Integrity Legal

The National Visa Center (NVC) acts as s sort of clearinghouse and intermediary for United States visa applications. Their duties as an intermediary can be shown in the way the NVC receives cases from the Department of Homeland Security’s United States Citizenship and Immigration Service and forwards them on to United States Embassies and Consulates abroad. This function has been documented in detail in previous posts on this blog. However, NVC functions very differently in cases involving Immigrant visas (CR1, IR1) then it does in cases involving the non-immigrant dual intent family visa categories, most notably the K1 visa and the K3 visa.

A K1 visa application or K3 visa application spends a relatively short period of time in the possession of the NVC. In Immigrant visa cases, this is not true. Applications for a CR1 visa or an application submitted for an IR1 visa are held at NVC for a substantially longer period of time. Unlike the K1 and K3 visa categories, packet 3 is sent out by the NVC and not the US Embassy abroad.

The United States Immigration authorities at the American States Department have made the administrative decision to handle all packet three matters at NVC rather than making the Consulates and Embassies handle this aspect of the process. In a way, the decision makes sense as the NVC is in a better position to specialize in this phase of the process. Also, NVC conducts a rather detailed security clearance to make certain that the prospective immigrant is not a threat to National security. Also, NVC will take the affidavit of support fee and process the United States Citizen or Lawful Permanent Resident’s I-864 Affidavit of Support.

It should be noted that in cases where the petitioner is resident abroad, it may be possible to submit a Direct Consular Filing (DCF) or a USCIS local filing. In cases such as this, the case file will not be sent to the NVC, but will either be processed entirely at the Embassy or Consulate; or it will be sent from the local USCIS office directly to the US Embassy. In the case of Thailand, the Bangkok office of USCIS will send all approved locally filed Immigrant visa applications directly to the US Embassy in Bangkok. As the USCIS office is directly across the street from the US Embassy, sending this file directly to the Embassy is usually a very straightforward process.

Tags: Affidavit of Support, CR1 Visa, CR1 Visa Thailand, IR1 Visa Thailand, K1 Visa, K1 Visa Thailand, K3 Visa, K3 Visa Thailand, US Visa, US Visa Thailand
Posted in CR1 Visa, Fiance Visa Thailand, General Legal Information, K-3 Visa Thailand, K1 Visa, K1 Visa Thailand, K3 Visa, Miscellaneous, us embassy bangkok, US Embassy Thailand, US Visa and Immigration, USCIS | No Comments »

There is something of an “alphabet soup,” when it comes to discussing United States Immigration. There are many agencies under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the most important from an Immigration standpoint are: the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency, Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service. Meanwhile, the United States Department of State (DOS) has jurisdiction over the National Visa Center (NVC) as well as United States Embassies and Consulates outside of the USA. This mix of acronyms alone can cause a sane man to go crazy, add on top of this the fact that sometimes different phases of the Immigration process have the SAME acronym and one is left very befuddled.

For example, the process of converting a K1 visa to permanent residence (Green Card) is called Adjustment of Status. when a Thai fiancee travels to the United States on a K1 visa she has 90 days to execute a legal marriage and submit an application to regularize her status. As stated previously, this is commonly referred to as adjustment of status.  It is possible to adjust other non-immigrant visas, such as J1 visas, F1 visas, or B2 visas, but it can be more difficult and one should not travel to the US using one of these visas with the intent to adjust as these categories do not allow for dual intent. One should not confuse the adjustment of status process with the change of status process, which is the process of converting a visa from one non-immigrant visa category to another.

Another “AOS” commonly used in United States Immigration vernacular is the Affidavit of Support. The affidavit of support is the document showing that a United States Citizen or Lawful Permanent Resident can financially maintain a foreign fiancee or spouse in the United States. The worry of government officials is that the foreign loved one may become a “public charge,” the affidvait of support is used to illustrate that this will not be an issue. An affidavit of support is signed by a K1 visa petitioner and submitted at the visa interview at the United States Embassy. At the time of the adjustment of status a different affidavit of support is submitted. K1 visa applications also utilize a different affidavit of support compared to visa petitions for a foreign spouse (K3 visa, Cr1 visa, Ir1 visa).

