Who Should Prepare The Fiance Visa Paperwork
K-1 Fiancé Visa or the K-3 Spousal Visa:· One obvious way is for
you to complete the paperwork by yourself· Another way is to use
a service to complete your paperwork· Or you could hire an
attorney to complete the paperworkEach method has its good points and
its bad points.Completing it by yourself is the least expensive way to
file your paperwork. But then again, you are going to spend a fair
amount of time doing it by yourself.There will be a fairly high
learning curve, so you are going to be spending even more time
learning how to complete the paperwork so you don't screw it up.Do It
Yourself Fiance Visa Kit:If you do decide to do the paperwork
yourself, it is best to buy one of the "K-1 fiancé kits' available.
You will have complete instructions and all the forms necessary to
complete your application.Using a service is a higher cost than doing
it by yourself. However, you aren't going to invest as much time
learning the ins and outs of the visa application process.However, you
are still going to be spending a lot of time getting the supporting
documentation together. In fact, this is going to take a lot more time
than it will to complete the forms.A service can fill out the
paperwork for you. They know more than you do about fiancé visas. But
your the one who is going to be doing all the donkeywork.The problem
with fiancé visa services is that they are not regulated or licensed
and you are at their mercy as to their level of competence.If the
service screws up my paperwork, they don't have any legal liability.
They don't have any risk. "Sorry, better luck next time."Foreign visa
service companies are the worst choice possible. Not only do they not
have any legal liability, they are often ignorant of US law. The
regulations that govern the processing of the Fiancé Visa are US
law.Using an attorney is going to be the most expensive process.
You probably are going to spend fifteen hundred to two thousand dollars
for an attorney to complete your fiancé visa paperwork.A service is
probably going to be charging you about half of that. But the skill level
of an attorney is greater than the skill level of a service. Right?Maybe?
It is if you use an attorney that specializes in immigration law, that
uses a software program for preparing the paperwork; if he has a lot of
clients emigrating from the CIS countries; and if he is conscientious in
the completion of his paperwork and in staying on top of his client's
cases.
That's a lot of ifs! I used an attorney - an immigration attorney - a nice
guy who I personally like a lot. However, I was his first client applying
under a fiancé visa who was emigrating from the CIS countries.I live in
California. His typical immigration client was a Mexican national who had
immigration problems with the INS. He knew those cases cold.My case was
not his area of specialization. He went to school on me.Secondly, I
frequently knew more about how to get things done than he did. I knew
about the problems with mail in CIS countries. We spent months while
important documents went back and forth and got lost in the mail.He made
mistakes in the details. I had to proofread the forms he was submitting
and make corrections. They weren't horrible mistakes, but there shouldn't
have been any mistakes.Have All Your Documents Ready For The Next
Step:Third, instead of having me garner documents for the next phase of
the operation, he always waited to the last minute to tell me what I
needed to get. There was always a waiting period to get the documents from
overseas, when I could have already had them in hand.I ended up generating
my supporting documentation three times! One time with the original
application. Another time for the embassy package to be presented at the
interview.And another time because our attorney said that the embassy
couldn't find our file. Of course, when I got to the embassy they had
found all the missing documents (probably in their filing cabinet).Of
course I was the one doing all the donkeywork, getting the supporting
documentation together. I had to badger him to keep the process moving.
When we didn't get an invitation from the embassy, he didn't know how to
resolve the problem. My fiancé kept calling until she got through and
solved the problem.He tried emailing and writing letters to the embassy,
but he didn't know how to effectively get their attention. She was the one
who found out what the problem was and resolved it.All in all, it took me
nine and a half months to get my fiancé to America under the K-1 Visa
provisions. I have never had anyone who I talked to who took longer to get
to America under a Fiancé Visa.Everything that could go wrong went wrong.
