fluffy82

Hi all!
Im a UK citizen and currently live in the UK with my boyfriend. He has dual nationality (UK & US).
We have decided to move to the US as his parents live there and he wants to spend time with them.
We both work in the UK and own our own home which we would keep and rent out.

I have read lots of different threads about the best way to do this and have got quite confused as had many different responses.

From my reasearch and help in other forums it seems the best way to do this is as follows & I just wanted confirmation of this:
I will go on the 90 day VWP and say I am going for 'pleasure'.
Within the 90 days we decide to get married
I can then apply for an AOS & remain in the US.

This is about as far as I can get. Is this a plausible plan?
If it is, my other questions would be:
How long does it take to get an AOS roughly (are we talking months or years?)
If it takes more than the time I have left on my 90 day visa do I have to leave or while I am applying do I have to remain in the US till I have the AOS?
What does the AOS actually mean? ie can I then work?
Will it hinder things that my partner doesnt actually live in the US at the moment?

Sorry for all the questions but any help and advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Elvira

(1) You should post in the Marriage Based Visa forum. (Maybe a Mod can move this thread?)

(2) Clearly you have not read enough because what you are proposing to do is immigration FRAUD. Search for 10 foot pole (and check the WIKI).

(3) What you probably should do is get married in the UK and have you husband apply for an Immigrant Visa for you at the embassy.

Bill_S

Elvira's point #3 is the best, safest route.

Has your boyfriend been filing US tax returns?

scrubbedexpat099

Quick trip to the Registry Office to get you started.

MsElui

if you want to do legally then look up K1 visa (go to us and get married) or Spouse visa (marry beforehand). If you go the spose visa route then you get a GC the day you arrive in the US and can work right away. The K1 fiancee visa means a delay in working whilst you apply for EAD.

i believe (and im no expert in these types) that they take over 6 months to arrange - so you have a bit of time to get your affairs in order, save up some money, do up your property for letting, dispose of any unwanted furniture etc.


Doing it the way you describe is iilegal as you are NOW thinking of getting married - even if you say 'decide' to do it whilst there.

Noorah101

NO! You need to do more research. It is misuse and abuse of the VWP to enter the USA with the intent to remain and adjust status, and is illegal.

Your fastest method right now will mostl likely be DCF (direct consular filing). You can get married in the UK, file the I-130 towards your immigrant visa directly in London. The process takes about 4 to 6 months, and when you enter the USA using your immigrant visa, you become a US PR immediately, with all rights to live and work in the USA.

How long has your boyfriend been living in the UK?

Rene

ian-mstm

Yes... it is - well, as long as you don't mind commiting a felony and facing a possible lifetime ban from the US. But hey... you're young and your whole life is ahead of you, right?

Ian

Folinskyinla

Hi:

Sigh. This is a PUBLIC forum if you haven't noted. It may have been "plausible" to violate the law in the manner you suggest. However, now that you have made it PUBLIC, and given the increasing computer power of DHS, it may now be "stupid."

fluffy82

Blimey some people are harsh! I would never want to/try to do anything illegal or jepordise my chances of going to America, thats why I am asking for lots of advice for the best way of doing it. Isnt one of the reason for these forums to give advice & help people!!
I am completely new to this visa thing and my plan was only based on what other people have advised me in other forums (I cant help what other people advise me). When I was first told to do the route I orginally posted I did think it sounded dodgy hence why I asked in another forum.

My boyfriend hasnt lived in the US since he was 7 so he hasnt been filing any US tax returns. His parents lived in the UK for 17 years and moved back about 2 years ago.

From the options people have said I feel our preferred method would be to get the K1 fiancee visa and then get married in the US within the 90 days. Do I then have to apply for a spouse visa before I can work?

Noorah101

No, once you're inside the USA on your fiance visa, you don't need another visa. You'll apply for adjustment of status to permanent resident (AOS) and along with that will be an application for work authorization. It takes about 90 days to get that, after applying for AOS.

But why wouldn't you want to just go ahead and get married in the UK and do a spouse visa from there, as suggested in several other posts on this thread? That's by far the quickest way for you guys, and you become a US PR upon entry to the USA, much better than going as a fiance and then having to adjust status and wait even longer for your green card. This is informally called DCF, and I explained it in my previous post.

Your boyfriend should look into filing at least his past 3 years of tax returns, it will be required no matter which way you go visa-wise. The US Embassy in London has a very good IRS department to help USC's exactly like your boyfriend, who never knew he was supposed to be filing US tax returns all this time.

Rene

fluffy82

We would prefer to get married in the US as he wants his parents there and its difficult for them to get time off to travel back to the UK but Im sure we can make some arrangements for them if its easier to do it in the UK and get a spouse visa.
Thanks very much for your help and advice.

fatbrit

Oh c'mon! Whilst it may not be too difficult to identify those of us who have posted for years, I don't think this is likely for Fluffy. Her user name is presumably not her name, she didn't identify her location or intended destination, and DHS would need both access to both her IP address from this forum and her UK-based ISP. Beyond that, at the moment they really don't seem to care. When they open shop one morning and decide to do a Fragoman on the express route, please do let us know. Until then, it would be far more sensible not to shout fire when there obviously isn't one.

Tracym

You could visit the US, get married there, then return to the UK and file for the spousal visa.

It's perfectly legal to visit on the VWP, get married, and leave.

Folinskyinla

Hi:

Thank you for clarifying your first post. Standing by itself, you were asking about conduct which is unlawful. Now, it happens to be true that many people have, in the past, been successful in use of the "visa express" as you propose. However, your original post contained an expression of intent to say "pleasure" when you really intend to come here to get married. Just because people may recommend it on the basis of "they don't know" and "it works" doesn't make it lawful.

Also, past experience is not reliable in these days of increased enforcement. By way of analogy, the DHS recently conducted a large workplace raid in Postville, Iowa. The unauthorized alien workers took as a risk that they would go to court and be deported. However, based upon this expectation that they would be in IMMIGRATION court, they were oblivious to the fact that they were in mass CRIMINAL proceedings for use of false documents and they were sentenced to jail for six months. This was a FIRST TIME change in how things were handled -- it was no longer just a free ticket home.

The "visa express" is a sometimes topic of conversation on this forum. For reasons I will not go into here, it is often called the "ten foot pole" -- as in one should not advise publicly on how to do this. In particular, the criminal law on "conspiracy" is quite harsh and frightening. I was chatting with a CIS "anti-fraud" officer the other day while he was on the way to teach a class on the subject and he mentioned, when I asked, that they DO look at the internet.

I will take you at your word that you just didn't know.

Good luck.

Folinskyinla

Hi:

This is a common error by people like your boyfriend. The London Embassy has an IRS office and they are used to this and will help fix the problem. They are well aware of the fact that there is usually no wilful intent and the attitude is to assist one to get into compliance.

If his income has all been "earned income" there may be no or very little tax due. BTW, there may be capital gains issues when you sell your UK residence if there is a profit.