Chaotic

I'm a UK citizen (English) who has a US citizen Fiance. We are not in
a position financially to marry in the very near future, he is still
going through college and we have no desire to force or to rush a
marriage. I do not have degrees, I am not skilled in the skills
listed to qualify for certain visas, nor am I eligible to apply for
the green card. For the 2 years we have been together, I have visited
him 5 times on the waiver visa, this is proving to be expensive and I
just cannot afford to do this any longer. I need to be able to live
and work in Portland Or. so that we do actually have some kind of
chance to be together. Any help is much appreciated.

nathan barley

If marriage isnt a current option, and neither is employment immigration, then he is going to have to move to the UK after he graduates. Luckily, it's a bit easier to go US > UK, as opposed to UK > US. You'd have a very tough time persuading an employer to take you on in the US without a degree / experience, when you consider the time and paperwork it will take them.

I have to ask though, why aren't you in a 'financial position' to marry? Weddings don't have to be huge elaborate cerimonies. It costs $70 at city hall if all youre concerned about is having a legal bond.

Jgladding

    > I'm a UK citizen (English) who has a US citizen Fiance. We are not in a
position financially to marry in the very near future, he is still going
through college and we have no desire to force or to rush a marriage. I do
not have degrees, I am not skilled in the skills listed to qualify for
certain visas, nor am I eligible to apply for the green card.
I'm going to be frank with you, your position sucks. I know, because my
girlfriend and I are in EXACTLY the same spot that you're in.
I'm a USC, she's Chilean, without degrees, or employable skills(at
least as far as US INS is concerned). She will not come here unless she can
work, we want to be together, and neither of us is interested in a forced
marraige.
Here are your choices:
1. Do it illegally, come in on a tourist visa, stay and work illegally. The
repercussions of this action will be devastating to your relationship as if
caught, you will be barred from the US for at least 3 years, maybe 10, or if
you're deported, forever.
2. Come here on an F-1 (education) visa. You will have to prove that you can
afford to support yourself while you are here, pay for tuition, room and
board. If you can do that, you will be allowed to work on the campus of the
school you are attending, but that's it, nowhere else, and you have to be
enrolled full time, you can't take just one class per semester. If you can
afford to do this, I think it may be the easiest.
3 have your boyfriend apply for k-1 fiancee visa for you. I think you know
how this one goes, get the visa, get married within 90 days or be deported.
I have just filed the 129f petition for alien fiancee for my girlfriend this
afternoon. Neither of us has any desire to be married yet, we don't know
each other well enough to be married, but we do want to live together for a
while to find out if we are right for one another, but our Gov't makes no
accomodations for people like us, who take marriage very seriously. I could
move to Chile to be with my g/f but, seeing that my Spanish is almost
nonexistant, that is not practical, so here we are, planning a marriage that
neither of us wants, so we can get a piece of paper to show to the INS after
she gets here.
As far as the two of us are concerned, when the INS is through with our
marriage certifiate, it's going in the garbage and we will live like
boyfriend and girlfriend. If we decidelater on that we would like to be
married, then we will have a real wedding ceremony, but for now, we're going
to the justice of the peace and not telling anyone.
Sorry I don't have better news for you, and I wish I could have been a
little nicer with my tone, but it's really aggrivating for couples like us,
and I'm pretty frustrated. I hope things go well for you, and should you
choose the K-1 option, there's TONS of info on the web about it.(It seems
that's what everyone does to get their boy/girlfriends here and able to
work)
Justin



For the 2 years we have been together, I have visited him 5 times on the
waiver visa, this is proving to be expensive and I just cannot afford to do
this any longer. I need to be able to live and work in Portland Or. so that
we do actually have some kind of chance to be together. Any help is much
appreciated.

Chaotic

We aren't in a position financially because he is full time college,
he doesn't have employment, he is looking but the hours he keeps for
classes vary all week long so he just can't afford to support me,
there is no proof of any monies for him to support me either. I'm down
to about 5 english thousand, so it's not the marriage itself we can't
afford, it's the living afterwards for the time I'd be waiting to get
a work visa. It is going to be the way we will have to do it in the
long run, I personally would rather not have had to put that burden on
him and so I'm trying to find out different options to take. Thanks
for all replies.

chaotic

jcapulet

If your fiance files for the K-1 visa petition on your behalf, that is your best bet for now (that's what I am doing for my Canadian fiance). If he is taking classes in college, and you are worried about his being able to afford supporting you financially, you can look into seeing if one of his relatives is willing to co-sponsor you-that will help in your visa being accepted.

If you arrive on a K-1 visa, you can get a temporary work authorization and later a permanent one. I know it's tough to be apart, so I hope you two are together soon But if your financials are the issue, remember-as a K-1 visa holder, you can get the temporary work authorization shortly after arriving. Best wishes.

Juliet