US Immigration from Germany

Hello everyone I'm not sure if this is the right category but here we go...

Me and my husband got married in September, and now I am thinking of getting our marriage acknowledged in my home country. I am from Germany, and if someone here is from Germany as well and got through the procedure (which seems very complicated), I would love to know what exactly I would have to do since I am not registered anymore in my hometown.

Thank you in advance!

Howdy folks,

I completed my medical exam in Germany last September and recently requested a copy of my DS-3025 (please find redacted copy attached).

I'm about to file my AOS but reading through the DS-3025 I see that no dates have been included next to the line for "covid".

On the day of my exam I showed the panel physician the covid certificates I had on an app on my phone. They asked me to email them over and I did. A couple of days later I received an email asking me to send over the certificates again, which I also did.

I can see on the second page "K Visa applicant voluntarily completed vaccination requirements" has been checked.

Is it neccessary for me to have a panel physician transcribe the DS-3025 and add the missing dates?

Fortunately there is one panel physician with availability close to me but they charge a flat fee of $500 to fill in the Form I-693. I asked whether they would just be able to complete the vaccination sections as per uscis guidance (Parts 1. - 5., 7., and 10. of Form I-693) but I did not get an encouraging answer.

My main concern is that this discrepency will cause a delay in the processing of my Form I-765 (Application for Employment Authorization). Ideally I would like to return to work as soon as possible. I would rather avoid spending an unnecessary $500 but it seems silly to quibble over if it means I can be employed quicker.

What would you do?

Thanks for your time.

I m a 22-year-old German citizen majoring in computer science. (Yeah, I know the tech job market in the U.S. is pretty saturated right now.) I also co-run a small B2B tech startup. Our annual recurring revenue is about $120k after two years in operation. For now, the company will likely stay focused on Germany, Austria, and Switzerland.

From what I understand, my main options for immigrating to the U.S. are through marriage, education, work, or investment.

It s super important to me that whatever visa I pursue eventually leads to a green card and U.S. citizenship. Becoming a U.S. citizen is one of my biggest life goals.

Here are the four options I ve been considering. I d love your input on each and whether they seem realistic:

1. Enter the Diversity Visa (DV) Lottery

2. L-1A Visa: I could open a U.S. branch of my German company and transfer to the U.S. on an L-1A visa. Then, I d aim to file for an EB-1 visa through the U.S. branch. I m not sure about the regulations tied to keeping the L-1A visa, though.
Would I need to hire a certain number of Americans? What other requirements are there?

3. Do a Master s Degree in the U.S.: I could go for a master s at a U.S. college.

4. Australia Route + E-3 Visa: I m also interested in Australia. (Obviously, I love the U.S. a bit more.) Australia s immigration process is way more straightforward. After living there for a few years, I could become an Australian citizen and qualify for the exclusive E-3 visa. From what I ve read, it s like the H-1B but way easier to get. After that, I d need to find a U.S. company willing to sponsor me.

Quick question about option 4: If I became an Australian citizen and entered the DV lottery, I d still enter using Germany, right? Since I was born there, my chances wouldn t increase even with Australian citizenship?

A couple of notes:

• Even if my company becomes super successful, I d be fine working a regular job if it helps me get a visa.
• My issue with investment visas is that (afaik) there s no clear path to a green card or citizenship.
• While I wouldn t move to Australia just to get into the U.S., I love Australia almost as much as the U.S. That said, I feel the U.S. would offer more opportunities for my future kids compared to Australia.

Hello there!

I am new to the forum but have been a quiet reader so far. Actually, it is my first time posting in any kind of forum, so I hope things will go okay and please forgive me if I make any "newbie mistakes"! I know there have been some threads about the Adam Walsh Act Waiver already but most of them are older ones and I am hoping to find some people who are in this situation right now to maybe connect and share some information and experiences with!

