Opening Doors

To Your Immigration Dreams

30 years of experience

Understanding fiancé visas

There are many people in Florida who have obtained U.S. citizenship through a fiancé visa, known as a K-1 nonimmigrant visa. If you are a U.S. citizen with a foreign fiancé, you can file Form I-129F, Petition For Alien Fiancé, in order to bring your future spouse into the country.

What is required for a fiancé visa?

Only couples that plan to have a valid marriage in the U.S. can obtain a fiancé visa. In other words, immigration officials will scrutinize your application to determine whether you actually plan to marry. Your intent to marry must be for the purpose of establishing a life with your spouse, not just to secure immigration benefits for them.

Marriage must take place within 90 days

After you have secured a fiancé visa for your significant other, you will have to get married within 90 days of your fiancé entering the country. Once you have been married, your new spouse can apply to become a legal permanent resident of the US.

Other eligibility requirements

There are a couple of other eligibility requirements that are important to keep in mind. The first is that both you and your fiancé must be legally allowed to marry in the U.S. If either of you has previous marriages, the marriages must have been legally terminated prior to applying for the K-1 visa.

The next requirement is that you must have met your fiancé in person at least one time in the last two years. This is not a strict requirement, however, and you may be able to qualify for a waiver. An exception to this requirement may be granted if meeting your fiancé would violate your religious beliefs or result in an extreme hardship to you.

Every immigration case is different

There are often unique circumstances in an immigration petition that complicate the application process. For example, your spouse may have children that need to come into the U.S. with them. To help your petition go smoothly, you may want to seek help with the application process.