Marry US cit. - file 485 (AOS/change of status)-then allowed to travel while pending?

[Amstie]

Thanks to DaytonaFiremedic and some Chinese friends, I now have NEW questions:

I am American, my fiance ("Brit") is British. Can we:

1. Get my Brit his K1 so we can marry in US at end of March 2008
2. File Brit's I-130, then his 1-485/AOS change of status...and EAD?
3. When we receive notice that Brit's 485 is "pending," can Brit...
4. Return to UK to sell house and finish working at job until June 2nd.
3. Meanwhile we file a K3 visa for Brit since he is now my spouse

Other Questions:
A. Must I file the I-130 and receive Notice of Action (NOA) before we can file his 485?

B. How long can this take? i. how long for i-130, then how long til receive "pending 485 status?

C. Can a K3 applicant/holder be dual status? I.e., can he hold a "pending 485" status AND be a K3 visa holder?

D. How many US entries does a K3 allow the holder?


Please help us asap if you can!
Thank you!
A & R

[CharlieAK]

I am American, my fiance ("Brit") is British. Can we:

1. Get my Brit his K1 so we can marry in US at end of March 2008
Yes. A K-1 should be doable in that timeframe, but you should file the petition soon.
2. File Brit's I-130, then his 1-485/AOS change of status...and EAD?
You do not have to file the I-130 when you file after entering with a K-1, just the I-485 etc. And yes, you can apply for the EAD at the same time.
3. When we receive notice that Brit's 485 is "pending," can Brit...
4. Return to UK to sell house and finish working at job until June 2nd.
Not right away, he would have to apply for "AdvanceParole" as well but it usually takes up to 3 months to be granted, so would not be able to leave right away.
3. Meanwhile we file a K3 visa for Brit since he is now my spouse
Why would you want to file for both K-3 and K-1 visa??

If Brit needs to leave the US right after the wedding, then have him come in on the visa waiver program or tourist visa, get married, have him return to the UK and then file for K-3, you don't need the K-1 then.

If you file for K-1 and AOS, you don't need K-3 (unless he leaves without having obtained AP first....then his AOS would be considered abandoned and you would have to get a K-3 for him to be able to return to the US)

Other Questions:
A. Must I file the I-130 and receive Notice of Action (NOA) before we can file his 485?
Not for the K-1 visa.

C. Can a K3 applicant/holder be dual status? I.e., can he hold a "pending 485" status AND be a K3 visa holder?
You would file for AOS after obtaining a K-3, not before.

D. How many US entries does a K3 allow the holder?
As far as I know, the K-3 is a "multiple entry visa", so he would be able to come and go while his AOS is pending.
You just need to make up your mind what you want to do, K-1 or K-3

Hope this helps.

Good luck,

Charlie

[Amstie]

Hi Charlie,

Thank you for your fast response and answers.

As I understand it, it is illegal (?) for him to come to the US on the visa waiver with the intent of marrying a US citizen.

We have been dating for more than a year and a half, he and I have multiple visa stamps showing our many visits to US and UK. I do NOT want to chance getting "caught" on this first "fiancee" step.

...or is there a loophole that I don't know about?


2. How is the i-130 right after marriage to a US citizen not required?
https://www.immihelp.com/family-base...ard/index.html

4. I have read that one's legal status between the time that an AOS is filed and when it is approved is legally as an "applicant to adjust status"
(see 4th paragraph down at https://www.immihelp.com/i-485-adjustment-of-status/ )
One of my non-US friends said that you can travel out of the country with this status...that if it is pending, it is not abandoned.
Then you need to get a valid visa for re-entry into US, like a K3 (which is what my fiancee would be at that future time).

Thank you.

[Amstie]

oops - Daytona - I wrote that I knew nothing about the visa waiver program...then ended up just looking it up and realized I did know about it - I just didn't know the formal name. Didn't go back and edit my text afterwards though!

Thanks again,
A

[CharlieAK]

As I understand it, it is illegal (?) for him to come to the US on the visa waiver with the intent of marrying a US citizen.

Just a quick note concerning that statement:

It is illegal to come to the USA on the Visa Waiver with the intent to get married AND stay in the US.

It is not illegal to come to the US on tha Visa Waiver with the intent to get married, then get married and leave the country again to apply for the proper visa (K-3 or CR-I).

It is also not illegal to come to the US without intent to get married and then spontaneously decide to marry and stay.

Hope that clears up the confusion.

Charlie

[Amstie]

thanks

Hi Charlie,

Thank you for clearing that up - very helpful.

So, based on your experience (which I have no clue about), would aspect #4 be difficult to get since we obviously have had a relationship for nearly three years (at that point)? What is that K3 interview(?) like?
1. Brit coming over on Visa Waiver
2. Get married here in USA
3. Return to UK soon after honeymoon (w/in the 90 day visa waiver period)
4. Apply for K3 while selling house in UK

Thanks!!!

