Overview
The fiancé(e) K-1 nonimmigrant visa is for the foreign-citizen fiancé(e) of a U.S. citizen. The K-1 visa permits the foreign-citizen fiancé(e) to travel to the United States and marry his or her U.S. citizen sponsor within 90 days of arrival. You can learn more about fiancé(e) visas on usvisas.state.gov.
How to Apply
The first step in obtaining a K-1 visa is for your U.S. citizen fiancé(e) to file a Form I-129F (Petition for Alien Fiancé(e)) by mail with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Once your fiancé(e) has filed a petition for you, you may check its status by accessing the USCIS Case Status Search Page.
USCIS forwards the approved petition to the Department of State’s National Visa Center, which then sends it to the Consular Section at the U.S. Embassy in Muscat. The Embassy will then send our instructions for K-1/K-2 applicants.
Please follow the instructions exactly. Failure to do so could result in a delay in your case and could even cause you to lose your chance to live and work in the United States.
Medical Examination
All applicants, regardless of age, are required to complete a medical examination performed by an Embassy approved physician prior to their visa interview. We cannot accept medicals performed by any other physician.
Vaccinations
On the day of the medical examination, the Embassy panel physician will be required to verify that you have met the vaccination requirement. Please note: If you are applying for a K visa, you are not required to meet the vaccination requirements at the time of your visa interview. You will, however, be required to meet the requirement at the time you apply for an adjustment of status with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in the United States.
Required Documents
You are required to obtain the original documents or certified copies, and one photocopy (with the exception of your passport and photographs) of the following documents for yourself and each family member applying for a visa. All documents are required even if they were previously submitted to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services with your petition.
You are required to bring only the documents applicable to you on the day of the interview. The failure to do so may result in your application being denied.
Passport
The passport must be valid for travel to the United States and must have at least eight months validity from the date on which the visa is issued. Children may be included on a parent’s passport, but if over the age of 16, their photographs must be printed in the passport.
Birth Certificate
You must provide an original birth certificate from an appropriate government authority (issuing entity). The certificate must contain the individual’s date and place of birth, names of both parents and an annotation by the appropriate authority indicating that it is an extract from the official records.
In certain countries, this certificate may not be available. If you are from a country where government-issued birth certificates are not available, please obtain a certified statement from the appropriate government authority stating the reason the birth record is unavailable. Along with this statement, you must submit secondary evidence (e.g., baptismal certificate, adoption decree or an affidavit from a close relative, preferably the applicant’s mother/father stating the date and place of birth, both parent’s names and the mother’s maiden name). The affidavit must be executed before an official authorized to take oaths or affirmation.
Adoption Certificate
If applicable, obtain the original or a certified copy of your adoption certificate. The certificate must show date and place of adoption, along with the names of the adoptive parents. This certificate must be issued by a public authority and show that a public record exists of the adoption.
Name Change Document
Legal documents providing evidence of your name change.
Divorce Decree or Death Certificate
If you have previously been married you should be prepared to submit evidence of the termination of the marriage (i.e. divorce decree or death certificate)
Police Certificate
Required for all countries where you have lived for more than 12 months since the age of 16 and any country where you have been arrested, even if you were not resident there. U.S. police certificates are not required. Police certificates from certain countries are unavailable or are obtained directly by this office.
Court Records
If you have been convicted of a crime you must obtain a certified copy of each court record and any prison record, regardless of whether you have subsequently benefited from an amnesty, pardon or other act of clemency.
Court records should include: Complete information regarding the circumstance surrounding the crime of which you were convicted and the disposition of the case, including sentence or other penalty or fine imposed;
Military Records
If you have served in the military forces of any country you must obtain your military record. On the day of the visa interview you will be required to provide either your discharge papers or evidence of terminal leave from the forces. Note: Military records from certain countries are unavailable.
Photographs
Two color photographs meeting the photo requirements. These photographs must be full-face and taken within the last six (6) months.
Affidavit of Support
K and Diversity visa applicants are not required to provide an I-864 Form. However, they must show evidence that they are not likely to become public charges while in the United States. There is no set for that this evidence must take but use of the form I-134 is an efficient way to provide this information to the Consular Officer.
Translations
All documents not in English must be accompanied by certified English translations. The translation must include a statement signed by the translator that states that the translation is accurate. Only one copy is needed. Note: Applicants are also required to submit the original document, in the original language.
The Interview
Interviews are by appointment only. You are required to schedule your appointment online once you have taken the necessary steps, and collected the necessary documents to process your visa application. You are required to bring the confirmation page that is generated when the appointment is scheduled. You will find this document by clicking on the “Print Instructions” link in the application website.
Case Status
At the end of your immigrant visa interview, the consular officer will inform you whether your visa application is approved or denied. You will also be informed how and when your passport and visa will be returned to you. Carefully review the information on the Fiancé(e) Visa Process on usvisas.state.gov to learn what to do when you receive your visa, entering the United States, and other important information.
Some visa applications require further administrative processing, which takes additional time after the visa applicant’s interview by a consular officer. Applicants are advised of this requirement when they apply. Most administrative processing is resolved within 60 days of the visa interview. When administrative processing is required, the timing will vary based on the individual circumstances of each case. You can check the status of your visa application on ceac.state.gov.
If your visa has been denied, you may find useful information on Ineligibilities and Waivers on usvisas.state.gov.
Entry into the United States
The validity period of an immigrant and fiancé(e) visa is based on the medical examination, the maximum validity of which is six months from the date on which the medial examination is completed. You will be advised further at your interview. K-3 visas are usually valid for travel for two years from the date of issuance. A K-4 visa is valid for two years or until the day before the holder’s twenty-first birthday, whichever is shorter.
If you are unable to travel to the United States before the visa expires, you should return the visa to the Immigrant Visa Unit with a covering letter explaining why you have been unable to travel. Please do not return the visa until it has expired. Your case will be reviewed by a consular officer and if you are able to show, to the satisfaction of the consular officer, that the reason for not traveling was due to circumstances beyond your control, a new visa will be issued. You will be required to pay new visa processing and issuance fees and may be required to attend a further medical examination. Further information will be provided to you once your case has been reviewed.