And this is with me being as conscientious as I possibly could. I hired an
attorney because I didn't want anything to go wrong in the process.Of
course, a large part of the problem was the Belarusian post office, on
whom I blame about two to three months of delays, my attorney who I blame
for two months of delays, plus a whole lot of extra work and unnecessary
stress, and of course, the INS and the US embassy, who are exactly what we
expect - government agencies.With the Belarusian Post Office and the US
Government Agencies I expect delays. After all I wasn't paying them any
money.But my attorney was the guy who was supposed to go to bat for me. I
paid him eighteen hundred dollars for first class travel and got a
second-class mule ride.The delays almost led to the break up of our
relationship. When my fiancé had waited nearly six months without getting
any documentation or substantiation from the embassy or anyone, she
started doubting my word.Her friends were putting words in her ears like,
"you know how American men are?"Soon I was the devil personified. I had to
make another trip to Belarus to keep our relationship together.
Fortunately, we soon heard from the INS.Delays Can Lead To The Breakup Of
Your Relationship:But then there were another three and a half months of
agonizing tension trying to schedule the interview at the embassy.I feel
like I applied for the fiancé visa three times - mainly because I did the
work to apply three times.I feel as though I could not have completed the
application quite as well as my attorney did. However, I do think I solved
more problems and kept the process moving better than my attorney did.As I
see it, I was not just paying him to fill out the forms, but more
importantly to fill them out properly so that I would have minimal
problems.I also feel that the reason that you hire an attorney is to help
you resolve problems. They are supposed to know how to solve problems that
come up.Just so you don't think I just like to whine about attorneys, my
personal experience with attorneys has been excellent. They are not cheap,
but the few times when I needed them, they were able to solve my problem
quickly, effectively, and with excellent result.I have only had two
circumstances in my life with attorneys who I thought did a less than
stellar job for me. This was one of those times.All that being said, what
is my recommendation? I still think it is best to hire an attorney. I know
a number of people who have done the paperwork themselves with less than
half the problems that I had and in half the time as my attorney was able
to deliver.Why do I recommend an attorney?:Because of the downside risk.
What is the result if you make a major blunder in applying for the fiancé
visa? Your fiancé doesn't get to America, that's what.
You spent a lot of time finding her, courting her, wooing her, and winning
her. You made a major investment in terms of time, money, and most of all
your heart.Are you willing to blow that all off because you're too cheap
to hire an attorney? You searched half way across the world for her. Don't
you want to make sure she gets here?"I'm sorry, honey. I screwed up the
visa. Better luck next time. Oh yeah, its your one and only chance to get
a fiancé visa and I screwed it up for you. Bummer. Okay, see you later.
When's my next tour to Russia scheduled to leave?"Not on my watch! I'm
going down fighting for my woman!So, yes. I recommend an attorney. A good
one. An experienced one. One who specializes in fiancé visas from CIS
countries. An attorney who knows how to solve problems when they come
up.You Don't Want A Fatal Mistake To Derail Your Fiance Visa Process
The main reasons for hiring an attorney is to eliminate the likelihood
that you will make mistakes when completing the paperwork and to insure
that your fiancé will be with you in the fastest manner possible.Delays in
the processing of fiancé visas are one of the main reasons that the
relationships fall apart during the waiting period, and mistakes can add
three to twelve months to getting your visa processed.The reason for
hiring an attorney is to make sure that the process goes smoothly. The
reason why the right attorney is worth his weight in gold is that he makes
sure that the fiancé visa petition is perfect when it is submitted to the
INS and that he can monitor your case as it is moves through the
bureaucratic system.Problems can occur even when the petition is perfect.
Your attorney must have the experience to solve any problem that may occur
with the INS or the US embassy.If a problem or delay does occur, you want
to have someone representing you who knows exactly what to do to get the
problem solved and keep the time of the delay to a minimum.Delays are the
number one reason that the romances fizzle out.An attorney has a higher
level of professionalism that they have to operate at than a service does.
They have more at risk. They can be sued. So get an attorney. Just make
sure you get a good one.
John has been to Russia and CIS countries many times. He has been
successfully married to his Belarussian wife for over five years. He
will show you how to meet her, how to bring her home, and how to
successfully survive marriage to a Russian woman. [web: russian-luv
.com/paperwork.html]
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