original greencard).  People do move country to country, that's normal.

 

 

 

 

[Nitas_man 3,100]

10 hours ago, Emmy Jane said:

Pretty new to the visa/immigration world, so please bear with me!

 

I'm a US citizen, and am currently working through the K1/Fiance Visa process so that my Spanish fiance can be with me in the USA. My question is, once we have all of that done, and we are legally married, he will apply for his residency via Form I-485. After we've been married for 2 years, I know we can apply for the removal of conditions on his green card (if someone could explain that to me, it'd be great!) and then I'm assuming he'd get the 10 year green card?

 

Anyhow, I've also read that green card holders have to be careful to not loose their residency by traveling outside of the US for an extended period time/abandoning. My question is, if we both wanted to move to Spain for a few years to live/work there (after we've been married for 2 years) how does that work? There HAVE to be people who do this - if spouses are from different countries, it kind of makes sense that they'd maybe want to live a few years here and there for family, culture, etc. 

 

If this question has been asked before please feel free to redirect me. I'm just not even sure how to Google this question! Many thanks!

I'm going to advise you now it's next to impossible to maintain a green card from overseas.  This is what I have learned:

 

A travel document can buy you up to two years

Regular visits to the US (twice a year is minimum) while maintaining a residence, bank, credit cards, and property can buy you another year or so

After 7 years out of 11 year marriage of living / working overseas since we got married the best thing to do is move, settle down, voluntarily abandon, switch the spouse's visa to a visit visa, and re-file when / if you want to return to the US.

 

Returning is all about the affidavit.  The first thing you focus on is  banking/accumulating enough cash assets to ensure that this is always an option.

Edited October 27, 2017 by Nitas_man

[Pennycat 880]

22 hours ago, Emmy Jane said:

There HAVE to be people who do this - if spouses are from different countries, it kind of makes sense that they'd maybe want to live a few years here and there for family, culture, etc. 

 

 

You've got great answers here, follow that advice (which is: wait for citizenship as it's much much easier). It's not that long of a time in the grand scheme of things (budget 5 years, hope for 3-- that will be a mixture of personal choice and USCIS processing times). We've always had our eye on going back to Costa Rica. Right now it's more about the extreme long-term plan but it's nice to have the option open. Only once we get the US citizenship thing squared away. 

 

Not for nothing, but there definitely ARE families who move about quite a bit but it's not the "norm". And for what it's worth in my (limited) observation, those people either tend to have had the immigration details already squared away or are just a tad too "free spirited" about the whole thing and just blindly do what they want and inevitably run into problems-- they either find out while overseas that they've made choices that resulted in the loss of the green card or worse they find out at the border when they try to come back.  Not judging them, mind. I can see how it's easy for certain people (usually Americans, Canadians, Europeans-- people who are accustomed to much more freedom of movement than most of the world) to simply not think about it. I just personally know better, and am married so someone from a country whose citizens are more restricted in their travels than the wealthy countries.

 

And another aside on the "free spirited" folks. They're also the ones who wind up getting deported from places like Costa Rica because they just decide to up and move and become a yoga teacher or surf instructor or whatever and don't work out those particulars, get caught, deported and banned. Just about every single expat I've met in Costa Rica has at least one friend that this happened to. You'd think they'd learn....