My story: I met my US boyfriend in 2012 while we were both studying for our BA degrees in the US. We started a relationship, he followed me to Germany (on a student visa)... but we broke up eventually because I felt not ready to marry him/do all the paperwork and effort it takes to either live together in the US or in Germany permanently. Fast forward to today, we re-found our love for each other, got back together, and I am finally ready to take that next step with him. He is the love of my life! We plan to marry in Germany and then file for a CR1 visa to start our life together in the US where he has just built a new house and whatnot. So far so good, right?! Well, no! I knew about his juvenile criminal record and we had talked about it during our relationship. He was open about it and told me everything. However, we did not think it would matter regarding me immigrating to the US on a family-based visa since it was a juvenile record. We were so wrong! When we first talked to an immigration lawyer about our plans she said yeah, it is a juvenile record, won't matter... but when she looked at the charges she noticed that one of them may trigger the Adam Walsh Act. It is a sensitive topic but I can say that it involved consensual sex between two teenagers (same age) who were friends at the time. The friend's mom found out about it and my boyfriend got arrested. It was argued that his friend had a mental disability and therefore was not able to give consent. My boyfriend noted that he did not know about the mental disability of his friend since it was not noticeable, he entered a plea deal and got charged. We got referred to another lawyer who knows both criminal and immigration law and just got off the meeting with him via Zoom: He grilled and intimidated us. I liked that he was upfront about the whole process and made clear it takes a lot to build a good case to possibly get a visa approved. But overall, I feel devastated. Yes, there is the possibility to move to Germany together, but due to many personal reasons living in the US together would have been our first choice.

My questions:
- Does anyone know a good lawyer besides Allan Lolly regarding Adam Walsh Act cases?
- The lawyer told us that it is impossible for my boyfriend to i.e. move to Germany and start the whole CR1-visa process from Germany including the possibility of an AWA waiver. Is that true? Do you then basically have to live separately in two countries even if you are married until a decision is being made by USCIS? I can't find it anymore but I think I read about a case on visa journey where the couple filed for the CR1 from abroad...?

Thank you so much to anyone who took the time to read my post!

Hey guys,

I just wanted to give a little positive feedback on how my K1 process has been going. I have a very unique backstory that some may still remember because I made several posts on it back in 2022.

In March 2022, I was denied entry to the U.S. in Chicago (ORD) while attempting to enter on ESTA. I came to the States for the first time in August 2021 on a J1 as a exchange student. That is where I met my now fianc e. After leaving in January 2022, I wanted to visit her. In Germany I just had finished my bachelor's degree and didn't put too much thought into how ESTA, non immigrant visa and especially CBP officers work, as everything worked seamlessly up to that point. In Chicago I was pulled into secondary inspection after mentioning I was going to visit my girlfriend. I had no idea what was going on and expressed too much intent to possibly work / study / stay in the U.S. I know better now, but back then I had no idea that the officer was trying to build a case for refusing my admission right from the start of our conversation. For me, everything just sounded like a general convo about a hypothetical future. For him, everything I said he directly connected to my upcoming stay on ESTA (as he should, its his job). Once I realized it was looking bad, it was already too late. I tried to clarify that I had no intention to work or start studying while being on ESTA. I truly had not any of these intentions. In my perspective it was just obvious, that I would need a visa for a certain purpose in the U.S.

Long story short, I got refused and had to go back to Germany. I was not particularly asked if I want to withdraw my application for an admission, however I also was not removed. As I was assured at the end, after signing a Sworn Statement that I never should have signed as it was simply inaccurate, that I would just need a visa for the next time, I went ahead and applied for a F1 after getting admitted for a masters program in the U.S. In the following, I was denied at the embassy solely based on my refused admission. Then I hired an immigration lawyer. All they did was filing an FOIA and a DHS Trip redress inquiry. That's also about everything they were able to do, so no blaming that law firm. Another two denials for the F1 followed. It was devastating. I honestly am still traumatized in some way from everything that has been happening since the Refused admission. My life in germany kind of was on hold for around 2 and a half years, as the future was so uncertain. In 2023, I went for a J1 (internship) and also was denied, although the officer almost issued me the visa. My girlfriend and I then decided to go for the K1.

Without a lawyer, but thorough preparation and INCREDIBLE help from some people in this forum, we managed to obtain the K1 visa in October. Our filing of the I-129f was end of march, so pretty fast from initial petition to entering the U.S. on November 20th. Of course, the K1 has it's cons. Everyones situation is unique and for this just seems perfect with how things went so far.

Even with the K1, I still had so many doubts leading up to my visa appointment. And even after receiving the visa, it was the same leading up to my travels and going trough customs. Sleepless nights, anxiety, endless hours of research on every possible question I could face at the interview. & during PoE.

After all that, I can only say- I stressed myself out way too much. With the K1, as long as your relationship is genuine and you intent to marry, you will be fine. Never lie or try to sneak your way into grey areas. I can happily say I never did that, hence I am in the U.S. today.

Just wanted to share my thoughts and the backstory. Encouraging anyone that has questions about the process to always reach out, I want to help others and lift some doubts and fear off their shoulders.