Is it too soon to file a K-1?

[Nacafagno 0]

Hello,

 

This is my first post on this forum. Me and my fiancé first met on Instagram last year around August. However, we didn’t really start talking until January when she saw that I was on vacation in Philippines (her home country). We decided to meet in in February, and basically was love at first sight. I spent a week there and then flew her to Cebu to meet my family and she spent two weeks there until I flew back to the US. We’ve been together officially since end of February and we both decided we want to spend the rest of our lives together shortly after. I actually asked her to marry me April 4 over FaceTime but promised her I would do an actual proposal when I see her in person again. We want to go ahead and start the process of a K-1 especially knowing the long timeline of the process but we’re worried our short relationship will be a red flag. I was thinking that by the time she gets an interview, the relationship will be well over a year and a half. Do the consulate officers take that into account? Currently, we have a good amount of evidence of a genuine ongoing relationship. (Pictures, gift receipts, iMessage logs, video chat logs, FaceTime screenshots, etc.) but the relationship is short, and I’ve only seen her in person once. She has photos with my family as well. I’m not sure if any of this matters if the short duration of the relationship will come into question. Any advice on this situation would be appreciated. Thanks!

[powerpuff 6,697]

It’s a non issue. People get married with that timeline with no questions asked, let alone file for a fiancé visa. File away, Philippines is not a difficult consulate 

[Crazy Cat 41,844]

1 hour ago, Nacafagno said:

I was thinking that by the time she gets an interview, the relationship will be well over a year and a half.

The same if you marry, meet, then start the spousal visa process.  

Every couple has their own priorities, and each couple must decide which visa is better for their situation.

K-1        
    More expensive than CR-1    
    Requires Adjustment of Status after marriage (expensive and requires a lot of paperwork)    
    Spouse can not leave the US until she/he receives approved Advance Parole (approx 6-8 months)    
    Spouse can not work until she/he receives EAD (approx 6-8 months)    
    Some people have had problems with driver licenses, Social Security cards, leases, bank account during this period.    
    Spouse will not receive Green Card for many months after Adjustment of Status is filed.
    A K-1 might be a better choice when 18-21 year old children are immigrating also
    In some situations, marriage can affect certain Home country benefits, making a K-1 a better choice.   
    A denied K-1 is sent back to USCIS to expire
    

CR-1
    Less expensive than K-1    
    No Adjustment of Status(I-485, I-131, I-765) required.    
    Spouse can immediately travel outside the US    
    Spouse is authorized to work immediately upon arrival.    
    Spouse receives Social Security Card and Green Card within 2 or 3 weeks after entering the US    
    Opening a bank account, getting a driver's license, etc. are very easily accomplished with GC, SS card, and passport.
    Spouse has legal permanent Resident status IMMEDIATELY upon entry to US.
   

 

 

[Chancy 6,241]

7 hours ago, Nacafagno said:

(Pictures, gift receipts, iMessage logs, video chat logs, FaceTime screenshots, etc.) but the relationship is short, and I’ve only seen her in person once. She has photos with my family as well. I’m not sure if any of this matters if the short duration of the relationship will come into question.

 

This is consulate-specific advice -- your one-time-only meeting is unlikely to be a problem for the consulate in Manila.  Also, I recommend you do not include online correspondence (iMessage, video chat, FaceTime) in your petition.  Those are not evidence of in-person meeting, and not necessary for Manila.  Focus on actual in-person evidence, like your passport stamps, boarding passes, hotel receipts.  Support those with a few photos of the two of you together, also photos with friends/family.

 

[Nacafagno 0]

6 hours ago, Crazy Cat said:

The same if you marry, meet, then start the spousal visa process.  

Every couple has their own priorities, and each couple must decide which visa is better for their situation.

