Venezuelan Fiancé in Chile - Issue with K-1?

[Ashley Y 0]

Hi! I’ve been getting a lot of conflicting information from attorneys, so I wanted to ask the forum for help. I’m a US citizen and my fiancé is Venezuelan and living in Chile, but his passport is recently expired. We would like to apply for a K-1 visa, but some of the attorneys I’ve spoken to said this is not possible due to the visa ban for Venezuelans entering the US and that we would have to do a spousal visa (which to my knowledge, can take 6-9 months longer). Is this true? Also, if a K-1 visa is feasible, does anyone have experience with the process in Chile/time and do we need an attorney or is this something I can put together myself? 

[SalishSea 18,120]

Does he work for the Venezuelan government?  If not, the travel ban does not apply.

 

You can do a K-1 without an attorney.  VisaJourney is a DIY site and most of us have not used attorneys for any portion of our processes.  In considering the merits of both types of visas (fiancee vs spousal), don't just look at the processing times.  There are many other parameters which are important, like the ability to work and travel immediately vs a 6-8 month wait for both of those.

 

He will need to get a valid passport ASAP.

[Ashley Y 0]

5 minutes ago, Jorgedig said:

Does he work for the Venezuelan government?  If not, the travel ban does not apply.

 

You can do a K-1 without an attorney.  VisaJourney is a DIY site and most of us have not used attorneys for any portion of our processes.  In considering the merits of both types of visas (fiancee vs spousal), don't just look at the processing times.  There are many other parameters which are important, like the ability to work and travel immediately vs a 6-8 month wait for both of those.

 

He will need to get a valid passport ASAP.

He is working odd jobs in Chile - he does not work for the Venezuelan government. 

[SalishSea 18,120]

Just now, Ashley Y said:

He is working odd jobs in Chile - he does not work for the Venezuelan government. 

He shouldn't be subject to any travel ban in that case.  Btw, I'm not sure about Chile, but it seems like many recent Venezuelan K and IV applicants have gotten interviews at the US embassy in Bogota.  On the petition, you can certainly list Chile.

[Jmgold87 36]

5 hours ago, Ashley Y said:

Hi! I’ve been getting a lot of conflicting information from attorneys, so I wanted to ask the forum for help. I’m a US citizen and my fiancé is Venezuelan and living in Chile, but his passport is recently expired. We would like to apply for a K-1 visa, but some of the attorneys I’ve spoken to said this is not possible due to the visa ban for Venezuelans entering the US and that we would have to do a spousal visa (which to my knowledge, can take 6-9 months longer). Is this true? Also, if a K-1 visa is feasible, does anyone have experience with the process in Chile/time and do we need an attorney or is this something I can put together myself? 

My fiancé is from Venezuela and he is living in Peru. I just sent my k1 visa application on dec. 2nd. I’ve done some research and it doesn’t seem to be a problem that he is from Venezuela. Only thing that could cause a problem is if he is not in Chile legally. He might not be able to do the interview there. And also I read that expired Venezuelan passports are ok to enter the u.s. due to the difficulty of getting them renewed in Venezuela. I would google that to make sure it’s still accurate.

[Jmgold87 36]

2 minutes ago, Jmgold87 said:

My fiancé is from Venezuela and he is living in Peru. I just sent my k1 visa application on dec. 2nd. I’ve done some research and it doesn’t seem to be a problem that he is from Venezuela. Only thing that could cause a problem is if he is not in Chile legally. He might not be able to do the interview there. And also I read that expired Venezuelan passports are ok to enter the u.s. due to the difficulty of getting them renewed in Venezuela. I would google that to make sure it’s still accurate.

Also you don’t need an attorney. I didn’t use one to set up my I-129f, there is plenty of info online on how put it together and everything you need to submit. It was actually not that hard. Do some research and just do it yourself. The sooner the better!

[Ashley Y 0]

1 hour ago, Jmgold87 said:

Also you don’t need an attorney. I didn’t use one to set up my I-129f, there is plenty of info online on how put it together and everything you need to submit. It was actually not that hard. Do some research and just do it yourself. The sooner the better!

Thank you! Are there any sites you recommend?

[Pitaya 2,577]

3 minutes ago, Ashley Y said:

Thank you! Are there any sites you recommend?

Uh, you are using a fine DIY site at this time. 

 

 

[Jmgold87 36]

6 hours ago, Ashley Y said:

Thank you! Are there any sites you recommend?

I literally googled how to prepare I-129f and read almost every web page that came up. Also google k1 visa process. And YouTube was helpful too. Searching those topics in there will help. The USCIS website also had a lot of info and travel.state.gov has a lot also. 

[Bri&Alejandro 82]

Hello!

 

My Venezuelan Fiancé is a legal resident in Peru. His passport will expire Nov 2020. We just received NOA1 today, so we are still early in the process.

The US issued a statement June 7th of this year which states the following:

 

"Today, the National Assembly published a decree signed by Interim President Juan Guaido on May 21, to extend the validity of Venezuelan passports for an additional five years past their printed date of expiration.  The United States recognizes this extension of passport validity for visa issuance and other consular purposes.  Customs and Border Patrol will likewise recognize the passports covered by this decree.

