The Philippines K1 visa process is very detailed and complicated. This paperwork is difficult and exacting must be completed correctly or your visa application can be delayed or denied altogether.

Brief summary of the fiancee visa process.

What Is a Fiancee?

A Fiancee is a person who is engaged or contracted to be married. The marriage must be legally possible according to laws of the state in the United States where the marriage will take place.

In general, the two people must have met in person within the past two years. The Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) grants some exceptions to this requirement. For example, it may be contrary in some traditions for a man and woman to meet before marriage.

Sometimes the USCIS considers a person a "Fiancee" even though a marriage contract has been concluded. In such cases, the American citizen petitioner and his/her spouse have not met, and they have not consummated the marriage.

How Does a K1 Fiancé Visa Work?

If you are an American citizen and you want your foreign Fiancee to travel to the United States to marry you and live in the U.S., you must file Petition for Alien Fiancee in the United States.

Filing the K1 Visa Petition

The K-1 visa is similar to processing an immigrant visa petition in that civil and financial documents are required. You must file the Petition for Alien Fiancee, Form I-129F, with the Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) office that serves the area where you live. See the Department of Homeland Security's USCIS Field Offices for information on where you can file the petition. Note: You cannot file this petition at an embassy, consulate, or U.S. immigration office abroad.

After the USCIS approves the petition, it sends the petition to National Visa Center for processing, prior to sending it to the embassy or consulate where your Fiancee will apply for a K-1 nonimmigrant visa for a Fiancee.

The unmarried children under age 21 of the K-1 visa holder may be given K-2 visa, if they seek to accompany or follow to join the primary visa holder. Although the K-1 and K-2 visas are described as nonimmigrant visas, these visas are processed at the Immigrant Visa Unit at the U.S. Embassy. 

What Should I Know about International Marriage Broker Regulation Act (IMBRA)?

The International Marriage Broker Regulation Act (IMBRA) has requirements that must be followed.

In order to be compliant with this US law and to ensure there are no problems with women who meet US clients and wish to apply for fiancee or spouse visa. It is important that as a US citizen you comply with the IMBRA requirements. The US embassies are now asking for this information when the women are applying for a US visa. Failure to demonstrate the woman have been fully informed of any relevant criminal background may lead to refusal of a visa.

IMBRA limits the number of K1 fiancee visa petitions a sponsor can file or have approved without seeking a waiver of the limits.

If you met your fiancee or spouse through the services of an international marriage broker, you must notify USCIS of that fact by answering Question 19 on form I-129F Petition for Alien Fiancee. The term “international marriage broker” means a corporation, partnership, business, individual, or other legal entity, whether or not organized under any law of the United States, that charges fees for providing dating, matrimonial, matchmaking services, or social referrals between United States citizens or nationals or aliens lawfully admitted to the United States as lawful permanent residents and foreign national clients by providing personal contact information or otherwise facilitating communication between individuals.

IMBRA requires that a man discloses all his past criminal history, visa petition history, past marital and divorce history, ages of children under age 18 to the lady BEFORE he can get her contact information or otherwise communicate with her. The international marriage broker must collect this information, and then check the National Sex Offender public registry and state public registry for each man, provide all this information to the woman, and secure a signed and written consent from the woman to release her contact information to that particular man.

A Fiancée Is Also an Immigrant

A K-1 visa is a nonimmigrant visa. Because K1 visas permit the holder to immigrate to the U.S. and marry an American citizen shortly after arrival in the United States, the Fiancee must meet some of the requirements of an immigrant visa.

Requirements for a K-1 Visa

• You must be a USA citizen. Lawful permanent resident "green card" holders of the United States are not allowed to obtain fiance visas.
• You must be able to prove that you are ready, willing, and legally able to marry. This means that if either of you has been married previously, you are either divorced, widowed or the marriage was annulled.
• Same-sex marriages are not recognized by immigration law for the purpose of immigrating to the U.S.
• You have met your Fiancee in person within the previous 2 years prior/before we file your petition for a K-1 visa. You DO NOT have to have had a 2-year long relationship.
  Meeting Requirement: Exceptions: There is a provision in the law that may exempt the petitioner from the meeting requirement "if it is established that compliance would result in extreme hardship to the petitioner." INA § 214.2(k)(2). Unfortunately, such waivers are very rarely ever granted by the USCIS. The "extreme hardship" exception has been interpreted by the USCIS to mean something very close to "impossible". It generally is available only to people who are so disabled that they cannot fly at all. The proof of the meeting can consist of photos together, passport stamps, hotel vouchers, phone log records from the petitioner, hotel to the fiancee phone.
• You must demonstrate genuine intentions to marry your fiancée after she arrives in the U.S.
• The petitioner must also meet certain income requirements, normally 125 percent of the current poverty level.
• There are also new statutes, which are part of the Homeland Security Act, which pertains to K 1 Visas that you need to be aware of.

The visa application procedures involve two steps:

1. Filing the Fiancee Visa Petition.
2. Approval of the K1 visa at a U.S. Consulate in the country where the beneficiaries currently lives.

• A passport valid for travel to the United States and with a validity date at least six months beyond the applicant's intended period of stay in the United States (unless country-specific agreements provide exemptions).
• Birth certificates from both of you
• Divorce or death certificate of any previous spouse for both the applicant and the petitioner
• Police certificate from all places lived since age 16
• Medical examination & vaccinations
• Form I-129F (Petition for Alien Fiancee). If you have minor children who are eligible to accompany you, then you must enter their details on this form
• Proof of U.S. citizenship, examples include U.S. passport, original U.S. birth certificate, Certificate of Citizenship or Certificate of Naturalization
• Evidence of financial support (Form I-134, Affidavit of Support may be requested.)
• Two Nonimmigrant Visa Applications, Form DS-156 (A Form DS-156, prepared in duplicate.)
• One Nonimmigrant K1 Fiancee Visa Application, Form DS-156K
• Evidence of approval to marry if you or your fiance(e) are subject to any age restrictions
• Two nonimmigrant visa photos
• Proof of valid relationship with your fiancee
• Payment of fee

·         Vaccination Requirements

United States immigration law requires immigrant visa applicants to obtain certain vaccinations prior to the issuance of an immigrant visa. The actual list of vaccinations given to the fiancee is rather long, and United States government agencies publish these lists, however, depending on your age and previous history, you may only need a few of them, perhaps none at all. When you go for your medical exam, the doctor there can help you determine what vaccinations (if any) you will require. The cost of the vaccinations is included in the fee for the medical exam.

Required documents for the K-1 visa:

1. Original and Photocopy of Proof of Payment for the Visa Interview.
2. Passport and photocopy of first and last page of your Passport.
3. Officially issued copy of your birth certificate for embassy interview.
4. Copies of Termination of Prior Marriage (if either petitioner or fiancee has been previously married).
5. Police Clearance (recent copy) for embassy interview.
6. Foreign Police Certificate from every country where they have lived for one year or more since reaching the age of 16 (six months or more for K-1 visa applicants) for embassy interview.
7. Evidence of Financial Support, which shall include the Affidavit of Support, which shall be filed up by the petitioner, and a copy of the sponsor’s most recent Federal income tax returns as well as the previous W-2 of the petitioner.
8. Evidence of your ongoing relationship; cards, letters, emails, chats, and phone bills.

You must perfectly execute all the steps or your petition will be denied.