Where do I start?

[VicEstrella]

I would like to marry a guy I met from Mexico. I dont know if we should marry first and then file forms, or if we should wait and do a fiance application. I have no idea what steps need to be taken or where they need to take place. -HELP

[angeladawn]

I'm with you!

I'm kind of having the same problem as you. I am currently in Italy, but I am coming back to the US at the end of July. I am bringing my Belgian fiancè back with me, and I've realized that it's much more complicated than I thought. I found out at the embassy today that the best thing to do was fill out a I-129F form and wait for the approval and then get married in the United States, the only problem is we already have our flight booked for the end of July. If we apply for this and the answer doesn't come back before we leave, he won't be let in. If we don't apply, and he comes in on a turist visa, and we get married, he won't be able to leave the US for 2 years. I think we will go ahead and try for the I-129F, according to this site it should take 3-4 months, and I'll keep my fingers crossed. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

[kewtbubbles]

i am in the process of waiting for packet #3 to reach my fiance.
well first of all, you will have to fill out a form i-129f
and another form called biographical information
all these forms you will be able to find on the website.
www.immihelp.com

i suggest you to check out sites from people with personal experiences or check the uscis site.
the first couple of documents are straight forward.
it asks your name address date of birth and such.
you will have to send in pictures of you and your fiance though to prove the validity of your relationship
and other such documents like your proof of citizenship.
this is only the first step.
i hope this helped.

[lemmuhj]

same problems

Hey everyone! My fiancee is here with me in the U.S. I've talked to two different lawyers who both said to go ahead and get married, and then "go see them." They quoted me around 1500-2000. She DOES have a visa, and is here on a 6 month visit. Now the lawyers did say to NOT get married right away. Wait until closer to the end of the visit. I'm just as confused as the rest of you, and am really considering to just pay an attorney for peace of mind.

[guapa]

Application

Hi to all,
Well, I was just browsing through this forum and know I have to reply to some of all your concerns. I am German and came to the states in May 2004. With a normal 90 day tourist visa. All you worries and concers sound so familiar to me.
Me and my husband also contacted a lawyer before coming here. In addition I talked to the American embassy in Frankfurt. And like you all I(we) got a lot of information. A lot of different information. I have to agree with many of you who find it very confusing.
My experience so far (i got my SSN and i am still waiting for my green card) is as follows: The law says that you are not allowed to get married, work or even look for a job while you are on a tourist visa in the country. You have to apply for the so-called fiancé visa. Negative about this visa is that you are not allowed to enter the states while the application is in progress. And this process can take very long. They say it takes about 3-4 month but it takes way longer. Once it is approved you can come to the states and have to get married within 2 or 3 month (I am not sure if 2 or 3 month). So,I started doing it and then our layer (in NYC) said that I could dare to come to the states and after 60 days we could get married and apply for the greencard here. He said that in 60 days a lot can happen and life can change drastically, so if you then choose to get married nobody could accuse you of coming to the states under false pretences. And that is what we did. I came here and after 60 days we got married. Unfortunately our lawyer didn't really do his job. So we decided to "fire" him and do it all by ourselves. We got all the applications needed for the Immigration. A whole bunch of applications. (you you can also download them form the uscis webpage). Before you send the application (I-129, I-130, I-131 and so on) there are a lot of things to be done and many documents to gather and to copy. To cut a long story short I was already 10 month in the USA until we finally had everything together and could submit the paperwork. After about 4 weeks I got a letter form the uscis that I have to make an appointment to give my fingerprints. Once that was done it took about 3 weeks and I got my authorization to work. But my greencard is still in progress. And according to the uscis webpage it can take up to 2 years till you get a notice. They are very behind.
The difficult in my opinion is that you get a lot of different information. Even at the same authority. You just have to work through it.
Someone posted something about leaving the states without approval. And yes, the law says you cannot do that and that a reentry might be denied. My girlfriend (also German) left the states for 3 month shortly after sending the applications to the immigration. She left without any travel document. When she came back nobody even asked her a question. No problems at all. But that is no guarantee. I figure that it always depents on the officer you have to deal with. And that goes for many things here. But to be on the safe site I would recommend to do it as you have to.
Ok, so far from me. Have a nice day you all
guapa

[guapa]

re.Applications

Sorry, I forgot: I wouldn't recommend to hire a lawyer. You still have to gather and copy all documents required and have doctors examinations. The lawyer just fills out the applications for you which you than have to review anyway. And most of the time you find mistakes and it has to be corrected. So, you have to pay a lot of money for things you can do by yourself. (I figure that everybody is capabile to put the documents in an envelope and mail them) If you have any questions- the uscis has a toll free hotline you can call and ask every question. Ok, you have to make you way through a computer anouncment but once you have a representative on the line they`ll answer every question. So, again my advice save your money and do it yourself.

[immihelp]

read https://www.immihelp.com/usa-visas/kvisa/index.html