Immigration Law Blog

Fiancé Visa

When a U.S. citizen is engaged to a foreign national who intends to reside in the United States, the U.S. citizen may apply for a K-1 “Fiancé" Visa.  The Fiancé Visa is a nonimmigrant visa, which allows a foreign national to enter the U.S. with the express purpose of marrying a U.S. citizen.  The visa is issued by a U.S. Consular Post in the country where the fiancé resides.  

To obtain a Fiancé Visa, the U.S. citizen must file a Form I-129F, Petition for Alien Fiancé with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) on behalf of his or her foreign fiancé, known as the “beneficiary.”  

Each year, thousands of foreign workers who enter the U.S. must obtain legal employment authorization or risk violating status removal.  Employers hiring workers without proper work authorization may also face possible legal consequences.  

There are several visa categories which allow work authorization pursuant to status.  Each category has different requirements, conditions, and periods of time during which the worker may legally stay in the country.

In April 2013, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency transitioned to automated processing and electronic issuance of the Arrival/Departure Record (Form I-94) and is no longer issuing paper Forms I-94 to air and sea travelers arriving to the United States.

We strongly encourage all nonimmigrants arriving in the U.S. by air and sea (paper Forms I-94 are still being issued at land Ports of Entry) to retrieve and print a copy of their new Admission Number/Form I-94 entry record upon each U.S. entry or re-entry, for their personal records.

Each year, the United States Department of State administers a Diversity Visa Program, a random lottery which awards approximately 50,000 immigrant visas ("diversity visas") to foreign nationals who meet the simple but strict eligibility requirements and are immigrating from countries with historically low rates of immigration to the United States.

Online registration for this year's lottery, the 2015 Diversity Visa Program (DV-2015), will begin on Tuesday, October 1, 2013 and will conclude on Saturday, November 2, 2013.

The Department of State and the National Visa Center (NVC) have recently made significant changes with respect to immigrant visa application process via consular processing.  Beginning September 3, 2013, immigrant visa applicants (with the exception of Diversity Visa Lottery and Cuban Family Reunification Parole applicants) are now required to apply online using a new electronic Form DS-260 (Application for Immigrant Visa and Alien Registration) instead of the previous paper Form DS-230.

InfoPass is a free service that lets you request information or inquire about your immigration case by scheduling an appointment with your local U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) office.  Please note that the main USCIS District Office for New York City immigration activity is located at 26 Federal Plaza in Manhattan, and there is an additional USCIS office located in Long Island City, Queens.  This service is available to anyone, and you do not technically need to be represented by an attorney.  However, if you do have an attorney, you should be sure to consult with him/her before engaging in any communication with the USCIS.

Foreign nationals may legally enter the United States by obtaining a visa. There are two types of visas: immigrant and non-immigrant. Immigrant visas allow foreign nationals to enter and reside in the U.S. for the long term. Non-immigrant visas are issued for limited periods of time and for specific purposes, such as tourism, business, study, temporary work or medical treatment.

A U.S. visa is an authorization, typically in the form of a stamp inside a passport, which demonstrates that a U.S. consular official has determined that the traveler is eligible to enter the U.S. for the purposes stated in the visa. The United States issues two classes of visas, an Immigrant Visa and a Non-Immigrant Visa.

Choosing which visa to request is an important decision, and will largely depend on the reasons for coming to the U.S., as well as the visitor’s intentions regarding immigration. An Immigrant Visa is issued to aliens who intend to permanently reside in the U.S., whereas a Non-Immigrant Visa is issued to those who are coming to the U.S. for a specific, temporary purpose, such as travel, business, medical treatment, temporary work or study.

The United States government offers a number of work visas, enabling foreign-born nationals to legally enter and work in the U.S. These visas are non-immigrant visas, meaning they are issued for a specific period of time, but most work visas can be renewed, enabling the worker to remain in the U.S. for a longer period of time. Each work visa imposes different requirements on the applicant, and there are work visas available for a variety of jobs.

Work visas include the H-1B and H-2 Work Visas, the H-3 Trainee Work Visa, the L-1 Intracompany Transferee Visa, the O-1 Extraordinary Ability Work Visa, the P Athlete/Entertainer Work Visa, the E-1 Treaty Trader Work Visa, the E-2 Treaty Investor Work Visa, and the R-1 Religious Work Visa. Additionally, students in the U.S. on a student visa may be authorized to work on Curricular Practical Training or Optional Practical Training.  Citizens of Mexico or Canada may qualify for the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) Work Visa, provided the applicant meets all of the requirements and his or her profession is on the NAFTA list.