CR1 Marriage Visa

October 19, 2014

Has your K1 Fiance Visa Been Denied?

K1 Fiance Visas are generally denied when the Petitioner fails to meet the requirements of a Fiance Visa, when the forms are incorrectly filled out and never corrected, our when there is a lack of evidence to support the claim of a genuine relationship.

There are several options available to you if your K1 Fiance Visa has been denied. But, before deciding upon a course of action, you must first determine if the denial was made at the USCIS stage or at the Consular level (Embassy).

If your K1 Fiance Visa has been denied by USCIS, you have the right to an appeal. You must file your appeal with USCIS within 30 days of the date that your petition was denied. You will have to submit your appeal on form I-290B with the filing fee. The other option is to withdraw your first petition with a “letter of withdraw” and then file again. For many reasons, costs being one of them, this is a good option.

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September 16, 2014

Request For Evidence (RFE) and USCIS

by The Law Offices of Jeffrey C. Pettys

It is not uncommon when applying for a K1 Fiance Visa or a Marriage Visa that you will receive a Request For Evidence (RFE) during the process.

A Request For Evidence can be sent for a variety of reasons and is not cause for concern. Most times, a RFE is sent when something is missing or lost by USCIS, a copy of a particular document is not clear or is not an original as required, or maybe when more proof of a fact is needed. It is also sent when their are mistakes made in the application paperwork.

If USCIS is asking for something that you have already provided, don’t argue with them, just re-send it! USCIS does lose or misplace items but getting them to admit it is a waste of time. You are dealing with a large bureaucracy and its just best to comply without complaint.

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June 25, 2014

Using a Co-Sponsor for a K1 Fiance Visa

by The Law Offices of Jeffrey C. Pettys

There is no legal prohibition against using a co-sponsor to support a K1 Fiance Visa. Whether it will be accepted or not by the US Embassy to support the fiance visa application is the issue.

It has been determined that the I-134 Affidavit of Support, unlike the I-864 Affidavit of Support used for Marriage Visas and Permanent Residency applications cannot be lawfully enforced due to the non-immigrant nature of a K visa. Nevertheless, most US Embassies around the world will give some consideration to a co sponsor’s willingness to help support the financial requirements of a Fiance Visa. The good news is most US Embassy’s will accept a Co-Sponsor and those that frown on it will likely give it some consideration depending on the facts of your case.

One reason for accepting a co-sponsor for a K visa applicant may be the recognition that a co-sponsor will be accepted if the parties were married and applying for a Marriage Visa or Legal Permanent Residency. It seems almost silly to exclude the use of a co-sponsor for a K visa when the parties intend to marry and subsequently apply for Legal Permanent Residency, at which time a co-sponsor can be used. Another reason for possibly accepting a co-sponsor for a K visa application is to try and help the US citizen marry his or her choice of a loved one.

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May 5, 2014

Fiance and Marriage Visa Fraud

by The Law Offices of Jeffrey C. Pettys

Getting married to a US citizen is perhaps the fastest way for a foreign national to get a visa to enter the United States and become a Legal Permanent Resident and possibly later, a US Citizen. It’s also the easiest way to stay in the United States after your visa expires. Professing that you are in love with a US Citizen is highly subjective and this reality creates an environment for fraud.

As we all know, people of widely different backgrounds and ages can fall in love. Relationships are formed from an almost endless line of circumstances. Some are formed after diligent search and some by unexpected chance. There is no set formula for falling in love and who we should fall in love with. That being said, there are a few factors or issues that are possible signs of fraud.

Age: Although a great disparity in age is not proof positive of a fraudulent relationship, it will likely give rise to a heightened level scrutiny. An age difference of 25 years of more will raise a few eyebrows. There is no magic age limit, but if the couple are separated by so many years that it’s hard to imagine what they may have in common, it will be an issue that must be overcome. A relationship where one person is in their late 60s and another in their late teens or early 20s is going to be very suspicious. Showing how the relationship was formed and how the couple interacts with each other will be important.

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May 1, 2014

New Online DS 260 Form For The CR1 Marriage Visa

by The Law Offices of Jeffrey C. Pettys

Obtaining a CR1 Marriage Visa starts with the submission of the I-130 Petition for Alien Relative form and all the required documents with USCIS. After receiving approval of your I-130 form, you will next be contacted by the National Visa Center who will send you a letter or email instructing you to pay your fees and to submit your Immigrant Visa Application Form and your I-864 Affidavit of Support, along with more documents. The National Via Center has updated their form and is now using an online form called the DS-260. This replaces the older DS 230 form.

