Love knows no bounds, sometimes not even geographic ones. Some New Jersey residents will fall in love with a person who is a citizen of another country and will want their foreign-citizen fiancé to come to the U.S. to marry. However, in order to do so, the foreign-citizen fiancé will need to obtain the appropriate visa.
A K-1 visa allows a fiancé from another country to come to the U.S. in order to marry their U.S. citizen fiancé. The marriage must take place within 90 days of the foreign-citizen fiance’s arrival to the country. Following that, the foreign citizen will be permitted to seek an adjustment of status to become a lawful permanent resident of the U.S.
In order to obtain a K-1 visa, both the foreign-citizen fiancé and the U.S. citizen fiancé must be able to lawfully marry. Generally, both parties to the marriage must have met in person within the past 24 months in order to obtain a K-1 visa. If the foreign-citizen fiancé has children that they also want to reside in the U.S., they can apply for a K-2 visa for those children.
A person’s wedding day can be the happiest day of their life. However, if your fiancé lives in another country, part of wedding planning will include obtaining a K-1 visa. It is important that both parties to the marriage understand the requirements of a K-1 visa, to avoid unnecessary delays. This post is for informational purposes only and does not contain legal advice. Immigration law attorneys in New Jersey can provide more information to those who want to learn more about obtaining a K-1 visa.