While there are no restrictions on U.S. citizens marrying non-citizens, there are a few rules regarding how foreign nationals can legally enter the United States to get married to a citizen. If you want to bring your fiancé(e) into the country to tie the knot, you will need to sponsor them for a K-visa as employers and legal permanent residents do for employees and family members.
Pursuing a K-visa can be complicated without help from a knowledgeable immigration attorney, especially if your intended spouse wants to bring their minor children to the U.S. along with them. Once retained, a Oak Brook K-visa lawyer could work tirelessly to ensure your visa application process goes as smooth as possible for you and your loved ones.
As is almost always the case when interacting with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the first step to applying for a K-visa is filing out and filling the correct form. A U.S. citizen who wants to bring their fiancé(e) into the United States for the purposes of marrying them must file Form I-129F, Petition for Alien Fiancé(e), which asks USCIS to acknowledge their relationship with their prospective spouse and certify it as a valid reason for a visa.
Once a petitioner’s Form I-129F is approved, USCIS will send it to the National Visa Center, and then to the appropriate U.S. consulate or embassy in the country from which the petitioner’s spouse intends to emigrate. In most cases, the consulate or embassy will schedule an interview with the prospective K-visa recipient, as well as with any unmarried children under 21 they would like to accompany them to the United States.
If a K-visa is granted, the last step to the process is inspection and approval for admission at a valid U.S. port of entry by a Customs and Border Protection officer. While problems at this stage are generally rare, a Oak Brook K-visa attorney could offer crucial evidence about how to minimize the risk of an application rejection or visa denial at any part of this process.
For the most part, individuals seeking K-visas will need K-1 and K-2 visas to respectively allow themselves and minor children they bring with them to enter the United States.
If a petitioner and their foreign spouse are already married, there is a different type of K-visa that may help expedite the usual family immigration process. After someone has already filed Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, their spouse can seek a K-3 visa that would allow them to reside in the U.S. legally with the spouse in the interim period while their other visa application is being processed.
Similar to the relationship between K-2 and K-1 visas, a K-4 visa would allow a K-3 visa recipient to bring minor children with them when they travel to the United States. A local legal professional familiar with all the types of K-visas could help an individual petitioner determine what kind of visa is best for their situation.
Acquiring a U.S. immigration visa can be complicated under any circumstances, even if you are just seeking to temporarily enter the United States so you can marry a U.S. citizen. If you and your prospective spouse have this goal for yourselves, seeking help from experienced legal counsel may be essential to actually achieving that desire.
A qualified Oak Brook K-visa lawyer could assist you throughout every step of the visa application process and work tirelessly to ensure there are no major snags along the way. To learn more about the help a seasoned attorney could provide in your situation, contact us today.
