Applying for K1 visa after F1 rejection

[DcarroWyo]

Hello everyone,

My boyfriend just applied for an F1 visa to study in the US and was denied. We have known each other for over a year and a half, as I spent several years working overseas in his home city and just moved back to the US in October of 2018. We already know that we would like to get engaged, and I would like to sponsor him for a K1 visa. My question is, will his recent F1 denial be a problem when I'm sponsoring him for the K1 visa? I should also add that I was listed as his sponsor on the DS 160 form for the rejected F1 visa application. He had all of my financial supporting documents with him at the appointment, but the consular officer did not ask to look at them.

My boyfriend does fully intend to come study here in the US, and we also want to get married, so we could have chosen either the F1 or K1 visa route. However, we felt that the F1 visa would be the easier route to begin with, since it would allow him to start school earlier. Thanks for your help and advice.

[newacct]

His F1 was likely denied for immigrant intent (INA 214(b)); if so, it shouldn't affect his getting a K1 visa.

[Totellthetruth]

Hello everyone,

My boyfriend just applied for an F1 visa to study in the US and was denied. We have known each other for over a year and a half, as I spent several years working overseas in his home city and just moved back to the US in October of 2018. We already know that we would like to get engaged, and I would like to sponsor him for a K1 visa. My question is, will his recent F1 denial be a problem when I'm sponsoring him for the K1 visa? I should also add that I was listed as his sponsor on the DS 160 form for the rejected F1 visa application. He had all of my financial supporting documents with him at the appointment, but the consular officer did not ask to look at them.

My boyfriend does fully intend to come study here in the US, and we also want to get married, so we could have chosen either the F1 or K1 visa route. However, we felt that the F1 visa would be the easier route to begin with, since it would allow him to start school earlier. Thanks for your help and advice.

Hi

As newacct said F-1 denial would not affect a K-1 visa process but it sure would be in records and that was the actual reason his F-1 visa was denial because you
by sponsoring him have shown that you would actually make him an intended immigrant , otherwise a normal F-1 student did not need a sponsor but an I -120 from a school and they are the sponsor.
For you to say F-1 would be easier route to begin with is actually not correct .maybe you were not sure of marrying him or for some other reasons you probaby tried to gain time by letting him to apply for a F-1 visa and than decide. even if he fully intent to come to study to u,s than why would he even go thru such F-1 hussle while you can just do a proper K-1 application process and get over with it ? That way he can come to u,s as an immigrant and do his schooling you described it as fully intention of studying and doesn't even have to pay as F-1 requires .
so its always good to fly straight and not mess up with USCIS . one must remember that they are in charge of all these stuff and they would know what you are thinking and planning even before you start to plan ....

Good luck

[DcarroWyo]

For you to say F-1 would be easier route to begin with is actually not correct .maybe you were not sure of marrying him or for some other reasons you probaby tried to gain time by letting him to apply for a F-1 visa and than decide. even if he fully intent to come to study to u,s than why would he even go thru such F-1 hussle while you can just do a proper K-1 application process and get over with it ? That way he can come to u,s as an immigrant and do his schooling you described it as fully intention of studying and doesn't even have to pay as F-1 requires .

Yes, you are right - we do want to get married sooner or later, but we wanted to gain more time if possible. That is why we were thinking of the F1/student visa first. The reason he needed a sponsor for the F1 visa is because he does not have the necessary funds to pay for tuition and other expenses himself. In such cases, the school requires the student to have a sponsor who signs an affidavit of support and provides a bank statement to prove that they have the necessary funds to cover all expenses.

So in conclusion, if I decide to sponsor him for a K-1 visa, the F-1 visa will definitely be on file with USCIS and they will see the previous F-1 refusal, but in general this should not affect the K-1 application process as long as we can prove a bona fide relationship and meet the other qualifications?

Thanks again.

[Zack Westenhoefer]

Hi DcarroWyo,

From what you wrote, it seems that you are correct. I always tell our clients to hide nothing from a USCIS officer in interviews. Really there's nothing worse a person can do in an interview than try to hide the truth.

The officer at the student visa interview may have suspected that your boyfriend had an intent different from that of a student visa, hence the denial. But for a fiance visa interview, the USCIS officer would issue a denial most likely because of a belief that the relationship is not real.

However, please note that the fiance visa application process is much, much more difficult than the F-1 visa application process. If you go that route, you should seriously consider getting the help of an immigration attorney with experience in that process (like me! :-) ). Best wishes either way, though.

Take care,

Zack