K3 Visa

The U.S. Embassy in Kingston, Jamaica has announced that as of March 24, 2010 all non-immigrant visa applicants must submit their applications online. The Department of State has changed the forms for all non-immigrant visa applications. The new DS-160 form replaces the current DS-156 non-immigrant visa application. The new form is completed online and the information is submitted to the U.S. Embassy electronically. This move to go paperless was made in an effort to improve efficiency, accuracy and security for all visa applicants.

The new form will be available online beginning March 4, 2010 and the paperless system will go into effect on Marcy 24, 2010. After that date, non-immigrant visa applicants must bring a printed DS-160 confirmation sheet, passport, and a visa application fee paid receipt from any National Commercial Bank Jamaica Branch. Please keep in mind that only the visa application process at the U.S. Embassy has changed. All non-immigrant visa applicants will still be required to attend an interview where their qualifications for a visa will be determined.

At the Visa Lawyer Group, our visa lawyers stay current on all the developing changes to U.S. immigration policies. Ensuring a smooth immigration process is our priority. To learn more about our services or to speak to one of our attorneys, please schedule a free consultation with us today.

The Department of States has issued new procedures for adjudication of I-129F at the U.S. Consulates/Embassies around the world. These new procedures apply to K-3 Visa Petitions filed by a U.S. citizen spouse. A K-3 Visa Petition allows the spouse of a U.S. citizen to come to the United States while the I-130 is being processed. In order to qualify for a K-3 Visa, a marriage based immigrant visa petition must first be filed by the U.S. citizen spouse. Once the marriage based visa petition is filed and a receipt notice received the petitioner can file for a K-3 non immigrant visa petition.

Effective February 1, 2010, if the National Visa Center (NVC) receives approvals for both the K-3 non immigrant visa petition and the marriage based immigrant petition at the same time the National Visa Center will administratively close the K-3 visa petition and process the marriage based immigrant visa instead.

If the National Visa Center does not receive both at the same time it will process the K-3 non immigrant visa petition. National Visa Center will send the petition to the Embassy/Consulate in the country where the marriage took place. If the marriage took place in the United States, National Visa Center will send the petition to the embassy/consulate in the country of your nationality.

At the Visa Lawyer Group, our attorneys stay current on all the developing changes to U.S. immigration policies. Ensuring a smooth immigration process is our priority. To learn more about our services or to speak to one of our attorneys, please contact Visa Lawyer Group today.

My Marriage Fell Apart, What is Going to Happen to Me?

Marriage is a union between two individuals. It is a promise made between two people to take care of each other until their dying breath. Marriage works in theory but the reality of the situation is that sometimes what started out as a genuine affection turns into something else. The truth is that sometimes marriages just don’t work out. In normal circumstances when a marriage falls apart, the couples file for divorce and go their separate ways. But what happens if one of the spouses is a conditional green card holder? This area of immigration law is very complex and shaped by case law on a regular basis which is why an immigration or visa lawyer may be necessary.

Ideally, if you received a green card through marriage to a United States Citizen and the marriage was less than two years old at the time of filing then certain conditions will apply. First of all, the foreign national applicant will only receive a two year conditional green card at the end of which the green card would expire. This condition was created to weed out marriage fraud. The theory behind it was that if your marriage is genuine it will last for the entire two years and if it was not the marriage would fail. Secondly, any foreign national who holds a conditional green card is required to file a joint petition to remove the conditions within 90 days of the two year marriage anniversary. If the couple is together, the joint application is submitted along with supporting documentation and it is normally approved based solely on the submitted paperwork.

Although many couples file joint petitions, sometimes the marriages that were genuine at first fall apart within two years. U.S. immigration policy makers understand that sometimes thing happen and have allowed foreign nationals file for removal of conditions on their own. The immigration system has adjudicated and approved many cases where the marriages were entered into in good faith but due to some circumstances they did not last. If a joint petition is not possible due to death, divorce or separation, the foreign national can file for a waiver of the requirement to file a joint petition to remove conditions. The foreign national has to prove that although the marriage was entered into in good faith it has now ended. Timing is very important when it comes to removal of condition cases. When you file is just as important as what you file.

Foreign nationals who will need to file a waiver of the joint petition requirement should speak to an experienced U.S. visa lawyer. A qualified immigration attorney will sit down with you and discuss all of your options. Misunderstanding the timing and procedures involved can lead to the denial of your application and the initiation of removal proceedings against you. Please remember that policy and case law in this area of immigration law is constantly changing so having an attorney in your corner can be very helpful.

Visa Lawyer Group provides individuals with expertise in immigration and visa laws. Our immigration and U.S. visa lawyers will help you process your I-751 Removal of Conditions so that you can stay in the U.S. even if your marriage did not work out. You can contact us at (845)-353-3500 or info@visalawyergroup.com. You can also schedule a free consulation or chat online with one of our lawyers by clicking on the chat button in the corner of the screen. Visa Lawyer Group has offices in New York so please visit our immigration and visa lawyers in our Nyack, New York and Manhattan, New York City offices.

What is a marriage visa? What is a K-3 Spousal visa? Is there a difference?

Simply enough, a marriage visa is an immigrant visa that allows the spouse of a U.S. citizen to enter the United States to live here on a permanent basis. It is also wildly popular as an I-130 and IR-1 but at the end of the day, they all mean the same thing. The process starts here in America with the U.S. citizen spouse; he/she has to file a petition with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. A marriage visa can be processed in one of two ways; if the foreign national spouse is in the United States on a valid visa, then the marriage visa petition can be filed concurrently with an application to adjust status. If the foreign national spouse is outside of the United States, the marriage visa petition is filed alone and the adjustment process is done overseas in what is called consular processing. Either way, the process can take anywhere from six to nine months. There have been instances in the past where the processing of the I-130 would take more than five months. This delay in processing affected those couples who were proceeding with consular processing. Therefore, Congress introduced and put to use the K-3 visa category. A K-3 visa is a non-immigrant visa category allowing foreign national spouses’ who already had a marriage visa petition filed on their behalf to travel to America and wait of the processing here. This category was introduced for the sole purpose of bringing married couples close together. It is not an alternative to filing a marriage visa petition. In fact, an applicant cannot qualify for a K-3 spousal visa unless an I-130 marriage visa petition has been filed first. The spouse can enter America on a K-3 and remain here until the I-130 is finished processing. Once the I-130 is approved, the spouse then has to file for an adjustment of status. It used to be that K-3 visas were processed faster than I-130 and therefore were more preferable. But now, the processing time for both types of visa is approximately the same time making the K-3 obsolete. It is cost prohibitive to file for both an I-130 and K-3 especially when they are both taking the same amount of time to be approved. If an I-130 is approved before a K-3, the U.S. Consulate will not go forward with the K-3 and will continue on to process the marriage visa.