Tags: Adjustment of Status, Affidavit of Support, American Visa Thailand, AOS, CR1 Visa Thailand, K1 Visa Thailand, K3 Visa Thailand, US Visa, US Visa Thailand, USA Visa
Posted in Adjustment of Status, Fiance Visa Thailand, General Legal Information, K-3 Visa Thailand, K1 Visa, K1 Visa Thailand, K3 Visa, Thailand Embassy, us embassy bangkok, US Embassy Burma, US Embassy Thailand, US Visa and Immigration, US Visa Thailand | No Comments »

For those researching the United States visa process a document called Notice of Action 2 is mentioned many times in relation to spouse and fiance visa applications. This post is a brief description of what Notice of Action 2 is and what it means for a pending application.

When a United States visa application is submitted the first piece of correspondence that arrives from the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service  (USCIS) Center is a receipt called Notice of Action 1 (NOA 1). This puts the petitioning party on notice that the application has been received by the USCIS Service Center. There are certain situations where the adjudicating officer decides that more information or evidence needs to be provided before the application can be properly adjudicated. In cases such as this, a Request for Evidence (also known as an RFE) will be issued and sent to the petitioner. However, in most cases, further evidence is not necessary and if the application is approved then Notice of Action 2 is sent to the petitioner. If the application is denied, then a notice will be sent to the petitioner as well.

Although not extremely common in cases involving visas for the family members of United States Citizens, USCIS denials can occur. Denials are usually the result of a petition that did not go far enough in showing that a bona fide relationship between Petitioner and Beneficiary existed at the time of the filing. Another common reason for denial is that the petitioner applied for the wrong type of visa. A common misconception in Thailand involves customary marriages and their effect upon a couple’s United States Immigration options. In Thailand, if a Thai marriage is not registered at the Civil Registrar’s office (Amphur), then the marriage is not legally binding and not recognized by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service as a basis for receiving US Immigration benefits. Therefore, if a couple who has only been married unofficially submits a petition for an IR1 visa, CR1 visa, or K3 visa then they will be denied because they do not meet the statutory requirements for visa issuance. However, the couple in this situation may be eligible for a K1 visa.

After USCIS issues Notice of Action 2, the petition will be sent to the National Visa Center. In cases involving Immigrant visas, the NVC holds the petition for a fairly long period of time. However, in cases where a K1 visa is being sought, the NVC does not hold the application for a long time. They will usually conduct a Security clearance and forward the file to the US Embassy, in cases involving Thai fiancees they will forward the application to the US Embassy in Bangkok. The United States Consulate General in Chiang Mai does not generally handle US Immigrant visa cases.

Tags: CR1 Visa Thailand, Fiance Visa Thailand, IR1 Visa Thailand, K1 Visa Thailand, K3 Visa Thailand, NOA 2, Notice of Action 2, Thailand Marriage Registration, us embassy bangkok, us embassy thailand, us visa denial, US Visa Thailand
Posted in Fiance Visa Thailand, K-3 Visa Thailand, K1 Visa Thailand, US Consulate Chiang Mai, us embassy bangkok, US Embassy Thailand, US Visa and Immigration, US Visa Thailand, USCIS | 1 Comment »

In a previous post, we discussed the initial submission of an application for a United States visa for a foreign loved one. In this post we will discuss what needs to be done in the event of a request for evidence from the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS). After USCIS receives an American Citizen’s US Immigration application, they send out a receipt notice commonly referred to as Notice of Action 1, or NOA 1. In the vast majority of ultimately successful cases the Notice of Action 1 is followed by the Notice of Action 2 approval notice. However, there are cases where an adjudicating officer at USCIS requests further documentation. In most Requests for Evidence (RFE) the deficiency of evidence is based upon the fact that one or more of the documents was illegible. This is why clearly legible documentation should always be provided when submitting an application to USCIS.

In order to forestall receiving an RFE, many couples opt to retain an Immigration attorney to assist in the filing of a United States visa application. An experienced United States Immigration attorney can predict what the officers will wish to see in order to favorably adjudicate a petition. However, simply retaining an attorney will not guarantee that a Request For Evidence will not be made, but if an RFE is sent, then the attorney can handle it and deal with the documentary deficiency.

