gradboy

Hey there,

Got a slightly odd question for you! So I am a UK citizen, taking a year off from my grad programme in the USA. I'm in Ireland for the year, watching a house, and I have brought my American fiancee with me. We're getting married in February, and we'd like to return to the US in August for the next academic year.

So it seems like we have two options on the visa front for me:

• apply for a marriage visa at the US embassy in Dublin. Disadvantage: might not be ready by August?
• apply for another F-1 visa for me, and adjust status in the US

But here's my question -- will they give me an F-1 visa, if I'm married to an American? I have real doubts about this ... isn't the point of an F-1 visa that you show closer ties to your home country?

Thanks!
gradboy

Noorah101

When did your fiance enter Ireland, and what is her status there?

Can she get married to you there on whatever status she has now? If so, and if she's been genuinely resident in Ireland for 6+ months (not as a visitor), then PERHAPS you can do the DCF route for your Immigrant Visa. Direct Consular Filing takes about 5 months to process, so you might just squeak by with getting it in August, if you can file the I-130 in February.

• [*]

Correct again. Students should not have immigrant intent.

Alternative solution: Get married now (if possible), have your wife file the I-130 to the USA, process takes around 8 - 10 months. If you're lucky and prepared ahead of time all the way, you could still have your Immigrant Visa by August 2011.

Rene

meauxna

You answered your own question.. the reason they won't give an F-1 to someone with immigrant intent is because you write yourself that you want to immigrate from that non-immigrant visa.

You need to apply for the visa that is correct for your situation. If you plan to move to the US, you need an immigrant visa.

gradboy

Thanks for the info! She's a dual-citizen (US-Irish), so we've both been legally here since August watching a house, so I'm pretty sure we can do DCF in February, when 6 months will have gone by.

Noorah101

Maybe. Maybe Not. There has been some talk about DCF going away in 2011. Research more.

Rene

Noorah101

See here: http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=695354

Rene

meauxna

It might be worth her while to visit the Embassy and find out when they will accept her petition. Six months isn't law, it's a general policy (IE discretion is available & my personal visits to the Embassy helped a lot in MY case).

gradboy

Thanks for the tip! Sadly since we're marrying in Feb, we'll hit the 6 month mark by default!

Looks like I'll have to do DCF in Dublin (if still available) and hope for the best...

meauxna

I visited the Embassy even before I was married. In fact I had to get a certificate of I Am Single to get my marriage license.. Ireland may have something similar.
Anyway, nothing 'sadly' about it.. looks like you've got a plan.

gradboy

Hehe I suppose. Thanks for the help!

fatbrit

They're a laugh, aren't they!

I had to get one many years ago from the British Embassy. Don't think they'd done many before -- it was a quiet post at that time. They typed something to the effect of "He says he's single" on a piece of headed notepaper and stamped it with the round stamp for me.

Did the trick, though.

lonestargirl

One quick check, you know you have to give 3 months notice to get married in Ireland?

Also, I know someone who did DCF in Dublin and got her visa in 8 weeks. This was about 2 years ago.

meauxna

heh.. in Athens they have them preprinted in Greek on one side and English on the other. It's all a bit of a farce but like you say, did the trick and that's all that counts.

We also had to run a specific announcement in the newspaper, and post a copy of its page in the British Consulate for 2 weeks.

Then the sacrilege of marrying during Lent, it's a wonder they let us out of there with our skins intact...

jeffreyhy

Similar in Thailand - a pre-printed form where you fill in a few blanks to say you're not married. Then a second form to say you're divorced if you had previously been married.

Then, after getting the two documents notarized by your embassy's consular section you take them to the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs to be 'legalized' - stamped several times with a large red seal.

And now you're ready to go to a district office to get married.