I went to the USCIS field office in town and the lady with whom I had an appointment to ask questions was extremely unhelpful. (Surprised?)

When I held up a printout of (one) USCIS webpage with two lines of (that teeny-weeny) text highlighted - she literally closed her eyes and shook her head and said "I don't want to see any documents."
I became silently furious. This lady did not have a clue as to what I was going to ask and that was the first thing she says? Nice.

I explained my situation clearly, concisely and politely. She told me the long way to go about things (ie. have "Brit" wait here in the states for gawd knows how long for his AP to be approved). So I then tried to explain that I wanted to confirm my understanding of these two (teeny-weeny-sized) lines of text that could have changed the answer and sped up the process for us (i.e. have him leave as soon as his NOA was received and come back in on a K3...or something else that we haven't thought of). The lady's response? Get ready for it: . . .
"Ma'am, the USCIS website is sometimes wrong and can have errors on it."



That's right folks, the website that specifically implies that you should be able to find all the info that you need on it (and to NOT BOTHER the humans who work at the USCIS)..."is sometimes wrong..."

So is "the website was wrong" a great defense in court if you were ever in a more serious situation than my fiance and I? Hmmm?

I don't remember the last time I was so angry with "the system" - not just for myself, but for all those who have much much more serious immigration situations.

*sigh* Sorry - just had to rant a bit. I am sure some of you reading this are not surprised. How unfortunate.

I am going to call the US embassy tomorrow and see what they say...otherwise - will speak to a lawyer....

[Amstie]

merci

Hi DF,

Thanks for replying - I know I must seem very difficult or thick on this forum, and I really do appreciate all of the time y'all spend replying to my questions (and rants

Hehe - I am stuck on the K3 - you're right. I am just ignorant of other options - until now!

Since he needs to be in the UK for the next year then just apply for the IR-1 aka (greencard) as soon as you get married. This way when he goes for the interview in the UK he walks out with a greencard instead of a K3. If he walks out with a K3 then he has to apply and go through that interview BS all over again to get a greencard.

So...how exactly can he obtain a greencard while he is in the UK? I am confused as to the timing of things there. Is there a good site you can direct me to if you don't want to have to explain this solution?
Just to reiterate: we will be getting married on March 28th, 2008 (just picked the exact date!)

Many Thanks!
Annie

*Just to clarify - I know that our situation is not "serious" - I don't want anyone to think that I am that naive and self-absorbed. I should have written more clearly; I got so angry about a wrong website in light of people who do have The More Serious situations - who or what can they trust when they need it the most and don't have other resources?*

[klinksk8]

Should she stay behind or try for K3 while wait for i-130?

I have just a slightly different version of Amstie's question...
American citizen (male) lives in Ireland 2+ years, marries Irish girl 2 years ago (July 2005.) Job change to U.S. will start in August 2007. Filed for i-130 in April before we knew about the job change. Still waiting to get first paperwork from Dublin in mail. After I faxed them about why it was taking so long, they called and left a msg on my phone that the packet is "in the mail.") That was over a week ago, and still no packet. I think that will only start stage 2 of the process when we eventually get it.

Question is: How can we not be separated while we wait for her i-130 to process? Should we file a K3? Can she get a visitor visa? Travel document? All of this is soooo confusing to me. I just found out that Dublin doesn't allow InfoPass for informational appointments. I am hoping that someone here can help me understand what route we should take. Thanks so much.

[Amstie]

Helful State Dept Nat'l Visa Center

Klinksk8,

Hi - I would highly recommend speaking with the State Department National Visa Center folks. I spoke to two separate ladies on the phone yesterday, and both of them were helpful and pleasant and the call was free. It was completely different to my USCIS experience.

Call this number: (202) 663-1225
You will hear one guy's voice telling you additional numbers and info. Press 1. You will then hear another man's voice start speaking. If you want to talk to someone and not get hung up on if all lines are busy (as will happen if you follow his instructions), just press 0 (zero) right away. I was on hold for a short time in the early morning (3 mins) and a long time in the afternoon (20 mins). There is no music to listen to - just silence - but don't worry, you're still on the line.

8:30 - 5pm EST M, T, R, F; Wed: morning only
Website: http://www.travel.state.gov/visa/abo.../how_1463.html

I hope they can help you as much as they helped me!
Amstie

[klinksk8]

Does this help number answer consular questions?

Amstie,
THanks for writing back so quickly. I am wondering if this help # will answer questions for me since we filed the i-130 petition with the Dublin Consulate. So far, anytime I have called a help # in the states, I have been told that they only answer questions regarding service centers in the states (I know...it doesn't make sense!) I thought possibly, you have had to go through the London Embassy, and if that is the case, then maybe these people at this help number would actually be able to help me too.

Thanks again.