The RFE will specify which documents are either missing or illegible. After specifying the deficiency, the RFE will go on to state how the deficiency can be dealt with and the deadline the applicant and petitioner will have to remedy the problem by sending the requested documentation.

In a way, an RFE is similar to a 221g refusal from the United States Embassy. The reason these requests are similar is that both require that the applicant or petitioner provide further documentation before an approval will be granted. The major difference between these two requests is the fact that officers of the United States Department of State issue 221 g requests while officers of the United States Department of Homeland Security issue requests for evidence. In both cases, the documentation is requested usually in an effort to conduct due diligence to ensure that the Immigration benefit should be accorded to the beneficiary.

In K1 visa applications the adjudicating officer is usually requesting evidence that shows the bona fides of the relationship or the status of one of the parties. In K3 or CR1 visa applications, the officer is usually seeking evidence regarding the couple’s marital status or the status of the parties before the marriage occurred.

Tags: CR1 Visa Thailand, K1 Visa Thailand, K3 Visa Thailand, Request For Evidence, RFE, US Embassy, US Visa Thailand, USCIS
Posted in Fiance Visa Thailand, K-3 Visa Thailand, K1 Visa Thailand, Legal Opinion, Miscellaneous, US Consulate Chiang Mai, us embassy bangkok, US Embassy Thailand, US Tourist Visa, US Visa and Immigration, US Visa Thailand, USCIS | No Comments »

A happily uncommon issue that can arise in United States Immigration law is known as the “widows penalty.” The Widow’s penalty becomes an issue when the American Citizen Petitioner dies before the adjudication of a foreign spouse’s pending Immigration matter. For example, a widow of a United States Citizen could be penalized if her American spouse dies before the I-751 Petition to Remove the Conditions of Residence is adjudicated (also known as a “lift of conditions”). The logic underpinning the penalty is based upon the notion that the widow is no longer married to a United States Citizen and therefore cannot have conditions removed because the continuing marriage is the basis for removal of conditions. Currently, the United States courts are in the process of dealing with this issue and it would appear that there is an overwhelming feeling that the “widow’s penalty,” should be removed because it is somewhat inequitable.

In the recent case of Hanford v. Napolitano, a Texas Court held that the Widow of an American Citizen will be entitled to adjust status to permanent residence even if the American dies before adjudication provided the couple was lawfully married and there are no issues as to the bona fides of the relationship. To quote the court opinion:

“Under the plain language of the statute, Congress’s intent is clear: The Attorney General is precluded from adjusting the status of a non-immigrant except as a result of the marriage of the nonimmigrant to the very U.S. citizen who filed the petition in the first place to grant that alien’s nonimmigrant status. Situations such as Ms. Hanford’s meet the exemption. Plaintiff is entitled to adjustment of her legal status to that of permanent resident under the language of the statute because her legally filed application is a result of her marriage to the U.S. citizen who filed Form I-129F to obtain her nonimmigrant status.”

The Widow’s Penalty would seem to be falling by the wayside, but the law is not completely settled on the issue as some courts have differing rules regarding the adjudication of such cases. For those with a great deal of anxiety about their spouse’s ability to obtain an adjustment of status in the future, researching immigrant and non-immigrant visas may provide insight into the consequences of a US Citizen’s untimely death.  One major benefit of the Immigrant visa categories such as the IR1 visa and the CR1 visa is the fact that the foreign spouse enters the United States with lawful permanent residence upon entry. However, the processing time for these visas is considerably longer when compared with the K3 visa or the K1 visa.

Issues like this fully emphasize the reason why it may be imperative for an American to obtain licensed legal counsel for issues involving US visas. For more information about the importance of retaining licensed legal counsel, please see: How Can My Thai Fiancee Get US Citizenship?

