not legal wedding ceremony prior to K1 approval

[Crazy Cat 42,597]

11 minutes ago, Mystery12345 said:

Honestly I think all are valid points but still feel we did nothing wrong and we are not married in the eyes of the law and feel if they did deny us on it we would appeal and get the local government involved to help with the case if that be an option

 

i think in the guides both on here and the official website they need to be more clear on what can be done and can’t 

It isn't an option........K1 visas can not be appealed.....they are just sent back to USCS to expire......just take the safe route and DON'T MENTION THE PARTY.  

 

That is our advice.  Either take our advice or leave it and suffer the consequences......

 

Missileman OUT!!!

 

 

Edited May 26, 2018 by missileman

[geowrian 22,338]

Just now, Mystery12345 said:

Honestly I think all are valid points but still feel we did nothing wrong and we are not married in the eyes of the law and feel if they did deny us on it we would appeal and get the local government involved to help with the case if that be an option

Appeal how exactly? They would return the petition back to USCIS with a recommendation to revoke it because it is invalid. Current USCIS policy is to not review returned I-129Fs and let them expire. The only opportunity to do anything is before they return the petition, and it's extremely difficult to get them to do anything at the embassy stage.

That's just the reality of the situation when dealing with K-1s.

[yuna628 9,747]

4 minutes ago, Mystery12345 said:

Honestly I think all are valid points but still feel we did nothing wrong and we are not married in the eyes of the law and feel if they did deny us on it we would appeal and get the local government involved to help with the case if that be an option

 

i think in the guides both on here and the official website they need to be more clear on what can be done and can’t 

None of the above will assist you on such a denial.

 

The guides are pretty clear, a K1 is for fiancés, and the government specifically instructs those couples to never make any ceremony plans before the visa is in hand and they certainly do not advise them to go ahead and have anything remotely resembling a ceremony either. It's not that you've done something 'wrong' per say, but look at it from the officers perspective. They are trying to determine if there is potential fraud. The marriage visa process takes longer than a K1 at this point, so it's one of those ways someone may or may not find a weak point of entry to 'game the system'. It's their policy, and there's nothing to really argue about with their policy. There's no appealing on something like this if they find out.

[Lemonslice 4,991]

Read this thread:
 

 

[JFH 12,191]

45 minutes ago, O&GForever said:

Yes, the Ghana and the UK embassy are vastly different. (I also didn't know which embassy the OP was dealing with as it doesn't show up in their profile.) My point in posting...as stated...is to be very careful in what the OP share, say and present at the interview. Some may think it could be good evidence and while they don't see it to be an issue or that they are married, the CO could. No matter what embassy you're dealing with if the CO thinks you are married and applying for K1 visa, it won't end well. Its not just the Ghana embassy. I have seen it happen at many other embassies, including those considered easy, lower fraud embassies. 

Although the op is going through the London embassy, I'm guessing from the spelling and grammar that English is not his/her first language and that they belong to an ethnic group that is not of British origin. The reason I mention this is because the London embassy is used to the customs and traditions of the U.K. and not necessarily those of other cultures. "Declaration of love" parties are unheard of in the U.K. What is a wedding if it's not a declaration of love? I have to say, as a Brit, if I were invited to a party and the host was in a suit and his partner in a white dress I would assume I am at a wedding. Even more so if "declarations" or vows were spoken. Although engagement parties are commonplace in the U.K., these would usually not involve a white dress, a cake, guests in formal attire, etc. A CO at the London embassy is very likely to see this as a wedding celebration. Even if in the OP's culture this may be completely normal.  

 

I agree that that the OP should be very careful with what is shared, without lying.

 

OP, it's not about whether you think you've done anything wrong. It's the CO that makes the decision. 

 

OP, did your fiancée wear the same dress she intends to wear when you do get married? Seems a shame that everyone has already seen it. And seems odd that she would wear it for a "party". 

