Hey, Newbie Here.

Ok, I’m sorry if this becomes long winded or you have seen a post like this before but I need some help/advice?

People will have their views and judge etc. but here goes; I have been in a long distance relationship for 4 years with a guy who lives in the USA his job title is an Infantry soldier in the Military. Me living in London. We’re meeting up for the first time in the next few months I’m flying over to the US to see him for 2 weeks. after that meet we will know what we want to do as we want to be together without having the pond between us.

We are serious about each other and yes we have spoken about getting married our own place and all the grown up stuff. What with him being in the military too it would make sense of us to marry so we can be with each other as his always going to be working.

So I’m asking for some answers, where would I even start? Visa? Marriage? In what order. What would I have to apply for?

Please help as i would love to be able to do my research before my visit and stuff.

Louise

Right now, you will come over on the Visa Waiver Program, which means, technically, you don't have a visa. Provided there are no previous criminal arrests on your record you can come over for upto 90 days without a visa. You will need to get an ESTA before you come over though (https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/esta) but you can deal with that when you are about to get your tickets.

After that, there are two routes to consider: getting engaged, and then coming over to the US (and getting married within 90 days of that) and entering the USA as a fiancee, or getting married and entering as a wife. There is a whole subforum on this site dealing with the procedures for that. In fact, why don't I move your question over there so you'll get better answers than I can give.

Have a search through the Marriage Based Visas forum. There are numerous threads on the subject of visas based on marriage to a US citizen. In fact, a moderator might be along later to move your post over there. EDIT: Already done!

In addition to meeting up with this guy (as you already have plans to) to decide whether proceeding towards marriage is a good idea and researching the immigration implications, you should do some research into/thinking about what it means to be a military spouse. While there are certain financial perks (including, very importantly, the health insurance cover), there are also difficulties to contend with, including but not limited to: extended periods of separation with limited communication, worries about your spouse's safety, the struggle to build/advance a career of your own due to frequent moves (although if, like me, you have itchy feet, the travel side of things can also be very attractive), raising any potential children alone for significant periods of time and generally being at the mercy of what the military decides for your spouse's unit. It can be a lot to put up with/sacrifice even for a partner you have been with (in person) for years before marriage, let alone someone you have never met.

It is true that being married to your military partner brings benefits and security that you wouldn't have if unmarried (in practical terms the unmarried partners of servicemen and women basically don't exist to the military) but be aware that, depending on where your spouse is deployed, you won't always be able to go with him.

Where you start depends on which visa you decide to apply for. Look into the application process for the K-1 fiancé(e) visa and the CR-1 spousal visa.

Many (if not most) of us met our spouses online... I met mine online 15 years ago. It might have been a big deal then... but it's certainly not a big deal these days.


Start here. It gives a pretty good overview of the two most common methods for immigration as a current or future spouse of a USC. Both methods take between 7-9 months to fully process from the time the initial petition is submitted until you get the visa. When you're finished reading, come on back and ask questions... we're happy to help.

Ian

Not "technically"... "actually". There is no visa.

Ian

Hi louise hun gl bit similar to my story meet my partner 5 years ago been dateing since trips back and forth on the k1 route good luck hun and all teh best x