Things have changed for immigrants applying for any kind of visa at U.S. Embassies and Consulates overseas. In some regions, the global conditions for applying for U.S. visas have improved, while it has worsened in some.
The marriage or fiancé visa for foreign-citizen fiancés of a U.S. citizen allows the former to travel to the US to marry the latter. The U.S. citizen sponsors their alien spouse for the trip and the marriage must take place within ninety days of arrival.
The alien fiancé is expected to file the required form-129F with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services with the marriage certificate as evidence. However, filing the form is only the first step; there are several other steps before the visa is granted, including the provision of sensitive information.
Can You Expedite a Spouse Visa?
You can tender a request to expedite your spouse visa interview at a U.S. embassy on several grounds. The National Visa Center has been able to directly communicate with applicants and react to their meritorious expedite requests.
To expedite your spouse’s visa, you can file a written request to the Visa Center directly through their email (NVCexpedite@state.gov). This communication channel is the NVC’s public inquiry section where applicants can speak with a representative who can assist them.
The agent will decide if the applicant, based on the scanned letter submitted, qualifies for accelerated processing or not. If they do, the agent will require the applicant to provide more supporting documents as evidence to confirm their eligibility and the relative’s category they fall into. When all of these are confirmed, they will be asked to pay the required fees to commence and facilitate the processing time.
Which Is Faster, a Fiancé or Marriage Visa?
The fiancé visa (K-1) is significantly the faster option if you want to get to the U.S. quickly. The K-1 visa is the faster option of the two, although that also depends on your purpose for visiting the U.S.
For instance, if you intend to get a green card as fast as possible, then the marriage-based green card is faster. The time it takes to get fiancé and marriage visas approved has slowed significantly in recent years as the department that controls availability appears to be overwhelmed.
As soon as you enter the U.S. and get married (within 90 days), you’ll need to start the adjustment of status process. It can take up to 18 months or more to adjust your status, and you should get an employment authorization while waiting.
Work permits often come after an expired visa – that is, after your immigrant visa expired. That means, even if you enter the U.S. quickly with your fiancé visa, you’ll still wait a long while to get a green card.
How Long Does It Take for a Fiancé Visa to Be Approved 2021?
You only had to wait between seven to nine months to get the first step in fiancé visa processing done. However, it depends on the service center handling your case as they do it on a case-by-case basis.
Before now, it took more months to transfer it to the NVC and more until the embassy scheduled a consular interview. While you can’t count on the number, you’d typically only have to wait twenty-four months to get the fiancé visa in 2021.
Can You Get Married While Waiting for a Fiancé Visa?
If you get married while your fiancé visa is still pending, the case is immediately ended. Then, you’d have to re-file and start all over; you’ll file the form I-130 instead of an I-129F.
In some cases, the bride’s parents will be against their daughter traveling to the U.S. without getting married first. This will ruin the fiancé case if already filed, so don’t get married while you wait for your fiancé visa.
How to Make an Expedite Request?
If you feel you’re eligible for expedited processing, you can directly contact the National Visa Center (NVC) public inquiry for the immigrant visa unit, the office of the consular officer, or reach out to the Department of Homeland Security for information on the subject line.
The major advantage with establishing contact first is to get all the information you need about an expedite request and what happens after there is a receipt notice. There, you will speak to an agent who will request proof that you’re indeed qualified for the NVC expedite request. This agent can be someone who works with the embassy or consulate overseas.
We recommend not sending meritless inquiries into several things like the birth beneficiary’s name and other details of their family members or you’ll only get a generic email informing you that your immigrant visa will not be expedited. Also, the best place to find out certain information will be to contact the immigrant spouse or her home country, where necessary.
If the person who seeks the NVC expedite processing falls within the family member’s visa category, the USCIS contact center is the best place to visit on information relating to adjustment of status and the possible priority date.