Tags: Adjustment of Status, CR1 Visa, CR1 Visa Thailand, I-751, I751, K1 Visa, K1 Visa Thailand, K3 Visa, K3 Visa Thailand, US Visa, Widow's Penalty
Posted in Adjustment of Status, Fiance Visa Thailand, K-3 Visa Thailand, K1 Visa Thailand, Legal Opinion, Miscellaneous, US Visa and Immigration, US Visa Thailand, USCIS | No Comments »

For those who have already executed a marriage in Thailand, the options for United States visas can become more limited. In general, the two Immigration options most applicant couples choose to pursue immediately following lawful marriage are the K3 visa and the CR1 visa. Unless there exist strategic reasons for applying for the K3 visa (speed of issuance, or choice of interview forum), the CR1 visa is often the better choice as it confers conditional lawful permanent residence upon the applicant at the moment they are admitted into the United States of America.

The CR1 visa is available to those couples who have been married for less than two years. IR1 visas are used by couples who have been married more than 2 years. In Thailand, a common misconception is that getting married is the best way to ensure a fast visa for a Thai loved one. In many cases, this is untrue because the K1 visa is sometimes a faster Immigration option. That being said, in cases where the United States Citizen is entitled to file an I-130 application abroad (known as a local filing or direct consular filing) marriage might provide a way of expediting the US visa process. If a US Citizen opts to file locally for a US visa and the couple has been married for less than 2 years, then a CR1 visa will be issued upon application approval.

Once in the United States, the foreign spouse will eventually need to apply for a lift of the conditions of his or her visa. This is accomplished by filing an I-751 Petition to Remove the Conditions of Residence. The United States Citizen spouse will need to file the petition within ninety days of the second anniversary of the foreign spouse’s entrance into the US and once the application is approved the foreign spouse’s lawful permanent residence will no longer be contingent upon their continuing marital status.

Essentially, this application to lift conditions is somewhat similar to the adjustment of status application. For those with a fiance visa it is necessary to adjust status to permanent residence before being able to remain in the US indefinitely. The lift of conditions is analogous because it is a necessity that must be dealt with before permanent residence is unconditional and failure to apply for the lift of conditions could result in the foreign spouse falling out of lawful status. It should be noted that for those who adjust status from a K1 visa, permanent residence is deemed to begin on the date noted upon the adjustment of status approval notice. Within ninety days prior to the two year anniversary of said date, the foreign spouse must apply to Remove the Conditions of Residence.

Upon approval of an application to remove conditions, the former CR1 visa holder will be converted to an IR1 visa and be issued a 10 Permanent Resident Card (Green Card).

Tags: CR-1 Visa, CR-1 Visa Thailand, CR1 Visa, CR1 Visa Thailand, Fiance Visa Thailand, I-751, I751, IR1 Visa Thailand, K1 Visa Thailand, K3 Visa Thailand, Lift of Conditions, Remove the Conditions of Residence, US Visa Thailand
Posted in Adjustment of Status, Fiance Visa Thailand, K-3 Visa Thailand, K1 Visa Thailand, Thailand Marriage Registration, US Visa and Immigration, US Visa Thailand | No Comments »

United States Immigration law offers many long term benefits for the spouses and fiancees of American Citizens. One of the many questions posed by those American’s researching US Immigration from Thailand is: how does my Thai fiancee acquire United States Citizenship?

There are many misconceptions about who can naturalize as a US citizen and under what circumstances. As a rule, naturalization to US citizenship takes approximately five years, if the applicant is already in lawful permanent resident status. However, for the husband or wife of a United States Citizen, the amount of time necessary to naturalize is greatly reduced. In order for the spouse of an American citizen to naturalize, the spouse must have been in lawful permanent residence for 3 years prior to the application for naturalization. Further, the husband or wife who meets this criterion must also have been physically present in the United States for an aggregate of 18 months prior to application. For United States Immigration and naturalization purposes, half-days in the US are counted as full days when determining physical presence in the United States of America.

For those bringing a Thai fiancee into the United States on a K1 visa, the clock does not begin ticking toward naturalization until the Thai applicant successfully is approved for adjustment of status. The date noted on the adjustment of status approval is the date from which one can begin accruing presence toward ultimate naturalization. In the case of the K3 visa, even though it is a marriage visa, time in the USA does not accrue towards Citizenship until after approval of an adjustment of status application or the applicant returns to the US Embassy for processing of the underlying IR1 or CR1 visa application.

It should be noted, much like the lift of conditionality, one can, and perhaps ought to, file for naturalization ninety days before the applicant hits the three year mark for time in the US in lawful permanent residence.

