What is the K-1 Fiancé Visa?

 

The fiancé(e) K-1 non-immigrant visa is for the foreign-citizen fiancé(e) of a United States (U.S.) citizen.  The foreign-citizen will then apply for adjustment of status to a permanent resident (LPR) with the Department of Homeland Security (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.

 

Who qualifies as a Fiancé under U.S. Immigration Law?

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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 non-immigrant 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.

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Documents and Filing Fees for the K-1 process are:

 

USD $340 for Form I-129F (filed with USCIS).

USD $265 to apply for the K visa (paid to the consulate) and I-485.

USD $1,070 for Form I-485 and the adjustment of status packet (filed with USCIS), including the bio-metrics fee.

 

For more information:

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https://travel.state.gov/content/visas/en/immigrate/family/fiance-k-1.html

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Please contact us for more information!

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