Getting engaged is cause for celebration. It means that you have found someone with whom to spend your life. It also means that you might eventually own a house together and start a family. All of that can be particularly challenging if you have fallen in love with someone outside of the country. 

Thankfully, a K-1 or fiancée visa makes it easier for you to bring your fiancée to the United States to live with you. The three steps below are all important parts of the immigration process for your fiancée.

Undergoing a background check and medical exam

Anyone hoping to enter the United States with a visa will need to submit to a background check performed by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Typically, they also have to submit medical documentation or undergo an exam.

Gathering evidence about your relationship

The USCIS does its best to prevent abuse of its various visa programs. Requiring a bona fide relationship between fiancées is one way the USCIS tries to prevent immigration fraud. Information about your early courtship, social media evidence of your relationship and other personal records that help validate your relationship will help you prepare for the interviews necessary to bring your fiancée to the United States.

Setting a date for your wedding

Engaged couples that are both from the same country can take as long as they want to plan their wedding. However, when your fiancée is from another country, you don't have that luxury. You will have 90 days from when they enter the country to officially get married.

You will need to have a lot of planning taken care of before you schedule their entry into the country. Trying to manage all of the details of securing a K-1 visa and planning a wedding at the same time can be very difficult. An immigration attorney in California can help handle the red tape required to get a visa so that you can focus on your relationship and your upcoming wedding.

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