K3 Marriage Visa for U.S. - Getting Started

[bendshead]

I am a U.S. citizen married to a Thai woman. We would like to pursue a K3 Visa so we can live in the U.S.. Currently, we live together in Thailand. Some general questions to help us get started...

• Will we be able to complete the K3 Visa process while living together in Thailand? Or do I need to be residing in the U.S.?
• What are the general financial requirements (ie., income amount, savings, retirement funds, etc.)? My income while living here is low, so I am concerned. In the U.S., I have no issue with high-paying employment.
• Is it possible to have my family in the U.S. co-sponsor our application (ie., they are financially secure)?
• Can you recommend any online resources that help walk us through the process and requirements better than USCIS?
• Any general tips, warnings, things we should be aware before getting started?

Thanks!

[Thanyaburi Mac]

You can start the process by reading here: http://bangkok.usembassy.gov/immigrant_visas.html

Since you both live here, you will most likely be eligible to do the Direct Consular Filing with the local USCIS office down near the Embassy, this'll save a whole lot of time:

http://www.uscis.gov/about-us/find-uscis-office/international-offices/thailand-bangkok-field-office

You should also take a wander through this helpful www site: www.visajourney.com

Your Qs should be pretty well answered after reviewing the materials noted.

Good luck with the process!

Mac

[sirineou]

^^^^^I agree With Mac above,

Visajourney.com is a great resource on your quest for K3 visa, a few years back we did our K1 visa and used visajourney.com extensively for advice.

I am happy to report that a couple of months ago my wife got her US citizenship.

My wife also used the following forum for Thais seeking a visa to the US, it is all in Thai, and was a great resource for my wife

Usvisa4thai.com

she was able to chat with some of the other ladies who were going through the same process, and discuss documents, timelines, and problems that might arise.

Good Luck

[daboyz1]

For all intents and purposes, K-3 is no longer available. Also, K visas are not available through DCF (Direct Consular Filing) anyway You'll want to look at the IR-1 or CR-1 depending how long you've been married.

The financial requirements will be 125% of the poverty line, which for 2 people in 2014 is 19,662 USD. See here:

http://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/files/form/i-864p.pdf

If you file the I-864 for CR-1/IR-1 co-sponsors are allowed.

As others have said, head over to visjourney and start reading. You'll get a lot of help there. One recent filer went the DCF route in Bangkok and had everything done start to finish in about 3 months. If you file from the U.S. you're looking at roughly a year. So it's a good thing you're looking into this before moving back to the U.S. I wish I would've done the same back in 2006.

[bendshead]

Thanks for the great advice!

I called the local USCIS office in Bangkok to see if I qualify for the Direct Consular Filing. That is, am I considered to be a Thailand resident for at least six months? The response I received was that because much of my time here has been on a tourist visa, it would be hard to demonstrate residency. They would not give me a specific set of requirements or criteria to meet. They only said residency qualification is determined on a case by case basis, and I would have to come down to their office. I could bring my bank book, passport, condo lease.

The deal is this... I lived in Thailand for five years. Then I went back to States for a year to take care of family business. Been back in Thailand for seven months now. Married for four of those months. Stayed in a monthly apartment for first the months. Now in a condo with six month lease. I have a TH drivers license. I only got my Non-O a couple of weeks ago. I've been with my wife for six years.

Any advice on what I can do to demonstrate residency?

[daboyz1]

Thanks for the great advice!

I called the local USCIS office in Bangkok to see if I qualify for the Direct Consular Filing. That is, am I considered to be a Thailand resident for at least six months? The response I received was that because much of my time here has been on a tourist visa, it would be hard to demonstrate residency. They would not give me a specific set of requirements or criteria to meet. They only said residency qualification is determined on a case by case basis, and I would have to come down to their office. I could bring my bank book, passport, condo lease.

The deal is this... I lived in Thailand for five years. Then I went back to States for a year to take care of family business. Been back in Thailand for seven months now. Married for four of those months. Stayed in a monthly apartment for first the months. Now in a condo with six month lease. I have a TH drivers license. I only got my Non-O a couple of weeks ago. I've been with my wife for six years.

Any advice on what I can do to demonstrate residency?

I'd take what you have down there and see what they say. It sounds like they're not outright telling you no. What type of Thai visa did you have for the previous 5 years?

[bendshead]

Will do, thanks.

Previously, I was on an extension of stay for work with a multi-national.

[jwschroeder]

My apologies if this has been answered elsewhere, but my Thai wife and I (a US citizen) will be living and working in Bangladesh next year, and plan to apply for the K3 Visa from there. Is this possible, and are there any other issues or documents she'd need to take care of here in Thailand before returning to Bangladesh? She already has a 10 year tourist visa to the US, and we've visited twice just this year.

Thanks for any help.

[daboyz1]

My apologies if this has been answered elsewhere, but my Thai wife and I (a US citizen) will be living and working in Bangladesh next year, and plan to apply for the K3 Visa from there. Is this possible, and are there any other issues or documents she'd need to take care of here in Thailand before returning to Bangladesh? She already has a 10 year tourist visa to the US, and we've visited twice just this year.

Thanks for any help.

The reality is there is no more K-3 visa. Even if they still issued them, you can't apply for a K visa without having an approved I-129F which can only be filed from the U.S. What you're looking for is an IR-1/CR-1 visa. (CR-1 = married less than 2 years)

Just about every consulate requires that the U.S. citizen petitioner reside in that country for more than 6 months on a valid long term visa (not a tourist visa) in order to file the petition directly with the consulate. This is referred to as DCF (Direct Consular FIling)