Abe's INS Fiancée Visa Help Site

The New K3 Visas

The K3 visa is a simpler and faster way to obtain a visa for foreign wives and husbands of United States citizens immigrating to the U.S. Previously, it took three to four times as long to obtain a “fiancée” or K1 visa for marriage inside the U.S. than it was to obtain a Marriage or Spousal Visa for a wife or husband of a U.S. citizen. The K3 visa significantly shortens the waiting period for a marriage visa for international marriages.

Paperwork
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, USCIS (formerly the Immigration and Naturalization Service) and the U.S. State Department both believe that roughly half of the international marriages of Americans to foreigners are sham marriages. The departments carefully scrutinize every international visa application and reject filings for any reason they deem legitimate, including minor procedural errors. Depending on where your spouse is located in the world, the time it takes to obtain a K3 visa for a foreign spouse will vary. The amount of paperwork involved in filing for a K3 visa is almost double the amount required for a K1 visa. Any mistakes or omissions in the K3 visa form will delay its approval.

Requirements to qualify for the K3 visa

Be the foreign national spouse of a U.S. citizen (residents cannot receive the K3 visa)
Reside outside the United States
Seek to enter the United States and await the availability of an immigrant visa
The U.S. citizen spouse must have filed a petition for alien relative which must be pending

Children
The foreign spouse's unmarried children under the age of 21 can be included in the parent's petition and receive K4 visas with the same privileges as the parent's K3 visa. If a child is 18 years of age or older at the time of marriage, the child can receive a K4 visa and enter the U.S., but cannot obtain a green card and become a U.S. immigrant. The child's K4 visa will expire after two years or when the child reaches the age of 21, whichever occurs first.

Benefits of the K3 visa

A shorter waiting period than marriage-based immigration visa petitions
You can reside in the U.S. with your family while waiting for the approval of your immigrant visa petition
Children can accompany a parent to the U.S. on the K4 dependent visa as long as they are named in the visa petition
You can apply for a work permit
You can study in the U.S
You can travel outside of the U.S. on short trips and re-enter

Limitations of the K3 visa

Children who are married or over the age of 21 cannot receive the K4 visa
If the marriage took place while the spouse was in the U.S. on another type of temporary visa or visa waiver, the spouse must leave the U.S. to be eligible to receive a K3 visa
You cannot change to any other non-immigrant status
You cannot enter the U.S. if you have been temporarily barred for previous violation of the U.S. immigration laws

The new K3 visa works much like the K1 fiancée visa with a few changes. The K3 visa is a nonimmigrant visa that allows spouses of United States citizens to enter the U.S. while they await their immigrant visas. The K3 visa is valid for two years with multiple entries. Because the procedure can prove to be complex and shrouded in paperwork, applicants can opt to seek legal advice before filing for any type of visa. Becoming a citizen of another country is an important and difficult decision for many immigrants. It must be taken seriously and treated with attention.

About the Author:
Abe Rothstein is the content manager for Abe's INS Fiancée Visa Help Site. He offers immigration solutions to help you get into the country legally. Visit his site for a full detailed walkthough of the fiancée visa process.

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