There are some exceptions to the 3 years plus 18 months aggregate presence requirement. Most notable is the fact that in certain situations, a permanent resident can acquire citizenship after only one year in lawful permanent resident status if they are accompanying a United States Citizen abroad in order to work in a job related to the United States Military, Government, or other government related endeavor.

If a couple makes plans ahead of time, it may be possible for a Thai fiancee or spouse to acquire United States Citizenship in an efficient and timely manner. That being said, for those seeking US Citizenship, the road can be difficult as naturalization requires a great deal of time and effort on the part of the foreign applicant as well as an investment of resources on the part of the US Citizen spouse.

Tags: CR1 Visa Thailand, K1 Visa Thailand, K3 Visa Thailand, my thai fiancee, US Visa Thailand
Posted in Adjustment of Status, Fiance Visa Thailand, K-3 Visa Thailand, K1 Visa Thailand, us embassy bangkok, US Embassy Thailand, US Visa and Immigration, US Visa Thailand | 4 Comments »

The question asked by many American Citizens in the United States or Expats in Thailand with a Thai Girlfriend: How do I obtain a Green Card for My Thai Fiancee? Before answering this question, the researcher needs to discern exactly what a Green Card is.

The Document commonly referred to as a “Green Card,” is in fact a term used to describe Lawful Permanent Residence in the USA. In family visa applications, there are essentially two ways of obtaining lawful permanent resident status: applying for an Immigrant visa and obtaining said status upon entry into the United States; or applying for a K1 visa, entering the United States, and applying for permanent residence through the process of adjustment of status. There are two types of lawful permanent residence: conditional lawful permanent residence and unconditional lawful permanent residence. Conditional permanent residence is reserved for those couples who either opt to adjust status in the United States or who have been married less than 2 years at the time they apply for a visa. Conditional permanent residence is conferred upon the entrant who travels to the United States on a CR1 visa. Unconditional permanent residence is conferred upon an entrant to the United States traveling on an IR1 visa.

If seeking an immigrant visa for a Thai fiancee, then the American Citizen will need to marry the Thai national before the application’s submission. In Thailand, marriage registration can be a very straightforward process provided both parties are legally free to marry. A common question with regard to Thai marriage registration: will the US recognize my Thai marriage to my thai fiancee? In short: yes. The United States recognizes the legality and binding effect of a legally sanctified matrimonial union executed in the Kingdom of Thailand provided that it is registered at the local Amphur office.

What about bringing my Thai fiancee to the United States on a K1 visa? This is an option pursued by many Thai-American couples as it is generally the fastest method of getting a Thai fiancee into the United States. The only real downside of the K1 visa is the fact that it requires a post-marital adjustment of status.

Where the fiancee enters and adjusts or marries abroad and enters on an Immigrant visa, if she decides to travel abroad subsequent to acquiring permanent resident status, then she may be wise in obtaining a reentry permit so that a presumption of residential abandonment does not arise. Those who have acquired a US reentry permit are free to remain abroad for up to 2 years without raising the suspicion that they are not ever returing to the United States.

Tags: CR1 Visa Thailand, Fiance Visa Thailand, Green Card, Green Card Thailand, Immigration Lawyer Thailand, K1 Visa Thailand, my thai fiancee, US Immigration Law Thailand, US Visa Thailand
Posted in Adjustment of Status, Fiance Visa Thailand, K1 Visa Thailand, Legal Opinion, Miscellaneous, Thailand Marriage Registration, us embassy bangkok, US Embassy Thailand, US Visa and Immigration, US Visa Thailand | 15 Comments »

Congress is set to end their recess soon and one of the important issues that will be on the legislative agenda is Comprehensive Immigration Reform. In the last Congressional session, this important legislation was sidelined by other important issues such as Health Care Reform and issues the impact of Americans upon the environment. To quote Immigration Impact: Comprehensive Immigration Reform (CIR), “has grown increasingly complex, partisan, and ideological, the chances of completing CIR legislation before 2009 ends further diminish. That’s not to say, however, that nothing is happening.”

