What about finding "Visa Friendly Countries"

[keelec]

One thing I have noticed in my reading lately is that one is REQUIRED to apply for a K3 visa in the country that a marriage takes place.

 

What about trying to find "Visa Friendly" countries for marriage? Make sure that one can get 2 visas to the country (one for the wedding, and 1 for the interview).

 

In a sense, that could become a HUGE tourist rap (assuming that the US Consulate in that country worked with the foreign weddings).

 

I think I was reading earlier posts that suggested getting married in Thailand (or perhaps Vietnam), or Hong Kong.... Or just about any place EXCEPT China, Russia, or Ukraine.

 

It certainly would be worth 2 plane tickets to Canada if one could get a visa for the Fiancee, get married in Canada, let her go back home for a mere 6 months (or even stay in Canada if possible), then have her come back for the interview and entry into the USA.

 

Looking at K1K3.com..... South Africa may have held the record for the quickest visa turnover.

 

Of course, the big issue is that Canada probably would not let her into the country as merely a US Citizen Fiancee.

 

Of course, an option would be to apply for a student visa in Canada (which might be easier than getting one in the USA). If there is a question about wanting to immigrate to Canada.... Nope, engaged to a US Citizen Then, there would be no change of status or anything from a Student to a spouse.

 

Of course, there would be virtually no benefit of starting something that would take 6 months to implement.

 

Anyway, just an idea.

 

----- Clifford -------

[frank1538]

Clifford, you are referring to what is called Direct Consular Filing or DCF. There are a limited number of consulates and embassies that will accept DCF for a marriage between two nonresidents of the consular district. Under DCF, you bypass the K-3 completely and file the I-130 directly with the embassy/consulate. The turnaround can be as short as two weeks.

 

Finding the right embassy or consulate is the diffiecult task. You have to find a country that will allow a marriage between nonresidents without the need for a lengthy residency period. Then, that country must be an easy country for your fiancee to visit. Then, the embassy or consulate in that country must allow DCF for nonresidents of the consular district. Matching these three things for a Chinese resident is nearly impossible. Maybe a Russian fiancee would fare better.

 

I remember when the TSC all but came to a halt in processing the K-1 petitions. A number of couples, mostly US/European, opted to go DCF in places like Gibraltar, bypassing the K-1/K-3 process, and filing the I-130 directly with the embassy/consulate. Most were successful. I do not believe Canada offers DCF, but there are some websites out there that can give you this information. One site I visited said that Malaysia offered DCF, and the marriage laws of that country had a very short residency period for nonresidents (maybe a week). And, Jingwen could have gotten a group tourist visa to visit the country. When I contacted the embassy to confirm all of this, they said NFW.