CR1 Visa filed from Germany

[Inx 4]

Hi everyone,

My fiancé (US-citizien) and I (German) are currently living in Germany.

We've been living together in Germany for a couple of years now and would like to move to the US as soon as possible.

 

So we'd like to start the process for the CR1 visa, as soon as we are married.

As far as we heard it seems to be more difficult to file for a visa from abroad.

 

We read that ' If you live mainly outside the U.S. [...] then, as a rule, you cannot file an I-864 and your spouse's immigrant visa application cannot be approve'  

[...] There are three exceptions to this general domicile rule, for:

[...]

3. I-130 petitioners who can demonstrate an intention to establish a domicile in the U.S. either before or at the time of their beneficiary's arrival in the United States.

The third exception above requires showing (with a written explanation and supporting evidence attached to the I-864) that the petitioner has taken a combination of concrete steps towards leaving the foreign country to live in the U.S.—steps such as signing a lease or purchasing a home, applying for jobs in the U.S., registering children at U.S. schools, opening U.S. bank or investment accounts, applying for a U.S. Social Security number, registering to vote and so on.' 

 

Of course he has always filed his taxes, has a SSN, voted an so forth. He has recently started looking for job.

 

But we would like to stay in Germany together until my visa is approved. 

 

Does anyone have experience with filing for a CR1 Visa from Germany?

How long does the process take from Germany?

Do you have any tips?

 

We'd be deeply grateful if you have any tips  

[Redro 4,611]

Have a look at the guides for a more in depth explanation: 

 

For the first two steps (filing the I-130 and applying for the visa) the beneficiary's country doesn't matter. 

Filing the I-130 (submitting the petition) can be done online or you can mail the forms to the States. If you file online you'll get the NOA 1 immediately. The second NOA can take from 3 months to 12 months... sometimes longer.

The second step is applying for the visa (at NVC), they're currently reviewing documents submitted August 25, 2021. 

 

Only after you've been DQ'ed does your country (Germany) come into play. You can ask either here or in the Europe &Eurasia subforum for wait times to interview and wait times for the visa after interview. 

 

Your partner can stay with you in Germany but if he is not employed with a salary that will continue in the US, you should look for a joint sponsor. 

Read the guides and read some previous questions on spouses living together in the beneficiary's country for a deeper understanding of the process. 

 

Edited November 23, 2021 by Kor2USA

[Boiler 45,525]

It does sound like you are confusing the domicile requirements with the sponsorship requirements.

 

Agree you need to start by reading the guides.

[Inx 4]

Hi you two

Thanks for your quick responses. I actually did not read the guide on this website before! So I just did and it was very helpful.

However I have read about the process on other websites before.

 

I might be a little confused now 🙈. And I might have been confusing before. So please let me try again.

 

We know that we have to file for the I-130 first.

My concern is that after the I-130 is approved my fiancé won't be able to file the I-846 from abroad because of the domicile requirements. We aren't sure if he, first of all, will be able to be my sponsor because of the domicile requirements and his German job. He is employed as an engineer at a German company, so his salary will not continue when we move to the US.

I am sure that his parents would co-sponsor me, but I would feel better if it would just be him and I. 

For that reason it seems like it is not possible for him to stay with me in Germany during the entire application process.

 

It sounds like as long as we're not in the process of applying for the visa it is not a problem for him to stay in Germany. But when the second NOA arrived and we have to fill out the forms to apply for the visa with the NVC he either has to live in the US and have a job that pays 125% of the poverty line to sponsor me or we need a joint sponsor. Is that correct?

 

If you know of any helpful posts, it would be great if you could post them here. We will keep looking in the meantime. 

[Boiler 45,525]

You can using savings as well as income but yes if he can not meet those requirements and you do not want to involve his parents then he will have to head back first.

[Inx 4]

Thanks for the information