Venezuelan passport holders who have been issued a passport extension will have the validity period extended by five years from the expiration date in their passport and valid for admission to the United States, as long as the traveler is otherwise admissible.  Venezuelans in the United States holding passports extended by the decree may use those passports, which will still be considered valid in accordance with the decree, for any appropriate consular purpose.  Nothing in this action alters the requirements for obtaining a U.S. visa or for admission to the United States."

 

The US is accepting passports up to 5 years beyond expiration dates due the current situation in the country. I sent an email this week to the embassy in Peru to verify that they are aware of this and that there will be no issue. We have tried to extend my fiancé's passport but it is virtually impossible right now. I plan to have the statement printed out and will bring it to my fiancé's interview as well.

 

I hope this info helps you!

Just now, Bri&Alejandro said:

Hello!

 

My Venezuelan Fiancé is a legal resident in Peru. His passport will expire Nov 2020. We just received NOA1 today, so we are still early in the process.

The US issued a statement June 7th of this year which states the following:

 

"Today, the National Assembly published a decree signed by Interim President Juan Guaido on May 21, to extend the validity of Venezuelan passports for an additional five years past their printed date of expiration.  The United States recognizes this extension of passport validity for visa issuance and other consular purposes.  Customs and Border Patrol will likewise recognize the passports covered by this decree.

Venezuelan passport holders who have been issued a passport extension will have the validity period extended by five years from the expiration date in their passport and valid for admission to the United States, as long as the traveler is otherwise admissible.  Venezuelans in the United States holding passports extended by the decree may use those passports, which will still be considered valid in accordance with the decree, for any appropriate consular purpose.  Nothing in this action alters the requirements for obtaining a U.S. visa or for admission to the United States."

 

The US is accepting passports up to 5 years beyond expiration dates due the current situation in the country. I sent an email this week to the embassy in Peru to verify that they are aware of this and that there will be no issue. We have tried to extend my fiancé's passport but it is virtually impossible right now. I plan to have the statement printed out and will bring it to my fiancé's interview as well.

 

I hope this info helps you!

Here is the link to the statement:

 

https://www.state.gov/the-united-states-supports-extension-of-validity-for-venezuelan-passports/

[Jmgold87 36]

On 12/13/2019 at 10:44 PM, Bri&Alejandro said:

Hello!

 

My Venezuelan Fiancé is a legal resident in Peru. His passport will expire Nov 2020. We just received NOA1 today, so we are still early in the process.

Hey 👋🏼. My fiancé is also Venezuelan 🇻🇪  living in Peru 🇵🇪 . Looks like we both filed around the same time mine was sent 12/2 and noa1 received 12/10 by text and today 12/16 by mail. I started following your timeline to see how the process goes for you since our cases are similar. I hope we get approved soon 🤞🏼. Good luck to you guys!

[Ashley Y 0]

3 hours ago, Jmgold87 said:

Hey 👋🏼. My fiancé is also Venezuelan 🇻🇪  living in Peru 🇵🇪 . Looks like we both filed around the same time mine was sent 12/2 and noa1 received 12/10 by text and today 12/16 by mail. I started following your timeline to see how the process goes for you since our cases are similar. I hope we get approved soon 🤞🏼. Good luck to you guys!

Thank you! We actually decided to get married when I head back to Chile and will start the Spousal Visa process, but I wish you the best of luck!!!

[Bri&Alejandro 82]

3 hours ago, Jmgold87 said:

Hey 👋🏼. My fiancé is also Venezuelan 🇻🇪  living in Peru 🇵🇪 . Looks like we both filed around the same time mine was sent 12/2 and noa1 received 12/10 by text and today 12/16 by mail. I started following your timeline to see how the process goes for you since our cases are similar. I hope we get approved soon 🤞🏼. Good luck to you guys!

Hello!

 

I saw that your fiancé was in Peru! I actually just told Alejandro the other day about it because I love that we are kind of in this together! Is your fiancé in Lima?
Alejandro was in Lima for about 2 years but just moved to a smaller city hoping to find work, but he’s still running into issues with people not wanting to hire him because he is Venezuelan  we are holding on to hope that this will all be over soon!

[Cajuncat85 0]

Ok so I know this is a DIY website but I did get a lawyer and filed the 129f on august 1st. I got a request for evidence for my fiance's divorce decree. She is Venezuelan living in peru. The government is saying they need a document called sentencia de divorcio. She said there isnt a document like that. The one we sent had the seperation aggrement divorce and property settlement in one. I'm curious if any of yalls Venezuelan fiances have ran into this yet possibly. She got a lawyer who helped with her daughters travel document to get her divorce file from Caracas and sent it all to the lawyer. In some of the documents it says sentencia de divorcio mentioned but she insists it is referring to the document we sent. Any help would be helpful. We have til feb 20th to send the document. The lawyer has asked some of her colleagues but hasnt found any answers yet. Only thing we can come up with is to get the lawyer to write some sort of statement saying that the sentencia de divorcio referenced in the documents was the document we already sent. Any help will be much appreciated!

[Cajuncat85 0]

Sorry for hijacking your post. As far as us in the process so far. According to the government you have 5 years extended past the expiration date on the Venezuelan passport. The travel ban only applies to people and family who work or worked for the government. Also for us just because we dealt with dome other issues, there is another document that can be used also as a backup to the expired passport. Its called ds 232. I included a screenshot describing it.