The K1 Fiancé(e) VISA- Part 2

Hello Everyone! Before starting this blog’s topic, I wanted to remind you all that you can visit and follow my pinterest account for more information regarding the VISA process!

My last entry went over the initial steps and paperwork needed to apply for the Fiancé(e) VISA. I recommend reading that post before reading this post. Today’s blog will focus on the necessary steps to take AFTER submitting the Petition for the Alien Fiancé(e):

1) Wait. Yes, you heard that right: wait. What will you be waiting for and how long will you be waiting? You will be waiting for various documents that I have listed below. The waiting time however varies for every case. It took 8 days from the day that I sent the Petition for the Alien Fiancé(e) to the day that I received the first notification from USCIS. After this, it took approximately 2 months to receive the approval notice of my petition (I have been told that this is faster than the average time it takes).

Documents you can expect to receive after submitting the first round of paperwork:

1. Receipt from USCIS for the Petition for the Alien Fiancé(e).
2. Approval Notice from USCIS for the Petition for the Alien Fiancé(e).
3. Retrieval notice from the National Visa Center (NVC) (this is just a fancy way of saying that the NVC received your approved petition from USCIS and will now be forwarding it to the U.S. embassy in your Alien Fiancé(e)’s country).
4. An email from the U.S. embassy with an instruction packet on further documents needed before an interview can be scheduled.

2) Follow the application instructions in the packet that the U.S. embassy (in my case, the one in Buenos Aires since my Fiance is from Argentina). This instruction packet lists further documents and information that you and your fiancé(e) will need to provide to the U.S. embassy before they can schedule an interview for your fiancé(e). Here is a list of the documents that you need to submit:

Note: this list may not be correct for all countries and may change depending on the year that you are filing the petition.

1. DS-160: non-immigrant VISA application online.
2. Photographs: 2 identical recent photographs 2x2 inches (5x5 centimeters), front view, light white/ off-white background, on glossy paper, unretouched, and unmounted.
3. Valid Passport and 1 copy of the biographic page.
4. Previous Passports.
5. Birth entry/certificate issued by the Civil Registry.
6. Marriage entry issued by the Civil Registry (this is only if your fiancé(e) has been married before).
7. Death certificate of a spouse (of petitioner and/ or applicant) issued by the Civil Registry (once again, this is only if a previous spouse of the U.S. citizen or foreigner has died).
8. Divorce Decree of Petitioner and applicant (only if you or your significant other have gotten a divorce with someone).
9. Military Record: A certified copy of any military record, if applicable, is required.
10. Police Certificate: Each visa applicant aged 16 years or over is required to submit a police certificate from the police authorities of each locality in which the applicant has lived.

11. Court and Prison Records: Persons who have been convicted of a crime must get a certified copy of each court record and any prison or criminal record.
12. Physical Examination: This must be done with one of the Certified doctors in the country, which will be listed when you receive the instruction packet.
13. Evidence of Support: The US Citizen will have to complete form I-134. If the petitioner does not qualify as a sponsor, a Joint-Sponsor should ALSO be presented (any US Citizen living in the US or Legal Permanent Resident), who will also have to complete form I-134. This form is required to show that the US citizen or a Joint-Sponsor makes enough money to support their future spouse while in the U.S.
14. Evidence of Relationship: They prefer to see photos of you and your partner throughout your relationship. Receipts of money sent from the U.S. citizen to the foreigner is also good proof of relationship, as well as cards and letters with the original post marked envelopes, and phone records.
15. Fee (yes, MORE money): The current K1 visa fee for 2016 is 265 USD for each applicant.
16. Translations: All documents not in English or Spanish (Spanish is the second language for my situation because my Fiance is from Argentina) must be accompanied by a certified English translation.
17. Legalizations: Any document issued by the Civil Register in the foreigner's country (Birth, Marriage, and Death Entries) must be legalized by the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Argentina located at: Calle 25 de Mayo 179, Capital Federal (once again, this information is specific to Argentina. It will vary for each country).

3) Wait for an email from the U.S. embassy telling you the official interview date for the foreign fiancé(e).

Note: You must mail a COPY of each of these documents to the embassy, and bring the ORIGINAL copies to the interview.

A lot of this information is pretty easy to come by (ie. passport photos) and others are more difficult (ie. I-134). In following posts I will explain how to complete or obtain some of the more difficult items on the list. For now, feel free to ask any questions that you may have!