Got married and now need help with adjusting K1 status

[Solomente]

Petitioned for a K1 Visa for my fiance and her 5 yr old son to come to the USA. All went real smooth and sweet till NOW!

Just got married to her on Saturday 2/16/08. The wedding and ceremony was GREAT...made all worth while waiting for. After the ceremony we together sighed and said thank God we made it! Thinking now we can really enjoy our life without worrying about Consulate and immigration problems and papers. Wow was I wrong.

What do I do now? I was reading the posts and got dizzy...I-485s I-485's part A through Z ... supplement D 2008 ... I 865s .... I 94s Pay this pay that .... Look to the left not to the right...do it only on Wednesday's .... file only if child is this and that... This is like the game plan for the superbowl. OMG this appears to be harder than the first part.

In a nut shell (if that's possible) :

Petitioned for a K1 Fiance Visa for my SO and her son. (All paperwork was prepared along with avidavit of support.

Dec. 18th - Interviewed and granted permission for fiance and her son to come to USA.

Dec 28th - Fiance and son arrived in USA...90 Day Clock is ticking

Feb 8th received Marriage License

Feb 16th got married.

Feb 18th Lost in the weeds...What do I do next.

Do I need to send anyone the marriage certificate...do I need to pay MORE money...My wifes son is listed as a k2 visa...no A# ... do I need to file another avidavit of support form...what do I do about registering them with social security?

I tired reading all the forms and posts and honestly ... I am lost.

Sorry to whine but we just want to get this right without errors.

Please help!

Thanks Solomente

 

[mike l]

Petitioned for a K1 Visa for my fiance and her 5 yr old son to come to the USA. All went real smooth and sweet till NOW!

Just got married to her on Saturday 2/16/08. The wedding and ceremony was GREAT...made all worth while waiting for. After the ceremony we together sighed and said thank God we made it! Thinking now we can really enjoy our life without worrying about Consulate and immigration problems and papers. Wow was I wrong.

What do I do now? I was reading the posts and got dizzy...I-485s I-485's part A through Z ... supplement D 2008 ... I 865s .... I 94s Pay this pay that .... Look to the left not to the right...do it only on Wednesday's .... file only if child is this and that... This is like the game plan for the superbowl. OMG this appears to be harder than the first part.

In a nut shell (if that's possible) :

Petitioned for a K1 Fiance Visa for my SO and her son. (All paperwork was prepared along with avidavit of support.

Dec. 18th - Interviewed and granted permission for fiance and her son to come to USA.

Dec 28th - Fiance and son arrived in USA...90 Day Clock is ticking

Feb 8th received Marriage License

Feb 16th got married.

Feb 18th Lost in the weeds...What do I do next.

Do I need to send anyone the marriage certificate...do I need to pay MORE money...My wifes son is listed as a k2 visa...no A# ... do I need to file another avidavit of support form...what do I do about registering them with social security?

I tired reading all the forms and posts and honestly ... I am lost.

Sorry to whine but we just want to get this right without errors.

Please help!

Thanks Solomente

Read all of the forms you want , unless you speak with a Qualified Attorney, with verifiable references, you will not succeed in your quest.

 

[Chris]

Did you get married in the US? Sorry, it should be clear from your post but I'm getting muddled as well

If so, I would say go in and get the forms for a 'change of status'.

 

[juanj]

my friend, it appears that you are doing the right thing! seeking help is a good start. But look at it this way - (1) if it takes you the dicipline to sit and read the instructions, I strongly suggest that you do this first - be patient; (2) with the "insight" from what you have read, speak with someone who has "already invedted that wheel" - doesnt necessarialy have to be an attorney; (3) go back and with the patience and discipline, read again the instructions! (note: if it were to take you two hours a day to read to "comprehension" what the instructions state, would this not be but a miniscule "effort" on your part, considereing what you set out to do, and what you have accomplished thus far? YES, YOU SHOULD BE PATTED ON THE BACK FOR DOING THE RIGHT THING BY YOUR FIANCE AND THE CHILD - enjoy that "ffel good" feeling, you deserve it! Now do some more work, you can do it!

 

[cobraboy]

Register and ask the question here:

Dominicans to the USA - Index

You'll find folks quite knowledgeable and helpful, specifically on your problem.

 

[AnnaC]

I second what cobraboy posted. Everyone on that site is or has gone through the process and can give you more specific answers.

