Consular Processing
If the intending immigrant is outside the United States, the process of obtaining an immigrant visa is commonly referred to as Consular Processing.
To obtain an immigrant visa at a U.S. consulate in a foreign country, the applicant must have an approved immigration petition for their relative (either from an approved I-130 Petition for an Alien Relative from a family member, or an approved I-140 Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers from an employer) and a visa number must be available.
After the immigrant application has been approved by USCIS, the approved petition is sent to the Department of State National Visa Center (NVC). NVC then communicates with the U.S. consulate in the immigrant’s home country to process the immigrant visa. Once the immigrant visa is issued, the immigrant may be able to enter the United States as a permanent resident.
K-1 Visa
The K-1 fiancé(e) visa is a nonimmigrant visa that is designed for the foreign-born fiancé(e)s of U.S. citizens. It gives those foreign fiancé(e)s the opportunity to come to the U.S. with the intention of marrying their U.S. citizen fiancé(e)s who are petitioning for them.
The K-1 visa permits the foreign-citizen fiancé(e) to travel to the United States and marry his or her U.S. citizen sponsor within 90 days of arrival. The foreign-citizen will then apply for adjustment of status to a permanent resident (LPR) with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Because a fiancé(e) visa permits the holder to immigrate to the U.S. and marry a U.S. citizen shortly after arrival in the United States, the fiancé(e) must meet some of the requirements of an immigrant visa. Eligible children of K-1 visa applicants receive K-2 visas.
If you would like more information about petitioning for a foreign-born family member or employee, please do not hesitate to contact our office today!
