K1 Fiance(e) Visa

The Department of State, in an effort to raise revenues and dig itself out of an economic hole, has decided to raise fees for many nonimmigrant visa applications. The actual purpose of a fee hike is to bolster administrative processing and to cover the high costs for certain processes that require in-depth consideration. But at the end of the day, it is still a hike in fees. All visa applications that are not petition based (B1/B2 for example) will see an increase of $9.00, raising the non immigrant visa application fee to $140.00. Fees for all petition based applications will be $150.00. The biggest fee increase is in the area of treaty (E) and fiancé (K) visas, which will be going up from $131.00 to $390.00 and $350.00 respectively. The proposed increases are just that proposals, the new fee schedule won’t come into effect for a while but make sure to contact your local U.S. embassy or your qualified attorney before filing any visa application. Submitting an application without the proper fee is basis for an outright rejection which will cause a delay in getting that interview and visa stamp.

It is very important that before you begin the K1 fiance visa process that you are familiarize yourself with all of the fiance visa requirements. The most important one being that one of you has to be a United States Citizen. The fiance visa category does not apply to individuals in the U.S. on a non-immigrant visa or a green card. As for the other requirements, both you and your fiance must be free to marry. This means that any and all prior marriages must be legally terminated. The K1 fiance visa process is generally a two step process. The first step includes filing a petition with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security [USCIS]. USCIS conducts the initial fiance visa processing. The second step of the fiance visa process includes an interview. Your fiance will have to attend a visa interview at the local U.S. embassy having jurisdiction over her place of residence. Fiance visa processing is delicate and involves several federal agencies, therefore it is important that you do your research, meet the K1 fiance visa requirements and complete the fiance visa process carefully.
 

Detailed information on K1 Fiance Visas found here.