Your fianc?e and son are in the US and now you're legally married, the rest should be easy.

 

[suarezn]

I don't think is that complicated for you and your spouse. I have a friend who went through the same thing and I believe all they had to do was file to adjust status (form I-485), as your wife is already here. It's pretty expensive nowadays (1000+ USD per application). It sounds like you need send the same application for the child too


A. You may apply to adjust status if you were admitted to the United States as the K-1 fianc?(e) of a United States citizen and you married that citizen within 90days of your entry.

If you were admitted as the K-2 child of such a fianc?(e), you may apply to adjust status based on your parent's adjustment application.

I took this from the application itself.

Once you get approved you then need to go to the nearest INS office to get her permanent residence.

This is from my knowledge. I believe that's all you have to do (obviously you'll have to get all the documents required on that form). I'm not an attorney so you may want to check further to make sure that's all...

 

[AnnaC]

I don't think Tim will mind if I copy/paste something from his site;



What Must Happen After Getting the Fianc?(e) Visa?

After getting the fianc?(e) visa, your fianc?(e) enters the U.S. through a U.S immigration port-of-entry. The U.S. immigration official gives your fianc?(e) instructions on what to do when he/she enters the United States. You must get married within 90 days of your fianc?(e)’s entry into the United States.

After marriage, your spouse must file Form I-485 Application to Register Permanent Residence or to Adjust Status with the USCIS office that serves the area where you live in the United States. You must fill out the Affidavit of Support, Form I-864, with the USCIS for your spouse's application to become a lawful permanent resident (LPR). See Permanent Resident at the Department of Homeland Security's, USCIS internet site.

Children Have Derivative Status

The child of a fianc?(e) may receive a derivative K-2 visa from his/her parent’s fianc?(e) petition. You, the American citizen petitioner, must make sure that you name the child in the I-129F petition. After the marriage of the child’s parent and the American citizen, the child will need a separate form I-485 Application to Register Permanent Residence or to Adjust Status. The child may travel with (accompany) the K-1 parent/fianc?(e) or travel later (follow-to-join) within one year from the date of issuance of the K-1 visa to his/her parent. A separate petition is not required if the children accompany or follow the alien fianc?(e) within one year from the date of issuance of the K-1 visa. If it is longer than one year from the date of visa issuance, a separate immigrant visa petition is required.
Remember that in immigration law a child must be unmarried. The stepparent/stepchild relationship must be created before the child reaches the age of 18.



Taken from Adjusting status with a K1

 

[CFA123]

Consult a good immigration attorney quickly who can lay out the different options and likely results.

Not to belittle the responses you've received as they may be 'on the money', but I would think that it's too important for you and your new family to trust online research & any advice you may receive here or elsewhere.

 

[Musicqueen]

Exactly, AnnaC...always the helpful angel!!!

I went through what you just went through a year and 28 days ago exactly!!!

All you do now, after you're married, is send in the AOS papers...Form I-485 PLUS all the documents it asks for to support...the I-864 is an affidavit of support, plus you need to send in last year's IRS forms, bank letters stating what you have (if anything) employement letter stating how long you've been there and how much you make, your marriage certificate, copies of her passport and her son's where the visa was granted, etc.

You need to make sure you include ALL the paperwork they request...YES, it's time consuming...but all worth it!!! Don't worry too much about the 90 days...as long as you're already married, they are somewhat lenient about the deadline...Oh, DO NOT forget to include either a personal check, Money Order or certified check from the bank for the $1010...that includes the EAD (permit to work) and travel permit...You really do not need this last one...the Green Card will probably arrive even before you get it...but it's free if you do it all at once...so no harm done....

We sent it in later than the 90 days, after a month or so of receipt we got an appointment letter for his Biometrics (fingerprinting) schedule for a month later, and I'm very happy to say my husband got his GC in just a few months, 3 weeks exactly after he went for his biometrics...

As a matter of fact, he got the GC BEFORE he got his Driver's license... which we had applied for LONG before we did the AOS...it just took forever to receive it in the mail!!!!

About the social security...you can go RIGHT NOW and apply for one...all you'll need is her passport with the visa stamped on it, she will get her card in less than a month...it will say something like 'not authorized to work' until she gets her EAD...but that shouldn't take long...just a couple of months...in the meantime she can get used to life here in the USA and getting around, etc, etc.