To start working on the new online DS-260 Immigrant Visa Application form, you will need to go to: https://ceac.state.gov/CEAC/ and then click on the link for the DS 260 form. Before you can login to complete your form, you will need your NVC case number your NVC ID number. You can find this on your NVC email or letter. As you proceed through the form, you will be asked a number of questions and then when each page is complete, you can proceed to the next page. You cannot proceed to the next page until every question is fully answered. If you need to exit the form to get the answer(s) to a question you cannot answer on the spot, I suggest you save the form and then return later with your answer(s) to continue.

You will need a copy of your USCIS I-797 Approval Notice and a copy of the beneficiaries passport bio page to complete the form.

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April 29, 2014

Who should you hire to help process your Fiance or Marriage Visa Application?

by The Law Offices of Jeffrey C. Pettys

Today, there are more options than ever to find someone to help you apply for a Fiance Visa or Marriage Visa. There are discount visa processing companies located in virtually every country in the world, numerous attorneys and law firms, friends who have gone through the immigration process and claim to know something about it, and yourself.

Processing your visa paperwork is a very important step to insure that you and your loved one can stay together and become the family that you want to be. No matter who you hire, great care must be given to your application to make sure it is done correctly and timely. And regardless of who you hire, it’s an expensive undertaking. For sure, there are differences in the fees charged by the various service providers for their work, but when you add in the filing fees, its expensive no matter who you chose. I guess what I am trying to say is that this is no time to be “penny wise and pound foolish”. You will always get what you pay for. The lowest that I have found for the discount Fiance or Marriage Visa processing companies is around $500. That’s really cheap. The most expensive I have found for a law firm is around $2700. I think something like $1000-1300 for the legal work is fair.

The question you should be asking yourself is not who is the cheapest service provider, but who provides you with the best value for your money. To determine this, you have to understand what it is you should be looking for and what level of service and care do you really need.

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December 19, 2013

Adjusting Status on a Visa Waiver

by The Law Offices of Jeffrey C. Pettys

Adjusting status to become a Legal Permanent Resident while in the United States on a Visa Waiver requires careful thought and analysis.

USCIS and the US State Department is particularly sensitive to matching a persons true intent when entering the United States with the appropriate type of visa or special entry permission, like a Visa Waiver. It is an absolute “no no” to use a Visa Waiver to enter the United States for the purpose of getting married and applying to become a Legal Permanent Resident (immigrant). To do so would likely constitute fraud. The visitors intent at the time of entry is the issue.

If a person enters the United States as a visitor under the Visa Waiver program and truly intends to visit with no agenda to get married and then after entering the United States, thereafter decides to get married and wishes to stay, applying for Legal Permanent Residency is a permissible option.

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December 6, 2013

Green Card for Foreign Student Married to a US Citizen

by The Law Offices of Jeffrey C. Pettys

Today, thousands of students from across the world study in the United States and fall in love with a US Citizen and get married. Understandably, the loving couple want to stay together. This can be accomplished.

Most students arrive on either a J1 or F1 Student visa. Depending on the type of visa originally granted to the foreign student, there are a few alternative procedures that apply to a student who wishes to gain Legal Permanent Residency or their Green Card after getting married to a US Citizen.

Students with J-1 Visa

J-1 Visas are issued to Exchange Visitors who are participating in an established J Exchange program pre-approved by the State Department.

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April 29, 2013

Whats great about the CR1 or IR1 Marriage Visas

by The Law Offices of Jeffrey C. Pettys

What makes the CR1 and IR1 Marriage Visas so great is that they come with a Green Card. Once issued, there is no need to do anything else to obtain your Legal Permanent Residency….”Green Card”. This means no application for an Adjustment of Status! This benefit of the Marriage Visas is in stark contrast to the K1 Fiance Visa, which requires the Beneficiary, once married, to apply for Legal Permanent Residency.In most cases, applying for a Green Card takes hours of legal work, several months of waiting and the filing fees alone are over one thousand dollars.

If you have any questions or would like to discuss the benefits of a Marriage Visa by comparison to a Finace Visa and what Visa is best for you, please feel free to call me at 1-888-515-3529.

Jeffrey C. Pettys