K1 Visa... to file or not?

[zilchfox 296]

Hi, K1 filer here. I definitely wish we did the CR-1 filing instead, and we were under "normal circumstances". It was already excruciating waiting for an EAD for 8-ish months back in 2016, I couldn't fathom it now.

[Chilisquid 2]

On 7/26/2020 at 11:59 AM, Sparkle Sparkle said:

Don't do K1... I repeat don't do it... Get married

Ain't got no choice, she's in Thailand and I'm in the US

[Sparkle Sparkle 914]

3 hours ago, Chilisquid said:

Ain't got no choice, she's in Thailand and I'm in the US

What I meant in essence is don't do K1 when you can marry and file for CR1. Except in cases when it's not feasible to marry first. Spousal visa are superior to fiance visas and are priority to adjudicating consulates. 

[LauraLozano 1]

I honestly haven’t read all 96 comments but would like to share what I saw at the airport. 

I flew to the US to activate my green card and a guy got denied boarding cause of a K-1 visa. At the moment you HAVE to be married to even be allowed to enter the US. So a K-1 wouldn’t make sense. 

 

Im a mil spouse myself and would recommend you to get married somewhere else which sadly isnt currently easy. I’ve heard (!! Don’t know if it’s true) that some foreign born spouses did proxy weddings with their mil spouse even not being mil to mil, maybe an option to look into in this current time. 

Edited August 12, 2020 by LauraLozano

[Crazy Cat 41,835]

15 minutes ago, LauraLozano said:

At the moment you HAVE to be married to even be allowed to enter the US.

That is not true........there are K-1 holders and others entering the US from non-Covid banned countries.  I'm sure there were other factors in the case you mentioned.  

 

Edited August 12, 2020 by Lucky Cat

[Greenbaum 12,259]

11 minutes ago, LauraLozano said:

I flew to the US to activate my green card and a guy got denied boarding cause of a K-1 visa. At the moment you HAVE to be married to even be allowed to enter the US. So a K-1 wouldn’t make sense. 

It's hard to opine on the reason for not boarding a K-1 visa holder. There are many factors, too numerous to list here, why someone is denied boarding. I suspect in this case it could have been another issue but since I don't know the facts, I will reserve the "rest of the story" until I know more. K-1's are being allowed into the US. If they are from the Schengen area then it's best to travel to a non-Schengen area, wait 14 days and then fly to the US. Flights cannot fly through a Schengen airport to arrive at the US. Just updating you on what we are seeing. Many threads on this topic throughout VJ.

[LauraLozano 1]

10 minutes ago, Lucky Cat said:

That is not true........there are K-1 holders and others entering the US from non-Covid banned countries.  I'm sure there were other factors in the case you mentioned.  

 

Yea I’m sorry I Understood that she’s European like me so for us we have to be married 🙈. Forgot to add this. 

[LauraLozano 1]

2 minutes ago, Greenbaum said:

It's hard to opine on the reason for not boarding a K-1 visa holder. There are many factors, too numerous to list here, why someone is denied boarding. I suspect in this case it could have been another issue but since I don't know the facts, I will reserve the "rest of the story" until I know more. K-1's are being allowed into the US. If they are from the Schengen area then it's best to travel to a non-Schengen area, wait 14 days and then fly to the US. Flights cannot fly through a Schengen airport to arrive at the US. Just updating you on what we are seeing. Many threads on this topic throughout VJ.

I forgot to add it’s from a Schengen airport and a Schengen resident since I remembered to have read the original question was from Europe. Going to edit it to avoid more confusion 

[Crazy Cat 41,835]

Just now, LauraLozano said:

Yea I’m sorry I Understood that she’s European like me so for us we have to be married 🙈. Forgot to add this. 

That would be the reason.......She would have to spend 14 days in a non-Covid banned country before being allowed to enter........thanks for clarifying.

[LauraLozano 1]

20 minutes ago, LauraLozano said:

I honestly haven’t read all 96 comments but would like to share what I saw at the airport. 

I flew to the US to activate my green card and a guy got denied boarding cause of a K-1 visa. At the moment you HAVE to be married to even be allowed to enter the US. So a K-1 wouldn’t make sense. 

 

Im a mil spouse myself and would recommend you to get married somewhere else which sadly isnt currently easy. I’ve heard (!! Don’t know if it’s true) that some foreign born spouses did proxy weddings with their mil spouse even not being mil to mil, maybe an option to look into in this current time. 

Edit:  it’s all from Schengen area and under the travel ban like I remember to have read 

[HRQX 4,145]

6 hours ago, LauraLozano said:

so for us we have to be married 🙈. Forgot to add this. 

Spouse of US citizen is 1 exemption to the Schengen Area proclamation. A few K-1 holders meet the following exemption: "(iii) any alien who is the parent or legal guardian of a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident, provided that the U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident is unmarried and under the age of 21"

[Ontarkie 14,218]

~~Moved to What Visa do I Need, form K1 Progress Report. - The OP has not filed anything yet.~~

[Ellie__ 8]

On 8/12/2020 at 2:50 PM, LauraLozano said:

I honestly haven’t read all 96 comments but would like to share what I saw at the airport. 

I flew to the US to activate my green card and a guy got denied boarding cause of a K-1 visa. At the moment you HAVE to be married to even be allowed to enter the US. So a K-1 wouldn’t make sense. 

 

Im a mil spouse myself and would recommend you to get married somewhere else which sadly isnt currently easy. I’ve heard (!! Don’t know if it’s true) that some foreign born spouses did proxy weddings with their mil spouse even not being mil to mil, maybe an option to look into in this current time. 

Thank you ! I will try to get more info about that proxy wedding, I did not read many good thing about it... 

[HRQX 4,145]

On 8/12/2020 at 5:50 AM, LauraLozano said:

I’ve heard (!! Don’t know if it’s true) that some foreign born spouses did proxy weddings with their mil spouse even not being mil to mil, maybe an option to look into in this current time. 

Only if they consummate the marriage after the marriage occurs. Cannot file before proxy marriage is consummated. See INA 101(a)(35): "The term "spouse", "wife", or "husband" do not include a spouse, wife, or husband by reason of any marriage ceremony where the contracting parties thereto are not physically present in the presence of each other, unless the marriage shall have been consummated."

4 hours ago, Ellie__ said:

Thank you ! I will try to get more info about that proxy wedding, I did not read many good thing about it... 

See above info of proxy marriage from the Immigration and Nationality Act.

[Ellie__ 8]

16 hours ago, HRQX said:

Only if they consummate the marriage after the marriage occurs. Cannot file before proxy marriage is consummated. See INA 101(a)(35): "The term "spouse", "wife", or "husband" do not include a spouse, wife, or husband by reason of any marriage ceremony where the contracting parties thereto are not physically present in the presence of each other, unless the marriage shall have been consummated."

See above info of proxy marriage from the Immigration and Nationality Act.

Oh thank you! So with proxy I am allowed to travel from a Schengen country, we just need to "consummate" the marriage once together.