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Hi everyone. My fiancee (Chinese citizen) and I applied for a K1 visa back in March of this year. I live here in China with her, but we chose to apply for the fiance visa rather than the marriage visa for a few reasons. We were informed recently that the Vermont office approved it on August 29. The application is now en route to the Guangzhou consulate here in China.
However, recently we have started wondering if it would be better to get married here and switch to a marriage visa. Our reasons for considering this are:
1. My fiance hopes to start graduate school in the U.S. in the fall of 2007, and I would like to have time after we arrive to look for jobs, so I don't want to arrive too late.
2. We are concerned that after arriving in the U.S. on the fiance visa, it will take too long for my fiancee to change her status, and she will not be able to start school in August 2007.
3. We are also concerned that our application for the fiancee visa will be rejected in Guangzhou. We have read many accounts online of rejected K1 applications, and the general consensus seems to be that the marriage visa is more likely to be passed.
4. Since I am a resident here in China, we would be able to apply for a marriage visa through the Beijing embassy, thus cutting down the time until the application is approved.
I greatly appreciate any advice anyone can give regarding our concerns. Do you think that it makes sense to switch to a marriage visa? What all is involved in the marriage process in the U.S. after going over on a fiancee visa? Would it be possible to go to a justice of the peace immediately upon arrival in the U.S. to get married? How long does it typically take to adjust one's status after marriage?
Thanks a lot! We're pulling our hair out over here trying to figure out what to do, and any help is greatly appreciated.
However, recently we have started wondering if it would be better to get married here and switch to a marriage visa. Our reasons for considering this are:
1. My fiance hopes to start graduate school in the U.S. in the fall of 2007, and I would like to have time after we arrive to look for jobs, so I don't want to arrive too late.
2. We are concerned that after arriving in the U.S. on the fiance visa, it will take too long for my fiancee to change her status, and she will not be able to start school in August 2007.
3. We are also concerned that our application for the fiancee visa will be rejected in Guangzhou. We have read many accounts online of rejected K1 applications, and the general consensus seems to be that the marriage visa is more likely to be passed.
4. Since I am a resident here in China, we would be able to apply for a marriage visa through the Beijing embassy, thus cutting down the time until the application is approved.
I greatly appreciate any advice anyone can give regarding our concerns. Do you think that it makes sense to switch to a marriage visa? What all is involved in the marriage process in the U.S. after going over on a fiancee visa? Would it be possible to go to a justice of the peace immediately upon arrival in the U.S. to get married? How long does it typically take to adjust one's status after marriage?
Thanks a lot! We're pulling our hair out over here trying to figure out what to do, and any help is greatly appreciated.