You may want to reach out to an experienced immigration attorney who will carefully evaluate and assist your expedited request by reviewing your civil documents and ensuring everything follows the Nationality Act. With the assistance of experienced lawyers, your expedite request for an immigrant visa processing time can be properly scrutinized.
How Long to Process K1 Fiancé Visa in 2022?
The processing times for K1 or immediate relative visa in 2022 have extended to ten month from 2021’s six months. After the ten months, an additional four to six weeks is added for the USCIS to send an interview request.
You’ll be invited to attend an interview at the U.S. embassy or consulate nearest to you. Prepare for a year of paperwork at least to get approved and cleared from the system if you’re sponsoring a foreign fiancé into the U.S.
Which Expedite Requests Have Higher Approval Rates at the National Visa Center?
Expedite requests that demonstrate extreme hardship to the U.S. citizen record higher success rates than others. For example, if a green card holder or citizen spouse suffers from severe psychological and medical conditions and is receiving treatment at a medical facility, an expedite request can be made for the foreign spouse to come and take care of such a person.
Agents would typically focus on the potentially life-threatening circumstances such individuals face and how the absence of their spouse will aggravate the condition. Another instance where an NVC expedited request can be granted is where the U.S. citizen is an essential worker and has a disabled child.
Marriage-Based or Fiancé Immigrant Visa: Which One Is Better?
A marriage visa is relatively more affordable to apply for, so if finance is a challenge, the marriage-based visa is better. The required fee for a K1 (fiancé) visa is $2,025, which includes the appropriate fees for different stages of the immigration process.
That includes $535 to file Form I-129F with the USCIS, $265 to apply for a fiancé (K1) visa at the consular office, and $1,225 for Form I-485. On the other hand, the filing fee for the entire marriage visa is $1,200.
Does Having Children Affect How You Choose a Visa?
When deciding what your right visa option is, you might want to consider your children if there are any. Factors that may affect your decision include your children’s age and how old they are when you get married.
If you apply for the fiancé visa, the USCIS will issue a family member visa category for your child. For a marriage visa, it depends on whether your spouse is a U.S. citizen or a lawful permanent resident.
On What Grounds Can You Expedite Your Marriage or Fiancé Visa?
You can make an expedite request on medical examination, mental or psychological, pregnancy grounds, or based on your child aging out. For instance, you can expedite your visa if you’re suffering from a severe medical condition and there’s no one to care for you.
Additionally, you can tender an NVC expedite request for your family visa interview if your child is about to reach the age of 21.
Can Your U.S. Representative Speed Up the Expedited Processing Time of Your Visa?
Your congressional representative can reach out to federal agencies on your behalf to determine the cause of the delay with your visa. While they cannot solve anything immigration-related or reverse the government’s decisions, they can help highlight red-tape issues and expedited processing delays.
Can a USCIS Office Contact a Federal Agency without Your Permission?
Unless you sign a privacy waiver, your congressional representative or USCIS office cannot contact any government agency; you have to permit it.
There are different privacy waiver forms, but most include the following information:
- The type of visa you applied for, when and where you applied, and other important details about your case.
- Your full name, address, date of birth, and a police certificate, where applicable. Birth certificates will be needed to prove date of birth.
- Relevant case numbers like your A-number where applicable, birth invoice ID number, and your 13-digit USCIS case receipt number.
- The issue description like health status and medical facility’s state and what you’ve done or attempted to do to resolve it.
Conclusion
There are several instances where you can make an expedite request for a marriage visa application interview, including in a death medical emergency, especially when you can submit proof. If a death medical emergency exists, it puts you at an advantage – especially if there’s a credible attorney-client relationship to review your application forms.
Contact Herman Legal Group!
With several years of experience handling immigration matters, Herman Legal Group is the best law firm to contact for your expedite requests if you want to adjust status. You can schedule a consultation today by calling +1-216-696-6170, and it can be done in the office or virtually using Skype, Zoom, Google Meet, or Facetime. Alternatively, you can schedule a consultation with Richard Herman on expedited requests by booking online.