K-1        
    More expensive than CR-1    
    Requires Adjustment of Status after marriage (expensive and requires a lot of paperwork)    
    Spouse can not leave the US until she/he receives approved Advance Parole (approx 6-8 months)    
    Spouse can not work until she/he receives EAD (approx 6-8 months)    
    Some people have had problems with driver licenses, Social Security cards, leases, bank account during this period.    
    Spouse will not receive Green Card for many months after Adjustment of Status is filed.
    A K-1 might be a better choice when 18-21 year old children are immigrating also
    In some situations, marriage can affect certain Home country benefits, making a K-1 a better choice.   
    A denied K-1 is sent back to USCIS to expire
    

CR-1
    Less expensive than K-1    
    No Adjustment of Status(I-485, I-131, I-765) required.    
    Spouse can immediately travel outside the US    
    Spouse is authorized to work immediately upon arrival.    
    Spouse receives Social Security Card and Green Card within 2 or 3 weeks after entering the US    
    Opening a bank account, getting a driver's license, etc. are very easily accomplished with GC, SS card, and passport.
    Spouse has legal permanent Resident status IMMEDIATELY upon entry to US.
   

 

 

My fiancé and I have considered going the CR1 route. It seems that it would better suit us at this point and requires less money and complexity. The advantage of the K-1 though was I'd be able to file now then wait until February (earliest) to see her in person again and marry before filing the CR-1. However, upon further research, it seems the CR-1 timeline tends to be quicker than the K-1 currently. Is this true?

[Kawika & Michelle 108]

As noted above, in the past the primary reasoning for the K1 was to allow the couple to be together much faster than the spousal visa typically took to process. In today's day & age with the backlog...that is no longer the case. There are a lot more benefits to simply going the spousal visa route at this point due to processing times being virtually the same if not in favor of the spousal visa still. The main issue is whether or not you are 100% sure that you both plan to be married. Hindsight being 20/20...I would have likely just went the spousal visa route if I knew at the time of our filing (October 2021) that it would have taken all this time to get her to the US (some time this month). We've had several friends who filed spousal visa at or around the same time as when we submitted our K1 & they have already been reunited with their loved ones and are much further along the immigration process than we will be. 

 

For your specific question...just make sure you meet all the requirements of the K1. You've already met the requirement of meeting in person. Now you just need to provide documentation of a bonified relationship & your ability to support her & any of her dependents in the US. Those are typically the primary hurdles for most K1 applications.

[Kawika & Michelle 108]

9 minutes ago, Nacafagno said:

However, upon further research, it seems the CR-1 timeline tends to be quicker than the K-1 currently. Is this true?

 

It varies...but typically right now in most cases it is. You also don't need to wait to marry. You can also consider marrying in a third country or marrying online.

[Vulpis 26]

13 hours ago, Nacafagno said:

Hello,

 

This is my first post on this forum. Me and my fiancé first met on Instagram last year around August. However, we didn’t really start talking until January when she saw that I was on vacation in Philippines (her home country). We decided to meet in in February, and basically was love at first sight. I spent a week there and then flew her to Cebu to meet my family and she spent two weeks there until I flew back to the US. We’ve been together officially since end of February and we both decided we want to spend the rest of our lives together shortly after. I actually asked her to marry me April 4 over FaceTime but promised her I would do an actual proposal when I see her in person again. We want to go ahead and start the process of a K-1 especially knowing the long timeline of the process but we’re worried our short relationship will be a red flag. I was thinking that by the time she gets an interview, the relationship will be well over a year and a half. Do the consulate officers take that into account? Currently, we have a good amount of evidence of a genuine ongoing relationship. (Pictures, gift receipts, iMessage logs, video chat logs, FaceTime screenshots, etc.) but the relationship is short, and I’ve only seen her in person once. She has photos with my family as well. I’m not sure if any of this matters if the short duration of the relationship will come into question. Any advice on this situation would be appreciated. Thanks!

Nope, timing of your relationship is a nonissue, and all USCIS cares about is whether it passes the smell test of whether the relationship is genuine or not. Photos with family / friends is a good start in proving that, along with your passport stamps entering the Philippines. If you want to proceed with the K-1 visa process, wait times are getting better; your fiancee will likely get their visa in hand by end of summer 2024 if you file now. Either way, try to squeeze in another visit if life and your finances permit.