Anyway, you can do all that together with her son's info...don't forget to include him in there...

You WILL find all the info you need and more on the links Anna and cobraboy provided...it's the BEST LITTLE WEBSITE ON DOMINICAN IMMIGRATION IN THE WORLD!!!!

Oh, one more thing....I know some people are trying to help...but really, they don't know anything about this...UNLESS they have gone through the process themselves....DO NOT GET AN ATTORNEY...I REPEAT...DO NOT GET AN ATTORNEY...

MOST attorneys DO NOT KNOW anything about Dominican Immigration...trust me...it's like NOTHING in the world...

On DTTUSA we even have the chief Consul in DR, Mr. Bent, posting answers to common questions people have...it's been a tremendous help...and thanks to those questions he's been able to implement GREAT, AWESOME changes to the way things were done at the Consulate in DR...

Go on, read more on the link...

Dominicans to the USA - Index

Good luck and CONGRATULATIONS!!!

MQ

 

[CFA123]

Oh, one more thing....I know some people are trying to help...but really, they don't know anything about this...UNLESS they have gone through the process themselves....DO NOT GET AN ATTORNEY...I REPEAT...DO NOT GET AN ATTORNEY...
MQ

I'll defer to you on this... but I know what I would do

 

[AnnaC]

Thanks MQ

 

[Musicqueen]

Trust me...CFA...we've had people on DTTUSA that DID use attorneys...ONLY to find out at the end of the line...that they could have done EVERYTHING themselves and SAVED the $3000-4000 the lawyers charged them for NOTHING!!!

All they do is fill out the forms for you...the rest...the waiting...it all depends on the USCIS and NVC here in the USA...

The lawyers will NOT be able to speed up your process...NO MATTER what they tell you...

It's a waste of money...but you have it to throw away...go ahead...be my guest!!

Oh, as a matter of fact...if you have it and want to throw it MY WAY...I will be very happy to fill out your forms for you!!!!

YOU WILL get the same results...

 

[AnnaC]

Not to mention that you still have to gather all the documentation for the wife and child yourself and then explain it to the lawyer what the papers are and by that point you may as well send them yourself.

If the OP got this far without an immigration lawyer the rest is easier. I'm sure he's overwelmed right now with a new family on his hands and all that goes with that.

 

[CFA123]

I understand your points & really am not trying to discount your advice based on experience.

Most government-related things are designed to be 'do-it-yourself' to a degree if you can figure out how to cross every t & dot every i. U.S. Tax returns, immigration, etc. Even residency in DR is a do-it-yourself venture for which many pay dearly for the hand-holding.

But, there are still some things that I consider important enough that while I could do myself (read a contract worth $millions , close on a house, keep my new family in my country) I'm willing to pay to listen to advice.
Anyhow, just my opinion & we all know about opinions.

 

[Musicqueen]

Exactly!!!!

 

[Criss Colon]

I Have The Skills To Remove My Own Appendix!!!!!!

But I would go to a doctor if I wanted it taken out!
I THOUGHT I could do my Dominican wife's "Immigration Applications" too!
I was wrong!
The key is to find a "Competent Lawyer"!???????
Unless you are "poor", get a lawyer!
Cris ColonCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC

 

[suarezn]

MQ: I was going to say the same thing about the attorney. Unless you have special circumstances this is a very common process, nothing that complicated about it. I tried to hire and attorney when I was trying to get my mom to The US and found that she was telling me nothing I didn't already know or couldn't find myself on the internet. After a couple hundred dollars I decided to do it myself (which I did) and it wasn't that complicated. The biggest thing just to make sure you read all the instructions on how to fill out the forms and make sure you include all the documents they ask for, otherwise it will be delayed...

 

[Musicqueen]

Criss...baby...I would do your paperwork for you FOR FREE!!!

What do you mean you can't do your wife's applications? And if you're in DR...FORGET ABOUT THE LAWYERS THERE even faster!!!

They know JACK-SH*T!!!!

You know I would NEVER steer you wrong, my friend...DO NOT pay a lawyer...I'm serious...

If you have any questions, please send me a pm...I would be more than happy to answer them for you!!!

MQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQ

 

[Criss Colon]

My Wife Is In The USA! I am Here!

:bunny:
She has a good lawyer! She is paying!
I HOPE it takes a Loooooooooooooooooooong time!
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