How much does a 90 day fiancé visa cost?
Do you want to apply for a K-1 US Fiancé Visa? Before applying, you should be aware of all of the costs involved in the process.
For further advice and guidance about the K-1 Visa application process, get in touch with our immigration attorney’s today on +1 844 290 6312.
What is the US Fiancé Visa?
If you are a U.S citizen, the Fiancé Visa, also known as the K-1 visa, will allow you to bring your foreign fiancé to the US so that you can get married. This non-immigrant visa is only valid for 90 days so you must be married within this time limit. After you marry your foreign fiancé, they can then apply to the U.S Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to adjust their status to become a lawful permanent resident in the United States.
The K-1 Visa application must be submitted by a US citizen sponsor, not the foreign fiancé. As well as being a US citizen you must be able to prove your intention to marry within 90 days, both be free to marry in the US, have met your fiancé at least once in the past 2 years and meet the income requirements.
How much does a K-1 Visa cost?
When applying for the K-1 visa, the US sponsor must first file an official K-1 visa petition for alien fiancé. To do this you will need to file an I-129F petition with the USCIS. The filing fee for this form is currently $535, the payment must be made at the time of filing.
Once the I-129F petition form has been approved it will be sent to the National Visa Center (NVC). You will then need to file an official K-1 Visa application and will need to attend a face to face interview with a Consular Officer at their local U.S Embassy or Consulate. The Consulate fee for a nonimmigrant visa application to be processed is $265. This fee will need to be paid towards the end of the visa application process and must be paid directly to whichever US embassy that your K-1 visa interview takes place at.
In total, the application cost for a K-1 Visa amounts to $800.
Other costs that you may incur
It’s important to know that there are other costs that you may incur as part of your K-1 Visa application.
Your foreign fiancé will be required to undergo medical exams in their home country before travelling to the US to attend an interview at a U.S Consulate or Embassy. The costs for a medical examination vary depending on the country and can range from $60 up to $300.
Whilst not a part of the application costs, you should also consider the cost of travel to the U.S, flight prices can vary greatly depending on where you are travelling from and may be significant.
When applying for the K-1 Visa your foreign fiancé will also need to provide a number of documents such as their birth certificate, police certificates and passport. You may incur other costs whilst gathering these documents and will need to pay for them to be translated if they are not in English.
If your foreign fiancé wishes to bring a dependent child with them to the US, then you will also incur extra costs. You will need to apply for a K-2 visa to bring a child, there is no UCIS fee if the child is accompanying the K-1 applicant, but you will have to pay an additional embassy fee and medical exam costs.
The cost to adjust the status of a K-1 Visa
Usually, foreign nationals who come to the United States on a K-1 Visa intend to make the US their permanent residence, so K-1 visa holders often take the route of applying to adjust their status. Seeking an adjustment of status will allow the foreign spouse to become a full permanent resident with a green card.
If you take the cost of applying for a green card into account of the total cost of your immigration journey on a K-1 Visa, then the cost will be significantly higher.
This is because the Initial filing of form I-485, which is the application for adjustment of status, costs $1,140. As well as this filing fee, the foreign spouse will also need to have their biometric information taken, this costs $85.
Obtaining a green card will come with many benefits for you and your partner, allowing you to make the U.S your permanent home. However, the costs are expensive and if you consider the cost of an application to adjust status after you get married, alongside the costs for the initial K-1 Visa application, then the overall cost of your immigration journey will be a minimum of $2,025.
What is the income requirement for a Fiancé Visa?
Another financial aspect that you should consider before applying for a K-1 visa is whether you are able to meet the income requirements. Whilst most US visas require the foreign citizen to be able to support themselves financially whilst living in the US, the K-1 visa requires the US petitioner to be able to provide financial support for themselves and their foreign fiancé whilst in the US.
Luckily, the K-1 Fiancé Visa financial requirements are fairly easy to meet. The U.S citizen, who filed form I-129F petition for alien fiancé, will need to prove that their current income is enough to keep both themselves and their fiancé living above the poverty line. Your income will be calculated based on your expected total income from all sources for the current year.
The cost of hiring a lawyer to assist with a K-1 Visa application
Applying for a visa to enter the United States is often a complex process, this is why it is highly advised that you seek professional assistance with your application from an immigration lawyer. The cost of hiring an immigration lawyer can greatly increase the cost of your overall K-1 Visa application, however, it can also save you money.
The application process is complicated and the fees to apply are high, if you have your application refused then you will have to go through the same process and pay the fees again, refusals can be common due to mistake within the application. An immigration lawyer can save you time and money by ensuring that you get your application right the first time. Our attorneys are trained in all areas of U.S immigration law and can ensure that your application is completed accurately and to the highest standard. They will be there for you throughout the entire K-1 Visa process, helping you to gather any documents that you may need and answering any questions that you may have.
The cost of hiring an immigration lawyer to assist you with your application will vary depending on your individual circumstances and the services that you will require. Here at IAS, we believe in transparent prices and there are no hidden costs to our services. We offer free consultations where one of our immigration specialists can provide you with a quote that will cover all of the services that you will need.
Get in touch today on +1 844 290 6312 to receive your quote.