One of the major obstacles in getting a Comprehensive Immigration Reform bill through Congress is the fact that it is, well…so…Comprehensive. What I mean to say is: Comprehensive Immigration Reform would require a complete overhaul of the Immigration system which impacts many political factions and such an overhaul is bound to have detractors and proponents of each facet effected.

For example, in the realm of United States Family immigration, there are some who believe that the minimum 6 to 7 month wait to bring a foreign fiancee or spouse to the United States is far too much time to wait. One proposed solution to this problem is: allowing non-immigrant dual intent family visa to be filed directly at the Embassy or Consulate overseas. The K1 visa and the K3 visa are dual intent non-immigrant visas which means that the visa holder can intend to both go to the US temporarily and simultaneously have the intent to remain long term.  Those entering the United States on one of these visas will eventually need to adjust status to permanent residence. At that time, the officers at the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service will adjudicate whether or not the applicant should be accorded lawful permanent resident status. The current Immigration situation begs the question: how does pre-authorizing K1 and K3 non-immigrants add value to the US Immigration Process? The system, at the very least, seems redundant.

A likely result of Comprehensive Immigration Reform will be a large backlog of cases involving undocumented aliens in the United States of America. The current resources used to pre-authorize K1 and K3 visas could be rediverted to adjudicating cases of undocumented aliens while those seeking K1 and K3 visas could begin filing directly with the United States Consular posts abroad. The argument that preapproval is necessary for Immigrant visas (such as the IR1 and CR1 visa) rings a bit more true since those entering the United States on this visa receive permanent residence upon entry.

Tags: CIR, Comprehensive Immigration Reform, CR1 Visa Thailand, Immigration Process, K1 Visa Thailand, K3 Visa Thailand, US Visa Thailand
Posted in Adjustment of Status, Fiance Visa Thailand, K-3 Visa Thailand, K1 Visa Thailand, Legal Opinion, Miscellaneous, us embassy bangkok, US Embassy Thailand, US Visa and Immigration, US Visa Thailand | No Comments »

There is some debate as to what type of visa is the fastest to obtain for American men married to Thai women. In the past the K-3 Visa was a quicker and more efficient way of bringing a Thai wife to the USA in comparison to the Immigrant Relative Visas (CR-1 and IR-1). However, at the time of this writing the K3 is not processing as fast compared to the CR-1 to make it a good option for most couples.

There was a time when it took 3 years for USCIS to adjudicate an I-130 application submitted by a US Citizen on behalf of his Thai wife. Since USCIS has now streamlined their adjudication process the published adjudication time frame is the same for both the I-130 application as well as the I-129f application (the I-129f application was traditionally used to apply for a K-1 Visa and when an expedited marriage visa was created in the form of the K3 the I-129f application form was chosen as the application form to obtain the visa). Since the adjudication time estimate is the same the speed factor has been nullified as a reason for obtaining a K3 over an Immigrant Visa.

Dual Petitions

The K-3 filing is a supplemental visa petition with USCIS. When one files for a K3, they must first submit an I-130 petition, then after receiving Notice of Action 1 (the letter from USCIS stating that they received the application), an I-129f petition is submitted which includes a copy of the Notice of Action 1.  Clearly, the problem facing someone attempting to self file is the fact that submitting 2 petitions requires double the paperwork.

After K3 Visa obtainment Adjustment of Status still required

In order for one to obtain permanent residence in the United States on a K3 Visa, the Thai wife must file an application to adjust status. The adjustment of status process can be somewhat costly and time consuming. However with a CR-1 or IR-1 Visa adjustment of status is unnecessary due to the fact that these visas confer permanent residence upon entry into the United States.

When comparing these two visa options, it becomes apparent that a K3 Visa with its lack of permanent residence conferral and marginally faster processing time from USCIS submission to interview at the US Embassy in Thailand is probably not the best options for most Thai-American married couples. However, there may be instances where a K3 Visa would be a better option in certain circumstances.

For more information please see: US Visa Thailand

Note: Nothing in this article should be used in lieu of competent advice from a licensed attorney.

Tags: CR1 Visa, CR1 Visa Thailand, I-129f, I-130, IR1 Visa, K3 Visa, K3 Visa Thailand, US Immigration Thailand, US Visa Thailand
Posted in US Visa and Immigration | 1 Comment »