[Mystery12345 1]

You all raise some very good points. I am actually English but just dyslexic so please don’t judge my spelling and grammar.

 

we just will have to see what the London embassy has to say and go from there. Fingers crossed it all goes good for us and we get the approval we deserve.

 

 

[Ivy. 113]

16 hours ago, Mystery12345 said:

We can prove we are not married too if that’s the case.

How would you prove a negative?

 

You basically plan to go “Here Mr. CO, this looks like a duck, walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, but is not a duck.”

 

If what you are saying is true, it was just a costume party, I would say your best bet is to not mention it unless asked specifically about it. The CO needs to know if you are married. You are not. End of story. They do not need to know about every time you got drunk. 

[Davidg74 4]

18 hours ago, Mystery12345 said:

I need some advice

 

me and my fiancée she lives in USA and I live in the UK got our noa2 approval but waiting for the interview I’ll be the one moving to the USA 

 

while I was visiting in the USA we help a fake wedding ceremony type party due to the fact we spent a lot of money on it so thought it be all good to celebrate our love but not be officially married we just wanted the party we dreamed of so went ahead with it just told people what it was and wore a white dress and suit 

 

do you think there will be any issues with us doing any of this as we are not legally married just wanted the party and played the part to share our love with everyone 

 

i want to be 100% honest and upfront 

My advice if u plan on doing this make it ur engagement party and claim it as that. U can always have a wedding party. And take lots of pics. If u are asked for evidence u can use it as proof of relationship. Bcoz to USCIS any marriage is fake until u prove other wise. So no don't make this ur wedding party.

[kemm360 144]

Ridiculous thread!!! 

[Crazy Cat 42,597]

15 minutes ago, kemm360 said:

Ridiculous thread!!! 

How so?

[kemm360 144]

12 minutes ago, missileman said:

How so?

Because we are all telling the OP the same thing and it’s like we’re talking to a bot... I don’t know why someone will risk a denial and talk about appeal. 

[JFH 12,191]

1 hour ago, Davidg74 said:

My advice if u plan on doing this make it ur engagement party and claim it as that. U can always have a wedding party. And take lots of pics. If u are asked for evidence u can use it as proof of relationship. Bcoz to USCIS any marriage is fake until u prove other wise. So no don't make this ur wedding party.

How does it "prove" a relationship? It was a party. Anyone can hold a party. All it proves is that you know a bunch of people and spent a lot of money feeding them. On the other hand, my husband and I had no engagement party, no wedding reception, I didn't wear a white dress (I actually wore black when I got married), didn't have a cake, flowers, an engagement ring or anything else traditionally associated with an engagement or a wedding. Does that mean we are not a genuine couple? 

[Dashinka 24,900]

29 minutes ago, kemm360 said:

Because we are all telling the OP the same thing and it’s like we’re talking to a bot... I don’t know why someone will risk a denial and talk about appeal. 

I agree, the OP has been given some good advice as to how to proceed, hopefully they take it, otherwise @Lemonslice will have another thread to put in the archive for the next person that is in a similar boat.

[bakphx1 789]

Without a marriage certificate you aren't married. Wearing a white dress doesn't make you married.  

[Davidg74 4]

4 hours ago, JFH said:

How does it "prove" a relationship? It was a party. Anyone can hold a party. All it proves is that you know a bunch of people and spent a lot of money feeding them. On the other hand, my husband and I had no engagement party, no wedding reception, I didn't wear a white dress (I actually wore black when I got married), didn't have a cake, flowers, an engagement ring or anything else traditionally associated with an engagement or a wedding. Does that mean we are not a genuine couple? 

With ucis they do ask for proof of relationship thru pics. Reason being is they don't just take ur word for it. In my interview I had to bring pics joint assets any family pics since we had children. In other words the evidence u can prove that ur a cpl the easier the interview will be. My wifes interview lasted 15 min. My consulate interview was about 15 min as well.