K1 Visa Requirements: How to Qualify for a Fiance Visa

The K1 visa, also known as the fiancé visa, is a great option to bring your fiancé to the United States. Through the K1 visa, a U.S. citizen can apply for their fiancé to get a special visa to the United States. Once the fiancé enters the United States, they can marry their U.S. citizen fiancé and apply for a green card in the U.S. (without leaving).

In this guide, I’m going to explain the 4 K1 visa requirements. If you have any questions, please email me at Michael@AshooriLaw.com. I’m an experienced immigration lawyer and I would be happy to help you.

As a general overview, there are 4 main requirements to qualify for a K1 visa:

1. Petitioner Must be a U.S. Citizen

2. Both Parties Must be Free to Marry

3. Must have Intent to Get Married within 90 Days

4. Physical Meeting Requirement

1. Petitioner Must be a U.S. Citizen

To qualify for a k1 visa, the petitioner must be a U.S. citizen. This means that the person filing the immigration paperwork for their foreign fiancé must be a U.S. citizen. A U.S. lawful permanent resident (green card holder) is not eligible to apply for a K1 visa for their foreign fiancé.

Important Note: While green card holders are not eligible to apply for the K1 visa, they can still apply for a marriage-based green card for their spouse. To qualify for a marriage-based green card, you must be married to your spouse before filing the immigration paperwork.

2. Both Parties Must be Free to Marry

Another requirement for the K1 visa is that both the U.S. citizen and the foreign fiancé must be free to marry. This means that if either person is currently married, they do not qualify for a k1 visa. All prior marriages must be terminated before applying for a fiancé visa.

3. Intent to Get Married Within 90 Days

To qualify for a k1 visa, both parties must have the intent to get married to each other within 90 days of the foreign fiancé’s admission to the United States. What this means is that both the U.S. citizen and the foreign fiancé must plan on getting married within 90 days of the foreign fiancé’s arrival to the U.S.

When submitting the k1 visa application, it is important include clear evidence, including signed statements from both parties, explaining their intention to get married within 90 days.

4. Physical Meeting Requirement

Another requirement for the K1 visa is that you and your fiancé must have met in person within the last 2-years prior to filing the K1 visa paperwork. This means that you must provide evidence demonstrating that you’ve actually physically met each other within the last 2 years.

Helpful evidence to prove that you’ve actually met in person include photographs, flight itineraries, hotel bookings, etc.

Exceptions to the Physical Meeting Requirement

If you have not met your fiancé in person within the last 2 years, there are 2 exceptions that you may potentially qualify for.

Extreme Hardship Exception

To qualify for the extreme hardship exception, you must show that there is an extreme hardship preventing either party from satisfying the physical meeting requirement. An example of extreme hardship would be if there are medical issues which impact either person’s ability to travel. Another example of an extreme hardship would be if there is political turmoil which prevents travel to/from the fiancé’s home country.

If you plan to use this exception, you should have evidence to support your position.

Established Custom Exception

To qualify for the established custom exception, you must show that meeting each other in person would violate long-standing and strict customs of the foreign fiancé’s social practice or culture.

If you will be using this exception, you should have evidence demonstrating that these are long-standing customs. You should also include evidence proving that you are complying with these customs.

Conclusion

Through the K1 visa, a U.S. citizen can apply for their fiancé to get a visa to the United States. Once the foreign fiancé enters the United States, they can marry their U.S. citizen fiancé and apply for a green card in the U.S. (without leaving).

You should now have a much better understanding of the K1 visa requirements. As a quick overview, there are 4 main requirements:

1. Petitioner Must be a U.S. Citizen

2. Both Parties Must be Free to Marry

3. Both Parties Must have Intent to Get Married within 90 Days

4. Physical Meeting Requirement

If you have any questions about the K1 visa requirements, feel free to email me directly at Michael@AshooriLaw.com. I’m a U.S. immigration lawyer would be happy to help you.