Need Advise On Whether To Apply For A Fiancee Or Marriage Visa For Usa

[hastings]

I am going to lay out our situation and hope some people with experience can help with some sage advice. I reside and work in California. I am self-employed as an attorney (I have my own law offices although I know nothing about immigration). My Thai fiancée, a university grad, lives and works in Bangkok. Although we have known each other a year, we have only just become engaged (after I made six visits to Thailand to see her). Once married, we plan to reside in California (so she will need to immigrate).

I understand that the process for immigrating to the USA can take several months. Which process, a marriage visa or a fiancée visa, will allow us to be together in the USA sooner? We have tentatively planned to marry in Thailand in late March 2007 (initial thought was that we would apply for a marriage visa shortly thereafter). However, I have been told that it could be several months before she would be allowed to join me. Alternatively, we are also willing to wait and get married in the USA if a fiancée visa would allow her to immigrate sooner.

What would be the best bet?

Make the marriage official in Thailand or in America? Come over on the fiancée or marriage visa?

If I applied for a fiancée visa, and married in March while it was still pending, would that create additional problems and delay? Could we withdraw the application for the fiancée visa under those circumstances (and then convert it to a marriage visa application) without losing ground?

One small (hopefully) wrinkle. About 5 or 6 years ago my fiancée was granted a fiancée visa to marry another American. After she came to the USA, her fiancée had cold feet and called off the engagement several days before the wedding. My fiancée promptly returned to Thailand: timely but without having married. Will this effect our application (marriage or fiancée)?

Any advice or stories from your prior experiences would be appreciated. Thanks

[greenwanderer108]

You can still get traditionally married in Thailand, surely appeasing her and her family/parents which would not make you legally married and thus still eligible for the K1 visa (fiance visa) to marry in the states if in fact the K1 has proved to be swifter than the K3 in general...which I can not confirm either way.

Can someone confirm whether being traditionally married (via ceremony but no regestration) has any affect - or + on the K1 application ?