The foreign-citizen fiancé has rights against domestic violence, assault and abuse at the hands of the U.S. citizen fiancé and others. You should read the Rights and Protections pamphlet before your visa interview to learn about your rights in the United States relating to domestic violence, sexual assault, and child abuse and protection available to you. The consular officer will verbally summarize the pamphlet to you during your interview. Additionally, K-1 visa applicants will be provided with any existing criminal background information on their U.S. citizen fiancé(e)s that USCIS received from other government agencies during processing of their Form I-129F petitions.
Saturday, May 11, 2013
What rights do I have in the United States as the foreign-citizen fiancé?
Do I or my fiancé have to provide financial information?
Yes. During the visa interview, applicants will be required to present evidence to the Consular Officer that they will not become a public charge in the U.S. You may present evidence that you are able to financially support yourself or that your U.S. citizen fiancé(e) is able to provide support. The Consular Officer may request that an Affidavit of Support be submitted by the U.S. citizen fiancé(e).
The U.S. citizen fiancé(e) will need to submit documentation setting out their financial status to USCIS with the application for adjustment of status to that of legal permanent resident following the marriage.
Note: The financial requirements that USCIS will review for the Fiancé Visa application and the, subsequent, Adjustment for Status application are different. When adjusting status, the sponsor must demonstrate that they (or the joint sponsor) can meet the equivalent of 125 % of the federal poverty guideline minimum income requirement in the most recent year's tax return. Applicants for a fiancee visa will only need to demonstrate that their U.S. sponsor's income is 100% of the federal poverty guideline.
However, as a fiancé visa is only valid for 90-days upon the entry of the foreign citizen fiancé, in practical terms, if the intention is for the foreign-citizen fiancé to remain in the United States while the spousal visa is pending (by filing an Adjustment of Status application) the U.S. citizen fiancé must still be able achieve the 125% of the federal poverty guidelines. Meeting only the 100% of the federal poverty guideline is, therefore, only useful where the foreign-citizen fiancé will be returning to the home country following the marriage to await processing of the spousal visa abroad.
Contact us today to speak with an immigration lawyer about applying for a fiancé(e) visa.
Do I need a "Medical Examination"?
Yes. In preparing for the interview, applicants will need to schedule and complete a medical examination. Before the issuance of an immigrant or K visa, every applicant, regardless of age, must undergo a medical examination which must be performed by an authorized panel physician. You will be provided instructions regarding medical examinations from the U.S. Embassy or Consulate where you will apply for your visa, including information on authorized panel physicians.
See Medical Examination for more information, including a list of panel physicians by country, and frequently asked questions.
K visa applicants are encouraged to get the vaccinations required under U.S. immigration law for immigrant visa applicants. Although such vaccinations are not required for K visa issuance, they will be required when adjusting status to that of legal permanent resident following your marriage. Applicants are therefore encouraged to fulfill these vaccination requirements at the time of the medical examination. See Vaccination Requirements for IV Applicants for the list of required vaccinations and additional information.
Contact us today to speak with an immigration lawyer about applying for a fiancé(e) visa.
What Is a “Fiancé(e)”?
Under U.S. immigration law, a foreign-citizen fiancé(e) of a U.S. citizen is the recipient of an approved Petition for Alien Fiancé(e), Form I-129F, who has been issued a nonimmigrant K-1 visa for travel to the United States in order to marry his or her U.S. citizen fiancé(e). Both the U.S. citizen and the K-1 visa applicant must have been legally free to marry at the time the petition was filed and must have remained so thereafter. The marriage must be legally possible according to laws of the U.S. state in which the marriage will take place.
In general, the foreign-citizen fiancé(e) and U.S. citizen sponsor must have met in person within the past two years. USCIS may grant an exception to this requirement, based on extreme hardship for the U.S. citizen sponsor to personally meet the foreign-citizen fiancé(e), or, for example, if it is contrary in the U.S. citizen sponsor’s or foreign-citizen fiancé(e)’s culture for a man and woman to meet before marriage.
Contact us today to speak with an immigration lawyer about applying for a fiancé(e) visa.
What Is a K-1 Visa?
The fiancé(e) K-1 nonimmigrant visa is for the foreign-citizen fiancé(e) of a United States (U.S.) citizen. The K-1 visa permits the foreign-citizen fiancé(e) to travel to the United States and marry his or her U.S. citizen sponsor within 90 days of arrival. The foreign-citizen will then apply for adjustment of status to a permanent resident (LPR) with the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Because a fiancé(e) visa permits the holder to immigrate to the U.S. and marry a U.S. citizen shortly after arrival in the United States, the fiancé(e) must meet some of the requirements of an immigrant visa. Eligible children of K-1 visa applicants receive K-2 visas.
Contact us today to speak with an immigration lawyer about applying for a fiancé(e) visa.
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